Oversize pricing, advice?

There's been a couple threads in the past couple months, but they haven't really given me much help. I think where I'm stuck is the "office" side of things. I think it would be easy to say $3 per mile, once you have to pull a permit, THEN add "X" for the back office work.

So, 22' by 12' bean planter. I have asked for height, but I don't expect it to be overheight. it will be going from a farm, to a farm. I'm expecting help on both ends to load/unload. I would have to deadhead 60-80 miles there, pick up, load, drive the 200 miles to deliver, then deadhead 100 miles home.

So, based on past experience, I'll say 6 hours office work to pull the permits. 6 x $20 = $120. Good starting point? 400 miles x $3 mile = $1200. So $1320, the permit costs $65, so $1385. That seems pricey. If I drop to $2 per mile, it's still $985.

I'm still learning, I'd like to keep the customer, but I don't want to work for free/too cheaply. And I want more experience running OSOW. So do I run a bit cheaper, to gain experience, or try to pop full rate to make money, AND get experience, but risk losing the load?

 

I'm not sure if that was meant rhetorically, but I do know I would have no business bidding on it.

Cheyenne to Gillette is 1800 miles. 3 1/2 days drive. 1/2 day to load, 1/2 day to unload. It would take me a day to route that, order permits, and order pilot cars. You didn't provide a length, so I'll assume it's under super load length. NC requires one pilot with a height pole for over 14'5". And, depending on when it's loaded, and weekend restrictions, you may have to sit for a day or two.

So 7 days ($7000) plus escort and permit costs. Close?

 

The first time was amateur hour. For single trip permits they need to know the route, exactly from address 1 to address 2. I had no idea how to fill out the form correctly, I was using someone's else's trailer, had to "guess" at the axle spacings. Two or three phone calls from the permit office, resubmitting the application, couple emails in there, driving to a fax machine, it all adds up.

They told me if I get an annual permit I don't need to provide routing every time.

Interesting view on the hourly. I'll have to start looking at things differently. Thank you