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Thread: Woohoo! Just got my truck driving license!

  1. #1

    Woohoo! Just got my truck driving license!

    Hey all,

    Sorry I haven't been on here much lately. I've been going to truck driving school for the past couple of months, and the place I stayed at didn't have any working internet.

    Last Friday, I graduated from an accredited truck driver certification program offered at a community college near here. I graduated number one in the class, and the CDL examiner that gave me the road test said I had the lowest score she had ever seen (they use a reverse grading structure, so a low score is good).

    It was a fun 8 weeks, but I didn't think I would ever get the hang of the transmissions. I still need to work on my downshifts, but I'm pretty happy overall.



    The 10-speed Volvo pictured above was my favorite truck. The truck needed to be shifted fast (100 RPM drop on the upshifts), which I was worried about at first, but it turns out I can shift this truck better than the other trucks with a 200 and 300 RPM drop.

    The blue truck in the background is an older 13-speed GMC-White/Volvo that we drove as well. The AC was broke, but the truck had an awesome sounding turbo and exhaust brake, which we all enjoyed thoroughly.

    We also had a couple of Macks that were used on the obstacle course. Both were day cabs, with one having a single drive axle, and the other having two drive axle. We used 48' trailers on all trucks.

    I also went ahead and worked on some endorsements, and I now have tanker, hazmat, doubles/triples, and passenger endorsements.

    I'd like to work out on the oil fields in Texas or Louisiana, but we'll see what happens.

    Anyways, just thought I'd share what I've been up to the last few months.
    -Daniel2000 4Runner Sport | V6 | 5spd | 4x4 | Leather | 265/75-16 BFG AT/KO | OBA | BudBuilt front skid

    1990 4Runner SR5 | V6 | Auto | 2wd | 3.90 rear | Cobra CB | 265/65r17 Bridgestone Duelers H/Ts | '08 Tacoma 5 spoke rims | Has an 11:1 crawl ratio! SOLD

  2. #2
    Congrats! Well earned!
    2005 Lexus LX470 - Stock for now...

    1998 Toyota 4Runner SR5 V6 4x4 + a bunch of goodies. Lifted, Locked, Illuminated and Armored. Winner,"Best Offroad Truck" - 2010 Pismo Jamboree. It's been upside down and still drives me to work.

  3. #3
    Great Dan! Sounds like it can be a lot of fun.

    How about the oil boom in the Dakotas? I hear there is a lot of work but I'm thinking it could be very competitive and cut throat.

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by DHC6twinotter View Post
    and the CDL examiner that gave me the road test said I had the lowest score she had ever seen (they use a reverse grading structure, so a low score is good).
    How many points do you get if you hit a person versus, say, a bridge overpass?

    Congratulations! I have tried double clutching a number of times and it has never ended well.

  5. #5
    Congratulations! A CDL is a great backup or primary career. America would not survive without truck shipping
    Quote Originally Posted by paddlenbike View Post
    How many points do you get if you hit a person versus, say, a bridge overpass?

    Congratulations! I have tried double clutching a number of times and it has never ended well.
    If you get a ticket it's very easy to lose your license. Anything with a person has max penalty jail time written all over it. I would rather hit the bridge.

    Double clutching doesn't really apply to synchronized gears imo the way it does with loaded trucks.

    I don't use the clutch at all unless it's getting everything moving. However if you muck it up its hard to get back in gear without stopping. That being said with practice it's really hard to muck it up unless you're doing something stupid like an upshift on an uphill.
    98 3rz 4x4 5spd- Monstalined, 99 Talls, 4.30 E-locker, Extra Lights
    In Progress:
    Tundra/Rear Disc Brakes w/parking brake
    Roof Rack/Rear Ladder
    Sliders
    1st Gen Rollbar Shelf

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Seanz0rz View Post
    Congrats! Well earned!
    Thanks, Sean!

    Quote Originally Posted by 4x4mike View Post
    Great Dan! Sounds like it can be a lot of fun.

    How about the oil boom in the Dakotas? I hear there is a lot of work but I'm thinking it could be very competitive and cut throat.
    I've thought about the Dakotas, but I'd like to avoid it this winter while I'm still learning how to drive. Cost of living in the western part of North Dakota is amongst the highest in the nation right now, and I'd like to work somewhere not quite as expensive. When I was up that way a couple years ago, I met a guy who was leaving Watford City because he couldn't find housing. I'd be open to working in the Dakotas, but there are other places I'd prefer.

    Quote Originally Posted by paddlenbike View Post
    How many points do you get if you hit a person versus, say, a bridge overpass?

    Congratulations! I have tried double clutching a number of times and it has never ended well.
    LOL…if the person was a celebrity: 200 points. Guy with sagging pants: 100 points. Cute girl, old person, or child: 0 points. If the bridge was less than 15 feet with no clearance sign: 100 points. With a clearance sign: 50 points. If I get stuck under bridge and can get out by dumping airbags: 0 points.

    Seriously though, she gave me 5 points. 3 for grinding gears, 1 for dragging the trailer wheels across a stop bar on a left turn, and 1 point for not checking for red light runners while shifting gears through an intersection. I scored 2 points on the pre-trip inspection test, and 0 on the CDL backing tests.

    The double clutching was difficult for me at first, but once I memorized the shift patterns and drop/rev RPMs for each truck, it wasn't too bad. Trying to do math on the fly while doing everything else was probably the hardest part, and I still need to work on this for my downshifts. For example, the red Volvo above has a 300 RPM rev on a single downshift, so when the truck slows down and the tach gets down to 1300, I've got to clutch it into neutral, rev it to 1600 (1300+300=1600), then clutch it into the next lowest gear. Sometimes the tach might get to 900, then I've got to rev it to 1200. That's assuming flat ground, and if on a hill, the rev needs to be adjusted. I found skip-shifting (downshifting more than 1 gear) to be a bit easier, and we just had to match RPMs to speed. For example, that red Volvo would go into 5th gear (gear we used for making right turns) at 20mph and 1800 RPMs. 7th gear is what we used on clover leafs, and it would go in at 30mph and 1700 RPMs. Each of our trucks had a different set of numbers, and the hardest part for me was remembering what those numbers were and doing the proper math with everything else going on.

    Funny thing is, several months ago, I applied for a CAD/GIS job at a power company in Washington state. They called me today and want to do a phone interview on Wednesday. It's going to be funny if I land this job and never set foot in another truck…lol. Go figure.
    Last edited by DHC6twinotter; 10-06-2014 at 04:49 PM.
    -Daniel2000 4Runner Sport | V6 | 5spd | 4x4 | Leather | 265/75-16 BFG AT/KO | OBA | BudBuilt front skid

    1990 4Runner SR5 | V6 | Auto | 2wd | 3.90 rear | Cobra CB | 265/65r17 Bridgestone Duelers H/Ts | '08 Tacoma 5 spoke rims | Has an 11:1 crawl ratio! SOLD

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Kryptoroxx View Post
    Congratulations! A CDL is a great backup or primary career. America would not survive without truck shipping
    Thanks! It's great to have a CDL in my wallet, especially as a backup. I would prefer not to make this a life-long career, but I'd like to drive for a few years and save as much as I can. Maybe start investing in real-estate or something after a few years driving trucks.

    If you get a ticket it's very easy to lose your license. Anything with a person has max penalty jail time written all over it. I would rather hit the bridge.
    I'd much rather hit a bridge as well. Many of these trucking companies will fire drivers for an accident, even if the driver is not at fault. If the company determines the accident was preventable, the driver may be gone.

    I don't use the clutch at all unless it's getting everything moving. However if you muck it up its hard to get back in gear without stopping. That being said with practice it's really hard to muck it up unless you're doing something stupid like an upshift on an uphill.
    I haven't tried floating my shifts yet (school wouldn't let us), but once I get working for a company, I'll probably float my shifts unless the company specifically tells me to double clutch.

    We used a 1300-1800 RPM operating range on all our trucks, so if I missed an upshift on level ground, I'd just drop it down to 1300 and it goes right in. I missed a few upshifts going downhill, and it took me a bit longer to be able to recover from those. I missed an upshift on an up hill on-ramp while doing a solo run, and I was able to recover by reverting to my skip-shift numbers. I was trying to go from 6th to 7th, but I missed 7th and my speed was dropping since I was going up hill. The skip-shift numbers on this truck were 1700 RPMs at 30 mph, and since I was at about 24mph, I revved it to 1100 and it went right in to 7th (we figure 100 RPMs less for every 1 mph less than what the skip shift info is….or 600rpm less in this case). I felt smart for figuring that one out…lol. 2200 RPMs into 5th gear would have also worked, except for the truck is governed at 2100.

    Anyway, I've got a lot to learn, but it's been fun. I'm looking forward to some time on the road.
    Last edited by DHC6twinotter; 10-06-2014 at 04:48 PM.
    -Daniel2000 4Runner Sport | V6 | 5spd | 4x4 | Leather | 265/75-16 BFG AT/KO | OBA | BudBuilt front skid

    1990 4Runner SR5 | V6 | Auto | 2wd | 3.90 rear | Cobra CB | 265/65r17 Bridgestone Duelers H/Ts | '08 Tacoma 5 spoke rims | Has an 11:1 crawl ratio! SOLD

  8. #8
    Great job bud! Congratulations!

    If you think you might like to do some OTR driving, and see more of the US that just the oilfields, give me a ring. Always on the lookout for good drivers!
    -Chris
    2004 DoubleCab Tacoma PreRunner: 3.4 V6-Auto, DD/Tow Rig
    1997 Lexus LX450: 4.5 I6-Auto, DD
    1984 4Runner: 22R-5 speed, 14 inch bob, 5.29's, lincoln locked rear, lockright front, Armored and Caged by Mossyrocks Fabrication, total disregard for body damage.
    1997 4Runner: GONE
    1996 FZJ80 Land Cruiser: GONE

  9. #9
    Lexi says congratulations!

    Hopefully if you get a cross country trip it takes you to Ontario or even better, the loading dock at my work!

    Good luck on the GIS gig too! Take whatever path feels best, both have the potential to be rewarding. Very proud of you!
    2005 Lexus LX470 - Stock for now...

    1998 Toyota 4Runner SR5 V6 4x4 + a bunch of goodies. Lifted, Locked, Illuminated and Armored. Winner,"Best Offroad Truck" - 2010 Pismo Jamboree. It's been upside down and still drives me to work.

  10. #10
    Thanks Chris! I didn't realize you were working for a trucking company now. I'm open to anything, and there are a couple local companies (OTR, regional, and local) out here that I'm looking into as well. What's the name of the company you work for?

    Sean, some of these companies will let me ask for loads to certain areas. Not all are like this, but if I get into a company like this, I'll definitely ask for a few loads out your way.
    Last edited by DHC6twinotter; 10-06-2014 at 06:01 PM.
    -Daniel2000 4Runner Sport | V6 | 5spd | 4x4 | Leather | 265/75-16 BFG AT/KO | OBA | BudBuilt front skid

    1990 4Runner SR5 | V6 | Auto | 2wd | 3.90 rear | Cobra CB | 265/65r17 Bridgestone Duelers H/Ts | '08 Tacoma 5 spoke rims | Has an 11:1 crawl ratio! SOLD

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