Spare Parts And Tools You Should Carry In Your Truck

This list could get pretty lengthy lol.

Yeah, I hope it will. I'd like to present a really long, complete list of things that experienced drivers have with them and then the newbies can make informed choices. But heck, I like to see these lists too because sometimes people come up with some really clever ideas that even really experienced drivers haven't thought of.

Please mark the important ones, like air gauge and windshield wipers, to separate them from the "nice to haves" like screwdriver and zip ties. Otherwise new drives may have more tools than clothing packed up!

I'm guilty of the more tools than clothes part.

I will say this much though. People will list different items to have and use, I held back on quite a bit personally. The reason being, if you don't know how or aren't familiar with how to properly do a quick repair, you're probably better off not doing it. The reasons being simple, safety and potential items that could get you put out of service. So please please please, if you don't know, ask in here or maybe find a good video to determine if its something you can tackle before digging in.

My adds:

Cable ties Electrical tape Waterproof duct tape ...and a pack of wooden coffee stirrers. I use these as shims to tighten a loose, 7-pin electrical connector ensuring positive contact with the connection box on the trailer.

I'll add more later, because I carry a ton of stuff....notice my handle? One I'll say now is winter clothing. I'm running through snow and cold temps today, however, at a food stop I see a guy from another company out walking around in shorts and a lightweight jacket. Couldn't help but think, "what happens if you have to evacuate your rig in an emergency situation?" At the temperatures I've seen all day, hypothermia will set in quickly. More later....

Vise grips. Most of our trailers have a handle for releasing the pins on the tandems. Those handles get worn out and bent and quite often the handle won't hold itself in the slot with the pins pulled far enough in to slide the tandem rails. You have to pull the handle and clamp your vise grips in place to be able to slide your trailer tandems.

I had a light issue after dropping an empty and hooking to the loaded trailer. All my lights (truck and trailer) were fine while driving to and dropping the empty at the customer. Hooked up to the loaded trailer. The lights on the truck were fine but the lights on the passenger side of the trailer were not working. After some investigating, I was not able to fix the issue. So I thought maybe a fuse had gone bad. Only problem was I didn't have a torx driver to open the fuse panel. I asked a few passing drivers and found a driver willing to help. We opened the panel and all the fuses were fine. I noticed that while the hazard lights were on, from the inside of the cab I could hear what sounded like bongos being played slowly way off in the distance. They didn't sound quite normal. I did a Google search and found that I had a bad relay switch. Six hours later when the repair guy got there I was all set within 30 seconds. Turns out I didn't need the torx driver for that particular situation because the relay box was under the hood, but needless to say, I have torx drivers with me now just in case.

Also, especially in the winter, I keep an emergency blanket in the truck. The kind that could be used to help keep someone warm if maybe there had been an accident or for an event such as my truck won't idle because of temperature and company restrictions or my bunk heater broke down. The emergency blanket reflects your own body heat back to you to help keep you warm. I purchased mine from the big box sporting goods store in the camping department. If I remember correctly it only cost about $5.00.

What about

a couple different weight hammers
Screwdrivers
Flashlights and batteries
50' air hose with a glad hand on one side and air chuck on other side
Tire pressure gauge

Gladhand seals! Spare bulbs, fuses, the super shiny HVAC tape for temporarily patching small holes in a trailer if necessary.

Emergency non perishable food items and a case of bottled water. Arctic rated sleeping bag in case your bunk heat stops working suddenly.

A first aid kit including burn ointment, Band-Aids of various sizes and Ace bandages. Neosporin or bacitracin.. instant ice packs, some type of nsaid pain reliever/fever reducer (Tylenol/ibuprofen/naproxen)

1 lb ball peen hammer (no claw, a round knob instead), Wonderbar (flat pry bar), small tin snips for door seals, yellow construction crayon - you can mark the right hike in the tandem slide.

Spare hoses and electrical lines for truck to trailer

Brett, Lots of good suggestions here. But as you're setting up your next article try and break down by.

Shop Issued. Personal purchase.

Only mentioning because a few in here are in my book must haves, but you'll have to buy (hammer, vice grips, tape, zips)

My original list was items you can usually get from the shop free and good items to have onboard.

TIA