I start feeder next week any advice

[bluehdmc]

I had a glad hand come off a dolly at about 50+ on the cross bronx expressway, blue smoke all over the place. Now I loop the red air line around the light cord before I hook it up. On the chassis pups if they don't have that metal tab to hold the air line down I wrap it with clear package tape. (There's always rolls of that laying around in hubs, or just ask). I've learned to back up dollys hooked up to the front trailer. It takes a while, practice spotting the dolly when you break up a set. You turn the wheel the way you want the dolly to go, (opposite of when backing a trailer alone.) If it goes too far, pull up. I learned to do it because I'd come in with a set, drop the kite and hook up to another trailer on a door. I had a mechanic say I made him tired just watching me. I figured it out, if I had followed the methods and dropped the kite, unhooked the dolly, dropped the lead, spotted the dolly with the tractor and then went back for the lead I would have been in and out of the tractor 7 times more. Of course it would have taken more time but it also would have been more work. It's also not a bad skill to learn because you might get a tractor some time without a pintle hook, (like a rental).
As far as shifting, double clutch and use the tachometer, it depends on the engine, the macks seem to rev quicker and higher than the sterlings or internationals. If you drive the same thing all the time you get used to it. Then you'll change to a different one and start grinding gears till you get used to it. Good luck! and order larger pants.

 

[over9five]

I have nothing to add to all this great advice, so I will re-emphasize:

I have been in Feeders about 16 months, and the biggest challenge for me was losing the Package driver frame of mind. I still have it and have to fight it every day, but lesser as time goes by. In Feeders, delays happen, there's nothing you can do about them, and you can not try to make the time up. And in Feeders, no-one ever asks why it took you so long to do whatever. Safety is Job 1 in Feeders.

Any kind of weather, even just rain, makes your job 5 times harder. As a Feeder driver you don't just drive for you, you drive for everyone else around you. My New Years resolution is "I will be more accommodating to morons".

I took the UPS Feeder school. It was alright, but done the UPS way, 4 Saturdays. Passed my CDL on the 3rd try. I learned sooo much more in my 40 hr unproductive. Sup was great, really knew how to drive, not just by reading a book. Listen and learn from that sup on your 40 hr!

Good luck, and keep us informed!

 

[over9five]

oh yeah, 16 months later, same size pants!

 

[Covemastah]

they mean waist size over, not length!!! lol lol lol lol lol lol

 

[over9five]

Ouch!!!!!!

 

[Covemastah]

The most important thing on that trailor pre/trip is CHECK THAT PIN!!!! IF you thought you already checked it ,GET OUT AND CHECK IT AGAIN !!!!
also, STAY BACK AND SEE IT ALL is one of the best things they taught us,keeps you out of a lot of bad situations!!!! Goodluck !!

 

[over9five]

...and if you're out in the icestorm like Covemaster and I were a couple nights ago..... and you think you are going slow enough, you're not!!! Slow down some more!

I was going about 2mph around a ramp, and darn near went off-rampin'!!!
My heart was a beatin' after that, let me tell you!

 

[JimJimmyJames]

...biggest challenge for me was losing the Package driver frame of mind. I still have it and have to fight it every day, but lesser as time goes by.

After three years I still have it to a degree too. In fact I know it rubs some of my co-workers the wrong way but you can't erase years of brainwashing that simply.

 

[City Driver]

honestly best advice i could give anybody is always do a complete pretrip (dont forget to check the kingpin of the trailer before you hook up), of course always back to the drivers side, and learn how to share the road with thousands of idiots who have no idea how to drive around tractor trailers

and be safe

 

[outta hours]

...and if you're out in the icestorm like Covemaster and I were a couple nights ago..... and you think you are going slow enough, you're not!!! Slow down some more!

Went through the same type of conditions a couple of weeks ago. I don't think that my back touched the back of the seat till I got back on the yard.The bottom of my seat had a mohawk in it when I finally stepped out the next morning.

 

[UPSNewbie]

Went through the same type of conditions a couple of weeks ago. I don't think that my back touched the back of the seat till I got back on the yard.The bottom of my seat had a mohawk in it when I finally stepped out the next morning.

Pucker factor = 10?

 

[NEFARIOUS]

Oh yeah I work out of Angels camp

 

[cachsux]

And when you make it do not let them tell you,the rookie,that it is a hot load. Nothing is a hot load. Cold or hot you drive the same way. If it`s so hot they should have moved it earlier. Now hurry for them and have any kind of incident with this hot load and it`s your butt when they check the IVIS and find you were speeding because the guy who told you to won`t take the fall.

 

[1timepu]

Lost air to second trailer on cross bronx, did scare the hell out of me but my speed(50) allowed me to get out of the way and cause no harm, you are lucky that going 68 you didn't flip that trailer.

 

[feeder]

2 advice for ya:

Backing can be a pain in a , you know where, it took me a good 1 1/2yr to master it... but it will come to you, the day you come into work a back a trailer perfectly is when you dont think about which way to turn the steering wheel...

Also, remember if you pull a set of doubles that are 100%, and one of them is an SC620,621 series and the other just a flat pulp or H frame, make the SC series pup your lead trailer, because that paticular trailer always seems to always be the heaviest...

 

[bluehdmc]

Had 2 flat pups a couple of weeks ago, the set was together when I got it, both 100%. I know the front had a lot of Omaha Steaks in it. It felt like the snubber wasn't engaged, (it was). The rear trailer must have been a lot heavier than the front, it was pushing me around. I called dispatch and swapped them in a rest area, drove fine after that. So don't be afraid to do something like that either. It's actually in the contract that you can do that.

Also when starting out, don't wind out the lower gears, basically just get the truck moving in 1st or 2nd, (a lot of time you start out in 2nd gear) then shift, as you progress up the gears you can wind the engine more. When you get into high range then you can wind the gears all the way out. Your shifts will be a lot smoother that way.

 

[diesel96]

Oh yeah I work out of Angels camp

In that case, stick to baseball. Anahiem has a good team

Seriously though, one more piece of advice, always, and I mean always, follow your mirrors when makings turns or weaving around obstacles.

Lost air to second trailer on cross bronx, did scare the hell out of me but my speed(50) allowed me to get out of the way and cause no harm, you are lucky that going 68 you didn't flip that trailer.

Actually, when my rear trailer locked up on me doing 68 mph, it felt like the Jolly Green Giant grab the rear trailer and wouldn't let go, gradually pulling it a good 2 football fields to the shoulder. I wouldn't want it to happen crusing around a curve with a drop near a narrow shoulder.

 

[tieguy]

And when you make it do not let them tell you,the rookie,that it is a hot load. Nothing is a hot load. Cold or hot you drive the same way. If it`s so hot they should have moved it earlier. Now hurry for them and have any kind of incident with this hot load and it`s your butt when they check the IVIS and find you were speeding because the guy who told you to won`t take the fall.

we tell em its hot so they won't take meal on the way back or so they won't grab another load or empty when they turn the yard or so they won't lolly gag when they are getting the load. There are other reasons to call it a hot load then to encourage them to speed.

Does bring up a question though. Do you get talked with about speeding when the tractors have governors on them? Or do you have tractors without the govs on them?

 

[cachsux]

we tell em its hot so they won't take meal on the way back or so they won't grab another load or empty when they turn the yard or so they won't lolly gag when they are getting the load. There are other reasons to call it a hot load then to encourage them to speed.

Does bring up a question though. Do you get talked with about speeding when the tractors have governors on them? Or do you have tractors without the govs on them?

I have no problem with someone saying the load is hot,we need you to bring it back right away. I was referencing the age old "its a hot load,the cutoff is in X minutes". The amount of minutes is usually less than what it`s going to take to drive there if the laws are followed. It was said to me as a rookie,is said to rookies even today. I was fortunate to have senior drivers pull me aside and fill me in on this habit of dispatch. I`ll still take the load but I make sure they know I`m not making any guarantee on the cutoff because I`m not going to speed. If they`re not happy with that they are more than welcome to find someone who will.

I`ve never been talked with about speeding because I don`t. I haven`t heard of anyone having anything said outside an accident investigation. It`s funny though,when they post the sheets for each driver group it`s plainly visible what each tractors highest attained speed was for the previous day. I still haven't found out why some need to do 70+ in a state that the law is 55.

 

[tomuchdrama]

yup stay off the phone when hooking up or breaking down the trailers.you get so wraped up in your call you forget to unhook the air lines/lower the landing.when you go to the shop to explain the busted out back window[ from the air lines] or have to call the shiffter because trailer was droped on its nose[ landing gear not down] see were this is going.also your boss as heard all the excuses before if you screw up just be honest. good luck an enjoy the ride.