Socage Bucket Trucks

[Welder-turned-signs]

Has anybody bought, used, or heard good/bad on a company called Socage? Their website is here; http://www.socage.it/

I am in the market for a 80' plus working height bucket truck and ran across one of theirs for sale for less than $200k brand new. Wondering what's up with their product.

Here is one of their trucks on ebay; https://www.ebay.com/itm/Socage-94FT-Arial-Truck-Bucket-Truck-Sign-Truck-Ford-F750-Diesel-BRAND-NEW/263481676040?hash=item3d58bb5108:g:ymMAAOSwlAZab4DX&vxp=mtr

Also, any other MFGs, ideally looing for an 80-85' working height truck, thanks

[Signsfast]

Cant speak about them as I know nothing aboout them. However I would call your local bucket truck repair shop and ask if they know anything about them or have access to parts if need be.  A truck that you save 40k on isnt worth a hill of beans if it is down for repairs for 6 weeks because the parts come from italy to repair it.  Cry once and get something from a reputable.  Manitex, Elliot for sign cranes and Versalift and altec for bucket trucks. 

[Signworksinc]

it is Italian, can't go wrong

[paul321]

 

I  looked into the I trying ( Italian ) Trucks..  Not impressed by anything.  The problem is service. That's all you need to know

I do not know anyone who had or has success with one

 

Stay with the 3 big names........Manitx, Elliot Versalift   Spend now and  save forever 

[Signworksinc]

You are correct Paul, forgot about the PARTS.  Downtime really kills.

[alukard123]

Yes, I have one, I Own the first 94' Unit that was built in America, and is not difficult to get parts for, but they do take sometime to arrive, they are not Expensive, the parts are right in line with other boom manufacturers,  the boom is not bad but the side reach is limited to 45' so that is were it falls short, since we were the first ones to get one of these units we had to request some adjustments to the unit, we had to get techs from Italy to come to our shop to re-calibrate the unit and to add more weight to the base to increase the side reach to 55', we also had to get it reconfigured so we could do short jacking which without it the truck is useless in NYC. 

the truck has more sensors than Elliott's,  and they can get annoying, but once you learn to work with them is not a big deal, im sure you can bypass some of them, but we don't mess around with that, they are there for a reason.

After we did the adjustments, we have been working with the truck and haven't had any issues, but like always, is better to take the hard road, get your drivers CDL trained, pay for their licenses, and get on a real nice Elliott or Altec which are reputable, heavy duty brands, you can get parts and service faster, and they are built to last.  

I Heard they have done a lot of adjustments to the newer units and they all now come configured for more Side reach and short jacking standard, and I heard they are calibrating the sensors and boom functions better, and have replaced some of the sensors, so hopefully a lot of the issues we had are now worked out and resolved. 

But I would only consider a Socage if you really need to reach 85' and don't want to mess around with CDL's, this is a good alternative, preferably if drove and handled by the owner, employees may be to rough on this equipment, for my guys, there is nothing like Elliott and they still manage to damage the equipment from time to time. 

I personally decided to get all of my drivers CDL and now we are just buying Elliott 85'+

if you still want to buy a Socage I think Nesco was selling a Unit for $167k  https://nescorentals.com/file/2017/01/A0119984.pdf

Good Luck.

[Welder-turned-signs]

Thank you all for your awesome replies! It definitely helps when making decisions.

We have an older Altec 42' that will need replacing in the next couple of years and need at least a 60' reach moving forward. I also own a cell tower business, and we use man lifts a lot. I spent approx. $30k in rental fees for 85' man lifts last quarter, and really want a truck to meet both needs. My sign techs help with the cell tower stuff regularly, so I am guessing a dual use will happen weekly. Thanks again for all your replies,

[Welder-turned-signs]

[benmcs]

I was talking to a customer or ours and he says all parts have to be ordered in Italy. Sounds expensive and with a long lead time.

Ben,

MCS Industrial Electronics

[Signsfast]

Alex, thanks for the reply. What does that truck weigh with all your tools and gear on it? what do they cost new?

[alukard123]

with everything is right at 25,700 

they cost about $225k brand new. 

 

[benmcs]

On ‎2‎/‎13‎/‎2018 at 2:13 PM, Signworksinc said:

it is Italian, can't go wrong

Like the way you think

[BRANDON nelson]

Hey buddy I have a customer selling an almost brand new Elliot g85 that’s wanting to buy our new Altec ls87 product. My number is 8644145835, I’d be happy to put y’all in touch. 

[Signworksinc]

Ls87 base looks skimpy. Why?

[metrodave]

Side reach is terrible. We only use it for parking lot lights.