Kit advice for fellow newbies

So I’ve only been driving 3 months, and thought I’d offer some advice to fellow newbies or drivers who are learning.

This is not to tell you how to drive etc, (who am I to tell anyone) but just a helpful post to the new drivers. I appreciate many, like myself are going to be new to the industry and may have come from a totally different background.

It’s NOT just a driving job. There’s a lot of other stuff, especially in multi drop work where I’ve been last 3 months. So a little friendly heads-up to the new drivers.

Gloves. Get yourself a decent pair. Something that straps on with a velcro, and has decent protection and grip. Ive got a pair of HandyLandy? ones off Amazon. About £12 and last me 3 months. The ones work give you are ■■■■.

See through clipboard. I have a see through clipboard, and usually keep my drop sheets on the clip and my load sheet inside the box but I can see through the plastic to look at it anytime. No matter where you go, there’s paperwork. Some places more than others.

Sunglasses/Driving glasses. An absolute must in my opinion. Always keep them in your bag. The sun light seems worse in a truck can’t explain it.

A rechargeable torch. Important for your vehicle checks, and a handy tool in general. £15 off Amazon.

A decent rucksack, it will go through a fair bit of use. You will accumulate kit over time so a little bit bigger is better than too small. Also enough space for food is important. Eating out everyday adds up.

If your job involves using a sack truck, get a basic strap off Amazon. Keep it wrapped around the handle of your sack truck all day, and use it if necessary to keep your load on the sack truck. Will save you a lot of time if/when the load goes over a pothole.

If your job involves a tail lift, a spare tail key in your bag. Saves you a lot of aggro if one goes “missing”. About £4 off Amazon. I think they are called 100amp keys.

A doorstop. Yes, a bloody doorstop. Keep one on you. Two if you got the space in your pockets. Trust me they come in handy. £1.50 each approx.

Your own Sat Nav/ App for trucks. If your workplace provide you a pod, they do run out of juice/fail to charge/throw tantrums etc.

A decent pair of boots. And I mean decent. There’s a thread on here (or was it pistonheads?) About recommend boots for work. A proper investment as your feet and body will thank you in the long run. Mines cost me £70/DeWalt. Don’t rely on the ones work give you. They are crap.

A safety knife. Pallet wrap is a nightmare when it gets into wheels. Also a major trip hazard. I just cut it, get rid of it and then carry on with the task at hand.

I also have a retractable key fob with a karibiner hook (sp?). Just attach my truck keys on there. It’s not important but I don’t have to worry about losing my keys, and can just walk around with the keys dangling.

I appreciate this is basic stuff and most of it is common sense. It is also more geared towards multi drop work, and I hope it helps.

Great advice! I would just upgrade your torch to a head torch, keep your hands free. USB rechargeable if possible - can recharge in the truck then.
No idea what a tail key is, but I no longer use a tail lift now.

Hey MuddyK, I hope your new job is going well and you are enjoying it. I have enjoyed reading your posts - I do like a “how my day went” post. I also like a “kit” post - I’m going to have to get myself one of those see-through clipboards!

I decided against a rucksack and went instead for a Kombat Tactical Saxon Holdall, 50 Litre. As it’s a holdall, it sits flat in the cab and is easy to access. When I need to take my truckers atlas, that sits flat in the bottom. I love that it has loads of different sized pockets for all my bits and bobs. The main bit is plenty big enough for my flask/food flasks/lunchbox/water/thermos cup plus coat/layers/highviz. A hard hat would also fit in if I needed one.

I’m on agency, so have to bring everything with me. Maybe you have these in the cab, but a trucker mate recommended spare gloves and socks. He said your feet will get wet one day and you’ll be glad of them. I don’t know about you but I put my gloves down that many times, I’m bound to lose one or both one day . (My life will change when I get myself some cargo trousers :smiley: ).

I bought a microfibre cloth and a cosmetic travel spray bottle and filled it with Windowlene/Mr Muscle glass cleaner. I have used it so much already on filthy mirrors and windscreens where the screenwash just doesn’t cut it.

Muddy K:
So I’ve only been driving 3 months, and thought I’d offer some advice to fellow newbies or drivers who are learning.

This is not to tell you how to drive etc, (who am I to tell anyone) but just a helpful post to the new drivers. I appreciate many, like myself are going to be new to the industry and may have come from a totally different background.

It’s NOT just a driving job. There’s a lot of other stuff, especially in multi drop work where I’ve been last 3 months. So a little friendly heads-up to the new drivers.

Gloves. Get yourself a decent pair. Something that straps on with a velcro, and has decent protection and grip. Ive got a pair of HandyLandy? ones off Amazon. About £12 and last me 3 months. The ones work give you are [zb].

See through clipboard. I have a see through clipboard, and usually keep my drop sheets on the clip and my load sheet inside the box but I can see through the plastic to look at it anytime. No matter where you go, there’s paperwork. Some places more than others.

Sunglasses/Driving glasses. An absolute must in my opinion. Always keep them in your bag. The sun light seems worse in a truck can’t explain it.

A rechargeable torch. Important for your vehicle checks, and a handy tool in general. £15 off Amazon.

A decent rucksack, it will go through a fair bit of use. You will accumulate kit over time so a little bit bigger is better than too small. Also enough space for food is important. Eating out everyday adds up.

If your job involves using a sack truck, get a basic strap off Amazon. Keep it wrapped around the handle of your sack truck all day, and use it if necessary to keep your load on the sack truck. Will save you a lot of time if/when the load goes over a pothole.

If your job involves a tail lift, a spare tail key in your bag. Saves you a lot of aggro if one goes “missing”. About £4 off Amazon. I think they are called 100amp keys.

A doorstop. Yes, a bloody doorstop. Keep one on you. Two if you got the space in your pockets. Trust me they come in handy. £1.50 each approx.

Your own Sat Nav/ App for trucks. If your workplace provide you a pod, they do run out of juice/fail to charge/throw tantrums etc.

A decent pair of boots. And I mean decent. There’s a thread on here (or was it pistonheads?) About recommend boots for work. A proper investment as your feet and body will thank you in the long run. Mines cost me £70/DeWalt. Don’t rely on the ones work give you. They are crap.

A safety knife. Pallet wrap is a nightmare when it gets into wheels. Also a major trip hazard. I just cut it, get rid of it and then carry on with the task at hand.

I also have a retractable key fob with a karibiner hook (sp?). Just attach my truck keys on there. It’s not important but I don’t have to worry about losing my keys, and can just walk around with the keys dangling.

I appreciate this is basic stuff and most of it is common sense. It is also more geared towards multi drop work, and I hope it helps.

Good tips here, thanks for taking the time.

driveress:
Hey MuddyK, I hope your new job is going well and you are enjoying it. I have enjoyed reading your posts - I do like a “how my day went” post. I also like a “kit” post - I’m going to have to get myself one of those see-through clipboards!

I decided against a rucksack and went instead for a Kombat Tactical Saxon Holdall, 50 Litre. As it’s a holdall, it sits flat in the cab and is easy to access. When I need to take my truckers atlas, that sits flat in the bottom. I love that it has loads of different sized pockets for all my bits and bobs. The main bit is plenty big enough for my flask/food flasks/lunchbox/water/thermos cup plus coat/layers/highviz. A hard hat would also fit in if I needed one.

I’m on agency, so have to bring everything with me. Maybe you have these in the cab, but a trucker mate recommended spare gloves and socks. He said your feet will get wet one day and you’ll be glad of them. I don’t know about you but I put my gloves down that many times, I’m bound to lose one or both one day . (My life will change when I get myself some cargo trousers :smiley: ).

I bought a microfibre cloth and a cosmetic travel spray bottle and filled it with Windowlene/Mr Muscle glass cleaner. I have used it so much already on filthy mirrors and windscreens where the screenwash just doesn’t cut it.

Ahhh. Kombat Tactical Saxon Holdall, 50 Litre. See, your smarter than me. I just bought a cool looking rucksack. Only good thing about it, soon as you open it there’s a pocket right at the top which is perfect size for a card holder (where I keep all my driver cards in a card holder). Oh and I think it looks cool. But yh yours is defo a good choice.

Im loving the new job, tbh I had a bit of ■■■■ experience with agency. Permanent job with decent overtime rates is what I prefer. I got lucky, I love my job and it pays well. Just did a 15hour today, overtime at 1.33x for the full shift. And still got 2 days off in the week. Am very happy with my lot.

Stopped buying door stops, keep bloody leaving them behind! Dont use pallets/pallet wraps or sack trucks anymore. New job is all cage work + using cups and bars.

These DaFs are also Daft. Keep throwing up random yellow warning lights. Something’s never change no matter where you go

Costco had dewalt boots at 39.99 no vat and dewalt cargo trousers approx 21.99 just for info anyway and the cleaning stuff and vehicle accessories, gloves , batteries etc are pretty cheap if in bulk.

Great advice here thanks, some things I hadn’t thought about and tail lift key £2.50 on amazon, didnt realise could be bought so thanks !..

To add if it helps I have a decent powerbrick https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07Y57CYTF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Or just search EAFU Small Power Bank, Compact USB C Triple 3A High-Speed 10000mAh Powerbank

This one gives a power count down, so far tested it on phone samsung (fully charges from 02% with charge still left) also used it to power a Satnav for the day a while ago, got through most the day but not all of it, and also Tablet rechardged fully.
Had an old cab and the cig lighter didnt work so lesson learnt as everything ran really low on power through the day, and then bought this.

Muddy K:

driveress:
Hey MuddyK, I hope your new job is going well and you are enjoying it. I have enjoyed reading your posts - I do like a “how my day went” post. I also like a “kit” post - I’m going to have to get myself one of those see-through clipboards!

I decided against a rucksack and went instead for a Kombat Tactical Saxon Holdall, 50 Litre. As it’s a holdall, it sits flat in the cab and is easy to access. When I need to take my truckers atlas, that sits flat in the bottom. I love that it has loads of different sized pockets for all my bits and bobs. The main bit is plenty big enough for my flask/food flasks/lunchbox/water/thermos cup plus coat/layers/highviz. A hard hat would also fit in if I needed one.

I’m on agency, so have to bring everything with me. Maybe you have these in the cab, but a trucker mate recommended spare gloves and socks. He said your feet will get wet one day and you’ll be glad of them. I don’t know about you but I put my gloves down that many times, I’m bound to lose one or both one day . (My life will change when I get myself some cargo trousers :smiley: ).

I bought a microfibre cloth and a cosmetic travel spray bottle and filled it with Windowlene/Mr Muscle glass cleaner. I have used it so much already on filthy mirrors and windscreens where the screenwash just doesn’t cut it.

Ahhh. Kombat Tactical Saxon Holdall, 50 Litre. See, your smarter than me. I just bought a cool looking rucksack. Only good thing about it, soon as you open it there’s a pocket right at the top which is perfect size for a card holder (where I keep all my driver cards in a card holder). Oh and I think it looks cool. But yh yours is defo a good choice.

Im loving the new job, tbh I had a bit of [zb] experience with agency. Permanent job with decent overtime rates is what I prefer. I got lucky, I love my job and it pays well. Just did a 15hour today, overtime at 1.33x for the full shift. And still got 2 days off in the week. Am very happy with my lot.

Stopped buying door stops, keep bloody leaving them behind! Dont use pallets/pallet wraps or sack trucks anymore. New job is all cage work + using cups and bars.

These DaFs are also Daft. Keep throwing up random yellow warning lights. Something’s never change no matter where you go

Ahhh, I have lots of pockets but I don’t have a card holder pocket :smiley:
Glad all is going well for you, it’s good to hear about other newbies enjoying what they do.