Heavy Haul Driver Reporting High Earnings - Sound Realistic?

I saw an article summarize a small portion of the comments made by people who were reporting what their job was and how much they made. I went to the actual BuzzFeed discussion to see if anything had been left out, took quite a bit of scrolling as this guy's post was 7 days ago. The only editing made in the article was to remove some repetition. Obviously this is a specialized field and the guy is an owner operator , but the earnings still seem high than what I would expect and am asking here if maybe anything was left out (depreciation on truck or lease payments?).

https://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanschocket2/average-job-salaries-2021

marquianlackland 7 days ago I’m a heavy haul truck driver I haul wind turbines aircraft wings engines i made $847,689.23 so far this year and on a load right now hauling a wide load right now after taxes after taxes and fuel permits escorts this year I take home $326k more or less

Harvey,

A VERY good friend of ours in Youngstown works for Transport National. We really wanted to sign Tom up, a few years back, but we aren't in the hiring area, and own a bit'o property, so can't just 'up & move.' It IS/WAS 'invitation only,' .. and our pal Gunner recommended Tom.

Yes, IMHO .... as an O/O for a specialty hauler, that IS plausible. Our pal in Y'town made WELL OVER $100K HIS FIRST YEAR, company. He had 13 years of FLATBED and TANK experience, going in. He's still there six years later, and we are too meek to even discuss money when we see him, haha! (What ya don't know, won't make you cry! (J/K!)?!?)

In ways, I wished it worked; but then again . . . money isn't everything, if the stars don't align.

~ Anne ~

TNT/ Transport; Oak Hill, WI (etc..)

I'm waiting for some O/O's to chime in (HAY PEEJ !!) but . . . it's plausible. It's also MUCH MORE than just DRIVING. PAPERWORK IS HAIL. PILOTS, PERMITS, on TOP of INSURANCE.

It’s definitely possible but keep in mind, you’re talking about an individual with a stellar reputation and an Extensive amount of knowledge in what he’s hauling. I have a very good personal friend who works for Kaiser Transport. They don’t do heavy haul, they specialize in high end LTL open deck freight. He hauled a custom computer chip making device from Manitoba Canada to one of the Tesla facilities in California. It was oversized but not very big and that load by itself paid just under 30K to Kaiser.

You would be amazed at what some speciality freight pays along with everything that goes into those big moves but if a person has the clout, there’s big money to be made.

Another case involves Kivi brothers, whom I used to work for. A few years ago, they purchased a custom GoldHofer hydraulic trailer with a price tag of 650k. The first load they put on it paid for the trailer.

I don’t know alot about this end, but I do know that big specialized stuff pays big, and is very difficult to get into.

A good friend of mine hauls big mausilieums to cemetaries. They are very large and expensive. Those pay upwards of 20k depending where they are going.

My guess is that quote of 846k is gross. Pilot cars, permits, etc can cost a small fortune.

Remember, if you make $523,600 and you are getting paid on a w2, you are in the highest tax bracket and your taxes are

$157,804.25 plus 37% of the excess over $523,600.

And that's just federal. Have fun.

Buzzfeed and reliable source should not be together.

Thanks for the responses. I had not seen this specialty type of hauling discussed here before and find it interesting to read your comments about it. It's not easy to get into and all of the complications could make it a hassle that many would not want to deal with.

PackRat, most of the responses in that BuzzFeed discussion seem quite open and honest. It's interesting to read through them. Some people with a college degree and years of experience making $45,000, a RV salesman making $200,000 (with commissions), neurosurgeon making $1.1 million after 10 years of schooling and a pile of student debt, bartenders, line cook, etc. It's just interesting to read. I know from my past experience in a prior job that people sure aren't necessarily more happy if they make more money but some of the people with college degrees were not happy with what they were making while some people were quite content in jobs that didn't pay very high.

Yeah, well I have four degrees and don't approach half of $200K yearly. That's a fact.

Yeah, well I have four degrees and don't approach half of $200K yearly. That's a fact.

My father was illiterate even though he got an 8th grade diploma at age 16 but made more than that most years.