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RR-ROAD SERVICES RGN LOWBOY

02 · RGN & lowboy heavy haul

It drives on. It rides low. It gets there legal.

A removable-gooseneck lowboy for the heavy and the tall: the neck comes off, the deck becomes a ramp, your equipment drives on — and rides in a well barely off the road.

REMOVABLE NECK DRIVE-ON EQUIPMENT

What it is

Removable gooseneck · lowboy · double drop

RGN stands for removable gooseneck. The neck that connects the trailer to the truck detaches, the front of the deck lowers to the ground, and it becomes a ramp. An excavator, a dozer or a loader drives straight on under its own power — no crane, no dock, no forklift big enough to lift it.

Once the neck is back on, the deck sits in a low well between the gooseneck and the rear axles, often less than two feet off the road. That is why an RGN is also called a double drop: the deck steps down twice, and the freight in the well can stand nearly twelve feet tall before it reaches a 13 ft 6 in height limit.

Heavy and tall loads are also where the rules get serious. A load over the legal width, height, length or weight needs a permit from every state — and every Canadian province — on the route, sometimes with escort vehicles, travel-time restrictions and an approved route. We plan that before we quote, so the price you get is the price of the whole move.

L H REAR LOW WELL NECK
Fig. 1 — RGN lowboy, schematic. Your load’s L × W × H decides the rest.

Good for

What this is built to carry.

  • 01 Excavators and track hoes
  • 02 Dozers, wheel loaders and backhoes
  • 03 Large tractors and ag equipment
  • 04 Generators, compressors and industrial units
  • 05 Machinery too tall for a step deck at legal height
  • 06 Oversize loads that need permits

How we run it

Start to finish, on the RGN lowboy.

  1. Dimensions and weight, all of them

    Length, width, height and operating weight — with the attachments, bucket or blade you are shipping. Heavy-haul quotes live or die on these numbers.

  2. Permits and route, if needed

    If the load is oversize or overweight, every state and province on the route has its own permit, rules and hours. We work it out before the quote, not on the shoulder of the highway.

  3. Neck off, drive on

    At pickup the gooseneck detaches and the deck becomes a ramp. Running equipment drives on; equipment that does not run needs a winch, forklift or crane — tell us in advance.

  4. Chain it down

    Secured to the federal cargo securement rules — the machine chained at its tie-down points, its bucket or blade lowered and secured, and every chain checked again on the road.

  5. Deliver, unload, sign off

    The same ramp in reverse at delivery, with the bill of lading signed.

Before you book

Three things that make the quote right first time.

Note 01

Give us the operating weight

The machine’s spec plate or brochure lists it. Add anything shipping with it — a second bucket, a thumb, a hammer. Weight decides the trailer, the permits and the price.

Note 02

Clean it before it travels

Mud and loose debris come off on the highway. Cross-border it matters more: Canada refuses entry to equipment carrying soil, and a dirty machine can be turned back at the border.

Note 03

Know if it runs

Running equipment drives on. Equipment that does not run can still ship, but it needs a winch or lifting equipment at both ends, and that has to be arranged ahead.

The numbers

The RGN lowboy, in figures.

Typical figures for this trailer type, so you can see quickly whether your load is in range. We check every load against our own trailer and the route before quoting.

Sheet 02 RGN lowboy REMOVABLE NECK DRIVE-ON EQUIPMENT

Removable gooseneck · lowboy · double drop

RGN lowboy

The front of the trailer — the gooseneck — comes off, the deck drops to the ground and becomes a ramp, and the equipment drives straight on. Between the neck and the axles the deck sits in a low well barely off the road, which is what lets tall machinery travel at legal height.

Choose it when It drives on under its own power, or it is too tall for a step deck.

Typical for this trailer type

Loading Front loading — gooseneck detaches, deck becomes a ramp
Well Typically 24–29 ft long, about 18–24 in off the ground
Legal freight height About 11½–12 ft in the well
Legal width 8 ft 6 in — wider needs an oversize permit
Legal payload Roughly 40,000–42,000 lb on a standard configuration; more only with permits and added axles

Industry-typical figures for the trailer type. Every load is checked against our own trailer and the route's limits before we quote.

Questions

RGN lowboy, answered.

01 What is an RGN trailer?

An RGN — removable gooseneck — is a lowboy trailer whose front neck detaches so the deck can lower to the ground and act as a ramp. Equipment drives on from the front, then the neck is reattached and the load rides low in the trailer’s well.

02 What is the difference between an RGN, a lowboy and a double drop?

They overlap. "Lowboy" is any trailer with a very low deck. "Double drop" describes a deck that steps down twice — high at the neck, low in the middle well, high again over the axles. An RGN is a lowboy whose gooseneck comes off for front loading, and most RGNs are double drops.

03 Does my equipment need an oversize permit?

If it is wider than 8 ft 6 in, taller than the height limit allows in the well, longer than the legal limit, or heavier than the legal weight for the axles carrying it, yes. Send the dimensions and operating weight, and we will tell you before we quote.

04 Can you haul equipment that does not run?

Usually, but it changes the job: a non-running machine needs a winch, a forklift or a crane at pickup and delivery. Tell us when you ask for a quote so it can be arranged before the truck arrives.

05 How tall can equipment be on an RGN?

In the well of a typical RGN, freight can be about 11½ to 12 ft tall and still travel at a 13 ft 6 in legal height. Taller than that, it needs an over-height permit and a route checked for clearances.

Also from RR Road

Start a load

Got the dimensions? Get a number.

Send the pickup, the delivery and the size and weight of the load. We come back with a price and a plan — trailer, route, and permits if it needs them.

A quote needs

  1. 01 Pickup and delivery City and state or province — a ZIP or postal code is even better.
  2. 02 What it is Make and model for equipment; a plain description for anything else.
  3. 03 Length × width × height To the highest and widest point, including anything that sticks out.
  4. 04 Weight The operating or shipping weight, with attachments.
  5. 05 How it loads Drives on, forklift, crane or dock — at both ends.
  6. 06 When it is ready A date, or a window.