Acorn Machinery ships tractors, skid steers, compact and heavy equipment, and towable trailers to addresses in the continental United States. Freight is a flat $550 per order. That number does not change with the weight of the machine, the number of units on the order, or how far the load has to run.
We ship to the United States only. Nothing we sell moves by parcel carrier. Every unit goes out on a flatbed, step deck, or lowboy with a licensed and insured motor carrier.
Flat rate freight: $550 per order
One order, one freight charge. If you buy a skid steer and a dump trailer on the same order and they ship to the same address, you pay $550, not $1,100.
The $550 covers:
- Loading at our facility, including load securement, strapping, and chaining
- Line haul to one delivery address in the lower 48 states
- Carrier cargo liability while the unit is in transit
- Dispatch coordination and a call ahead to set your delivery window
- One delivery attempt to the address on your order
It does not cover off-loading at your end, and it does not cover a second trip. If nobody is there for the scheduled appointment, or the site cannot take the truck, the carrier bills redelivery and any layover or storage at their published rate and we pass that cost through with no markup. Call us before delivery day if anything about the site has changed and we will work it out.
Handling time before dispatch
We release orders for pickup within 2 to 5 business days of cleared payment. Units already at our Piscataway yard usually go out in 2 to 3 business days. A unit that has to come off a partner yard, or one that is waiting on a pre-delivery inspection, runs closer to 5.
Orders confirmed after 2:00 PM Eastern start counting from the next business day. We do not dispatch on weekends or federal holidays. You get an email with the carrier name, the pro number, and the driver’s dispatch contact the day the load is picked up.
Transit expectations by region
Transit is counted in business days after the load leaves our yard, not from the day you placed the order.
| Region | Typical transit after dispatch |
|---|---|
| Northeast and Mid-Atlantic (NJ, NY, PA, New England, DE, MD, VA) | 2 to 4 business days |
| Southeast (NC, SC, GA, FL, TN, AL, MS) | 3 to 6 business days |
| Midwest (OH, MI, IN, IL, WI, MN, IA, MO) | 3 to 6 business days |
| South Central (TX, OK, AR, LA, KS, NE) | 4 to 7 business days |
| Mountain West (CO, UT, WY, MT, ID, NM, AZ, NV) | 5 to 9 business days |
| West Coast and Pacific Northwest (CA, OR, WA) | 6 to 10 business days |
Loads that exceed legal width or height need state permits and can only move in daylight, which adds a day or two through some states. Winter weather in the Rockies and the northern plains does the same. If a load is running behind, we call you rather than waiting for you to chase us.
Delivery appointments
The carrier contacts you 24 to 48 hours before arrival to set a window. Give us a mobile number that somebody answers during the working day. A landline that rings in an office nobody sits in is the single most common cause of a missed delivery.
Appointments are windows, not fixed clock times. Drivers are working under hours-of-service rules and traffic. Plan on being available for the window rather than the minute.
What you need at the delivery site
- Someone 18 or older on site to receive the unit, inspect it, and sign the bill of lading
- Firm, level ground, paved or compacted gravel. Soft turf and soft shoulders bog a loaded trailer
- Room for a 70 to 75 foot tractor-trailer to enter, turn, and get back out without backing into traffic
- At least 14 feet of overhead clearance. Watch for low branches, service drops, and sign gantries
- A way to get the unit off the deck
Most tractors and skid steers are driven off under their own power down the carrier’s ramps, and the driver will assist. Towable trailers are rolled off and hitched. Palletized attachments, parts, and loose implements need a forklift rated for the load or a loading dock at your end. If you do not have either, tell us at the time of order and we will route the load to a terminal near you for pickup instead.
Machines ship with enough fuel to load and unload, generally under a quarter tank. Federal rules limit how much fuel can travel in the tank.
Inspect before you sign
The bill of lading is a legal receipt. Once you sign it clean, you have told the carrier the unit arrived in good order, and that makes a damage claim much harder to win.
- Check the serial number or VIN against your paperwork.
- Check the hour meter or odometer against the reading in the listing.
- Walk all four sides. Look at glass, lights, mirrors, hoses, fenders, tires, deck boards, and ramps.
- Start it and cycle the hydraulics if the site allows.
- Photograph every side before the driver pulls away, damage or not.
If something is wrong, write the specific damage on the bill of lading before signing. “Bent left fender, cracked right side glass” is a usable notation. “Subject to inspection” is not, and carriers routinely reject it.
Freight damage claims
Call us at (712) 356-0109 or email sales@acornmachinery.com the same day you notice damage. We handle the claim with the carrier. You are not left to argue with a freight desk on your own.
- Visible damage: note it on the bill of lading at delivery, photograph it, and contact us that day.
- Concealed damage: report it within 5 business days of delivery. Keep any crating or packaging until the claim closes.
- What we need: photos of the damage and of the whole unit, your signed bill of lading, and a short written description.
- Timeline: carriers generally acknowledge a claim within 30 days and resolve it inside 120 days. We do not make you wait on the carrier to be made whole. Once the claim is filed and documented, we arrange repair, replacement, or a refund under our Returns & Refund Policy.
Alaska, Hawaii, and offshore
The flat $550 applies to the continental United States only. Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and other US territories are quoted separately because the load has to be handed to an ocean or barge carrier and the rate depends on the port pair and the dimensions of the unit. Email us the model and your destination ZIP and we will come back with a firm number and a sailing schedule.
Questions before you order
If you are not sure whether a truck can reach your site, ask first. Send a photo of the approach and the drop area to sales@acornmachinery.com or call (712) 356-0109. Two minutes on the phone beforehand saves a redelivery charge later.
Acorn Machinery, 250 Wills Way, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.