Buying a used boom truck: a checklist

R 03 mStart with the crane's paper trail

Much of what a used boom truck is worth sits in its records. A crane with a complete history can be inspected, priced and put to work. A crane without one is a question mark, and some provinces make you answer it before the first lift.

The log. Ontario requires the owner to keep a crane log of all inspections, tests, repairs and maintenance, and to give the operator at least the previous 12 months before the crane is used on a project; if the log is incomplete, the crane must first be inspected to CSA Z150-16 clause 5.3.5¹. Alberta requires a log book for each lifting device rated 2,000 kg or more at a work site, recording work done, hours in service where there is an hour meter, defects, inspections, repairs and engineer certifications, and when ownership is transferred, the log book goes with the equipment (ss.59 and 65)². Quebec's construction code puts the crane logbook in Annex 9³.

Structural repairs. In Alberta, structural repairs or modifications must be made under a professional engineer's direction and certified as restoring the components to at least their original capacity, with the repaired parts identified in the log book and on the component (s.73)². Ask for every such certificate. A welded boom section with no paper behind it needs an engineer's opinion before you go further.

Liens. Alberta advises a personal property search before purchasing, to check whether liens are registered; motor vehicles can be searched by serial number through a registry agent⁴. Ontario gives the same advice for used goods, through its Personal Property Security Registration system⁵. Search the truck's serial number before money changes hands.

Ask for these documents

1. The crane log or log book, complete, with hours.
2. The latest periodic inspection certificate, and any NDT report.
3. Engineer certifications for structural repairs or modifications.
4. Load charts and the operator's manual for this serial number.
5. Registration, the last commercial vehicle inspection and service records.
6. Your own lien search result.

R 06 mThe inspection certificate, and when the next one is due

Find out when the crane was last inspected, who signed, what was found, and when the next inspection is due in the province where the truck will work.

Alberta is different. Its OHS Code has no annual NDT rule that names boom trucks: s.89's 12-month NDT applies to mobile cranes as the Code defines them, which excludes boom trucks², and the Code defines a boom truck separately². The manufacturer's schedule and the log book carry the history there. Whether New Brunswick's mobile crane rules reach every boom truck was not confirmed.

Example (example dates): a truck viewed in October 2026 with a BC certificate dated March 2026 must be certified again by March 2027 to keep working in BC. That inspection, and whatever repairs it finds, come with the truck.

Make the offer conditional on a fresh inspection by an engineer you choose, under the rules of the province where the truck will work, and price what it finds into the deal. More detail: inspection rules by province.

R 09 mLoad charts and the data plate

Without the right chart, the crane cannot legally work in Alberta, Manitoba or Ontario. Alberta requires a mobile crane or boom truck to carry load charts at all times showing rated capacity at all permitted boom angles and radii, in s.63(1)², and Manitoba has the same rule in s.23.9(2)¹¹. Ontario requires a chart readable at the controls, or a model and serial plate linked to that crane's charts, in s.151(3)¹, and rated capacity determined by the manufacturer or an engineer under CSA Z150-16, or CSA Z150.3-17 for articulating cranes¹. A modified or re-mounted crane needs charts that reflect the change.

The data plate. Alberta requires a permanently secured plate or weatherproof label showing the manufacturer's rated load capacity, the manufacturer's name, and the model, serial number and year of manufacture or shipment date (s.62), and the major components identified as parts of that make and model (s.61)².

• The serial number on the charts matches the plate.
• The charts cover every outrigger position and attachment you will use.
• The year on the plate is recorded: it decides which Quebec overload rule applies.
• If charts are missing, ask the manufacturer whether it can supply them for that serial number before you commit.

How to check that the charts suit your lifts: reading a load chart.

R 12 mSafety devices your province expects

Two practical points. A truck built for a market that did not require a device may not have one, and fitting it afterwards is a cost to price before you buy. And ask to see each device working at the viewing, with its last calibration record. Other provinces' device rules were not researched for this page.

R 15 mThe standard edition, and where the truck will work

CSA Z150:26, the 2026 edition, is the sixth edition of the national mobile crane code, superseding the 2020, 2016, 2011, 1998 and 1974 editions¹². No province we checked cites it. Each names its own edition:

Ask which standard and edition the crane was built and last certified to, and compare it with the row for the province where it will work. BC's and Yukon's lists name the U.S. standard ASME B30.5 (BC the 2004 edition). New Brunswick's "equivalent or better" and Newfoundland and Labrador's "acceptable to the minister" need a question to the regulator. The other rows name CSA editions only.

R 18 mThe chassis: GVWR, axles and inspection status

GVWR is the manufacturer's maximum design loaded weight¹⁷. Federal emissions regulations sort heavy-duty vehicles by it: Class 6 over 8,845 kg (19,500 lb) up to 11,793 kg (26,000 lb)¹⁷, Class 7 over 11,793 kg up to 14,969 kg (33,000 lb)¹⁷, and Class 8 over 14,969 kg¹⁷. Those are weight labels, not licence classes or road limits.

Axles and weight. The crane, outriggers and deck use part of the GVWR before any payload goes on. Weigh the truck axle by axle on a certified scale and compare with the GVWR and axle ratings on the chassis label. Under the interprovincial weights agreement, a straight truck's steering axle may carry up to 7,250 kg¹⁸ and a three-axle straight truck may weigh up to 24,250 kg gross¹⁸; tri-drive trucks are outside that category, and each province sets its own rules for them¹⁸. The axle count also sets the licence class: see licence class and NSC.

Inspection status. Alberta requires a CVIP inspection every 12 months for NSC commercial vehicles: trucks over 4,500 kg registered weight operating outside Alberta, and over 11,794 kg operating only within it¹⁹. BC puts trucks licensed over 8,200 kg gross vehicle weight in its Commercial Vehicle Inspection Program²⁰. Ontario requires most trucks over 4,500 kg to pass an annual safety inspection, valid 12 months²¹.

For your mechanic: the frame and subframe around the crane mount, outrigger boxes and their welds, the power take-off and hydraulic pump, brakes, tires, and engine hours as well as kilometres, because crane work runs the engine while the truck stands still.

R 21 mMoving a truck between provinces

A truck bought in one province and worked in another has to meet the second province's rules, for the crane and for the vehicle.

• The crane. A truck going to BC needs BC's engineer certification at least every 12 months⁶, and a load weight indicator or overload prevention if rated 10 tonnes or more⁶. One going to Quebec construction sites needs the anti-two-block device³ and, if made from January 1, 2005, a load limiter or load moment controller meeting SAE J159³.
• Registration. Alberta requires a vehicle registered outside the province to pass an out-of-province inspection at a licensed facility, by a journeyperson technician licensed for it, before plates are issued, unless an exemption applies, and the certificate must reach a registry agent within 14 days²². Other provinces' import inspections were not researched for this page.
• Carrier rules. Registration brings carrier rules: Alberta's Safety Fitness Certificate from 11,794 kg registered weight within Alberta²³, Ontario's CVOR for trucks over 4,500 kg²⁴, BC's NSC safety certificate over 5,000 kg licensed GVW²⁵.
• Getting it home. Over legal weight or dimensions, the trip needs permits: TRAVIS Web in Alberta²⁶, onRouteBC in BC²⁷, and Ontario's oversize/overweight permit, which covers King's highways only²⁸.

R 24 mQuestions to ask the seller

1. How many hours are on the crane and on the engine, and does the log agree with the hour meter?
2. Is the log complete since new? If not, who has the earlier records?
3. When was the last periodic inspection, who signed it, what did it find, and was it all fixed?
4. Has the boom, turret, outriggers or subframe been repaired or modified? Where is the engineer's certification?
5. Has the crane ever been moved to another chassis, and were the charts redone?
6. Do the load charts match the serial plate and cover every outrigger position and attachment?
7. Which standard and edition was the crane built and last certified to?
8. Which safety devices are fitted, do they work, and when were they calibrated?
9. Has it ever tipped, been overloaded, two-blocked or touched a power line?
10. Where is it registered, and when was its last commercial vehicle inspection?
11. Is there any loan or lien on it? Search anyway.
12. Can an engineer or inspector of my choice inspect it before I commit?

Vague answers are answers too. Price the unknowns, or walk away.

Prefer a seller or lender to quote you? Request a quote; it only goes to a company with your consent. With your consent, your request goes to one company that rents, sells or finances boom trucks in your area. That company may pay BoomTrucks.ca for the referral. We do not rent, sell or lease equipment. See buying a boom truck and the rent, lease or buy calculator.