Andy Freeman's sharp 2014 Freightliner 122SD, spec'd for high, wide freight

Owner-operator Andy Freeman hauls leased to Landstar with this 2014 Freightliner 122SD and much newer Trail King minideck set up for mostly "airport to airport" freight, Freeman said. He spec'd the truck especially for his operation. He's rarely hauling heavy, but otherwise overdimensional.

Owner-operator Andy Freeman is headquartered in Wisconsin. We caught up with him at Specialized Transportation Symposium of the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association in Orlando last month."I built it to haul tall and wide," he said. The 600-hp Detroit DD16 engine pushes a drivetrain built to handle 2,250 lb.-ft. of torque, but Freeman cut the engine "back to 1,850" for torque output. "By reducing the torque from the motor it takes the stress off the bearings," the drivetrain, everything, he added. Though it's all set up to "do heavy," he hoped to reduce the chance of a maintenance failure with the torque reduction. So far so good on that front.

Another unique feature: He outfitted the rig with an electric-adjust, mobile home toter-truck-style mirror system for especially wide loads, too, to ease mirror placements necessary for some of his wider freight.

Catch plenty more views of the combination in the video, including what to the naked eye might look like an empty trailer.

Yet about dead center lengthwise on the minideck was this itty-bitty, chained-down toy loader:

Turned out it wasn’t just Freeman's attempt at good humor for attendees of the conference where we caught up with him. Rather, it's a long-used tool for cheering up fellow travelers along the road, among other things, and comes complete with prefilled bills of lading from his house in Wisconsin, to his house in Wisconsin. Yes, for some inspectors, particularly in California,