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Sunnyside, WA | First, I'm going to be up front and tell you I hate truck mounted mixers. We had two and I will most likely never own one again. Main problem is the truck is usually 90% of your break downs, and when it breaks you are done feeding. At least with a pull type you can unhook the tractor and keep going. And when you unhook the tractor, the only qualification the loaner tractor needs is that it can turn the pto at the same speed as the other tractors so your mix is always the same. If you buy a truck, make sure you have another spare mixer to use when the truck breaks. Enough of that--just a bad taste from truck mounted mixers.
We feed 3 loads per day 2 miles away. Used to feed 6 loads per day. Where will your feed be mixed? At the location 5 miles away or will you haul loads from the main farm and just unload? While trucks travel faster down the road, we can make a pull type work almost as fast since you can move while mixing. Make the load, start driving, we are almost all the way to the next location by the time the mixing is done. Truck you would still be sitting still waiting for it to mix.
Truck and trailer of the same size, the truck will usually get done sooner everyday. But trailers can be bought quite large and now we make 2/3 the loads we used to with a larger pull type mixer. Now one person can feed instead of two on the weekends, one tractor, less hours per year, less wear per wagon, etc.
Lots of Rotomix 1355's on truck around here. About as large as you can go truck mounted. Lots of dairies with 2 or more truck mounts switching to large pull types. Trioliet seems to be a poplar choice with the shiftronic transmission. Also have brakes on all the wagons.
We have jack knifed two our tractors on an icy day with the pull types. Hoping the trailer brakes will help.
If you do go with a truck, built a ramp or loading station. But then you always have to move your feed there. No loading dock needed--you move the wagon where its needs to be to get loaded the fastest.
Some of the best trucks for mixers are old logging trucks or cement trucks. Hp will be your issue on the cement truck. But you will want a Hendrickson walking beam rear suspension with a 46,000 lb capacity and a front axle with 16-20,000 lbs. Frame strength is key. Keep in mind that trucks were not meant to sit still and run at rated engine rpm and stay cool. Tractors are. You will be frustrated over time with the radiator on a truck. Tractors don't seem to have this problem. AC in a truck is also a pain.
Edited by J. Sheehan 2/5/2011 13:39
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Truck Mount TMR mixers
