Room for sleepers behind 915 series trucks?

[Hammer]

I am getting ready to buy an OTR truck.
Thing is, I would much rather get a 915 series truck and put a sleeper behind it.
Much cheaper, obviously.
Darn cool!
But HEAVY with the winch for the 916 and 920. Plus the drop in MPG with the front live axle.
I know I could pull the winch and at least put a coffin cab on a 916, and probably a decent sleeper on a 920. Bit of work, but doable.
Is there enough room to do this on a 915A1?
And, anyone know the weight of the entire winch setup from the 920?
Soni, didn't you take your setup off in lieu of an electric rear winch? Any idea on the weight savings?
I will have more to ask tomorrow, but I thought the sleeper idea behind a 915 series would be a good start. I need to be out on the road for 2 or 3 days at a time. And don't want to spend $ on a motel ALL the time!

 

[wsucougarx]

I don't know Ed, you don't need a sleeper. You can always try this Looks pretty comfy, I'd recommend at least a sleeping bag though

 

[Josh]

Hahaha

 

[srodocker]

hahahahahaha

 

[rwbrown72]

this might work!

 

[Hammer]

Mike, I was wondering when that photo would show up!
Darn funny!

Thing is, I don't want to stretch the frame, just throw the sleeper behind the cab and run it. At most, I would pull the winch , and put the sleeper there.
But if the 915a1 could have a coffin cab, that would be cheap and pretty darn useful setup.
I know the 920 could do it, but I would have to pull the winch. Plus the MPG drop.
The 915 would be nice, but it doesn't seem like there is enough room behind the cab to fit a sleeper and still pull a load.

 

[Hammer]

And while my 818 would look DARN COOL like that, it wouldn't make a good OTR truck.

 

[rwbrown72]

Mike, I was wondering when that photo would show up!
Darn funny!

Someone had to do it!

 

[Coldfusion21]

What's the story behind the od/civi looking truck posted above? Looks super cool!

 

[rwbrown72]

What's the story behind the od/civi looking truck posted above? Looks super cool!

http://www.steelsoldiers.com/members-rides/56157-xm818a2w-w.html

 

[OldGoat]

There is not enough room for a sleeper imo.

 

[maddawg308]

There would only be room for a sleeper if you plan on taking off the fifth-wheel, and using the pintle only for towing. If you have to have towing capability, and a decent sized sleeper, get a M920 like Soni H. did, here's a pic of his setup.

 

[wreckerman893]

Having been a civilian over the road driver and driver in the Army let me lend you my input.

M915s were built as line haul trucks but were not built for style or comfort. They have spring ride suspension and will beat your teeth out on a rough road. Empty or loaded.

No AC so you will cook in the summer...the heater wasn't much to write home about either.
Cab noise is terrible and everyhing in it rattles.....the vibration routinely backs out screws and unfastens important stuff.

You would have to stretch the frame to put a small sleeper on a M915.....you could put a "coffin sleeper" (capacity one wide and two deep) on a 916 or 920 if you removed the winch and moved the 5th wheel back.

If you are going to make short runs and spend nights in motels it would be an economical way to make some money since M915s are selling for less than 5K.

For long haul, over the road driving you want creature comforts and air ride.

For what you would spend on buying and modifying a military truck you can prob buy a good Class 8 tractor.

Just my dos centavos for what it's worth.

 

[Hammer]

Yeah, I figured having the air ride suspension, etc, of a regular OTR truck will trump the ride of an OD truck any day. I know the KWs I have been in the last few weeks make me cringe at climbing back in my 818 for anything more then just going around the block.
IF the job lines out, it would be a WA to MT to OR run. Not out on the road for weeks on end. But definitely needing a place to sleep on the road more often then at home.

For reference, the OTR trucks I have been looking at have been in the $15k to $25k range (with the Pete that I like going for $22k.)
That leave a lot of $ for modifying a 915 series truck to make work. But not sure it would be worth it for the hassle and not enough gains.

 

[Hammer]

Oh, and while Soni has an awesome setup, I wouldn't want to loose that much space for a sleeper, and that much less ability for moving the weight around on a HEAVY load.

 

[mckeeranger]

You would have to stretch the frame to put a small sleeper on a M915.....you could put a "coffin sleeper" (capacity one wide and two deep) on a 916 or 920 if you removed the winch and moved the 5th wheel back.

How does moving the 5th wheel back effect load distribution? Or does it?

 

[Hammer]

It definitely moves the weight around. Especially to balance the amount of weight on the front axle. And even more important on these shorter wheelbase trucks (as compared to the typically longer OTR truck.)
If you move the 5th wheel too far back, your front axle gets too light, and you no longer have control over the front axles for proper steering.
Too far forward puts too much load on the front axle, makes steering harder, etc.

 

[Oasis-3]

Wish you were closer I have a 2001 Volvo 660 dubble bunk with a Cummins N-14 10 speed auto shift with 829000 miles on it and runs good I would like to trade for an 818.

 

[Hammer]

Wish you were closer I have a 2001 Volvo 660 dubble bunk with a Cummins N-14 10 speed auto shift with 829000 miles on it and runs good I would like to trade for an 818.

Hmm, tempting.
Wonder what our fuel bills would be to meet in the middle of the country?

 

[srodocker]

hahahah