Manufacturer Poll

[dano8696]

Who do you think makes the best apparatuss? Pierce,
ALF , Seagrave, E-one, Sutphen, KME, Ferrara?

[NewJerseyFFII]

We have a 92 Seagrave pumper that has worked very well for us, it replaced a 72 Mack cf 600 . I would pick " Seagrave " with it's stainless steel cab & body as my NO. 1 manufacturer !!

[mohican]

our newest rig is HME, not on your poll. So far, so good. The little engine that could.

We have a 93 and 94 E-Ones that have been good to us, too.

[FF4020]

Unless you include all manufactures the poll is BS.

Just another thread, Blah, blah, blah.....................

[lance38]

Chassis-Spartan
Body-Smeal,SVI

[tfpd109]

I voted for Pierce, but to be honest, i think it is hard to tell which is the best, if there is "the best" unless you have opperated all of the above. I like Pierce, ALF I personally don't like very much, and the others I have never opperated. So I can't knock the other companies without ever trying there apparatuss. Just my two cents.

[BHFF22]

I voted for Pierce, although my confidence in them has been shaken because in our 98 the computer screen on the pump panel went bad and it seems that they have no spares or parts available nationwide to fix it, so they took the computer out and shipped it to the company that built it, this is our 1st due pumper and its been out of service for almost a month

[sdff1520]

None of the Above

[FWDbuff]

I voted for Pierce, although my confidence in them has been shaken because in our 98 the computer screen on the pump panel went bad and it seems that they have no spares or parts available nationwide to fix it, so they took the computer out and shipped it to the company that built it, this is our 1st due pumper and its been out of service for almost a month

Question: Does the engine really have to be out of service because of a computer screen? I mean, what did they do 20 years ago, without the computer screens? They relied on the 2 big gauges to tell them what was coming in and what was going out!!!!! Can't you guys do that?

[STATION2]

In my opinion this is not a fair poll. It needs to be broken down to pumpers, rescues and aerials. My answers may be different. On this one I voted for E-One.

Pumpers: Anyone can build a good one. And maybe as a surprise to some on this forum, I would vote for Pierce just because of their fit and finish and quality control. Nothing else special about them and their pricing is WAY OVER the top in our area with lackluster service.

Rescues: To this day I would say the "Old" Saulsbury. In todays world I would vote for SVI.

Aerials: E-One. No 2 ways about it.

Chassis alone: E-One or FFA.

Just my opinions.

[Craig210]

I don't think it has much to do with who manufactures the truck, but how satisfied you are with the product once it has been in service. I have run all different types of engines, some good, some not so good. I think your poll has more to do with brand loyalty than how good the trucks are. I've been on Pierce trucks that were crap and some that were good, I've never been really impressed by E-One's, but some departments swear by them. Seagrave seems to be a good truck, as well as KME. Who's to say which is best????

[MrYuk]

I don't think it has much to do with who manufactures the truck, but how satisfied you are with the product once it has been in service. I have run all different types of engines, some good, some not so good. I think your poll has more to do with brand loyalty than how good the trucks are. I've been on Pierce trucks that were crap and some that were good, I've never been really impressed by E-One's, but some departments swear by them. Seagrave seems to be a good truck, as well as KME. Who's to say which is best????

No one will ever agree on which manufacturer is the best because there is no overall best. Like Larry said, they all have their best in different areas depending on what you want. Every manufacturer makes great ones, good ones, and bad ones.

[BHFF22]

Question: Does the engine really have to be out of service because of a computer screen? I mean, what did they do 20 years ago, without the computer screens? They relied on the 2 big gauges to tell them what was coming in and what was going out!!!!! Can't you guys do that?

sorry, i was a bit vauge on the problem, the Engine is not out of service because of the screen, its more involved. The problem is there is some type of communication problem with the computer which prevents the Engine from being idled up while it is in pump

[Weruj1]

No one will ever agree on which manufacturer is the best because there is no overall best. Like Larry said, they all have their best in different areas depending on what you want. Every manufacturer makes great ones, good ones, and bad ones.

.....ding ding !!!!!!!!!! we have a WINNER !

[npfd801]

You know what I would think would be more constructive? Post the dealers that have taken care of you. I don't care if its JimBob Fire Injuns that built it, if the guy down the road that sold it took care of you, and you're pleased with it - that's the stuff that matters. These are the rigs that will be back in service in a matter of hours, not days, weeks, months.

The E-One, Rosenbauer, ALF, Pierce or whoever is only as strong as the guy taking care of you. When dealers start running away from a builder - that's also worth noticing. Or if direct sales builders start taking weeks to remedy a problem, Danger Joe Firefighter!

The funny part to me is you get these builders that get in "good" with a department, and then more or less write a spec that you can't bid to anyone else without tons of exceptions. The preferred builder then prices themselves much higher than the other guys, and can explain it with "only their technology." B.S. They can't match us, look at all the exceptions!

Write a performance spec, make them stay honest. If you want extruded aluminum - fine - more than one builder can do it. If you want a stainless cab, more than one can do it. But if you start putting in a specific item that ties you to only one builder, I'll give you this much:

1.) You'll be taking it in an unpleasant way at some point.
2.) You better not hope the folks controlling the purse strings figure out that you forced the winner if the expectation is that the bidding process was fair.
3.) You'll be paying too much for your rig.
4.) You probably aren't getting the most bang for the buck because of no competition.

Every builder and sales organization decides how bad they want to sell you a rig. Sometimes they just can't cut the price as much as they want, other times - they'll give you the moon to put a rig in your area. HELL - THESE JUST MAY BE THE RIGS YOU WANT. They're putting their rig out there for everyone to see the new Brand X that has never been around. Do you think for a moment that they're going to let that rig leave the factory without having been gone over with a fine tooth comb? Do you think mechanical issues won't be addressed right now?

My department was once very brand loyal. Some of us wised up and realized that the more trucks we bought, the higher priced they seemed to get, not counting inflation. When you're a given or known sell - you'd better be careful. Funny how the bare bones demo rig they wanted say $260,000 for all of a sudden became a custom rig for $25,000 less when other builders were invited to the table.

Yes - there is a need for brand commonality throughout a fleet, etc. Yes I didn't address everything. And yes, every builder, both large and small, national and regional that has sold a rig in this area has had a nightmare that I've been aware of. The good part of the story isn't what went wrong with the rig, but how the issue was handled... I guarantee you the bulk of how the issue was addressed was due to the work (or lack thereof) of the selling dealer.

Rant mode off, and I'll probably catch hell for this, but I put it out there. Station 2 probably knows what I speak of with regards to a new builder moving in aggressively and filling in a void left by someone else. So far so good, from what I've heard. More than one builder is capable of making a rig that will fit your needs, stay running and not be the most expensive choice.

Don't post "angry" at 1:00 AM.

[Crisb1419]

I was waiting to see your post.



Stay Safe

[PFDTruck2]

Mack Scopes

[Innovations]

I have to agree with the comment that "No one will ever agree on which manufacturer is the best because there is no overall best".

I have visited many OEM's as well as departments and been over and under their trucks. They all have their strong and weak points. The bottom line is, does the apparatus work well for your needs, was the price fair, and are the dealer and OEM open to new and better technology.

Some are resistant to change because it is tedious at the very least, to implement new ideas.

[eng163]

This is a double edged sword