bit of a newbie to the trucking game but iv got a few shifts under my belt now and iv heard alot about alot of class 1 work available down south.
my question is , although i have held my class 1 for 9 years i have only got limited experience with the agencies doing store delivery work .i passed my artic when i was in the forces but only really drove the 16 tonners but when i left the forces i got a job as a shunter which i have done for 7 years now but it has always been on private land. so do you think the agencies will be interested in employing me and what variety of class 1 work is there??
Milkman…you have the licence so you must be able to drive, it’s like riding a bike to some degree, once learnt, never forgotten. If your concerned why not book yourself a day or maybe two with a training company for a refesher?
If you’ve been yard shunting then you should have no worries at all and the on road bit will come back easily.
i got a job as a shunter which i have done for 7 years now but it has always been on private land. so do you think the agencies will be interested in employing me
yes they would be m8,at the end of the day you have 7 years shunting experiance and that can be one of the hardest jobs to do if your in a busy depot and not alot of room.
the driving and reversing is not a problem atall , i more worried about their reaction when i tell them iv only driven for an agency a handful of times so i dont really have a great deal of on the road experience .
i quite fancy doing some rdc or trunking work just thought i would sound it out with you guys to see if i would be wasting my time or not
the driving and reversing is not a problem atall , i more worried about their reaction when i tell them iv only driven for an agency a handful of times so i dont really have a great deal of on the road experience .
then don’t tell them,as far as they are aware you have 7 years driving experiance and that’s all they need to know.
Certainly not wasting your time Milkman but I do agree with Froggy, driving a fully freighted in the maelstrom we call modern traffic conditions is not to be taken lightly. Obviously up to you but for the sake of £150 do a refresher, small price for peace of mind, day out on your own with an instructor, make sure its not a low spec rig, needs to have a box or curtainsider on the back, get used to modern traffic conditions and some of the antics of the intellectually challenged looney’s pretending to be drivers.
cheers for that cm ,if im doing store delivery,rdc or trunking work what kind of tractor units am i likely to be driving . i only have experience on range change boxes. iv pulled tri axle tautliners and coxes before but only in scotland.
cheers for that cm ,if im doing store delivery,rdc or trunking work what kind of tractor units am i likely to be driving . i only have experience on range change boxes. iv pulled tri axle tautliners and coxes before but only in scotland.
The unit will depend on which outfit you drive for. If your OK with ranges, then a range and split should pose no problem, If your used to a 4over4 range box then the 3over3 may feel stange for a short time, nor should a split box in a Daf, etc with the ZF you can use it as astraight 8 if you really have to till you get used to it, the journey time and fuel economy will suffer a bit but only till you master it.
Driving in the land of the frozen haggis is not the same as driving in the real world and you might find it hard at first.
and is that why most english lads that i meet and talk to like to drive up here in gods country as it’s a much more relaxed drive rather than being stuck in the ratrace that you like to call the M25.plus the scenery is much better.
ranges are no problem atall,its always been the 4 over 4 that i have driven however the splitter boxes sound a bit daunting even after reading about them in the info section.i suppose its like everyting,your learn better with a hands on approach.
so,would you say the majority of the units are 6x2 motors?? iv never driven one before ,the only question i have for them is,if it has a slidinf 5th wheel how do you know its in the correct position for the particuar type of trailer you will be pulling
milkman:
cheers for that cm ,if im doing store delivery,rdc or trunking work what kind of tractor units am i likely to be driving . i only have experience on range change boxes. iv pulled tri axle tautliners and coxes before but only in scotland.
milkman,i know it all sounds strange to you at the moment with all the different gearboxes,different trl’s and unit’s.but trust me mate the more you worry about it the more you’ll get yourself into a state.
the best advise i can give you is to get out there and do the job as much as possible,that way you get the feeling of all the different unit’s,trl’s ( twin or tri axle) trailer’s and gearboxes.as i have said in other post’s to new driver’s the best way to get used to a certain gearbox is to jump in the unit and drive round the depot a few times going up and down the gear’s ( if there is a driver from the company around then just ask,better that than getting in a state)and as far as only driven in scotland m8,the only differance is the volume of traffic ( oh and the funny accent’s they have south of the border) advise on volume of traffic…concentration m8…advise on funny accent’s …take a translation book with you good luck m8 and please don’t worry if you get different unit’s and trl’s they all work the same in principal.
Its difficult to say which set up is in the majority, 4x2 or 6x2 as it depend on the work its doing, length of the trailer and at what weight its running, 38, 40 or 44 tonne.
Fifth wheel position is governed by the trailer, check the kingpin position, on a 40’ it will be towards the front of the trailor so the fifth wheel will be positioned so that your unit back frame does not snag the landing legs when turning. With a 45’ then the kingpin is located further back under the trailer so the fifth wheel is centred so you neither snag the landing legs nor the cab fairing when turning.
Fifth wheels should be marked on the slider frame but I don’t think that all are, anyone else help with this one?, the tractor unit manual should have the necessary info if a sliding fifth wheel is fitted, if your not sure ask any driver to help, those that won’t, well you are probably better off without their assistance.
Might I make a suggestion?? Claim experience on wagon and drag, so you would appreciate a familiarisation period with the kit. A good Company should respect you for this, and the sort of work you are mentioning should come with a driving assessor/trainer. So use him/her
Get yourself on containers milkman lovely work no need to worry about sliding fifth wheels.just get your box dumped on your trailer,do up the twistlocks and go,you might have to open the doors up when you get to the job,every now and then
I d recommend it to anyone I love it
