Note 16 - Discontinued Operations (Detail) (USD $)	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended	1 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2010	Dec. 31, 2010	Sep. 30, 2010 Construction Equipment Segment [Member]	Sep. 09, 2010 Construction Equipment Segment [Member]
Significant Acquisitions and Disposals, Acquisition Costs or Sale Proceeds				$ 31,000,000
Proceeds from Divestiture of Businesses		26,234,000	26,200,000
Financing Receivable, Gross			4,800,000
Repayments of Debt			14,600,000
Discontinued Operation, Provision for Loss (Gain) on Disposal, Net of Tax			$ (10,100,000)
Related Party Transaction, Description of Transaction	At closing, Doggett Heavy Machinery Services, LLC entered into a lease agreement to lease the facility where Rush Equipment Center, Houston was located from an affiliate of the Company.The lease provides for an initial three year term with the option for the lessee to terminate the lease with 30 days notice.The Company's continuing involvement in the operations of the construction equipment business is not significant and will be limited to the facility lease agreement.