I heard there is big money in hauling freight
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Yes and no.
If you're looking to work for someone or yourself.
If you're going to work for someone You get better money
driving LTL freight then OTR and you are home daily.
If you're looking to work for yourself.
It cost a lot to run big rigs. Truck payment, Fuel, taxes, maintenance, Licensing, etc.
But you can make real good money at it.
The key is finding freight. That keeps you full and moving.
You might get freight going from
Texas to Idaho and think great pay for 1300+ miles
but then you drive free(deadhead) 1,2,or 500 miles to get next load.
Wasting fuel and time.
Not to mention depending where you live you might not see home
for several weeks or longer.Comment -
It costs about 6k to get certified and licensed, but you have jobs to choose from when you graduate.
That 6k could be financed and they train you well.
If you don't mind listening to a bunch of dumb hicks on the CB, ok by yourself for long periods or
being put with a relief driver who smells bad, go for it.
I don't have experience, just what I'm told. If you get paid by the mile, you aren't getting paid stuck
in traffic. If you have an accident, you are probably done. I hear about 50k to start to about 75k at the
upper end.Comment -
word a friend of mine said you can buy an 18 wheeler for 20K and he said its easy as hell find loads that need movingComment -
Bear you should do it. My neighbor is a trucker and he always talks about the big haul and lots of cashComment -
How would you know what's good pay for a lane?
How would you know if your driver is running legal?
How would you know if your company is compliant?
Lots of things involved in getting your authority.
If you haven't been involved in Trucking or have a mentor that knows the business you are asking for trouble.
Case in point
Explain the 14 hour rule and 70 hour rule to me.....
If you don't know without googling....you wouldn't know if your driver is running legal and without knowing these rules you couldn't dispatch him properly
How would you know ifComment -
Trucking is quite complicated. Fines for tickets are double. Driver would likely need a lawyer if/when he gets ticketed. You can get a ticket for a million different things driving any commercial vehicle (I own an Isuzu).
Constant regs and taxes created everyday for trucking. Big outfits pass on these costs. Consumers pay them in higher cost of living exepenses(food, etc).
The stuff to have to follow on a daily basis owning a rig is insane.Comment -
my boy says he knows all this stuff and can be a partner. He's been working in sales for moving companys and in factoring for Truck drivers to help the truck drivers get paid immediately instead of waiting 45 days and they have to pay him like a small percentage or something.. i dont know all the details yet we only spoke about it briefly but he was showing me websites of distributors and different trucking boards where it was showing freight that needed to be moved etc... he claims there is so much freight out there that there is plenty of work for everyone.
i was just wondering what you guys thought of the industry..i dont know if i am cut out to be an actual driver though. I kinda hate driving unless i have to be somewhereComment -
Have friends and fam in trucking. Not as easy as it sounds, they work long hours. Tons of insurance, fees, maintenance on the truck etc. Money can be good but like all businesses it has its upsides as well as the downsides and ups and downs on busy timesComment -
Trucking isn't as easy as it seems. Hell even the Lot Lizards are charging more Nowadays......................Comment -
Factoring company basically buys your invoices and pays you within 24 hours.
Generally their fee is 1.5% to 5%.
They generally "hold" 10% and then after the broker pays they "rebate" the rest...
( 5%-8.5% ) whatever your deal is.
DO NOT just go with any factoring company...
Do research
AFS out of SD is reputable
Comment -
if you are looking to buy a route look into fedex ground/ home delivery a lot of money to be made sitting at home while people are driving for youComment -
My dad and my brother both own/operate their small trucking businesses. They were hauling potatoes from Canada/upstate NY to the potato chip plants in southern tier NY and PA. Think Lay's, Weis, Utz ect. Tons of paperwork involved to be able to clear customs from Canada to US, and vice versa. Usually did about 5 round trips per week. Good $, but lots of hassle. Long days, home 2 days a week. Most of those two days spent maintaining their truck/trailer. On top of that, broker taking 5-10% for booking their loads for them.
Now, they have started doing more local stuff. Hauling grain for the local farmers, and booking a second load near drop off site to come back to the area. Can haul some sort of grain across upstate NY or to PA, then load coal, salt, lime or some other junk back from there to within 30 miles of home. Can be home daily, which is nice since my brother has a one year old daughter. No broker, more $, less miles on truck, less $ burnt in fuel. Have to be on phones quite a bit to secure loads both ways so they are not deadheading (driving back home with empty trailer)
Works well for them, never could do it myself thoughComment -
On a side note....Frito Lay owns all their own potato farms. Pretty sure they are the only company. Product is always consistent. Price fluctuations, weather, product quality do not affect that monster as it does other companies. That company is a gold mine. They paid Pepsi's bills for decades.Comment -
Bear you've asked about the trucking business and the acting business. Are you auditioning for Over the Top II?Comment -
I drive a truck for a living. Toughest job in the world especially when you love to sleep like I do.Comment -
I did tax returns for a lot of truck drivers. Seemed like their health was awful and they had tons of expenses so that they didn't net much, unless they were making them upComment -
How much per day per diem were they claiming.
I believe last year the deductible was $52 a day.
Many OTR drivers are 3 weeks out, 3 days home.
That's about 300 days on the road.
$15,600 per diem right off the top.
Nice detection and no meticulous record keeping / receipts. ...logbooks show time away from homeComment -
I don't remember what the per diem was at the time, but along with that it seems like the fuel costs and truck repairs/upkeep always ate away most or all the profits. They hardly ever had receipts though so all i could do was reconstruct so like I said it depends on how honest they were beingComment
