No probs Reef, appreciate you’re independent and thats fine.
I tend to help other lads at some places i go to because if we’re filling a silo which only gets filled once a day, then often enough we’re in a right awkward spot for others turning round, and some of the lads who go there regularly and spin it round suddenly find a bloody tanker up the air just where they spin, the one place i’m thinking of there’s only one way to do it, if they try turning the other way they can’t make the right turn round the building back out because some Armco stops the trailer cutting the corner.
Its surprising how many of the lads don’t realise that barrier will bugger em up till its too late and end up having to reverse round three times and about nine shunts to go the other way…not knocking them or anyone, it looks totally different from the cab as you drive round the back, you’d think getting out would be easy, it isn’t if you go the wrong way.
Its funny though, if they start to go the wrong way i have to make the decision to either say whoa and tell them why…which could sound patronising and some might not take it in the spirit its meant…or leave them to make it hard for themselves …thats not as simple a choice as it sounds, and oddly enough the right way to do it means drive down the side of my tank then one own side reverse and straight drive out, whilst doing it wrong means a restricted start blind sider round my cab and then bring the arse of the trailer as close to my cab as possible and still can’t make the tight exit unless they happen to have a three axle trailer with all axles down and even then its touch and go.
In mitigation i try my best to make it easy for them, i reverse back much further than the rest of the tanker lads who go there and double up the product pipes to give the turners more room.
So, how do i say to you, an independent bloke and not knocking you for that far from it, that you are about to make it bloody hard for yourself?
What I don’t like to see is a cocky driver jump in an inexperienced drivers truck and do the reverse for him, much better to guide him from the outside giving moral support. Let him learn through doing rather than watching.
Another pet hate is a show off who reverses to fast on full beans usually followed by a balls up.
As far as helping out I will ask another driver if they want me to watch em back, 9 times out of 10 my assistance is welcomed but I do understand if a driver doesn’t want the added pressure.
I must say our flippety floppety cousins are always very helpful.
Dipper_Dave:
What I don’t like to see is a cocky driver jump in an inexperienced drivers truck and do the reverse for him, much better to guide him from the outside giving moral support. Let him learn through doing rather than watching.
Another pet hate is a show off who reverses to fast on full beans usually followed by a balls up.
As far as helping out I will ask another driver if they want me to watch em back, 9 times out of 10 my assistance is welcomed but I do understand if a driver doesn’t want the added pressure.
I must say our flippety floppety cousins are always very helpful.
Yep the Turkish lads are great, there’s one big jolly bugger who bellows pigeon English as loud as a foghorn who i see now and again one place i go, its a tight bugger on a London back street.
Watched him out and afterwards (now blocking the street) he gets out shakes my hand bellows summat indecipherable and buggers off, i’d love to go for a pint with him he’d bring the bloody house down…
Juddian:
So, how do i say to you, an independent bloke and not knocking you for that far from it, that you are about to make it bloody hard for yourself?
Yeah I’ll have to concede that a lot of it depends on the circumstances and the actual place.
There is a world of difference between someone taking it upon themselves to “guide” you onto a bay at an RDC just because you took a couple of shunts thus far, and a knowledgeable “heads up” at an unfamiliar tip, In regards to the latter, you’d get a lot of thanks and a handshake (nothing more sorry, I’m married) and if I wasn’t having a particularly bad day up until that point I may even crack half a smile.
I use to hate putting trailers in the bays in immingham and few of the other docks.
Always found them really tight.
It gets easier mate.
I found sometimes if you try and get the trailer square and heading for the space as soon as possible and screw the unit round it made it easier for me.
Dipper_Dave:
Oh and @ Luke your mirrors are a fraction out, but I’ll put that down to camera angle. That wouldn’t be a Volvo FH16 750bhp jobby would it.
Radar19:
Thanks for the advice guys. Took me 5-7 shunts to get it on the bay tonight but I didn’t hit anything so that’s all that matters.
DFDS/Warehouse 10? … If so, try going round the block the opposite way (you can get between rows if Im making sense?), as most of the trailers/bays there seem to slant off to the left. Ive seen a few get it wrong, so youre not alone. Just keep at it, itll come
The top one could go out a bit more and definitely down a bit as Juddian said no need to see aircraft flying over head. Also good to see the main and wide angle in the correct order with the wide angle the lowest not highest of the two. It also gets a bit more of a grey area in the case of narrow cabs in which the arms often aren’t long enough to compensate.
The top one could go out a bit more and definitely down a bit as Juddian said no need to see aircraft flying over head. Also good to see the main and wide angle in the correct order with the wide angle the lowest not highest of the two. It also gets a bit more of a grey area in the case of narrow cabs in which the arms often aren’t long enough to compensate.
After the bridge collapse on the M20, having a bit of a sky view might not be a bad thing.
I actually prefer to just do it on my own to be honest. This may be because years ago I was being watched back by someone ‘keep coming, keep coming’ loud crunch ‘STOP’!
switchlogic:
I actually prefer to just do it on my own to be honest. This may be because years ago I was being watched back by someone ‘keep coming, keep coming’ loud crunch ‘STOP’!
Replace “crunch” with “splurge” and we’d have just fallen head first down the dipper_dave rabbit hole…
Reef:
I suppose what I’m trying to say (or at least another way of looking at it) is…
IF (and as you can see it’s a big if) I want or need help I’ll happily ask for it, I’m not too proud or insecure to not ask for help if I deem I need it, otherwise I just want to crack on and figure it out for myself and learn in the process.
What happens if you become so reliant on others assistance that when you are then on your own and have to (god forbid) think and problem solve for yourself?
I appreciate where you’re coming from Juddian I’m just trying to show you that there is often another side to it.
There is no substitute for practice and experience, when it comes reversing, at least, but sometimes you could spend ages struggling away as a newbie, or even as an experienced driver unfamiliar with the site, only for somebody come along and offer a bit of advice the makes the job easier and safer.
I don’t mind people helping me, even now, just have to suss out if they actually have a clue what they’re doing, sometimes if I think they haven’t got a clue I let wave their arms and ignore them and sort myself out, only stop them if they’re doing something dangerous, like disappearing out of my view.
It also gets a bit more of a grey area in the case of narrow cabs in which the arms often aren’t long enough to compensate.