Hi gang. I drove OTR as a company driver for 3 years and came off the road in Nov of 09. I've been selling insurance again since that time and it's been really slow so I find myself applying at a number of the fuel haulers here in Tampa - as a company driver. That's by background - short version.
I have a friend who has an F250 and the largest trailer allowed to stay under the
25k weight catagory. He has 2 customers that he does just a few jobs for each month and that pays his truck & trailor payments. The trailer has 6' high, non-removable side walls and is actually a dump trailer.
So, I was talking with him the other day about possibly working together with getting more loads such as hotshot loads, site cleanup (which is what he's doing now), and other types of smaller loads.
He has insurance and business license that the city requires but no DOT permits/registration. He told me that his truck, which is a diesel, only gets 6 mpg. I think that's very low for a small truck - i got better than that with the KW 660 I was driving. Also, with the non-removable sides on the trailer, a lot of loads would not be available to us.
Anyway, I wonder if any of y'all can give some advice. The current setup is not ideal for hotshot services, etc. but I'm wondering if we can make a go of it until we create the funds to buy a flatbed trailer. Also, what exactly would we need to do to get the proper DOT stuff in order?
Also, any words of wisdom is very welcome. At this point we're just kind of exploring options so we're not married to this idea. It may not make any since at all but I thought I'd turn to you folks.
Thanks in advance for any input.
Oh, and what have I not asked - or thought about, that I should be asking??
Thanks,
L