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Originally Posted by Contractor
Good luck WheelTurner!
Sorry to hear that your business didn't make it Gcal. I agree that Gman has alot of knowledge and has taken lots of time to share it here.
I'm considering buying a truck also. I'd like your opinions.
Five years ago I got my CDL with HazMat, doubles, tanker at a Sage Technical course here in North Carolina. I was able to get a pre-hire from Schneider Bulk but they wanted me to attend their training at Harrisburg, PA even though I had my CDL. Great training! However when I went to New Jersey directly from training to spend six weeks with a trainer, I quit after seeing how unsafe an operation they ran at that terminal. Plus they were complete jerks without provocation.
I called Colonial Freight Systems in Knoxville, TN. Great people! They were hiring company drivers then so I went for orientation and was assigned a lease operator to train with for eight weeks. We ran Marion, NC to So Cal and back for three weeks coming home once a week for a day and a half. Only drove a night, let me back up twice, filled out my log book, etc etc. I finally asked for another trainer, this time another company driver. The night he picked me up he had an accident caused by making a U turn and a guy on a Harley slid into his landing gear. He had another preventable the night before brushing a ploe in a restaurant parking lot and someone called it in on him. We did log legally and did not run as a team. After two weeks, I simply couldn't stand being in the truck with another person period.
I quit and called Watkins and Shepard where some of my Sage classmates went. They had me attend a shortened orientation in Hickory, NC. It was great! Tim the safety manager spent alot of time with me, taught me how to downshift with a 44K load going down Black Mountain. He had me do it three times to make sure I could. Then I ran 48 state LTL van OTR for nine months until my mother got cancer. I never had to chain up but I did plenty of mountain driving in the Pacific Northwest, busy traffic in Atlanta, tight places to backup in Mid Atlantic states. I was assigned broker loads many times when WS didn't have freight.
Recently I inherited 200K. I own my little mobile home, car and have no debts. I'm single and have no tickets or accidents in over ten years.
I love driving but I don't want to be run by a company dispatcher.
I would like to buy an older, reliable tractor and trailer, get my own authority, insurance, etc and get broker loads from Web based loadboards. I can afford to start slowly to try to minimize mistakes. I do want to make a profit but I don't want to run my butt of either. I see some trucks on Truckpaper for around 30K. 2004 - 05 Freightliner 10 speed, detroit engine, approx 500 to 600K miles. Ryder Truck leasing has alot of trucks listed.
I was an OOIDA member for a couple of years. I wanted to learn and support the organization. I would definitely renew my membership to take advantage of discounts, advice etc.
I would like to haul flatbed loads, but I would need securement training. I'm not willing to go work as a company driver for six months. Watkins and Shepard told me I had to go through school again not just a refresher. I've been through PTDI training twice already.
Part of me says put ALL of my my money in mutual funds and forget about trucking.
Hey Contractor, I think you should do it only if you have work lined up first, and or leased on with someone. With CRST and Landstar you would take 73-75% of gross line haul. And know for a fact they have the loads available with VAN, I talked to a number of people including LS brokers,drivers, and corp.
At the time I talked to them they had 12k loads available, and of that 12k there were 9500 van loads available. Which is about 75% of total loads. They also told me that they didn't have enough lease operators to pull the loads they have now, much less in month or two when season picks back up. Another thing you have going for you is your carolina, which should give you good home time. Never let the brokers know where you live, as you can still bargain on routes that take you home or close to home. Dry Van at LS is averaging about 1.10-1.40 cpm and step/flat avg. 1.85-2.25 cpm.
I recommend you saving as much of your money as possible and only coming out of pocket with the least amount possible for down payment on tractor using financing on rest. As you will need to establish positive business credit in order to have successful business. Buy a dry van for 5-7k or finance as well. By using credit, you would also have a safety net on your new found money. If you get out there and it's not what you thought or money isn't there, or truck maint. is killing you or whatever it may be, at least you didn't blow a chunk of money buying 30-70k truck and trailer. You could just walk away with negative credit and 185k. As it should only cost you about 15k with down payments, insurance, and base plate. You could also pay off truck on 13th month instead of paying whole term if your doing good. You should do it bro, don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it. Everyone has different story, and situation that you may not have.
I think that you should be looking in the 400 to 500k mile trucks for around 30 to 40k price range, there out there. I've recently been looking at repo's for fraction of cost of retail. Might be worth looking in to, of course you would need to have your mechanic or a mechanic take a look for you before closing a deal. But you may not be able to finance.
I wouldn't start with my own authority unless I already had contract from distributor lined up or something on those lines. Start leased on, its safer and more secure. And you could market yourself while doing it, you never know what could pop up. Brokers are so shady and could rip u off. A lot of those load boards out there are crap anyways. Let someone hold your hand starting out, from what I'm hearing the best started out that way too. That's what I'm aiming for too.
If your looking for a company to train you with flat, try boyd bros trans, and maverick trans. They both train students and company drivers with flat/step and there both hiring in your area. Do six months with them, then apply with CRST as lease operator pulling flat. As there requirements are 6 months otr within past year and 6 month withing last 3 years pulling trailer applying to pull. Double check but I think I'm right.