Questions About Prime's Lightweight Tractors
Topic 11350 | Page 1
I did see a freightliner cascadia evolution 2016 with bunks, but I'm not certain that it's a "lightweight". Could someone weigh in on that?
To answer your questions best I can.
I am going to go ahead and say it would be impossible to run teams in a lightweight. If you choose to run team as company drivers they will assign you a full size Freightliner Cascadia. It has 2 bunks and 2 sets of identical cabinets. I do believe the bottom bunk is slight bigger than the top.
Running reefer and calculating downtime at shipper/receivers is difficult due to the fact that some loads will be drop/hook and sometimes it will be live load/unload.
The dogs won't be an issue. I know a team that ride with 2 40lb pitbull terriers and they are just fine.
Shipper:
The customer who is shipping the freight. This is where the driver will pick up a load and then deliver it to the receiver or consignee.
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
You're not going to fit two team drivers in a lightweight. There are lightweight Cascadias but, seriously just go with the full size one for teaming. You'll make more team driving anyway. that .03 cpm is the incentive for a solo driver to take a lightweight.
I'm not sure what kind of idea you have for the downtime regarding driving reefer but you can mostly run as hard you can if you really wanted to About 90% of the time if your dispatcher trusts you can/will handle it. If you want to take it easy, I guess you just need to have a good relationship with your dispatcher. But usually a good relationship entails you working really hard and the dispatcher loves sending you the work. Then you just take the time off for yourself by scheduling it or doing excellent Pretrip planning.
As for the hammock, I'm just going to say that's not going to happen. I don't know what kind of hammock you use, but my backpacking one needs a lot more space than what you can spread out in a sleeper cab. It would also be recklessly dangerous while the truck is moving. You can get jostled up pretty good back there. Which, btw, is another really good reason not to team drive in a lightweight. It's a bumpier ride. In theory, I can see why you would think it's safer, but just wait until you feel your codriver hit the brakes brakes hard while you're sleeping back there.
As for the TNT Phase in prime, you're gauranteed 700/week if you're available to drive that week so it's not like you won't be earning something.
Side note: if I remember correctly, there's a 3 heartbeat rule per truck. So you can have maximum of 3 living things per truck if so.
Dispatcher:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
You don't necessarily do 10k as a psd , I think I did around 5k maybe, once your ready to test out and your trainer agrees you go back to test and once you pass they credit you for the 10k miles towards your training. The tnt phase takes 5-6 weeks if you and your trainer run hard and goes by quicker than you'd think. As far as a truck a lightweight is great fit for a single person but a pet would make it cramped and another person even worse. Prime won't let you modify the truck in any way that can't be undone to the way the truck looked when you recieved it.
PSD:
Prime Student Driver
Prime Inc has a CDL training program and the first phase is referred to as PSD. You'll get your permit and then 10,000 miles of on the road instruction.
The following is from Prime's website:
Prime’s PSD begins with you obtaining your CDL permit. Then you’ll go on the road with a certified CDL instructor for no less than 75 hours of one-on-one behind the wheel training. After training, you’ll return to Prime’s corporate headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, for final CDL state testing and your CDL license.
Obtain CDL Permit / 4 Days
- Enter program, study and test for Missouri CDL permit.
- Start driving/training at Prime Training Center in Springfield, Missouri.
- Work toward 40,000 training dispatched miles (minimum) with food allowance while without CDL (Food allowance is paid back with future earnings).
On-the-Road Instruction / 10,000 Miles
- Train with experienced certified CDL instructor for 3-4 weeks in a real world environment.
- Get 75 hours of behind-the-wheel time with one-on-one student/instructor ratio.
- Earn 10,000 miles toward total 40,000 miles needed.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
That's exactly what I wanted to know. I appreciate your help.
That's exactly what I wanted to know. I appreciate your help.
Prime is a great company to work for (would go back in a minute), but keep in mind what has been said so far about the cramped space in a LW Freightliner for just 1 person, let alone trying to fit 2 people let alone 2 dogs as well. Also, there is little to no storage space to keep all your clothing and other gear for 1 person, let alone 2.
And as has been mentioned, I don't think Prime would allow a team to drive a LW because of the limited space in one.
Ernie
The incentive is .05 cents per mile. And yeah I wouldn't recommend having a lightweight for team driving that would be disasterous. The TNT phase is over quick if you feel ready and confident. It took a little longer for me but I asked for it to extend a little.
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
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My partner and I are considering a career with Schneider or Prime (so far). The plan is to be house-less and earn/save as much money as possible for the foreseeable future while maintaining our health, sanity and relationship. When we need a break we can visit our people in FL or ID, or wander off elsewhere if convenient for ourselves and dispatch. We're both hard workers, very easy going socially, and quick studies though not highly educated. So much for introductions; on to the conundrums.
Schneider for us seems to be middle of the road in all respects.
That Prime, though ....
PROs so far:
* training provided, PSD is not long -- 10,000 miles, right?
* reefer work includes higher incidence of down-time for we who love our rest & play
* reefer work compensates accordingly (basically), from what I've heard
* lightweight truck/eco49 offers a pay bump (not our highest priority, but in the top 5)
* possibility of bringing a dog
CONs so far:
* TNT training is looong -- 30,000 miles, am I right? This is a biggie
* the bed I've seen in small pictures seems too small to share if needed
* we have TWO 15lb dogs. They will probably have to live with a Nana
(Please feel free to comment on my pros & cons. Let me know if my information is outdated or just hilariously wrong.)
Your best guesses, please:
Would Prime consider allowing a team to drive a lightweight?
If so, would they take out the storage bulkhead and put in a bunk? If not ...
CRAZY IDEA: what about installing a hammock up HIGH in the cab between the driver's seat and mattress? A couple of pull-up hand-holds in the roof and I could get myself up there pretty reliably. I sleep well in a hammock and figure that with the weight of a tractor and it's safety features, it would be safer to be high in a hammock than low in a bed -- in a worst-case scenario.
My bro says I'm nuts. What do you say, truthful truckers?
Bulkhead:
A strong wall-like structure placed at the front of a flatbed trailer (or on the rear of the tractor) used to protect the driver against shifting cargo during a front-end collision. May also refer to any separator within a dry or liquid trailer (also called a baffle for liquid trailers) used to partition the load.
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
PSD:
Prime Student Driver
Prime Inc has a CDL training program and the first phase is referred to as PSD. You'll get your permit and then 10,000 miles of on the road instruction.
The following is from Prime's website:
Prime’s PSD begins with you obtaining your CDL permit. Then you’ll go on the road with a certified CDL instructor for no less than 75 hours of one-on-one behind the wheel training. After training, you’ll return to Prime’s corporate headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, for final CDL state testing and your CDL license.
Obtain CDL Permit / 4 Days
On-the-Road Instruction / 10,000 Miles
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.