Achieving a Goal Coastie going O/O
 

I came back out driving with the goal of going O/O. I put in the request to go home today to empty out my Company truck, to come back out as an O/O for the same Company. They are not the best for an O/O but they have been good to me as a Company Driver. And after talking to others O/O with the Company they are doing good also.

Leasing on is only a stepping stone, now working on the second Goal, going fully independent with own authority. But first I willl need to save a few more bucks.

Good luck on going the owner operator route. Now is not the best time to make major changes. Most are not doing that well. Many are falling by the wayside. Hopefully, you will buy a truck that has a low payment and your living expenses and personal debt is low.

Good luck Coastie. Keep us posted! :thumbsup:

Hi GMAN, Yes I have been listening to you and the rest. My payments will be 1360.00 a month, and Ins 144 per month. With my current Company I am working for the O/O get the choice on loads, and the ones I talked to are doing good. As a Company Driver, I do not sit, normally have a load less than an hour after I empty. Plus with the Company it seems they are leaning on going more O/O than Company drivers now. Fired near 400 driver last month and not replacing them.

As for my personal debt, my VA disability will cover it.

Hey Coastie...seems like only yesterday you were posting from the Phillipines. Now here you are back home and reaching for your dream. Good luck!!!! As Gman said, it's a tough economy out there.

That is a lot of money to pay out each month, but with your extra income you should be able to do alright as long as the freight holds out with your company. Who will you lease the truck to, coastie, if you don't mind my asking? If you prefer not answering on the forum that is OK.

I think more carriers are going more toward owner operators than company drivers. It is certainly much less expensive than paying company drivers. The owner operator has the capital investment and the company has the profits. Well, a big chunk of it anyway.

Hi GMAN, I They are not the highest paying but they have kept me rolling. I have talked to some of the Owners Operators and they are real happy with them and able to survive. One I met who was leased onto DART, was really happy with them. I met him as he was leasing on. I ran across him a few weeks later and he was telling me he was doing so well he was able to buy new set of tires for his truck and was tickled pink with the company.

So I will lease onto them so I can get a better work history behind me, I do not plan to stay with them for ever. Just my work history does not look good as of now which not my fault, I started back into trucking working for small companies, and most went out of Business. Only one I quit and it was a raw deal from the get go, but they want me back in the worst way, always emailing me begging me to come back to work for them.

Thanks GEOMON... Oh yes the Philippines, how I miss that place though.

Yes the Economy tough but when the times are tough, the Tough get going....

I met an owner operator with Dart who did one of their lease purchase programs. He is the first guy that I recall having met who actually completed his lease and owns the truck. When I spoke with him he had just leased another truck from them and was planning on staying with Dart. I don't recommend the lease purchase programs with any carrier but I suppose the reason I still remember him is because he told me that he completed his lease and was doing well. That was a number of years ago.

Good luck Coastie.

Best of luck to you Shipmate! ;)

Thank you Rawlco and devildice.

Yes I agree, and I also learn that from these forum, not to lease a truck from who gets your freight. Plus I had 2 other factors I seen why not to.

1. Their cost compared to outside source. I'll be saving 200.00+ per month by getting it other than the Company I work for, or any other Company plan.

2. If I choose to switch Companies, I will not loose the truck, it will go with me. If I was doing the Lease Purchase, I loose the truck and everything I paid into it.

I knew a fellow "swabbie" would be using his head.....:lol: Those are 2 main reasons why I got my equipment from an "outside" source.

Well I finishing up my first full week running in my own truck. Lot has happen, and many miles has passed.

Since I took the Helm of the Truck, I been DOT, Hit, And given an Over weight ticket, and DOT again. Been to MO, To TX, and out to Calif and now on my way back to Texas.

But first I willl need to save a few more bucks.



save a lot more bucks.

I see that you have gotten off to quite a start, coastie.

Dang, hell of a way to start off.....btw, you do remember that it's a "truck" and not a ship right? :lol:

Yes but every thing cool. 3700 miles first week.

What do you mean it not a ship? hahahahaha

With your luck being so good out the gate, maybe you should hand some rubber fenders over the side :rofl:

HAHAHAHAHAHA Well I do not think I'll need to do that. Just a few small problems and nothing I can not handle. It going to be a piece of cake.

:thumbsup:

LOL. That reminds me of the day I took my driving test (during DOT blitz week). I was early for my appointment, so I parked the truck and trailer on the shoulder of a city street and went in for a coffee. When I came out, a cop was checking it over. He asked to see my license and I said, "I don't have one yet. I take my driving test in 15 minutes". "Come by and see me at the arena when you're finished". So I got my license and got DOT'd 30 minutes later LOL.

That was quite a welcome to the business, rank. :D

Yes that was a strange welcome to the industry.

Update
 

Well Coastie still Running hard and strong.

I did turn in the Truck I had leased, but now I am buying a 378 Pete. A cost cutting deal.

Times it hard to believe we are in bad economics times, for I have to fight to get any rest.

nice looking truck coastie, congrats. :)

Much nicer looking truck than the freightliner in your first picture for sure!

Keep them wheels turning sailor!!!

Love that Pete you have now. As a current Coastie looking to get my CDL, I'll be keeping an eye on this thread to see how you're doing.

v/r

OS1 Mason

Did you by chance, buy that Pete from Arrow Truck Sales in Atlanta?

Sure did

I stopped in and looked at it, last month. Did they come off the $53,000 that they were asking for it?

Well I guess they did. I paid 29,950.00 for it. First they were asking 32,000.00 but the salesman came back and said they are going to offer it to me at the 29,950.00 price.

I did have a steering box problem and was scared of the cost that was quoted. 1000.00. But after the repair I was in high heaven, cost 23.16.

LOL....They must have one qoute for people whom have trucks already under a lease contract and another for those with out!

A steering gear box cost's about $680 plus the labor to instal. I just put one on my truck last week. :tears::tears::tears:

Yes if they had to replace the steer box it would have cost 650.00 plus labor which I was told it would end up with a total of 1000.00. But it turned out the fluid line was lose and was leaking and only had to be tighten. I never saw it leak so I did not know other than I had to place some fluid in it the day before.

You were very lucky on that gear box, coastie. I replaced a gear box on one of my trucks about 2 years ago and I believe the gear box was just under $600. I will take a hose or clamp any day. :thumbsup:

Mine had oil leaking out of the outter sela, then when they took it off the frame, there were two cracks in the backside of the case. Total replacement cost....$987.99

Well they knew I had a truck already and was leased on to a Company. I dropped in there in the Freightliner.

maybe they thought you were trading and added the trade in amount to the truck like some dealers do

Maybe. I stopped in to Arrow Trucksales there back around the first week of April. When they said $53,000 for that truck, I lost interest.

I was planning on rebuilding mine until they gave me the cost. Parts were not very much, but labor would have been about as much as buying the new gear box, providing I had a mechanic do the work. It probably cost less to just buy the box and put it on rather than rebuilding the one that was on the truck.