Does anyone actually run at or close to their maximum plated weight 
? The reason I ask, the jobs I’ve recently had (other than Walkers) through agency have been more carrying capcity than weight. Most of them could have gotten away with plating their vehicles at 34 tonnes gross and claimingthe lower tax bracket. It seemed laughable that one of them used six wheel Mercs plated at Max weight to deliver plastic piping 
. Out of interest I stuck one on a weighbridge to a chorous of “it’s nowhere near mate, don’t worry about it” type cries. 18 tonnes gross . I suppose it’s their money their wasting So just curious 
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On average twice per week, 36 tonnes. I check weighted one in at 41t the other week, (it felt a bit heavy1) 
seeing as vehicle plated at 38t. I kept the ticket for the management to send formal complaint to customer concerned.
we run at the plated wieght all the time were either full to the brim or empty
Ive been talking to a mate who runs wheeley bins from the factory to warehouse, running a 45 foot curtainsider, even with the bins stacked 10 high to th roof, and carrying between 600 - 900 bins hes still running at very low weight, 4-5 tonnes and if hes delivering plastic tanks etc, he may only be carrying 1 - 2 tonnes fully loaded, he runs so light that he can plate at the very lowest weight and tax his 4 x 2 unit extremely cheaply (car tax level)
I’m afraid we regularly run at the max 44t (and occaisionally a little over) on 6 axels. The most I’ve weighed in at was 49.5 but refused to take it out, went back n parked it up only for some other, stupider (!) driver take it without even asking Q’s.It wasn’t a prob cos the Co had already arranged trans- shipment to make it legal. Doh!
We do get some light loads but they’re rare n go to the ‘blue eyed boys’ which aint me lol
I did some work for a company running about 1.5 - 2 hours in each direction, the contract was to move fresh soup. If the demand was high move it into the factory, if it was low move it out. (this was fresh soup stored in a freezer !!! very fresh.)
Some nights I would move less than a pallet & during the couple of months I did it we could have used a 7.5 tonner, but the contract was for a Class one so each night I would drive out empty, park up have 4 - 5 hours in the canteen & then drive back.
I work as a tanker driver ill leave it at that
The trailer has a weigher which goes on the pressure on the middle axil and a sight glass.
I seem to run at around 44 tonnes a few hundred kg each way, but I have weighed in at 46300 kg
Same here, milk tankers, 9 times out of 10 running back in at max weight or not far off.
My Sprinter seemed to be running at max capacity this afternoon, when I called at a company to pick up 2 pallets for JCB. Weight was quoted at 405 kg but they were steel fabrications loaded into 2 stillages which probably weighed 405 kg empty!! Think I had well over a ton on board.
Calv
I have run milk tankers around and they come in at around 44t most times.
gurner do you ever go to the westbury milk procesing plant
Yes mate i work out of there, i live over near frome, and work on the westbury milk contract picking up from farms and tipping it into westbury 
gurner i was in there on the 2 january this year i had a 7 hr wait to tip is it always like that or was it just because of christmas time.
if you are on farm collections you will have priority will you
Most General Haulage will plate to the 44tons as even if your out loads are always light, it give you the flexibility for back loads.
Also buying 3 axle units for light work might help re-sale value or axle overloading problems on muti-drops when using a fridge or box-van and unloading from the back.
wylie:
gurner i was in there on the 2 january this year i had a 7 hr wait to tip is it always like that or was it just because of christmas time.
if you are on farm collections you will have priority will you
Christmas/New year time was a nightmare in there, xmas day was bad apparantly but i got out of working that due to the mrs giving birth a few days before , it got so full that they had to get empty tanks in and park them around the site and were transhipping our milk into the empty tanks.
Generally during the week you shouldnt have a problem in there, they have a steady flow of liners in, but weekends are anyones guess (and over the xmas/new year period) its really hit and miss, they seem to be taking alot of milk in recently, and some of our runs do 2 loads so tip in the morning, and get there to find that the silo’s are full or something, and they can hold something like 2.5 million litres!
But yes, when there are alot of liners in, they stop tipping them and open 2 of the bays for us and get that off usually before they start tipping the liners, at the weekends its normal to see them qued up all round the site to get in and tip.
thanks for that gurner
Our trucks all have 6 axles taxed at 44 tonne but i have never had one over 30 tonne, having recently started picking up containers i got one the other week a 40 footer weighting only 3 tonne plus the box = about 7 tonne.
I’d say it’s all about flexibility and the option of being at full weight. What if that job comes in that requires 44T? It’s not enough of a saving to be plated lower and reduce your options.
we tend to do very little dead mileage (empty) so i am almost always fully freighted at 44t. I forget what its like to fly up hills without changing down 
Plated to 44t and run at it - regularly.
Plated to 31t and very rarely get anywhere near it, even being 18t unloaded.