New Owner Operator Broke and Disgusted

[DD60]

Merrick--Are you still getting your loads thru the same guy? How is he taking your down time, do you still pay him when you arent running?

Hmmm I probably should have went with that plan to have someone else dispatch me like Merrick did tho....this is the umpteenth millionth time im sitting cuz I cant get a load out or its god-awfull riddiculous rate trying to backhaul......right now even 1.20 would sound good :-p
You guys jump al over me for hauling that cheap, but you dont know how depressing it is to call these guys and they want me to haul 45,000 fo a buck a mile :-p even I WONt go that low :-p
So sitting again....crap Carlisle PA this time....CH would have gave me 3,000 to head back to LA....but too far a DH all the way to Richmond so i passed....n the 3k I had to negotiate up from 2,600 :-p

If you had a reefer you may have been able to get seafood out of the Boston area. You may be just looking in the wrong places. A run to FL. for 1.70 a mile is cheap since there isn't anything in Fl. You might try Cargomaster out of Dallas.They sometimes have loads on the east coast going west. 1-800-683-2100. Good Luck.

[person]

Thanks for the advice, May sound stupid, but when I find a jem will the owner/dealer let me drive it away to a machanic to have it checked out like you all mentioned????

Jim

Don't expect him to toss you the keys, but expect him to work with you to get the truck to an appt time that's agreeable to him.

[pepe4158]

Thanks for the advice, May sound stupid, but when I find a jem will the owner/dealer let me drive it away to a machanic to have it checked out like you all mentioned????

Jim

Don't expect him to toss you the keys, but expect him to work with you to get the truck to an appt time that's agreeable to him.

sounds like a good plan

[Red Clay Rambler]

The small dealer I bought used from did indeed toss me the keys. I asked him a few days in advance of my visit if I could make an appt. for inspection at a nearby dealership with shop. He agreed and I told him when to expect me and what time the appt. was for the inspection. I drove the truck to the inspection myself and called him when I arrived and when it was finished. It all went smoothly. I test drove the truck before booking the inspection, test drive was about 45 minutes, dealer was fine with that.

Of course, not all sellers would be that accomodating, but that's how I handled mine.

[GMAN]

Thanks for the advice, May sound stupid, but when I find a jem will the owner/dealer let me drive it away to a machanic to have it checked out like you all mentioned????

Jim

If they don't you can either walk away or bring a mechanic with you. I would say that most would be willing to work with you as long as they knew you could come up with the cash. They might even be able to meet you with the truck at a shop. If they don't want to work with you then I would go to the next truck. You don't want to buy any truck that you cannot check out.

[pepe4158]

My feelings exactly to walk-away if he wouldnt work something out with you as a dealer....any reputable dealer would want to.

I dont know much about being a diesel mechanic, but I have a two year degree in auto-mechanic tech from a local JC and was interested in that path when young, and it use to make me shudder when I heard stories from some of the older hands abut what this auto-dealer was trying to pull about this car hes selling and the problem it had that he knew about.

If you bought a used car, from a dealer, youd have a mechanic look at it......right?
I try to equate many principles here to semis....seems logical to insist on a dyno and inspection beforehand or walk away.

[roadranger]

I talked to others and have been told to stay above 475 h.p. with at least a 13 speed.

Torque is more important that HP - I'd guess you'd be OK with at least 1550 Ft/lbs. You only really need a 13 speed with a pre-EGR engine if your HP drop off point is above 1450 RPM. For instance, a Detroit 12.7 @ 1550 Ft/Lbs @ 1450 RPMS is 428 HP so if your 12.7 detroit is rated above 430 HP you will want a 13 speed. A higher torque motor can run more HP and still be OK with a 10 speed. A motor rated above 2100 RPM can also run more HP with a 10 speed but will really suck down the fuel! You'll see lots of 500 HP @ 2100 RPM Detroit "Green Grenades" - stay away! Most of these are actually split HP 430/500 anyways (see the "magic" 430 number?).

Anyways here's a little chart for Maximum HP vs. Torque for being comfortable with a 10 speed;

375 HP @ 1350 Ft/Lbs
400 HP @ 1450 Ft/Lbs
430 HP @ 1550 Ft/Lbs
455 HP @ 1650 Ft/Lbs
485 HP @ 1750 Ft/Lbs
510 HP @ 1850 Ft/Lbs
540 HP @ 1950 Ft/Lbs
565 HP @ 2050 Ft/Lbs

Enjoy!

[ridgerunner13]

Thanks for the great advice. I will be looking more serious the 1st of the year.

Jim