Deck height plus machine height is the number that decides the route.
What travels without a permit
The Federal Highway Administration publishes the size and weight standards for commercial vehicles on the Interstate System and the National Network at dot.gov, read 2026-07-28. Anything beyond them needs a permit from every state the load passes through, and those permits are issued state by state rather than nationally.
| Measure | Federal standard | Who sets the rest |
|---|---|---|
| Gross vehicle weight | 80,000 lb | Above it, a permit per state |
| Single axle | 20,000 lb | Bridge formula may reduce the allowance further |
| Tandem axle | 34,000 lb | Bridge formula may reduce the allowance further |
| Width | 102 in, states may not set a different limit on the National Network | Safety devices such as mirrors are excluded |
| Height | No federal limit | States, generally between 13 ft 6 in and 14 ft 6 in |
| Length | No federal limit for most tractor-semitrailer combinations on the National Network | States, with federal floors protecting 48 ft semitrailers |
The bridge formula matters more than people expect. It can reduce the legal gross weight below 80,000 lb depending on how many axles the combination has and how far apart they sit, so a load that is legal on paper by total weight can still be illegal as loaded. This is the carrier’s problem to solve, but it is why the same machine gets different answers from different carriers.
What the carrier needs from you
A heavy haul quote is built from measurements, not from a description. Getting these five right at the first attempt is the difference between a price that holds and a price that changes on the day.
Dimensions to the widest point
Measure the machine as it will sit on the trailer, including mirrors, buckets, booms, exhaust stacks and anything bolted on. If parts come off to lower the height, say which ones and who removes them. Height is where most permits are won or lost, because deck height plus machine height has to clear every bridge on the route.
Operating weight with fluids and attachments
Quote the weight of the thing that is actually going, not the shipping weight from a brochure. Fuel, hydraulic oil, counterweights and a bucket are real pounds, and they are the pounds that get weighed at a scale house.
How it loads at both ends
Say whether the machine drives on under its own power, gets craned, or needs ramps. Say who operates it. A carrier that arrives expecting a self-propelled load and finds a seized machine has a wasted trip, and the charges for that are published: Estes bills $222.55 for a vehicle furnished but not used and $300.00 per person for the first three hours of extra labour.
What the site is like
Overhead cables, gate widths, soft ground, turning space and whether a 70 ft combination can physically leave again. These decide the trailer type as much as the machine does, and they are invisible from an address.
Why a machine is not an LTL shipment
People try. The tariffs make it expensive on purpose, because a long or heavy single piece takes trailer space that would otherwise carry twenty other customers’ freight. On 2026-07-28 we also put a skid-mounted machine through our own calculator to show where the parcel path ends.
| Situation | What is published | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| A single piece 8 ft or longer, FedEx Freight item 525 | Over length charge added to the transport charge | $375.00 |
| A single piece 12 ft or longer, FedEx Freight item 530 | Extreme length charge, rising with each band | $775.00 and above |
| A single piece 20 ft or longer, Estes item 670-10 | Overlength charge per shipment | $1,000.00 |
| A single piece 20 ft or longer, Old Dominion item 670-5 | Overlength charge per shipment | $1,300.00 |
| 60 x 48 x 48 in machine at 600 lb | Quoted through our own calculator on the Newark to Los Angeles lane | No parcel rates |
Those charges sit on top of a class rate that is already unfavourable for machinery, which tends to be dense in some places and hollow in others. Once a machine is long enough to attract the top band, a flatbed or step deck priced as its own move is usually both cheaper and safer, and it comes with tie-down responsibility resting where it belongs.
Nobody publishes a heavy haul rate
There is no tariff to look up here, and any page offering you a per-mile figure for an excavator is guessing. The price is built from the trailer type, the permit fees for each state on the route, whether escorts or a survey are required, and how long the machine ties up the equipment. A heavy-haul carrier needs the dimensions, the weight and the two sites before it can give a real number. SMKlog sells parcel labels only and does not arrange this kind of move.
If it can be crated instead If it fits on a pallet after all
Heavy haul questions
When does a machine need an oversize permit?
When it exceeds the federal standards the Federal Highway Administration publishes: 80,000 lb gross, 20,000 lb on a single axle, 34,000 lb on a tandem axle, or 102 in wide. Height and length are set by the states rather than federally, with state height limits generally falling between 13 ft 6 in and 14 ft 6 in.
Who arranges the permits?
The carrier does, and the cost lands on your invoice. Permits are issued by each state the load crosses, so a long route can mean several applications with different lead times, and that lead time is usually what fixes the collection date.
Can I send a small machine as LTL freight?
Only if it is short. A single piece of eight feet or more attracts $375.00 at FedEx Freight and $300.00 at Estes before any transport charge, and the bands climb steeply from there. SMKlog sells parcel labels only.
What weight should I give the carrier?
The operating weight as the machine will travel, including fluids, counterweights and attachments. A brochure shipping weight understates it, and the correction happens at a scale house rather than in your favour.