A few things I've learned doing decking...

[rank]

You think big my friend, I like that. If we achieve that though, then why stop there. World freight domination?

That can be the goal for 2010.

[rank]

Had a load of styrofoam insulation, very high.

From Kingston?

[rank]

Thanks Eagle and Jumbo. I bid on a 55,000lb load the other day which would have put me ~90,000 gross. All our trailers are tandems so I figured on running at night.

[allan5oh]

fort sask

[Walking Eagle]

Thanks Eagle and Jumbo. I bid on a 55,000lb load the other day which would have put me ~90,000 gross. All our trailers are tandems so I figured on running at night.

Handy web site for quick lookup of state requirements. Always read all the permit though !!!! they do sometimes throw curves. www.uspilotcars.com/index.html

[Jumbo]

Such as what color ink your permit must be signed in. I still laugh at that.

[catalinaflyer]

Such as what color ink your permit must be signed in. I still laugh at that.

Absolutly, I got one of those fancy pens that has 4 different colors that I keep in that special place just for those permits, now if I can just remeber where that place is??

I keep seeing straps mentioned on here so I went out and opened the box, you know the one, the catch all on the side of the truck that we never open. Anyhow I found two really big pieces of canvas rooled up really tight with shipping bands around them and in white marker they say HH on them, really have no idea what those are for. I have a tarp for my trailer, it's a bag about 12" X 18" with an eyelet in it and says "Turbo Saver" on it so I know those can't be tarps. And for those really big loads I have a roll of duct tape. As for straps, I found two in that box I mentioned that have about 1' of chain on the end and a hook, have no idea what they are for or how to use them but I have them.

I walked back to the trailer and took an inventory of my securement equipment, 4 - 1/2" X 6' chains with a 1/2" hook on one end and an oversize hook on the other, 4 - 1/2" ratchet binders, 2 - 1/2" X 12' chains with the same hooks, 2 - 3/8" X 20' chains with 3/8" hooks on both ends (look like they have never been used) and 2 - 3/8" snap binders. Oh and one last item ('s) 6 t-hooks so the nice folks over at John Deere don't get their collective panties all bunched up when I pull in to load. Of course I only use 1/2" chains for securement and those POS t-hooks will only work for 3/8" but dear ol Deere says you gota have em or you don't load so I got em. Oops, almost forgot, I also have 2 - 1/2" X 40' chains in the headache rack along with two more ratchet binders for hauling wind towers but those are my special chains so they stay put up. That and the fact it takes two men and a friggen mule to move them.

On to the question about weight, every state is different. Some will let you run 24/7 and others will make you run the same as overdimensional. Even on my trailer I'm not legal in most states when I'm empty because my trailer alone is 59 1/2' with the flip axle down and the neck extender flipped over. Most don't notice it and never say a word but there are some, Wisconsin & Minnesota especially that get real ugly about it. And on my trailer the flip axle doesn't "flip" because I'm set up for a stinger so rather than flip it I have to take it off completely and set it up on the back deck and chain it witch is a real PITA. I usually leave it down and just avoid going through the states that get all crooked or run them at night when it's not so obvious and Mr. I Know All The Rules driver doesn't see me and get on the radio to tell me and everyone else listening that I can't be running that way empty.

On our Schnables we're 101,000# empty and 10' wide so we have to have unladen permits to even pull out of the gate. Then there are some states that when we are running empty we have to tower them together and lift the front 3 axles on the back tower otherwise they consider them triples and won't allow us to pull them.

You guys go ahead and tie up the East Coast, I'll deliver to you at Truckers World and you can take it on from there. I'll stick to my Mississippi river on the east, I-25 on the west and I-94 on the south boundries. Yes I said I-94 on the south, in 6 weeks I have only been south of 94 twice and came right back. Of couse I'm breaking the boundries this week, I'm loading in Racine in the morning and going to Exeter, ON in the morning but I'll be back.

[Jumbo]

We use the straps with the chains on them. I use them on the trailers that have winch track on both sides, The flat hooks dont fit over the track very well. The bag with "Turbo Saver" is just what it says it is. When you load a machine sometimes as you drive down the road it is thought that the air pressure forcing it's way back into the machines exhaust spins the turbo and can wear it out. You put the bag over the exhaust pipe so no air gets in it.

[rank]

....going to Exeter, ON

No kiddin'! I lived in London, ON for 17 years. What are they building in Exeter? There's not much there.

[catalinaflyer]

We use the straps with the chains on them. I use them on the trailers that have winch track on both sides, The flat hooks dont fit over the track very well. The bag with "Turbo Saver" is just what it says it is. When you load a machine sometimes as you drive down the road it is thought that the air pressure forcing it's way back into the machines exhaust spins the turbo and can wear it out. You put the bag over the exhaust pipe so no air gets in it.

My comment about the turbo-saver was cynical. I have it on my load right now. What I was trying to get at was that's all the tarp I need for the loads I haul. Actually ours don't say turbo-saver on them, we have our tarp company use our old shredded flatbed tarps to make all sorts of things including exhaust socks. As for the straps with chains, again I was being cynical. 90% of everything I haul can be handled with 4-1/2" chains and binders.

No kiddin'! I lived in London, ON for 17 years. What are they building in Exeter? There's not much there.

Actually I'm hauling a new farm tractor up there to an equipment dealer. But right at the moment I'm sitting staring at the fog so till it lifts I'm not going anywhere.

[INKTOXICATED]

have you ever had the miracle strap toss where you tossed it over the load and it rebounded and latched itself perfectly to the rub rail. 1 inna million shot. i know with our loads when it snows on top of the tarped loads and it freezes up, forget about trying to put the veeboards on. put them up walk to the other side,, booom you hear it falling off from the other side. walk back around put it back on, then again to the other side boom, falls again. talk about fustration rising to the limits. espically when you need 10 boards per side. we had a guy get so pissed they kept falling, he ran the load without them, and wound up loosing the rear skid of rubbermat torch rolls right off the side. whoops

[rank]

Actually I'm hauling a new farm tractor up there to an equipment dealer. But right at the moment I'm sitting staring at the fog so till it lifts I'm not going anywhere.

Farm tractor heck, I thought it was going to be sumthin' BIG. LOL.

[arsjohn81]

Ink,

When I pulled a flat in rain/snow with v board loads, i would throw my straps and get them just about snug........just enough to slide the board under it. Seemed to cut down on them falling off. It takes a couple times to learn how much slack ya need to make it snug once you slide under...but......thats what I used to do.

CHop