well i have managed to finally get a job driving and i start next week on the rigids but with the odd artic run until i gain more experience then i will be on artic runs perminant. anyway i will stop rambling on and ask my question…
well its simple really , when i am reversing i am not the best , i am not terrible but due to me passing my test 1 1/2 yrs ago then not driving for a while it takes me a few goes at getting into spots and i need some advice / help
my problem is i keep putting to mch turn on or way to little and then have to take about 3 shunts to get it in , has anyone got and advice on areas to focus on and tips really i was told it wil eventually come to me but i just dont want to make a fool of myself tbh
Got the same problem mate and so had 95% of drivers out there, it’s not something you can be taught, if it was - I’d pay for it to save myself the embaressment!
Just do your best and make sure plenty of people know you’re just starting out, someone’ll nearly always help and it’s the best way to learn, apparently. Best of luck.
i just read your diary this minute about your first day and i was so glad to read its not just me ha ha keep it up as i would like to know how you do , i will see if i can get something up aswell when i start , but most of mine are on rigid at the moment
al_P:
well its simple really , when i am reversing i am not the best , i am not terrible but due to me passing my test 1 1/2 yrs ago then not driving for a while it takes me a few goes at getting into spots and i need some advice / help
my problem is i keep putting to mch turn on or way to little and then have to take about 3 shunts to get it in , has anyone got and advice on areas to focus on and tips really i was told it wil eventually come to me but i just dont want to make a fool of myself tbh
Personally if im honest…as good as those perfect reverses are it still ends up in same place. I know its about that feeling of ‘woohooo that was great’ and eventually it will come.
Those reverses when you have to take a good few shunts, look at it and think ‘did i have to take a shunt because I took the lock off too soon? Or was it because I didnt leave it on long enough?’ Its then that those 3 shunts to get in becomes 2 shunts becomes 1 shunt and then boom straight in (well prehaps not boom )
After some 4/5months of driving now I still often take a shunt just to get it straight…hows the saying go, dont be a ■■■■ take a shunt?
Most new drivers, and a few old ones put too much lock on and lose sight of the trailer, take it slower, use less opposite lock and watch the drivers side, look for tyre marks, bent posts, scrubbed tarmac, or even wet patches, the trailer is only 8 feet wide, the bay is probably 12 or 13 feet. If the wheels are in the right place at your own side, the trailer is going to go in at the other side.
But don’t be [zb] if you can have a shunt is a good idiom.
Ignore any traffic signs in a depot if it means you are reversing on the blind side, spin it round and use the side that is visible, if you get banned off site for it, put that down as good experience
al_P:
my problem is i keep putting to mch turn on or way to little and then have to take about 3 shunts to get it in , has anyone got and advice on areas to focus on and tips really i was told it wil eventually come to me but i just dont want to make a fool of myself tbh
thanks from al
I have the exact same problem
Gives me ‘hot flushes’ just thinking about putting it ‘away’. So bloody annoying, especially when you watch 'professionals do it and they make it look so easy. Why can’t I do that? The ‘start’ position is meant to be the ‘key’ but if you don’t know where it should start from it just makes it even harder.
only tips i can give mate is take your time that way if you do hit anything its not as bad,also dont be embarrassed to ask someone to watch you back and if anyone takes the micky ask them to do it! always works for me. every driver has his good and bad days some days its like i could perform surgery whilst reversing and somedays its like i’m blind, deaf and have no legs! good luck mate
dukeofdirt:
only tips i can give mate is take your time that way if you do hit anything its not as bad,also dont be embarrassed to ask someone to watch you back and if anyone takes the micky ask them to do it! always works for me. every driver has his good and bad days some days its like i could perform surgery whilst reversing and somedays its like i’m blind, deaf and have no legs! good luck mate
Nice first post, welcome to TNUK, why did it take you so long to post?
al_P:
my problem is i keep putting to mch turn on or way to little and then have to take about 3 shunts to get it in , has anyone got and advice on areas to focus on and tips really i was told it wil eventually come to me but i just dont want to make a fool of myself tbh
thanks from al
I have the exact same problem
Gives me ‘hot flushes’ just thinking about putting it ‘away’. So bloody annoying, especially when you watch 'professionals do it and they make it look so easy. Why can’t I do that? The ‘start’ position is meant to be the ‘key’ but if you don’t know where it should start from it just makes it even harder.
You want to get as straight as possible before you reverse or you’ll get in a right two and eight if you try to jacknife it into a bay etc…
al_P:
my problem is i keep putting to mch turn on or way to little and then have to take about 3 shunts to get it in , has anyone got and advice on areas to focus on and tips really i was told it wil eventually come to me but i just dont want to make a fool of myself tbh
thanks from al
I have the exact same problem
Gives me ‘hot flushes’ just thinking about putting it ‘away’. So bloody annoying, especially when you watch 'professionals do it and they make it look so easy. Why can’t I do that? The ‘start’ position is meant to be the ‘key’ but if you don’t know where it should start from it just makes it even harder.
You want to get as straight as possible before you reverse or you’ll get in a right two and eight if you try to jacknife it into a bay etc…
That’s what I end up doing, parking it from a jacknife position is hard work.
al_P:
well i have managed to finally get a job driving and i start next week on the rigids but with the odd artic run until i gain more experience then i will be on artic runs perminant. anyway i will stop rambling on and ask my question…
well its simple really , when i am reversing i am not the best , i am not terrible but due to me passing my test 1 1/2 yrs ago then not driving for a while it takes me a few goes at getting into spots and i need some advice / help
my problem is i keep putting to mch turn on or way to little and then have to take about 3 shunts to get it in , has anyone got and advice on areas to focus on and tips really i was told it wil eventually come to me but i just dont want to make a fool of myself tbh
thanks from al
Don’t worry al, there isn’t a driver out there that hasn’t looked like a fool whilst reversing at some time in their careers!
Like you said, it’s really practice that makes perfect, but a couple of tips that might help:
Don’t look at the back of your trailer as your guide. Use the trailer wheels as a guide to where you’re going. A tri-axle trailer will pivot round the middle wheel.
If you think you’re putting too much lock on, then use less.
Make sure you give yourself loads of room. Too often I’ve not given myself enough at the front and ended up having to virtually jackknife the trailer to get it on the bay!
You can make a tight turn and still get it sweetly onto a bay, you’ve just got to start taking lock off at the right time.
Don’t rush your reverse.
Don’t worry about other people watching you. A lot of them can’t reverse their own car, let alone an artic!
Read points 1-7 again and practice, practice, practice!
welcome to tnuk
right I have been driving artics just over a year now, and i still use a shunt if i need to. I asked a driver where i work, and he has been driving over 40years now and he told me he makes a mess of things, but he knows how to make it look good so nobody sees it. When drivers are looking please get out and ask for a bit of help watching you in and trust me they will help. A driver told me if you ask for help nobody will laugh as they would be more than pleased to help and pass on their experance to you.its when you dont ask and make a mess of it they laugh.And allways try to reverse on your good side (drivers side) most places dont let you reverse blindside due to health and safety on site.
EastAnglianTrucker:
Don’t look at the back of your trailer as your guide. Use the trailer wheels as a guide to where you’re going. A tri-axle trailer will pivot round the middle wheel.
Thats a good tip. Pivot point is something i never thought about.
, i will see if i can get something up aswell when i start , but most of mine are on rigid at the moment
