Any truck drivers here?
- Thread starter radar19
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Associate
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Hammer my iPhone listening to podcasts mainly, I often find youtube documentarys and listen to them too, today's listen was Len Deighton's superb "Bomber" dramatised by the BBC uploaded to youtube, kept me entertained from Stoke on Trent to West Thurrock this morning nicely!
I also have a 16gb USB stick crammed full of music, podcasts and audio books.
My Scania has a Pioneer HU with USB and AUX inputs, 6x9 speakers built into the doors as std, rock on!!
Sometimes though I listen to nothing and just ponder things!
How well soundproofed is your cab? The ones I drive are pretty loud but I think my company just buys the cheapest ones as we completely thrash the crap out of them, poor things! I'd also be interested to know what sort of gearboxes are most common in the UK? Ours are all 18 speeds bar a few 10 speeds and one automatic.
Not bad tbh, although @55mph the engine is turning @~1500rpm in 12th, you certainly don't need to crank the volume too high to drown out any road / engine noise.
The hourly rate is worse than I thought!
Yes, I could earn more per hour on agency, £20p/hr plus at weekends isn't unheard of,but, this is dramatically offset by quiet periods in the summer when work is slack and you work two days out of seven!
Holiday pay, sick pay and guaranteed regular wage matters more than the headline per hour figure ultimately.
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Its something I always thought about doing but never did, im turning 30 this year, too late?
there's 2 good training centres in Glasgow, gtg training and Ritchie's.
about £1000 for the c then another £1000 for the c+e, is that about normal?
there's 2 good training centres in Glasgow, gtg training and Ritchie's.
about £1000 for the c then another £1000 for the c+e, is that about normal?
Associate
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Over here there are no government speed regulations, ours are limited to 105km/h (and probably wouldn't go much faster as they're as heavy as they can get away with and underpowered), but I've been passed by a US plated B-train that must have been doing at least 140km/h!
I have to say Scania that pay rate is pretty poor for what should be classed as a 'professional' job, or least a skilled one. I get more than that working at Sky although it has come from yearly raises. You certainly don't start at that level that's for sure.
Trucking is actually a job which i dont think would be too bad, i'd like the solitude and the act of actually driving them i think, however;
The thing which i never get with the type of pay being talked about here is that you can earn way in excess of this simply temping locally in an office somewhere drinking coffee and going to a few meetings. Why bother doing a job which involves actual responsibility and anti social hours for this type of money? The rates just dont add up
Because the "national average wage" is nothing of the sort out side of the major cities.
Low to mid 20s is the absolute best most people can hope for a lot of the time for the vast majority.
I quite agree, especially given the responsibility of driving a 44ton truck, never mind the unsocial hours.
Tbh the only time your truly viewed as a professional in this industry is when you've had an accident or tachograph / driving hours infringement, then, the standard retort is your a professional and should know better......
Given most things that we use day to day have travelled by truck at some point, it's prices of whatever that have to cover the cost of road transport.
OC/UK use DPD, as an example if DPD decided to pay drivers say £20 per hour and upped their haulage rates accordingly, how long would it be before OC/UK looked elsewhere? - they wouldn't I promise you accept it and pass on the increased cost to us customers nor take the hit themselves.
A vicious circle......
30 is not old to start IMO.
Afaik your looking at ballpark £2.5k for a class C, then C+E including your driver CPC.
I also have a 16gb USB stick crammed full of music, podcasts and audio books.
Sometimes though I listen to nothing and just ponder things!
Thanks for the insider knowledge guys, it's something I've always wondered.
Soldato
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Scania, do you tramp?
Used to but not any more, I came to the conclusion that there was more to life than sleeping in a truck 4-5 nights per week for £25 per night!
Do "day" shifts now, well, if you count 2am start as days that is!
Soldato
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Had my first go in a lorry today. It was a Scania 94.
I didn't have as many problems with the size as I expected. But getting used to how early you have to start braking and how hard you had to press the brake pedal was insteresting. It also took me a white to get used to the gearbox (4 over 4) I kept on catching the range change by mistake.
Also a few issues with mirrors and general bad habits.
I didn't have as many problems with the size as I expected. But getting used to how early you have to start braking and how hard you had to press the brake pedal was insteresting. It also took me a white to get used to the gearbox (4 over 4) I kept on catching the range change by mistake.
Also a few issues with mirrors and general bad habits.
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I think I had a similar experience - I thought the massiveness of the truck was going to be the problem but that turned out to be no big deal and I had no idea that the gearbox would be so hard.
UK truckers - be thankful you don't have to chain up - because it sucks!
UK truckers - be thankful you don't have to chain up - because it sucks!
Think yourselves lucky you have synchromesh and the gear-change in the standard "H" pattern.
Constant Mesh when I took my test and the gear pattern was in a U shape.
ie
1st and second in usual place but 3rd and fourth swapped around.
Then we had Eaton Twin Split <--- Brilliant transmission.
Constant Mesh when I took my test and the gear pattern was in a U shape.
ie
1st and second in usual place but 3rd and fourth swapped around.
Then we had Eaton Twin Split <--- Brilliant transmission.
I am picking up a lot of business from DPD because they currently ARE jacking up their prices and refusing even more types of freight.
Good news for me , because without the price factor they have nothing to compete against my network with.
Are there many jobs based like this but for car/small van driving? I enjoy driving a fair amount (being alone and having time to ponder). But at the moment I've only got a cat B. I have only had my license since 30/05/2013 but I've done a fair amount of driving since due to work.
I've not got the confidence yet to jump into a HGV but would love to get a job driving long distance. Pay isn't an issue so long as it's higher than my current pay (which it will be).
I've not got the confidence yet to jump into a HGV but would love to get a job driving long distance. Pay isn't an issue so long as it's higher than my current pay (which it will be).
Associate
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No synchromesh for me! The worst are the 10 speeds though.
Upgrade to an artic license as soon as you can!
The longer you leave it, the harder you'll find class 1's IMO.