Bribing Manager?

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
You’re FOS. It gets you nothing. Seniority rules on vacation bidding.
What about breaking up more weeks that announced?

What about getting dibs on cancelled days before they go back on the books?

What about squeezing in an extra day when you need 1 last minute?

Plenty of discretion with the vacation manager when you need time off at the last minute.

Slackers normally don't get those perks.

Besides, I was kidding about the whiskey and cards for the manager.

I reserve those for the mechanics. Those pay great dividends when you need something fixed in a hurry.

It doesn't hurt that I share parents with one of the mechanics. That pays great dividends when they decide who gets a new truck. Sweet
 

Operational needs

Virescit Vulnere Virtus
What about breaking up more weeks that announced?

What about getting dibs on cancelled days before they go back on the books?

What about squeezing in an extra day when you need 1 last minute?

Plenty of discretion with the vacation manager when you need time off at the last minute.

Slackers normally don't get those perks.

Besides, I was kidding about the whiskey and cards for the manager.

I reserve those for the mechanics. Those pay great dividends when you need something fixed in a hurry.

It doesn't hurt that I share parents with one of the mechanics. That pays great dividends when they decide who gets a new truck. Sweet
That’s different and might work for you if no one is paying attention. But you originally said “when bidding starts”. I get all those other perks because I’m nice and know who and how to ask. :)
 

Purplepackage

Well-Known Member
What about breaking up more weeks that announced?

What about getting dibs on cancelled days before they go back on the books?

What about squeezing in an extra day when you need 1 last minute?

Plenty of discretion with the vacation manager when you need time off at the last minute.

Slackers normally don't get those perks.

Besides, I was kidding about the whiskey and cards for the manager.

I reserve those for the mechanics. Those pay great dividends when you need something fixed in a hurry.

It doesn't hurt that I share parents with one of the mechanics. That pays great dividends when they decide who gets a new truck. Sweet

And now one of his siblings is a mechanic at his station lol. I love it
 

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
And now one of his siblings is a mechanic at his station lol. I love it
Yep. Been there for years. We have several married employees, several sets of siblings and a couple of parents who have kids working there. Having a mechanic in the family is a plus. He has a say who gets the new vans and before I became an FO driver, he kept me in new Reach trucks and I always had cold ac. Seniority and nepostism at its finest.
 

DeliveryException

Well-Known Member
If he kept you in a Reach I'm not sure that's taking care of you. 600s are terrible, noisy, rough riding and the a.c. really isn't very good, the steering wheel blocks the dash vents. Even though the newest ones have air ride seat and a little more noise killing I would take a new Sprinter even if it doesn't hold as much and has terrible turning radius. My Sprinter a.c. runs circles around the Reach trucks here.
 

Preventable

Well-Known Member
If he kept you in a Reach I'm not sure that's taking care of you. 600s are terrible, noisy, rough riding and the a.c. really isn't very good, the steering wheel blocks the dash vents. Even though the newest ones have air ride seat and a little more noise killing I would take a new Sprinter even if it doesn't hold as much and has terrible turning radius. My Sprinter a.c. runs circles around the Reach trucks here.

600s are way better than sprinters in my opinion. Yes the AC/Heating isn't going to be as good as a sprinter because its not as enclosed/larger area. But just getting in and out of the sprinter seat is so much more annoying. Then there is also the strain on your shoulder from that side door, and the bad turning radius. The main problem with the 600s is they could really use another 30-50 horsepower, they really feel slow sometimes. Also I've seen some places have (1 or 2) brand newish 700s that have the same engines I think as 900s (freightliner, different from old 700s). For me I would probably go with the new 700s but the 600s even have 1 thing over 700s... how low the first step is it feels like you are getting off an inch from the ground. Just easier overall on your body imo, I hated using sprinters for routes with more than 50+ stops.
 

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
We were told there would be no new 700's. Just Reach and 900's plus Sprinters. I really enjoy driving a Reach. The rear suspension sucks but the cab is bigger, bulkhead easier to use than a Sprinter and it is way quieter than the older 700 and 900. Way easier to listen to the radio in a Reach than a 700 or 900. The newer Reach has better air, they have done an upgrade on the blower motor. It has a better seat and heated and power mirrors. Nothing wrong with the Reach in my opinion.
 

outtatime

Well-Known Member
600s are way better than sprinters in my opinion. Yes the AC/Heating isn't going to be as good as a sprinter because its not as enclosed/larger area. But just getting in and out of the sprinter seat is so much more annoying. Then there is also the strain on your shoulder from that side door, and the bad turning radius. The main problem with the 600s is they could really use another 30-50 horsepower, they really feel slow sometimes. Also I've seen some places have (1 or 2) brand newish 700s that have the same engines I think as 900s (freightliner, different from old 700s). For me I would probably go with the new 700s but the 600s even have 1 thing over 700s... how low the first step is it feels like you are getting off an inch from the ground. Just easier overall on your body imo, I hated using sprinters for routes with more than 50+ stops.
The 600 Reach is a terrible truck, way too slow, rides like it has zero suspension and the fuel tank is laughably small. Sprinters really shine on country routes that have crappy dirt roads where the ride is bearable and they keep out all the road dust. Another bonus is the Dodge versions have am/fm radios.
 

Preventable

Well-Known Member
The 600 Reach is a terrible truck, way too slow, rides like it has zero suspension and the fuel tank is laughably small. Sprinters really shine on country routes that have crappy dirt roads where the ride is bearable and they keep out all the road dust. Another bonus is the Dodge versions have am/fm radios.

Hmm agree to disagree I guess. You are right the fuel tank did seem kind of small and the suspension wasn't ace (sprinter didn't feel great either). And you are right on country roads its better than a 600, but out there a 4x4 or van is better. To me the sprinter was best for downtown routes with fair volume. The 600/700 are too big. You can park that sprinter and get out and do 8 stops on foot and move on. But if I am doing an industrial area/suburbs (which is like 80% for most areas I think) 600/700 imo. My favorite areas were the type of areas where you were going to every 10th house in some upper middle class neighborhood (aka yummy gravy routes close to 20 sph), and this is where the 600/700 really shines imo... the mechanics of a sprinter really start to feel like a pain on those routes. I will concede the sprinter is probably better for when you are delivering to neighborhoods where the buildings have 30 floors or where you are doing 30 miles between stops everything in between I'll take the 600.
 

DeliveryException

Well-Known Member
All those bad things about the sprinter are true but I happily trade those for the better ride and relative quiet compared to 600. I would like a 700 over a 600 but there are no 700s left. We have 450, 600, 900 and vans plus a couple box trucks and a 26ft with air brakes that we are ok to drive now for some reason. I thought air brakes jumped to next level of cdl but i guess not anymore.
 

Oldfart

Well-Known Member
All those bad things about the sprinter are true but I happily trade those for the better ride and relative quiet compared to 600. I would like a 700 over a 600 but there are no 700s left. We have 450, 600, 900 and vans plus a couple box trucks and a 26ft with air brakes that we are ok to drive now for some reason. I thought air brakes jumped to next level of cdl but i guess not anymore.
Air brakes = Class A CDL unless some states do it different. I believe that is everywhere but I have seen CDL's from other states that had different guidelines than the state I live in.
 

Star B

White Lightening
Our vmx has been pulling reaches off the high SPH city routes because they never get time to regen, screw up the DEF system, and then get towed in. They are being reassigned to the extended city areas where they will get a fair bit of highway time during stem to regen.

I love the sprinter in general. I wish that they wouldn't remove the traction control button and that the step height was a little bit lower.
 
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