Profile For Brian J.

And don't forget... While in Laredo if you show up early and a van pulls up and someone is holding up something warped in aluminum foil and asks if you want... The answer is yes... love the food vendors down there.

OK, I wouldn't mind dropping/pick-up freight on the American side of the border. I would not not be brave enough to offer patronage to roach coaches from south of the border, however. Those "tin-foil trucks" that often cater to migrant farm workers. I will stick with an American deli sandwich.

I work in California. Had a lot of trips to San Diego, but it was always on this side. And btw what documents do I need to move to Mexico?

Witch is better in your opinion a regular GPS like Harman or Rand Mcnally or Just buy a Tablet & download a GPS app for trucking???

Think of regular GPS.

Flatbed ain't for everybody. I loved it while it lasted, and maybe I'll go back to it one day, but right now I feel too old and decrepit to throw tarps up onto the deck.

By the way, strapping is typically pretty easy. Chaining involves a bit more heavy lifting, and sometimes includes some cussing to do it right. Tarping is most likely to inspire the muttering of bad words, especially if it's a load of steel with sharp edges that involved lots of chains first plus some straps, plus padding so your tarps aren't cut up, in either very hot or very cold and wet weather.

Tankers are where it's at. Except when your pump leaks or there are a lot of bees drawn to your liquid sugar. Then you wish you had a dry van or something.

Oh yes! Tarping is a really tough thing) I tried to cover the load with 8' and I understood that flatbed is not for me)

I once took a ride with a friend of mine (he operates flatbed). He moved some lumber. We both fixed and secured it and I understood that it is better for me to stay in the truck while I am loaded. A bit less money but much more comfort.

Honestly binding stuff is the easy part . But it's not a bad way to make a living. You'll earn every penny of that cpm though for sure. Dry van and reefer aren't necessarily easy either, just a different set of challenges.

Well, the reefer is really hard to work with. Especially if you deal with poultry or fish.

Congrats!

Good luck to you and be safe!

1 - Yes - any commercial vehicle with a DOT number on the side, has to go through a weigh station unless you get a BYPASS on your Pre-Pass or indicator at the station.

5 - company regs aside - the only time you are allowed to transport alcoholic beverages in the cabin of a CMV, it, for example - going from a store to a hotel while you are OFF DUTY. You can't pick up some cool craft beer and ride around with it until you get home/off the road. And you can't keep it in the trailer, unless it is on a BOL.

This brings up another interesting point. Most states consider you to be DUI if you are over the limit and have control of the vehicle. I've seen friends get charged, for being parked, passed out - with the keys in their immediate control/possession.

Remember - ANY PRESENCE OF ALCOHOL is an OOS violation - and .04 is a DUI in a CMV (versus .08 for everyone else).

So if you're sitting in a truck stop swilling cold frosties, the law sees you, knocks on your door - and you have the keys in the vehicle, that is constructively a DUI. Even WORSE if you're idling - as the vehicle is running with the keys in the ignition and you are intoxicated. You might as well just be DRIVING IT with a beer in your hand.

DUI in a CMV, is the KISS OF DEATH (even worse than failing a pre-employment drug test). Do yourselves a favor and save the drinking for HOME TIME - and use your own car or Uber to fetch your alcohol.

6 - Dash indicator (idiot light) will tell you. In the newer trucks with cool LCD multi-function displays, it comes up there too.

9 - No & no/maybe. If you are out of hours, you can't (legally) use off duty driving if you are under a load. Example: 20 minutes to go to the truck stop and you're out of hours - so you switch to off duty driving - NOT LEGAL. If you're at a truckstop and out of hours, have NO LOAD in the box (not under dispatch the rules say) you can go to a restaurant or store AND BACK legally on off duty driving. You can't just keep driving on your load.

14 - Pretty much all fuel tanks are cross-connected - but the hose connecting them is (typically) much smaller than say, the fuel pump hose. It takes awhile for them to balance out. So, for example - if you are nearly empty in both tanks (on the fuel gauge), and you fill one to the top, after a period of time they will balance and your fuel gauge (and range) will be at 1/2 tank.

15 - yes

Errol is right. WE MISS YOU. Stop in more often...

Rick

Thank you for this explanation. Really useful!

Let's face it: The first year or two of driving professionally can be pretty tough and somewhere along the way you realize you don't actually *know* some fundamental things that you really should know. Either it was a situation that never came up during training, or maybe something you forgot but is now relevant. We all have these questions. I know I do. But after driving for a year or so, we shouldn't have these questions, right?

WRONG!!

Everyone is different, and some things just take a little longer to remember. Or you actually never thought about it before and now you're curious.

I definitely have some questions I'd like to put out for our more experienced drivers that might seem obvious, but to me they're not. I'm asking the questions some of you might not want to ask yourself.

1. Does a bobtail have to go through a mandatory weigh station?

2. We all know we're not supposed to use Jake/engine breaks and/or cruise control during inclement weather because it can cause skidding. How much precipitation is the cutoff? What exactly is going on in the truck that causes the skidding in these circumstances using these tools? (Basically, WHY can't we use these?)

3. What exactly is DEF and will my truck really shut down if it runs out?

4. If Channel 19 is the "general" channel on the CB, what are all the other channels for?

5. If I'm at a truck stop and there is a craft beer or wine that is unique and I want to transport it unopened until I get home, is that legal? If so, what are the rules?

6. What is a parked regen and when will I know if it needs to be done?

7. What are the basic scheduling criteria for general maintenance? For example: How often does the oil need to be changed? How often do I need a tune up? Do they have similar maintenance requirements like a passenger vehicle?

8. Do those little deer whistle things actually work?

9. Will driving while off duty start my drive/14 hour clock? Can I off duty drive if my hours have not yet come back?

10. What exactly is a differential lock? When would I need to turn it on?

11. Why in the world would you want to slide your fifth wheel?

12. 10 speed manual transmissions seem to be the norm. But I've heard of trucks with 13 and 18 gears. What are the extra gears for?

13. When sliding tandems, how important is it to make the weights match the drives? Also, when at weigh stations, are they looking for balance between axles or are they just making sure each axle and the overall truck isn't overweight?

14. When fueling, are both fuel tanks completely separate or can the truck be completely filled using only one pump? (Some really out of the way fuel islands don't always have satellite pumps.)

15. If you lose a light while driving but it will be some miles before you can safely pull over to replace it, can DOT still cite you for it?

Ok. I think that's all I have for now. Please feel free to contribute to this thread!

Thank you! Really these are the basic things, but as for me - I can not answer the biggest part of these questions.

Glad you are OK)

Hi, guys!

I am pretty new to trucking. I had a load, but I was not allowed to the box at the loading facility. They loaded me over and I was stopped, weighted and I got a ticket and had to return to be unloaded to the legal weigh. I had to pay $150 lumper fee. I do understand, that I am responsible for being legal on the road, but I had no opportunity to control the loading process.

The question is - should the broker pay me the additional lumper fee and compensate ticket and additional mileage? What is the common practice? Thank you!