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meanbone79

Should a new driver start driving a tanker?

Mackman · Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Posts: 2435 Location: Concordville PA

I really dont think it matters alot. But if i had to say one i will go with dry van.

GMAN · Joined: 13 Feb 2005 Posts: 9884 Location: Tennessee

You need to change your poll. You are asking an either or question but offer yes or no? :? :shock: I would suggest starting with a van and then switch to a tanker if you wish, once you get some driving experience. 8)

meanbone79 · Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2005 10:10 pm Post subject:

Thanks Gman its been corrected, :oops:

Doctor Who · Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2005 6:53 pm Post subject:

GMAN wrote: I would suggest starting with a van and then switch to a tanker if you wish, once you get some driving experience. 8)

I will agree with the big "G" get at least a year all weather driving experience and then make the move to tank work. Most, if not all, tank lines require at least one years driving experience...

Bisquit · Joined: 08 Feb 2005 Posts: 503

I think Doc hit it right on the head. No tanker outfit is gonna hire you to pull a tank till you have at least a year if not more experience under your belt. You have too much to contend with just learning to drive without having to deal with surges and outages............Don

Contractor · Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2005 6:43 pm Post subject:

I have been pre-hired for Schneiders bulk division. I will complete my course at Sage Technical next week. I was really excited about it at first but they say that I have to sign their one year contract. I think I'm going to tell them thanks but no thanks. Their are too many chances to end up owing them 4200.00 on top of the 3475.00 I've paid to Sage.

I've been pre-hired by Averitt Expresss, Colonial, US Xpress, and McElroy.

Averitt has profit sharing, nice Volvos, local terminal, chance to bid on local and LTL after six months.

Most drivers don't stay with Schneider past the first year.

I'd appreciate your comments.

uglymutt · Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2005 1:18 am Post subject:

Lady North wrote: Have you actually found a company that will hire you as a new driver, pulling tanks?

Yes its called Prime... they been trying to get me to go into driving a tanker and I am fresh out of school, got their post card here say Congrats you been accepted but I also got another company which I start the first of the year and its refer for me as a newbie, never doubles or triples or hazmat or tanks so all these endorsements I have are nothing now.... so yes some companies will hire new drivers to go tankin.....

And besides if they train you and stuff to handle a tanker, having 2000 years of dry van how is that going to help?, its not the same so I vote YES let them learn.....how else and where do these tank drivers come from? they still have to train anyway....

RichFLD120 · Joined: 15 Dec 2005 Posts: 47 Location: SK, Canada

I'd say no. I started driving tankers just this year (Anhydrous Ammonia and fuel tankers) after three years of van experience on the highway. There's NO WAY I would have attempted this as my first driving job. As the others have stated, I don't think many carrriers would look at a newbie anyway.

PA · Joined: 28 Mar 2005 Posts: 140 Location: Reading,PA

with the right train u could do it but im with the others here that say start with van learn some more and then switch

Skywalker · Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 11:06 am Post subject:

CTL which is one of the "COMCAR" companies will train and hire a "newbie", but they train you do do it right. They have a lot of local type work around their terminals... The new driver spends a good bit of time with the trainer and they are fairly critical when training. Just try being sloppy when loading, transporting and unloading 98% pure sulphuric acid. You only get to make one mistake....quite possibly the last one you'll ever make. At a minimum you'll wear that mistake for the rest of your life.

I vote no. I think it best to start out with van or reefer (ugghh :sad: ) before taking on the tanker challenge. 99% of tank companies require 2 years OTR, and significant snow/ice and mountain experience..... and there are valid reasons why.

Random_Facts · Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2007 6:13 am Post subject:

I had to say No as well to the rookie pulling a tanker. (at least a year or more of experience). Pulling a dry van just think for a moment. nothing should be moving in you're dry van so One less thing to think about.

But in a tanker Oh no a yellow light! its turning red..steps on the brake..and all that water or liquid behind you (in the trailer) well its going foward and so are you lol.

Random_Facts · Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2007 6:15 am Post subject:

Oh and I do realize that post is from 2 years ago..Just went looking at different posts found that on page 43 or something lol. =P

GTR SILVER · Joined: 15 Sep 2006 Posts: 511 Location: new jersey

meanbone.................. did'nt you start out with TWT right out of school??
you seem to be doing ok. what prompted you to ask this???
is a co-worker having a hard time?....................just curious......lol

Useless · Joined: 08 Oct 2005 Posts: 3177 Location: Canyon Lake, Tx.

I don't think that a driver should even be able to get a taanker endorsement untill after he (or she!!) has at least two years of driving experience with no accidents, wrecks, or preventables.

There is just too much that can go wrong. To my way of thinking, it's sort of like a pilot wanting to fly a Cessna 310 (a twin that Cessna built for many years; a fine bird, but it will bite you in the ass if you don't know what you are doing!!) without having first flown a C-172.

It is a fertile breeding ground for trouble.

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