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So I earned a strip at the end of the week!

MikeJ

MikeJ

TB Veteran
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Hi guys,
So today the man who I was working with all week, said that I was good enough now to be a trucker!
I still have some shifting weaknesses, but I've at the same time come a long ways, I still have a long way to go, but I've come a long ways too, since the first time that I ever, drove a 10 speed, boy that was a scary day. Glad most of this breaking in is going to be behind me soon. I'm not as good at shifting as you guys are, but from where I was to where I am now, I'm a lot better, my floating gears could be improved some and part of that is because I have a heavy foot, but you know, I've kind of made some of this job my own, when my tac is to high and I need a gear I give my old friend the clutch a nice little push and get the stick into neutral and then just float it into gear (I actually have gotten pretty good at that little shifting drill and it goes right in, sometimes extremely smoothly (you know it's supposed to work like that all the time). :shift:

They had me on a kind of tough shuttle run this week, back and fourth 10 drops a day. I've dropped and hooked 40 times this week. I've dealt with 40 different landing gears. I've pulled mostly 48's, but a couple 53's through narrow city streets, and even did a blind side back. I haven't seen my old friend the two wheeler in a while, but next week I'll be back on delivery.

They put me on the hardest run they had so that way, everything else will be easier after that. The big boss asked me how I felt and I said "Well a side loader will be a piece of cake after this."
He said "Good, glad to hear it, that was the whole point."
I said "I kind of figured that much ha-ha."

I can't knock the place I work for it's training, it's probably a real good place to start if your a rookie and are willing to work, the driving you get good practice on a 10 speed, get to run all kinds of equipment, 10 speeds, automatics, 28' trailers 30 something foot trailers, 48 foot trailers, a good amount of 48 foot trailers. They have 53's as well, but generally, those are not really on a bulk run. Really with shifting it's one of those things where after you do it for a week 10 hours a day by the end of the week you have come a long ways. You won't be a pro lord knows I still miss gears and stall the truck and am not the greatest when driving in traffic jams, I usually end up missing gears and have some troubles there and get the truck knocked out of gear and then have a hard time getting back into gear. If I have to I'll stop and put the thing in first and start all over, sometimes you just can't get a gear happened to me today, just couldn't get one. I'm not the greatest when having to shift from high range to low. Like from 6 to 5 or 4 can be hard for me. Usually if I'm in 6 at 15 miles an hour and I see a light is red, I just hit the break. 15 miles an hour is pretty slow and by the time you attempt to down shift your really not getting your self a whole heck of a lot, at least that's my take. I mean I guess you could attempt to be saving the breaks, but I don't know at 15 and losing speed, I mean the breaks are meant to stop the truck.

The Volvo that I was in all week had like an auto jake break on it so like when you let off the accelerator the motor would start to slow down and the truck would kind of slow it's self. It was actually pretty nice feature, took me a minute to get used to it, but it's not bad.

On another note I got a job offer from a charter bus company yesterday, I told them not right now at the moment, but maybe a little on down the line. I had a harder time getting my passenger bus endorsement, then I did getting my Class A truck license. When you forget to do the parking break bleed down in the pre trip you can't really pass the CDL test.
 
Watch some youtube videos on shifting.

The motor will tell you when it needs to shift..I think watching the tach is very distracting especially when you are new, trying to remember the shift pattern, trying to control the truck.

Sit on the toilet or wherever, make the sounds with your mouth and get the double clutch out- neutral-clutch in next gear timing down. It will help alot..

While floating gears is cool, you are more likely to miss gears and its harder to find your way after that..You're revving the crap and just trying to find any gear.

I can almost guarantee if you do the above things, everything will fall into place.


And kudos on your job for working with you..That's really commendable.
 
CenturyClass said:
Watch some youtube videos on shifting.

The motor will tell you when it needs to shift..I think watching the tach is very distracting especially when you are new, trying to remember the shift pattern, trying to control the truck.

Sit on the toilet or wherever, make the sounds with your mouth and get the double clutch out- neutral-clutch in next gear timing down. It will help alot..

While floating gears is cool, you are more likely to miss gears and its harder to find your way after that..You're revving the crap and just trying to find any gear.

I can almost guarantee if you do the above things, everything will fall into place.


And kudos on your job for working with you..That's really commendable.
Click to expand...

You know, floating is fine and well, but I don't know to me it's not everything. I would rather use the clutch a little and get it into the next gear as quickly as possible then try to fumble around floating gears. Sometimes like I know my weakness, like there's a big hill I have to climb, well at the bottom of the hill I start in 8th gear and I can get up the hill in 8th gear just fine, a tad slow 40-45, but I know if I try to grab another gear I'll just miss it and lose all my momentum, so it's easier for me to just mash the pedal and keep it moving then to fumble around. Shifting is cool and all, but practicality is also needed and sometimes you just have to know, now is not the time and place for a shifting lesson.

I know the gear pattern on the 10 speeds by now that's the one thing I am comfortable with and I have become much better at getting my self out of a jam. Today was a good day I only stalled the truck twice today, one of those times was in the yard, I had the truck in 4th gear when I should have had it, in second. The other time was on a city street I got a break in traffic with a car waiting and I went "Cool, I can go" and I let off the clutch way to fast. Other then that though, that was it, which wasn't to bad. I have to work my way down.
 
Here is a tip to float down, if you know you have to pull a grade:

Make a c with your fist, and cup the rear of the shifter with that c light pressure or the heel of your palm.Let off the throttle and let the speed and rpm drop a bit. The rpms will drop to about 1000.( Floating down is mostly about feel and a little harder than floating up)

give the accelerator a love tap, get the motor up to around 15-1700 rpm..With light pressure you will feel the gate open like its riding on butter and it will easily slip to neutral.

When the rpms/ road speed match on the way down, it will easily find the next lower gate..try it a few times..
 
CenturyClass said:
Sit on the toilet or wherever, make the sounds with your mouth.
.
Click to expand...

Use rolls of toilet paper as pedals also, then explain to the wife why there are footprints on the flower prints, and yeah, honey, truck driving sounds help the choo choo come out of the tunnel.

Shifting is shifting, the "road speed" if that's what they still call it, has to match the engine rpm for the gear you're trying to get in. Going up hill, that road speed goes down faster, so you have to shift faster, going downhill, you can shift slower.

I can't say it's right or wrong, I don't jam gears, but I feel the gears, I kind of finess the lever into the gear. I, admittedly, don't have the wherewithal to stick it in at the exact moment, unless I'm going up the pattern. I don't grind gears taking off and getting up to speed. But if my speed changes and I have to shift, I glance at the speedometer, so I know what gear to go to, I gently hold the stick near the gear position and rev the engine until it slides into place. A clicking noise can be heard, but not a grinding noise. Like I say, I don't know if it's right or wrong, but it's the only way I know how to do it, and this is with or without using a clutch. I've never broke a transmission or bent a driveshaft (yeah we had a supervisor do that once). And I figure when I'm hammering a nail, I don't ever worry about damaging the hammer, so I hope the gears are made at least as strong as a hammer.

So all you old timers feel free to instruct me, if you need to.
 
There is really no excuse for stalling a heavy truck with a diesel engine and I suspect you are doing something...something that I see drivers do all too often...something that I would never do. If I am empty with trailer attached I will skip 1st gear and take off in second from a stop. Knowing my equipment and knowing my load I make the determination as to when I start out in 1st gear (now not low that is for overloaded on a hill or really rough driveways, construction sites and such). I never rev the engine for take off, I ease the clutch out and hit the fuel after my clutch is all the way out. I see guys who will start out in 3rd or 4th gear and to do that you have to rev the engine and slip the clutch, not good. Now if I am bobtailing I will start out in a higher gear but always one if low range and still no rev the motor, just a little slip the clutch to get 'er rolling.
 
ABFer said:
There is really no excuse for stalling a heavy truck with a diesel engine
Click to expand...

If I was in my own truck every day, I'd rarely stall it, but we got a lot of trucks, and a lot of drivers, and some of them clutches are wrecked.

Well first off, I'm in a different truck and trailer just about every day, it's the nature of my bid. If the clutch engages in a lower position, I may stall it a couple of times the first half of the day because I forget I'm in a different truck. If the clutch engages at the top of the pedal, it takes me a couple more seconds to take off, because I'm not used to it.

But some clutches are wrecked, and I try, but don't know how to explain it to the mechanic, you feel the clutch start to engage and then BAM you're lurching forward. I've talked to the other drivers about this and they know what I'm talking about, but the mechanic will bobtail it around the lot and not see the problem. The problem manifests itself when you are loaded and is exacerbated when you are parked on an incline. When I get in one of these trucks I have to start in the lowest gear every time, or I'll probably kill the engine, and it still lurches forward, spilling my groceries.

Does anyone know what this is? A warped flywheel or something? An unbalanced flux capacitor?
 
I drive a 2012 Volvo with a Volvo motor and Eaton 10 speed. This is the 1st truck I've driven in 20+ years that I have to give it some fuel when taking off with any amount of load. I still forget and kill it on occasion, usually on a hill.

Guardrail
 
TedWard it sounds like you have a ceramic clutch, AKA button clutch. They do not slip much and when they start to engage there is one fine line between in and out.

Guardrail, I guess times are a changing, I never had one that I had to rev to take off and that will eat up clutches faster.
 
ABFer said:
TedWard it sounds like you have a ceramic clutch, AKA button clutch. They do not slip much and when they start to engage there is one fine line between in and out.

Guardrail, I guess times are a changing, I never had one that I had to rev to take off and that will eat up clutches faster.
Click to expand...

The truck stalling is all my fault, I admit that, I pull off the clutch to early I tend to let the clutch out to fast at times, I've improved a lot, but your right it shouldn't happen not in first or second gear the truck has enough torque to where you just slowly let it out and it goes right a long it's way.
 
TedWard said:
Well first off, I'm in a different truck and trailer just about every day, it's the nature of my bid. If the clutch engages in a lower position, I may stall it a couple of times the first half of the day because I forget I'm in a different truck. If the clutch engages at the top of the pedal, it takes me a couple more seconds to take off, because I'm not used to it.

But some clutches are wrecked, and I try, but don't know how to explain it to the mechanic, you feel the clutch start to engage and then BAM you're lurching forward.
Click to expand...

Being with different trailers is kind of crappy to because some trailers need work and then they don't work on them instead they just keep loading them and they get passed around from driver to driver. Actually there is something to be said for having the same trailer all the time if you can.
 
I don't like the idea of having my own trailer. It's like being an only child. If something goes wrong it's too easy to figure out who did it.
 
The thing is if im driving the same stuff all the time I write up what's wrong with it. When it gets passed around nobody bothers writing it up. Which is why I think they always have me slip seating because they know it will get written up and repaired (maybe) (eventually)

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk
 
MikeJ said:
Hi guys,
So today the man who I was working with all week, said that I was good enough now to be a trucker!
I still have some shifting weaknesses, but I've at the same time come a long ways, I still have a long way to go, but I've come a long ways too, since the first time that I ever, drove a 10 speed, boy that was a scary day. Glad most of this breaking in is going to be behind me soon. I'm not as good at shifting as you guys are, but from where I was to where I am now, I'm a lot better, my floating gears could be improved some and part of that is because I have a heavy foot, but you know, I've kind of made some of this job my own, when my tac is to high and I need a gear I give my old friend the clutch a nice little push and get the stick into neutral and then just float it into gear (I actually have gotten pretty good at that little shifting drill and it goes right in, sometimes extremely smoothly (you know it's supposed to work like that all the time). :shift:

They had me on a kind of tough shuttle run this week, back and fourth 10 drops a day. I've dropped and hooked 40 times this week. I've dealt with 40 different landing gears. I've pulled mostly 48's, but a couple 53's through narrow city streets, and even did a blind side back. I haven't seen my old friend the two wheeler in a while, but next week I'll be back on delivery.

They put me on the hardest run they had so that way, everything else will be easier after that. The big boss asked me how I felt and I said "Well a side loader will be a piece of cake after this."
He said "Good, glad to hear it, that was the whole point."
I said "I kind of figured that much ha-ha."

I can't knock the place I work for it's training, it's probably a real good place to start if your a rookie and are willing to work, the driving you get good practice on a 10 speed, get to run all kinds of equipment, 10 speeds, automatics, 28' trailers 30 something foot trailers, 48 foot trailers, a good amount of 48 foot trailers. They have 53's as well, but generally, those are not really on a bulk run. Really with shifting it's one of those things where after you do it for a week 10 hours a day by the end of the week you have come a long ways. You won't be a pro lord knows I still miss gears and stall the truck and am not the greatest when driving in traffic jams, I usually end up missing gears and have some troubles there and get the truck knocked out of gear and then have a hard time getting back into gear. If I have to I'll stop and put the thing in first and start all over, sometimes you just can't get a gear happened to me today, just couldn't get one. I'm not the greatest when having to shift from high range to low. Like from 6 to 5 or 4 can be hard for me. Usually if I'm in 6 at 15 miles an hour and I see a light is red, I just hit the break. 15 miles an hour is pretty slow and by the time you attempt to down shift your really not getting your self a whole heck of a lot, at least that's my take. I mean I guess you could attempt to be saving the breaks, but I don't know at 15 and losing speed, I mean the breaks are meant to stop the truck.

The Volvo that I was in all week had like an auto jake break on it so like when you let off the accelerator the motor would start to slow down and the truck would kind of slow it's self. It was actually pretty nice feature, took me a minute to get used to it, but it's not bad.

On another note I got a job offer from a charter bus company yesterday, I told them not right now at the moment, but maybe a little on down the line. I had a harder time getting my passenger bus endorsement, then I did getting my Class A truck license. When you forget to do the parking break bleed down in the pre trip you can't really pass the CDL test.
Click to expand...

It sounds like your doing a good job already, 10 dropped trailers in one day is good for anyone. I'm sure you are already doing this, but before I started driving a carhauler, which has the 5th wheel bolt locked, anytime i hooked a new trailer or left the vehicle unattended, I always took a flashlight and looked at the backside of the 5th wheel and see that the jaws are locked around the king pin and the bolt was out, along with looking at the side of the 5th wheel to see that the bolt was in indicating that it should be locked. You could do the normal hook and tug and still not be locked. The shifting will come with time and even when you have years or experience you will occasionally drive a rig that for some reason shifts differently than most others, but you will eventually shift that one well too. Sometimes one truck has a larger or smaller shift pattern than the last one you drove and that can make you feel like a rookie, until you learn the pattern and master it too. Keep up the good work and stay safe! A spotless safety record will be your key to the highest paying jobs in trucking.
 
Banker said:
It sounds like your doing a good job already, 10 dropped trailers in one day is good for anyone. I'm sure you are already doing this, but before I started driving a carhauler, which has the 5th wheel bolt locked, anytime i hooked a new trailer or left the vehicle unattended, I always took a flashlight and looked at the backside of the 5th wheel and see that the jaws are locked around the king pin and the bolt was out, along with looking at the side of the 5th wheel to see that the bolt was in indicating that it should be locked. You could do the normal hook and tug and still not be locked. The shifting will come with time and even when you have years or experience you will occasionally drive a rig that for some reason shifts differently than most others, but you will eventually shift that one well too. Sometimes one truck has a larger or smaller shift pattern than the last one you drove and that can make you feel like a rookie, until you learn the pattern and master it too. Keep up the good work and stay safe! A spotless safety record will be your key to the highest paying jobs in trucking.
Click to expand...


Staying safe is what I really try to do the most and there certain things, that I am much more conscious of now then I was before. I do a tug test, but always check the lock jaws around the king pin when I back underneath a new trailer. It's a little harder to do that in a side loader, but still can be done, however the side loaders don't get dropped a whole heck of a lot, they pretty much leave them attached all the time usually. The drop lots drop side loaders, but the main warehouse those guys don't drop the side load trailers.

The way I hook to a trailer is I slowly back the tractor underneath the trailer and then wait till I hear the king pin lock in around the lock jaws, then I do a tug test. Then I get out of the truck and make sure the dock plate is down, sometimes it isn't so if it isn't I phone inside or walk inside and make sure there all done with the trailer. When it's positive they are done with the trailer I remove the wheel chalks if they are present and then I proceed to raise the landing gear. Then I check to make sure the lock jaws are around the king pin. Then I go and I attach my blue hose, my green hose and my red hose. I also check the tires on the trailer and make sure the trailer lights work. Then I pull forward till I am on level ground check the load in the trailer out and then close the trailer doors. Even if it's a roll door I still check to make sure the load is secure. Then after that I am pretty much off.

When I drop a trailer. I open the trailer doors first, unless it's a roll door trailer. Then I back the trailer in to the dock, chalk the wheels, lower the landing gear all the way to the ground and then give it an extra 2-3 cranks, pull the lock jaw release, disconnected the hoses. Slowly pull out from under the trailer and when I hear the fifth wheel clack I stop the truck to make sure the trailer is standing and then I slowly pull out from underneath the trailer and I am all done with disconnecting the trailer. This was the way the man I worked with all week taught me and he said it's the best most safest way so that's what I do.
 
Our spotter used to crank the landing gear all the way down, so when we tried to hook up, the trailer was a mile above the fifth wheel. And when you tried to crank that landing gear, well the trailer had moved so the legs were in a bind and it was a real pita lowering it. Our spotter this year is much better about that. But if I know the trailer is higher than my fifth wheel, I'll lower it to be sure the trailer is lifted slightly when I back under it, which helps cranking the gear a lot. I do a slight tug test, because I don't want to bind them legs up, and I pull out my trusty flashlight and make darn well sure it's latched around the king pin. I hear sometimes the mechanism is defective or in real cold weather the grease will be too thick for the hookiedoo to do it's hooky. Anyhow, I've seen drivers with 20+ years at the company accidentally slide out from under their trailers. How embarrassing that must be, but it happens once a year I guess. Just imagine what that does to all the groceries inside, I'd hate to work in that trailer that day!
 
TedWard said:
Our spotter used to crank the landing gear all the way down, so when we tried to hook up, the trailer was a mile above the fifth wheel. And when you tried to crank that landing gear, well the trailer had moved so the legs were in a bind and it was a real pita lowering it. Our spotter this year is much better about that. But if I know the trailer is higher than my fifth wheel, I'll lower it to be sure the trailer is lifted slightly when I back under it, which helps cranking the gear a lot. I do a slight tug test, because I don't want to bind them legs up, and I pull out my trusty flashlight and make darn well sure it's latched around the king pin. I hear sometimes the mechanism is defective or in real cold weather the grease will be too thick for the hookiedoo to do it's hooky. Anyhow, I've seen drivers with 20+ years at the company accidentally slide out from under their trailers. How embarrassing that must be, but it happens once a year I guess. Just imagine what that does to all the groceries inside, I'd hate to work in that trailer that day!
Click to expand...

I would rather have it dropped to low then to high that's for sure. Sometimes I only give it one crank on the ground. Your right though you can't always trust a tug test and not all fifth wheels are manufactured well.
 
I dont crank trailers all the way. I crank to a inch or half inch off the ground and lower the airbags to drop it. Because not every truck is the same height and that way when you drive up to it you dont have to climb out to lower the landing gear when hooking up. Make the tractor lift it a little
 
Moneyman01 said:
I dont crank trailers all the way. I crank to a inch or half inch off the ground and lower the airbags to drop it. Because not every truck is the same height and that way when you drive up to it you dont have to climb out to lower the landing gear when hooking up. Make the tractor lift it a little
Click to expand...

The trailer apron, should ride up unto the 5th wheel..I was paranoid about a dropped trailer with doubles, so I always cranked them down and made sure they rode up. When I drove a tandem, Id back up, stop, check the height and cranked it down..Fail safe against high hooks
 
Yep I agree century class. Thats why I dont crank the trailers down all the way. So that way when you back into the trucks 5th wheel will lift the trailer and the trailer just slides right on. If the trailer apron hit the middle of the 5th wheel but tipped the 5th wheel down then it would be fine to
 
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