how to start out o/o

[JERSEYGIRL]

hey all, my husband and i both work for a trucking co. im in office doing dispatch and he's the driver. he currently has a cdl b w/ hazmat, but wants to upgrade to class a and buy his own rig and hit the road. can anyone give us any pointers on how to start up? i know alot of o/o around here do pier work and they say they get paid crp. now as a co driver he suppose to be "local" yet he drives anywhere from va to nh! so he knows the east coast pretty well. he wants to continue to do runs like that. can anyone point us in the right direction on where to begin.

[GMAN]

Unless he wants to do expedited, he will probably want to get his class A CDL. Unfortunately, if he wants to drive an 18 wheeler, most companies will not consider the Class B as experience. I would check with some carriers, but he will probably need to either attend a truck driving school or go with one of the training companies until he gets a year or two of over the road experience. Expedited freight is often in a straight truck and the Class B is adequate.

[Shawnee]

A lot of the guys driving straight trucks are making more money than the guys driving tractor trailers

[Mackman]

A lot of the guys driving straight trucks are making more money than the guys driving tractor trailers

so ture

[solo379]

A lot of the guys driving straight trucks are making more money than the guys driving tractor trailers

so ture

So could be the opposite! :wink:

I sat behind a desk my whole life. Last year I went to a school part time at night, got my cdl, bought a truck and trailer, got my authority and doing very well.

First step would be for him to get his CDL A license. He should be able to get that part time at night or on the weekends without interfering with his current job.

You can get liability insurance from Progressive with a 300 mile radius which will give you pretty good coverage from your home base. Just check and make sure you can get cargo insurance also.

You will need a bunch of cash to get yourself going in the beginning.

I pull a flatbed and make pretty good money. You should do ok on the East Coast.

Most every question you have has already been answered on this forum so sit back, search and read.

The only help your going to get on this forum is advice on doing everything except what you want. Our forum is unique as we have Doctors, Lawyers, Marriage counselors, DOT officals, Police Officers, IRS agents, CPA's and every other profession under the sun who also drive trucks who will be more than willing to give you advise.....OR....YOU WILL FAIL AND DIE

[Graymist]

I sat behind a desk my whole life. Last year I went to a school part time at night, got my cdl, bought a truck and trailer, got my authority and doing very well.

Hey Steve....I was under the impression that you've been driving trucks for quite a while now, so I was quite surprised to read that you only started last year. What made you decide to buy your own truck and trailer and go independant, rather than acquiring some experience driving for a company ?

Quite an intrepid soul you are, my friend !!

I sat behind a desk my whole life. Last year I went to a school part time at night, got my cdl, bought a truck and trailer, got my authority and doing very well.

Hey Steve....I was under the impression that you've been driving trucks for quite a while now, so I was quite surprised to read that you only started last year. What made you decide to buy your own truck and trailer and go independant, rather than acquiring some experience driving for a company ?

Quite an intrepid soul you are, my friend !!

Got tired of sitting behing a desk doing the SAME thing every single day and always wanted to drive a truck.

As far as experience. That's crapola, you learn on the road like everyone else. 6 weeks with a trainer is nothing compared with really doing it on your own. I figure it takes 6 to 9 months on your own before you have a good handle on it. If you can survive the first few months your just as good as a Swift driver with 6 weeks riding with a trainer asleep in the bunk.

[rank]

can anyone give us any pointers on how to start up?

How much money have you got? Not trying to be a smart*****. Serious question.

You will likely spend $15,000 on maitenace in the first year.
You will have approx $35,000 owing to you before you see a "paycheck".
You will spend approx $7,500 in fuel before you see a paycheck.
It will cost you $20/day to eat.
And you haven't bought any equipment yet.

$100,000 would be a nice amount to start with.

[DD60]

can anyone give us any pointers on how to start up?

How much money have you got? Not trying to be a smart*****. Serious question.

You will likely spend $15,000 on maitenace in the first year.
You will have approx $35,000 owing to you before you see a "paycheck".
You will spend approx $7,500 in fuel before you see a paycheck.
It will cost you $20/day to eat.
And you haven't bought any equipment yet.

$100,000 would be a nice amount to start with.

If anyone has 100k laying around to invest it would be a better idea to invest in anything else but a trucking company. You can buy a decent truck and trailer for around 60k if you are savvy enough and know what to look for. The 15k maintenance cost I agree with. The 20.00 a day to eat I also unfortunately agree with. It is showing in the cramming of my jeans. The 100k you need to start with I don't however. Most brokers pay within 30 days of delivery and being the shape the trucking market is in I doubt anyone is averaging 3.50 a mile on 10k miles in 30 days.

[rank]

can anyone give us any pointers on how to start up?

How much money have you got? Not trying to be a smart*****. Serious question.

You will likely spend $15,000 on maitenace in the first year.
You will have approx $35,000 owing to you before you see a "paycheck".
You will spend approx $7,500 in fuel before you see a paycheck.
It will cost you $20/day to eat.
And you haven't bought any equipment yet.

$100,000 would be a nice amount to start with.

If anyone has 100k laying around to invest it would be a better idea to invest in anything else but a trucking company. You can buy a decent truck and trailer for around 60k if you are savvy enough and know what to look for. The 15k maintenance cost I agree with. The 20.00 a day to eat I also unfortunately agree with. It is showing in the cramming of my jeans. The 100k you need to start with I don't however. Most brokers pay within 30 days of delivery and being the shape the trucking market is in I doubt anyone is averaging 3.50 a mile on 10k miles in 30 days.

DD,

That's a theorectiacl 30 days from reciept of the mailed POD. Here's the fine print. You create the invoice, mail it, USPS does it's thing, broker pays on the first billing cycle AFTER the 30th day AFTER they recieve it, they mail it, USPS does it's thing, you get home to check your mail.....you're lucky if it's 45-60 days. Hence my $35,000 estimate.

We always have at least $25,000 oustanding and I have the luxury of invoicing the day after delivery.

[Sonny Pruitt]

Steve lucked out with no experience
And in opinion he put the public at risk
There are consequences for no experience
Read this article closely


It happened last week



http://blog.pennlive.com/patriotnews...tal_crash.html

a rookie mistake


everyone makes mistakes
when they try to learn something
by the seat of their pants

you make a simple, silly mistake in a truck
you could wind up in prison
and a million dollars bail

[bransontripper]

That is really crazy!

[Blind Driver]

I've talked to seval o/ops who drive the FedEx Expeditated trucks. They seem to be making very good money. One driver I talked to said his Detroit is getting 7 mpg average, but his buddy is getting 12 mpg out of his Mercedes, Might be something to consider

[rank]

12 mpg? Must be bob tailing

[solo379]

It happened last week



http://blog.pennlive.com/patriotnews...tal_crash.html

a rookie mistake

I was there shortly after that happened! Thankfully going south bound on I-81! :sad:

[Doghouse]

I agree with the rookie mistake part, but the vast majority of trainers don't do the job that they are supposed to do ( I could tell you about my trainer, and then trainee partner,...I'm lucky to be alive). I think Steve did a fine job of learning as you go,...he probably did better than most.

[RostyC]

I don't see in the article where it said he was a rookie. He was 36, could have 10 years experience who knows.

And that's not a good example of a mistake. That's pure carelessness, hence the charges.

Also, I see drivers of all sort do stupid things.

Without defending (or offending) anyone, I will say this, who is more likely to be careless, someone in a company truck or someone that just spent their savings on their equipment to get started?

The above is not a jab at company drivers.

[jonboy]

So I guess the point is, everyone should start with years of experience???? Or maybe they shouldn't let anyone start driving a truck unless he already has ten years experience??? lol

This would surely reduce the amount of drivers and increase freight rates I suppose. :wink:

The problem, imho, is not the lack of experience, but the lack of training, and drivers that are so familiar with trucking, they become careless, whether they have five, ten, or 20 years experience.

Statistics show that trucking fatalites are down, despite the newbies on the road, and many of the major accidents are attributed to carelessness more than lack of experience. I would like to see some stats comparing serious accidents against years of experience.

Rarely do I see a newbie tailgating a small car going 75mph, it's usually the so called "experienced", with enough confidence to pull of such a daring move, or should I say careless/wreckless move, depending on your perspective.

I would agree that no one should get a cdl and go out on the road without some really good training, although, that is the way a lot of the now "experienced", started.

The times were different then, I suppose.

musings of a misfit.

[Sonny Pruitt]

I am just pointing out there are consequences in trucking and if you want to take the "you don't need training anyone can drive a truck" route read the article and decide for yourself.