Profile For PJ

I have seen ads running like crazy for 0 % interest for 84 months on new vehicles. That is crazy too me.

Mine are paid off and those ads and this thread make me think these will have to last.

I have heard, not seen myself that new trucks are also getting creative with financing. My truck is getting ready to hit 1 million miles. I’ll in frame it and just keep it. Guess I won’t be doing my part of clean up the air, lol.

For folks in auto’s having the lurching problem in reverse. Manually put it in high range reverse, volvo called it reverse 2. Solves the issue.

Depends where your mount is located. Most will accept up to a 32”.

Richard I understand wanting to broaden your horizons however at your experience level I highly recommend holding off on going tanker.

First of all your still learning to drive a truck. Second tankers are a complete different breed of trailer. If it is full of haz material even more of a different breed.

Third any reputable tanker company is going to require at least 1 yr driving experience or more.

I pulled chemical tankers for 5 yrs and enjoyed it, but that was with a few years driving experience under my belt. I have seen far too many tankers rolled over.

The tanker business will still be there once you get some more experience.

Being new I understand you listening to older more experienced drivers for insight. We all have. Depends where your meeting them. Are they at your company, at truckstops, at customers, etc…

As with everything different folks have different opinions. This industry is very diverse as are the folks in it.

Sounds like your doing well at Melton. I have met several drivers over time driving for them and they were happy and doing well. The old saying “if it ain’t broke don’t try and fix it” comes to mind.

As for rules, we all work by the same ones as a foundation. FMCSA. The dreaded gov’t that thinks they have all the answers. Companies all have their own policies and are free to instill any policies they wish that meet and exceed the fmcsa minimums.

Bigger companies will normally have more restrictive policies than smaller ones. Reason is simple. More drivers and more chances something will go amiss. The bigger companies tend to do all they can to protect the drivers from themselves, which also protects the company.

Example is use of personal conveyance.

Big companies normally set restrictive limits well beyond what is legally permissible by fmcsa. It isn’t for any other reason than to prevent drivers from misusing it. Misuse gets the company in trouble with fmcsa.

Small companies usually just allow it as written by fmcsa. They can monitor and correct things much easier than the big ones.

Big companies have better benifits than small ones and is cheaper due to the numbers. Benifits such as health insurance is much cheaper per head when a company has 5k employees compared to 5 employees.

The economy has been very tough for along time now. Big companies are showing it in their earnings. Small carriers are either selling out or going out of business. Some of us are still hanging in, but it has been rough. Experts have been making predications when it will turn around for the last year. Guess what! They have all been wrong. Noone knows how much longer we are going to be depressed in this industry.

If your company goes to ports, chemical plants, refineries, or military bases the TWIC card gets you on annd off without paying for an escort. Those fees can get pricey depending on the facility.

Without it the company probably won’t give you that load unless they have no other option.

I get many loads a year from one customer because I’m the only local driver that has one and the port in New Orleans charges 200.00 for an escort.

Errol brought up hazmat also. If your company is hazmat certified you may not make more directly by having it, but you will make more indirectly by being available for those loads instead of sitting waiting for a non haz load. Get tanker along with it. Liquid in totes put in a van, reefer, or flatbed still require a tanker endorsement.

I watched your video so I know your not over reacting. Your your very nice about it. With all the idiots running around these days one can never be too careful of their surroundings. Espically in a restroom.

Holy Cow, this is crazy. Thanks for pointing it out.

As said this economy is still in the tank. Several reasons but bottom line is it sucks.

Mercer and landstar do have their own load boards. They are not public. You have to either be leased onto them or signed up as a independant contractor. I have access and have done some work with them. DSV is another decent one.

The hotshot stuff I don’t have any info about. I have a 48’ flatbed.

I have a few brokers I use on occassion. I have developed relationships with one point of contact and use them to get a better rate. Another thing that has been going on the past couple years. Many brokers will require 12-18 months of an active authority before they will consider working with you. They will check your CSA score also. Poor score they will not do business with you.

I have several of my own direct customers for outbound loads. Depending on the lane I deliver in I will use a broker to get back to my customers area.

I use truckstop.com as a general commodity load board if the handful of brokers I have developed those relationships with don’t have anything.

The bigger load boards all pretty much have the same loads. It’s a shotgun effect. Shoot it out as wide as possible and hopefully get it covered. Many customers also list with several brokers to see who gets it covered first.

If you depend strictly on broker freight you will go broke, no pun intended. They all have different margins of how much they take.

If I was looking at hotshot car hauling I would look at customers like LKQ or copart on the parts market side and carmax, carvanna, drivetime on the used car market, and all the car rental places for moving rentals. They are all national and should be easier for loads. Just my thoughts.

Depends!!

Is he legally parked??

Is he on private property that is not strictly held open for truck parking??

Is it law enforcement telling him to move??

There is a provision in our hours of service where a driver can under limited circumstances move the truck while on break.