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View Full Version : Big Rig Drivers?????????



ShutYaPieHole
01-28-2006, 09:32 PM
Im going into the trucking bussiness. I'll be owner/operated. I have a chance to purchase a package deal. It's a 1999 freigthliner cat c-12 motor 600,000 miles and a transcraft 45' stationary tandem axle trailer for 27k. I wanna know if the trailer is to small or are their better deals out there. Is there work for a 45' trailer or does the size of the trailer matter. Please let me know your opinions.
THE TRAILER IS MORE OF A CONCERN THAN THE TRUCK I CAN GO NEWER ON THAT.....

BigBlockBaja
01-28-2006, 09:38 PM
Im going into the trucking bussiness. I'll be owner/operated. I have a chance to purchase a package deal. It's a 1999 freigthliner cat c-12 motor 600,000 miles and a transcraft 45' stationary tandem axle trailer for 27k. I wanna know if the trailer is to small or are their better deals out there. Is there work for a 45' trailer or does the size of the trailer matter. Please let me know your opinions.
THE TRAILER IS MORE OF A CONCERN THAN THE TRUCK I CAN GO NEWER ON THAT.....
Worked for big freight companies for years.....I would never buy my own truck. I like to be paid if the truck breaks down. I like to work on the boat and enjoy it on the weekends instead of doing PM's on a truck. I like for the company to pay my health benifits,Fuel, taxes, parts, insurance, 401k's etc.... 45' trailer? Lots of shippers base there loads on 53's from what Ive seen. Ive talked to OO's and all they brag about is the money they make, but then I tell them what I get and they walk away.. Talk to some company drivers before ya take the plunge.. Just my .02

Red Horse
01-28-2006, 09:49 PM
Have to go with a 53 foot float at least.
I used to drive a wrecker. That was some good money. 1.75 a LOADED mile to some places and then like 50 bucks in town not including hookup fee.

BigBlockBaja
01-28-2006, 09:52 PM
Have to go with a 53 foot float at least.
I used to drive a wrecker. That was some good money. 1.75 a LOADED mile to some places and then like 50 bucks in town not including hookup fee.
Heavy duty towing is good money too..... F*ck OTR.....

TwinMach26DCB
01-28-2006, 10:04 PM
I own a third party logistics company -- We're a broker.. Handle in excess of 2500 loads per month and I wouldn't TAKE and run the truck you're thinking of buying-- literally, if you GAVE it to me..... Swift, Market, Conway, Schneider, Rail -- These guys will take a run that NO WAY PENCILS out on it's own merit because they NEED the backhaul... There is just so little room for the 1 horse dog and pony show out there... When you take a second and check on cargo, liability insurance, let alone the maintenance and expenses not far away with a 600K truck -- Road taxes -- phone, billing, --- not to mention the exposure and risk you take on EVERY load.....
UNLESS you have a GUARANTEED, round trip contract rate with an established shipper, take it and play blackjack... It'll be a much quicker and more painless demise..
My .02

Red Horse
01-28-2006, 10:10 PM
Heavy duty towing is good money too..... F*ck OTR.....
Recovery and winch time is where it is at. That and arrest weeks. Could haul 2 at a time and MAKE 60 a car not including storage.

H20 Toie
01-28-2006, 10:24 PM
you willl screw yoursrlf it if tyou do a 45 of even a 48' you hald fto have a53'

BigBlockBaja
01-28-2006, 10:27 PM
you willl screw yoursrlf it if tyou do a 45 of even a 48' you hald fto have a53'
He will screw himself in the long run if he buys his own tractor....

boatsnblondes
01-28-2006, 10:28 PM
http://www2.***boat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=10859
Trucks are too small for my tastes......and if you are wondering, yes, I am running it..taken last year by a railbuff buddy who climbed up there to grab a shot of me as I went by...nice train as I recall, but big...it stretches all the way back and out of sight.....

ShutYaPieHole
01-28-2006, 11:37 PM
I Welcome All Opinions And Comments. Keep Them Coming......

H20 Toie
01-28-2006, 11:38 PM
I Welcome All Opinions And Comments. Keep Them Coming......
don't dp it
do

Red Horse
01-29-2006, 04:09 AM
Like with a wrecker it is all feast or famin. If the phone dont ring, the truck doesnt get loaded and the money isnt there. There was times when I was hoping it would rain so people would start crashing into each other.

shueman
01-29-2006, 05:37 AM
I own a third party logistics company -- We're a broker.. Handle in excess of 2500 loads per month and I wouldn't TAKE and run the truck you're thinking of buying-- literally, if you GAVE it to me..... Swift, Market, Conway, Schneider, Rail -- These guys will take a run that NO WAY PENCILS out on it's own merit because they NEED the backhaul... There is just so little room for the 1 horse dog and pony show out there... When you take a second and check on cargo, liability insurance, let alone the maintenance and expenses not far away with a 600K truck -- Road taxes -- phone, billing, --- not to mention the exposure and risk you take on EVERY load.....
UNLESS you have a GUARANTEED, round trip contract rate with an established shipper, take it and play blackjack... It'll be a much quicker and more painless demise..
My .02
My sis has been running her tractor out there for 3 years....seems to be doing OK...Leprachan Trucking...

MagicMtnDan
01-29-2006, 06:43 AM
I was wondering why anyone would ask these questions (about the rig) when it sounds like there's a lack of understanding of the business. If you don't already know the business inside and out why would you think about buying equipment first?! :220v:
It's like saying I want to go into the air freight business and I need your advice on the type of airplane to buy (and I don't have a pilot's license). :rolleyes:
I hope you have already started thinking about some other type of business to go into.
Good luck!

Wet Dream
01-29-2006, 08:16 AM
It might be cruel, but I laugh at some of the douchebag owner ops out there. 10 years ago, I thought about becoming an O/O, but with the way things have changes in the last 6 years alone....NO F'ING WAY. Fuel, insurance, freight rates. Top 3 right there.
I'm a company driver for a company with 350 trucks. I've been here 7 years and its one of the best that works for me. If the truck breaks, gets a flat, whatever, send a message, and someone comes and fixes it. All I have to do is sign a piece of paper at the end. If the truck is going to be down for an extended period of time, I jump in another truck for a day or two and continue making money. If I want to take time off, I send a message that I'm taking off. I don't have to worry about the truck payment. Neither does the comapny. There are 349 other trucks out there making money for them. Blue Cross/ Blue Shield, 401K, vacation. Plus, I'm home almost every day, and home every weekend. Some of these guys are out 4 to 6 weeks at a time, running 6 or 7 days a week. F THAT!! I like my family. Add that into what all the other people that have a clue as to whats going on in the above posts.
So now, for some of the other side of the coin. If you really want to buy a truck, forget the trailer. Lease your truck on with a company that has a trailer pool, good freight, dedicated runs (if you want that), benefits. You could sign on with rail yards, or containers out of shipping ports, etc. You get all the benefits of owning your own depreciation, but the freight and structure of a company driver. Thats it for now.

HocusPocus
01-29-2006, 08:59 AM
I drove truck for US Xpress and was doing the long haul for 3 of those years. seen lots of driver get into the O/O thing.. some did good, others didn't. my income was consistant and when it came to my home time, i could just park the truck at the terminal with a list of things that needed repairs and not have to think about it. the O/O i still know are working 24/7 almost 365 days a year to keep food on the table. i wouldn't want to be an O/O even if i was given a truck.
45' trailer.. no way.. a truck with over 600k as a starter rig.. also no way.
good luck

BigBlockBaja
01-29-2006, 11:01 AM
I work for Con Way (http://www.con-way.com) , and I get paid by the hour, OT after 8, benifits paid except for 1% of my gross pay (understandable), paid vacation sick and holidays, company matched 401k, home every night, I dont have to run no damn log book (the night guys do, but thats big money) and its just punch in, punch out, go home. I like it...

racecar.hotshoe
01-29-2006, 03:13 PM
Lotta good points made here BUT the one thing I would caution is if you have NOT been there SHUT THE F*CK UP! :mad:
Gawd, I hate truckdrivers!
I'm NOT being rude but the man doesn't need opinions that are only 'hearsay', truckstop tales, or second hand BS, " I knew a guy that had a cousin that heard from this dude she screwed", yada, yada, yada. Ya get my drift?
Iffin you are gonna offer information in a situation such as this, GREAT, but keep it within the lines of what you actually know and not all the BS you've heard!
If it pertains to trucking in general whether it is OTR- from the Northwest Territories to down into Mexico, equiptment from line tracters to 'rough grade construction vehicles', playing o/o and not sleeping at night cuz you have that $2200. tractor payment due tomorrow, OR being a brain dead teamster that won't even change a burned out tail light bulb. If it includes how to deal with the State DMV, the IRS, the f*cktards that don't like my units on the city streets and try to get them banned from even being parked in my driveway, the best ways to finance, insure, license, and even label your equiptment then I'll toss in my .02 cents cuz I am all of the above and have been for the past 29 years but if it pertains to how to hook up a wrecker, check the pasturization of a load of raw milk, tie down a load of hay then I keep my mouth shut cuz I don't know sh*t. GOTTA COPY GOOD BUDDIES?
Every situation is different and it's possible to make good money in the business BUT you gotta go about it in an intelligent manner. A beginning O/O needs all the factual info he can get not BS cuz EVERY mistake or booboo he makes is going to cost him BIG MONEY.
JFYI, that particular tractor in the pic was $111,000. in 1985. Paid for in 4yrs. Would top out at 118 mph (cat, 6x4 double od, 355 rear)(radar, St. Clair, Mo.92mph) and the license plate was the same as my "N" number on my plane (so I could write off the avgas on the taxes).
SO from this disertation I hope you got the point that there is money to be made from trucking, it's not easy, and I don't have the patience god gave a rattlesnake for BS.
Hit the road runnin, stay off the drugs, don't park in the back row, stay away from the harbor, stay off the 710 and the 110 freeways cuz the scum that runs there probably don't have insurance, a drivers license or speak English, and watch out for a couple of the "ladies" on this website cuz I think I recognize um from the Ontario area.
Rio
Hey Beast, did I get it right?
You got it right I tip toe thru St. Clair to exit 353 to Mr Fuel fill up get my free 6pack of soda and head to Gateway speedway..........

jbtrailerjim
01-29-2006, 05:36 PM
A lot of good advise on here. I can't answer a lot of your questions about the truck or trucking but I can help you on the trailer.
Well since your looking at a Transcraft, I can see your looking at going into flatbedin business. Is it an aluminum or steel flat bed? Careful with older aluminum flatbeds. They have a tendency to crack all over the place. Regardless if it is steel or aluminum frame, check it out really good. Crawl underneath and check all crossmembers and frame rails for cracks. Make sure it has good brakes. Make sure the floor is in good condition. A new hardwood floor in that would cost you around 3k to replace. If it is an air ride inspect the air bags real close for dry rot. An air bag will cost you at least $250 a piece to replace. If it is a spring ride, check the springs for excessive wear and check the equalizer's for wear. Check the spring hangers for excessive wear and cracks. Check all the air lines for cracks. Get a flash light and check the drums for excessive wear and cracks. Check inside the drum and look at the oil seals. Make sure they are not leaking. Tires are they caps or virgins? Stay away from caps. A new trailer tire will cost you around $225-$300 a piece to replace.
If you live in California, you need to have a 90 day PM inspection done on the trailer and the truck. You need to have a FHWA inspection done on them yearly regardless where you live.
Since you are gonna go flatbeddin. Are the companies you are gonna haul for going to make you tarp the loads? If so, do you know how to tarp a load? If you don't, you better learn. I don't wanna see you headin down the interstate with your tarp looking like a parachute.
Good luck with your new venture. If you have any trailer questions I'd be more than happy to try and answer any questions you might have.

ShutYaPieHole
01-30-2006, 06:30 AM
Wow,
Alot of great comments and ideas. No offense taking to anything said not that it matters. Im Just watching,reading and learning.
Thanks Rich

Big Warlock
01-30-2006, 07:52 AM
Rio makes the most sense out of all of this. The guy has been there. I own a business that is not specifically trucking, but I own three heavy haulers to move heavy equipment. I also have my class 1 with doubles, tankers and hazardous endorsements. I drove truck way, way back in the 80's, cross country with an outfit that has since gone out of business. I don't have a ton of experience, but enough to have learned this:
If it fly, floats, f*cks or rolls........rent it!!!! :crossx:
Of course, I never listen to my own advice! LOL

ShutYaPieHole
01-30-2006, 09:06 PM
Dont stop know keep the info coming.
Rich

lucky
01-31-2006, 07:51 AM
Welll , lets just start out by saying after years of going with dad when i was a kid , polishing the dam alum wheels and washing , greasing , and brake adj. on weekends I had enough of trucking when i was 18 y/o . He offered me his peterbuilt when i graduated -- AHMMMM NO THANKS Dad !!! lol I became a butcher for albertsons for a few years , Then Ended up in trucking again ??? There is Money to be made ! Buuuuuutt It's not easy money - Trucking takes a very sharp indivdule - with good people skills , net working abilities , mech. abilitys , and someone very good with a Pencil ! The average truck working for a Company will make $120,000--- 160,000 per year ! You will have to pay your own fuel , taxes , maintence , lic and permits - bit inspections - and drug programs - Workmens comp if the company requires it. ( most do for liablity reasons , even though it's not required by law for a o/o ) You Better put money away for a rainey day / (truck maintence days when the truck isn't making rev) If you have a family ,your wise to finds some health care coverage ! now with this BRIEF summery -- YOu will NET about 33%- 50 % depending on your equipment - I.e -new truck less maitence, older truck more maintence ! YOu will Work 70 plus hours a week - and the Bears seem to have personal vedetta's agaist trucks -- fines across the us have been driven up as an attempt to control Saftey ! unfortunaly every goverment official inturprets the law slightly differnet and there is alot of room to write tickets - to generate rev. for the state, gov.
Now If your willing to Be truly independent and run your OWN Bussiness you should have very new and dependable equipment - good contacts , some capitol - and that truck to be loaded as much as possiable - at least a 80% loaded /20% emty senerio - YOU Will work on that truck when your not driving - You will write off your tool, office, phones , personal company vech leased to you ( I would lease new trucks every 3 - 4 years ) You Can hire your underage kid to grease the truck and give him/ her a 1500. tax credit ( yes! You can do this !
( this has to happen , but doesn't( customers are the key ) )Your customers will pay you every two weeks - You will pay your fuel card off monthly - Your customers will compensate you for fuel - You will bill your customers as your waiting to get unloaded off of your lap top and keep accurate records of transactions - You will have your shit together and you will make money -- $200,000-- to 260,000- but it is not an easy deal and YOU HAVE TO BE SMART / LUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!! You will have married that truck and your family will have to be a loving part of your company because you will not have the time you once did - ps This is true in both senerio's
Working for a company like the one i work for is great for someone that doesn't have knowedge / contacts in/ of the business -- We do Everything for you - and charge you for it ( very resonable ) You will have all your taxes items prepared for you to hand to your tax guy at the end of the year , you will have some one to lend you money when you need it - you will have some one to process your billing for you , You will have someone to take care of your fueling needs for you , you will have money in your hand every two weeks , you will have freight every day - You will MAKE A LIVING !
We will pay for your insurance ( liability / cargo ) which can run an average of 10,000 a year YOu will have to supply bob tail and comprehensive ! You will have to be resonsiable for your equipment and make it reliable ! You will have to have a profesional attitude and be courtious to customers ( you can tell your dispatcher to fock off , we're use to it !! lol ) YOU will learn about the trucking industry!!!!
If you crunch # and you do so honestly you will see that every trucking company on the road is paying about the same thing ! They just sell it a lil differnent !!!!! bottom line -- If you know what your doing - you would not be asking these questions - if you don't you should start by working for a company for a lil while to get a feel for things and see if it's right for you ! Don't expect to get rich ,but you will make a living !!!
my opinion a truck with 600,000 miles will have a shelf live of 1-2 years before your odds of mech repairs become inevitable - ( shop rates run $90. to 100.00 an hour and they just don't jump on your truck anymore It will sit for a day or two !!!!! this is what kills you unless your prepared for it !!!
It Could be a decent starting truck , but look ahead ! go threw it with a fine tooth comb -- We have lease purchase programs ( like every tom dick and harry trucking company - lol) we have been selling our units 2002 - 2004 with 150,000 miles to 500,000 miles for a thousand a month vs- term of agreed price of unit with payments taken out bi monthly and a maintence accountfor engine maintence , tires , brakes ( major repairs only )
so find what make you happy as you will be in charge of your own destiney look for traffic lanes so you can visit your house -- Truckers are always good about telling your there negitve experieces - so listen to everyone and form your own oppinion ! chris

Wet Dream
01-31-2006, 08:03 AM
Jucky, what company are you with?

lucky
01-31-2006, 10:03 AM
Jucky, what company are you with?
www.osterkampgrp.com

DansBlown73Nordic
02-01-2006, 11:49 AM
Just thought Id ad my .02 Cents........First off a 45 foot flat is way way out of date. If you were only going to haul machinery then maybe, but you are so limited.
I have driven for a company for about ten years as a company driver. For me it works out great. Im home every day. Are work is very steady. We have flats, vans, 100ft stretch trailers, drop decks, and low boys. So I get a huge selection of frieght. For me its been great.
I have been thinking of buying a truck. I would do exactly what I have done for 10 years only with my own truck. After reading this im not sure....lol :2purples: :2purples: :2purples:

HighRoller
02-01-2006, 12:43 PM
IMO, the only thing you could do with that equipment would be local work. The engine is underpowered and the trailer is too small for OTR stuff.
As far as owning a truck, a lot of people laugh when I tell them not to buy one unless you have the equivalent of 3-4 months expenses capital behind you. After all, nothing THAT bad culd happen, could it? WRONG. I lost an engine in my truck, costing me $6000 to rebuild and two weeks of downtime. The guy did a horrible job and the truck went back in the shop for another week at another place to the tune of $3400. I was on the road 317 miles(I will never forget it!) when my transmission started eating itself up. Another 4 days and $5000 later I was back on the road, only to discover they left a washer in the gearbox which promptly found its way through the 5/10 gearset. The rebuild was free, but I lost another 3 days. All tolled, I lost about $15,000 in revenue and spent almost $15000 in repairs in 6 weeks.
This is the worst case scenario, but if it happened to me it could happen to you too.

DansBlown73Nordic
02-01-2006, 01:08 PM
I think one of the keys to O/O is the truck purchase. the truck im looking at is a 99 Frieghtliner with 396,000 miles and driven since new by a guy who is a Fanatic (sp)? I mean oil changes every 10,000 miles, warms the truck up for 30 minutes before moving it. Drives 60 mph all the time. It has a 435 Cat.