Hi all, new on here, passed Cat C 29th April with British HGV top instructor “Rockin Dave”.
Been driving 7.5T for years, various boxs & flatbeds, plenty of commercial driving experience.
Now on the Job hunt, most jobs want experience 1 or 2 years, which I have, just not in Cat C.
Would that go against me?
Anyway chuffed as i say 
Many company insurers want you to have held the category for which you are seeking to drive for X amount of time
thought so oh well i’m sure somebody will take me on better keep knocking on those doors
Thankyou
Well knocking on doors worked. Have been offered full time class 2 direct with a local firm and a luck would have it two more job offers come later in the day, what do they say about buses, 3 at once .
Door knocking definitely worked for me, can eat warm baked beans now.
Well done on passing mate and well done with the job. I have just passed my cat c today with 4 minors but now i have to wait to do my cpc before i can look for a job. I am really thinking about trying to scrape the money together and go for my class 1.
spookster:
Well knocking on doors worked. Have been offered full time class 2 direct with a local firm and a luck would have it two more job offers come later in the day, what do they say about buses, 3 at once
Door knocking definitely worked for me, can eat warm baked beans now.
Congratulations on getting a job hope it goes well for you
PushrodV8:
Well done on passing mate and well done with the job. I have just passed my cat c today with 4 minors but now i have to wait to do my cpc before i can look for a job. I am really thinking about trying to scrape the money together and go for my class 1.
Congratulations on passing today good result 4 minors. If I was you I would try and go for the class 1 asap as you will still have the training fresh in your head. I did my class1 8 weeks after doing my C and I feel it really helped. Good luck anyway
jusholmes:
spookster:
Well knocking on doors worked. Have been offered full time class 2 direct with a local firm and a luck would have it two more job offers come later in the day, what do they say about buses, 3 at once
Door knocking definitely worked for me, can eat warm baked beans now.Congratulations on getting a job hope it goes well for you
Thanks and me!
PushrodV8:
Well done on passing mate and well done with the job. I have just passed my cat c today with 4 minors but now i have to wait to do my cpc before i can look for a job. I am really thinking about trying to scrape the money together and go for my class 1.
Well done!! bummer with the cpc thing, i have one session left to do. Yeah it aint cheap this licence lark…
The cpc thing is a bummer, and you are right it aint cheap this licence stuff but if you land a job like OP has then it wont take long to pay for itself. Got loads of haulage companies on my doorstep in the north east. Frank Hudson Transport is literally just 3 miles away and my dad has known him for years so fingers crossed their when my CPC is done. To Nyone who hasnt heard of frankie (FHT) he is well established and has the only Limited edition black amber scania in the uk i believe.
PushrodV8:
Well done on passing mate and well done with the job. I have just passed my cat c today with 4 minors but now i have to wait to do my cpc before i can look for a job. I am really thinking about trying to scrape the money together and go for my class 1.
Do it. The sooner the 2 year on C+E time clock starts, the sooner you can go for the better jobs.
If I had to sum up the differences, it would be more precise road positioning and spatial awareness, (even) more mirror checks, and learning to reverse the thing. The sooner you do C+E it after cat C the better, as I left it over a year and even though I passed it would have been easier sooner.
Well done on the cat C pass, and 4 minors is a top notch result. Treat yourself to half a yorkie bar. You can have a whole one when you pass class 1 
Thanks TH2013 my tutor said 4 minors was a really good drive i didnt know if he was being nice because i still had to leave feedback for the training firm or he was being serious. Weird thing is i got 4 minors on my car test in 2007 and 4 minors for my cat c both passed first time.
As for the class 1 i was originally going to get a job with class 2 for about a year to save up for my class 1 but i just dont know now with you guys saying go for the class 1 now. I understand that with the trailer you have to take wider turns, your vehicle bends instead of rigid and the reversing is different but i didnt think overall driving would be any different is it?
Can anyone answer my question? Because i have aquired my cat C does this mean i can now drive a 3.5 tonne pick up? I think its a C1 isnt it? Thanks.
PushrodV8:
Thanks TH2013 my tutor said 4 minors was a really good drive i didnt know if he was being nice because i still had to leave feedback for the training firm or he was being serious. Weird thing is i got 4 minors on my car test in 2007 and 4 minors for my cat c both passed first time.
As for the class 1 i was originally going to get a job with class 2 for about a year to save up for my class 1 but i just dont know now with you guys saying go for the class 1 now. I understand that with the trailer you have to take wider turns, your vehicle bends instead of rigid and the reversing is different but i didnt think overall driving would be any different is it?Can anyone answer my question? Because i have aquired my cat C does this mean i can now drive a 3.5 tonne pick up? I think its a C1 isnt it? Thanks.
Let’s keep this simple: Leaving aside buses, you can now drive virtually anything that doesn’t bend. (Assuming it doesn’t contain dangerous goods that you would need ADR for). I’m sure someone will post an exception in a minute - but in practical terms you can drive most things you would normally encounter.
4 minors really is very good, he wasn’t kidding; to become a DSA registered instructor you need to pass with less than 6, to give you some idea!
You are right that the actual driving is mainly the same sort of thing for class 1, you just have to always be checking exactly where the trailer is. Some turns that you can get around in a rigid require splitting lanes in an artic, or going onto the wrong side of the road to get around due to the extra length. Strangely, some that are tricky in a rigid are actually easier in an artic. Any rate it is heaps more fun!
Anyway, best of luck, and again, well done!
th2013:
PushrodV8:
Thanks TH2013 my tutor said 4 minors was a really good drive i didnt know if he was being nice because i still had to leave feedback for the training firm or he was being serious. Weird thing is i got 4 minors on my car test in 2007 and 4 minors for my cat c both passed first time.
As for the class 1 i was originally going to get a job with class 2 for about a year to save up for my class 1 but i just dont know now with you guys saying go for the class 1 now. I understand that with the trailer you have to take wider turns, your vehicle bends instead of rigid and the reversing is different but i didnt think overall driving would be any different is it?Can anyone answer my question? Because i have aquired my cat C does this mean i can now drive a 3.5 tonne pick up? I think its a C1 isnt it? Thanks.
Let’s keep this simple: Leaving aside buses, you can now drive virtually anything that doesn’t bend. (Assuming it doesn’t contain dangerous goods that you would need ADR for). I’m sure someone will post an exception in a minute - but in practical terms you can drive most things you would normally encounter.
4 minors really is very good, he wasn’t kidding; to become a DSA registered instructor you need to pass with less than 6, to give you some idea!
You are right that the actual driving is mainly the same sort of thing for class 1, you just have to always be checking exactly where the trailer is. Some turns that you can get around in a rigid require splitting lanes in an artic, or going onto the wrong side of the road to get around due to the extra length. Strangely, some that are tricky in a rigid are actually easier in an artic. Any rate it is heaps more fun!
Anyway, best of luck, and again, well done!
Thanks for the explanation bud much appreciated. I didnt know my drive today was that good then but i assume an examiner would have to have no less than 6 minors in class one? I know i got a minor for pulling away afyer i stopped at the side of the road. The bloomin thing was jumping a bit i forgot to put it into lower gears (push to the left in neutral entered lower gears instead of a switch).
As for what you said about artic driving i can see where the tricky parts come in we had a conversation about gearboxes in wagons today amd he said autos are actually a big help especially in an artic due to the extra attention that is involved in driving them. He said i would t get used to the manuals because he said they are rare nowadays.