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After cleaning it out and taking out some unnecessary clutter I finally got round to weighing my LDV today. And it came in bang on target!

I had hoped it would be under this target but as long as it wasn't over then it would be ok.

They gave me a ticket that read 2300kgs. It was handwritten so I'm guessing they rounded up or down a couple, unless it really was bang on 23?

Anyway that is good enough for me. Total payload availabe 1200kgs.

If we compare that to the payload of a standard LDV crew cab steel tipper (with no chip box) which is 1300kgs then I think I have got a much better vehicle all in and only lost 100kgs in the process.


Heres the breakdown.

XLWB Chassis cab 1550
Roller shutter box 125
Aluminium Tipper 345
Chip box 280

total 2300

Not far under my Transit! Are you going to load it up legally of just fill her up?

Not too shabby mate, Good stuff

Well thats up to me what I actully do with it! My old one weighed over 2500 empty so I'm better off with this one, thats good enough!

Is that weight with all your lowering gear on Rupe

I wasn't being funny with you Rupe! I was just wondering because you have taken a lot of effort in keeping the weight down. As I only run 1 3.5t Transit its not really practical to try and keep the weight legal. I just make sure lights, MOT, breaks etc are tip top and drive very carefully. Not saying it right and in a ideal world I wouldn't have to do it!

Sure, no worries, but I not goign to say I'm going to overload it everyday. When full to the brim it will be overloaded, we all know that and we all need to be careful of that.

3.5t tippers can probably carry a level load of woodchips in the existing tipper body. As soon as you put a chip box on you are creating extra load capacity that should not really exist, therefore it could be overloaded, but we all need chip boxes of some sort to keep our worksites tidy so it is a compromise.

Also a chip box (with roof) will keep the rain off. I'd rather carry a bit overloaded dry chip than a legal load in the rain with no cover on it which will double in weight by the time you get home.

I've made the effort to keep the weight down so it is less overloaded, or overloaded less often and also so its a better truck to drive empty. I know plenty of companies with crew cab steel tippers with steel framed chip boxes which must weigh more than 2500 empty and they all manage ok.


Oh I see the exclamation marks made it look as though I had the hump with you. Not at all.

That weight is empty as possible Dean. 3/4 a tank of fuel and thats it, I even took the dog out!

If we are moving woodchip/logs off a job then I would often have my car there as well with all the rigging/climbing kit in that. Only the saws go in the toolbox. That way only one person needs to go and tip and I can go straight home.

We generally only put all the gear in the truck if its a leave chip on site job (quite often) or smaller jobs that won't fill the truck.

Does the tool locker affect the weight distribution much when loaded with chip?

Hard to tell, but almost certainly yes, it must do. It drives so much better than the old one that it feels really good. I only felt it was very heavy when full of beech chips, but it was ok and I only went a couple of miles.

Beacuse my tipper is off a standard long wheel base, it is actually about 6 inches longer than you get it you had a crewcab tipper, so that extra six inches is over the back end so that all adds to the back axle.