Woohoo! Just got my truck driving license!

[04 Rocko Taco]

I've been with US Xpress based out of our headquarters in Chattanooga for about 3.5 years now.

[Kryptoroxx]

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.



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 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.

I had a bit of a time learning the double clutching because of 7 years or so of owning a 5spd. There were a lot of guys that were doing better than I because of my bad habits. Downshifting took a minute to figure out how to do it smoothly as well.

My experience so far is 11 years of hauling heavy equipment for the Marines. My main reason for picking up a CDL is because it's the only thing that really translated directly as a certification to the civilian world. Right now I still don't know whether I will get to stay in past this downsizing so hopefully I don't have to use my CDL but I know I can support my family with it easily.

My rig has always been an automatic but with truck and trailer its over 75ft of rolling stock with a 50 ton limit. Here's a couple pics of them http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logistics_Vehicle_System but the only thing my trucks can't skip is a fuel stop. It's somewhere in the lower than 5 mpg range lol.

[DHC6twinotter]

Yeah, my 4Runner is a 5spd as well, and I got confused a few times in the truck. Sometimes in the 10-speed truck, when I wanted to go into 5th, I'd end up trying to grind my way into 4th instead. 5th in my 4runner is the same spot as 4th on the 10-speeds. Most of that was earlier on in the program, and I've got a better hang of it now. OTOH, I find myself getting in my 4runner and trying to put in reverse by going up and to the left, like the trucks. Doesn't work…lol.

Those LVSs are pretty neat, although I'm not sure I've ever seen one. Are those mostly used by the Marines? I used to see a lot of the HEMTTs when I worked on an Army base.

[DHC6twinotter]

I'll try not to be like this goofball:

[Seanz0rz]

Please don't be that guy! I was expecting yankety sax to be playing.

[Kryptoroxx]

...Those LVSs are pretty neat, although I'm not sure I've ever seen one. Are those mostly used by the Marines? I used to see a lot of the HEMTTs when I worked on an Army base.

Marines are the only ones to have the Lvs. I liked the hemtt but what I wanted to get my grubby hands on was the HETT. Those things are sweet lookin and the cab is comfy too.

[DHC6twinotter]

Governmentliquidations.com had some HETTs for sale last time I looked. They were older models with 550hp engines, iirc. Not sure what the power output of the newer ones are, but 550 doesn't seem like a lot for what those things pull. Probably geared pretty low.

Was the articulation joint on the LVS synchronized with the steering axles, or did you have separate controls for the articulation joint? How was the driveshaft connected when the power unit was attached? They are interesting vehicles, and I've always wondered how they worked.

[04 Rocko Taco]

Be like this guy Dan!

http://www.msn.com/en-us/video/watch...urn/vi-BB1qdmz

[DHC6twinotter]

That's awesome, Chris! That guy knows his truck well.

I enjoyed all our backing tests, and that was probably my favorite part of the whole class. The school I went to had their own set of backup tests that were more difficult than the backup tests required for the CDL. One of the school tests required us to jack-knife the truck while backing. That same test also required us to drive through a 9'-6" wide (trailer is 8'-6" wide) by 100' long alley, stop within 6 inches of a line on the ground, then reverse through the same alley, with about 6" to play with on either side.

Another backing test we had was a zig-zag to the right that required us to reverse to the right, then back left and straighten out into an alley (about 12' wide, iirc) and stop within 12" of a barricade at the rear. Reversing to the right is reversing into the blind side, and it's difficult to see the rear of the trailer when it's going off too far to the right. This part of the exercise has to be by feel, and blind side backing is something that we want to avoid as much as possible when driving out in the real world.

I had a blast out on our training field, and I'm thinking I'd like to maybe participate in some truck rodeos someday. I'm no where near good enough for that, but it's something I'd like to aspire towards.

But who knows, I may land this job in WA and never drive a truck again….lol.

[Kryptoroxx]

Governmentliquidations.com had some HETTs for sale last time I looked. They were older models with 550hp engines, iirc. Not sure what the power output of the newer ones are, but 550 doesn't seem like a lot for what those things pull. Probably geared pretty low.

Was the articulation joint on the LVS synchronized with the steering axles, or did you have separate controls for the articulation joint? How was the driveshaft connected when the power unit was attached? They are interesting vehicles, and I've always wondered how they worked.

The articulation was tied to the steering axle and the funny thing was they had a nitrogen shock (about 3' long) to soften the force when steering. Often this would go out and new drivers would be tossed from the truck after shutting it off when it would shimmy once more while the pressure drained from the hydro system.

Driveshaft was sent through a carrier bearing to a huge u joint that had two pieces (so you could separate the power unit from the rear Cargo unit. My section and I were able to swap power units in 2 hours provided nothing was wrong with the couplers.

There were lots of good and bad things about the old ones. The turning radius was amazing for such a large vehicle. It was under 20' for all configurations. You could also dry steer it and pick a new line in mud or deep sand. It was 8x8 with lockers and had massive torque from a turbocharged and blown detroit diesel v8. However a civic dx could still beat it off the line and in top speed lol.

Bad things about them were the electrical, which was insanely complex, and the fact that you had to drive them like you stole them....otherwise they would break on you. Everything you had for that vehicle weighed a metric ton including the snatch block for the 60k winch. Cheater bars were required for almost everything. Even the spare tire had its own crane. You sat in front of the engine but only by a couple inches so your hearing suffered a little. The lights were about as good as using a candle to drive with and the ride.....well whiplash was part of the experience.

This was when being a 3533 was an art form. Sadly they deleted my job field in 2009 iirc. The replacement vehicle is very different but a definite improvement.