I've been independent for over 8 years now. I work with CH Robinson Worldwide, never had a problem with them. I own my own truck and trailer. I paid cash for them and have never felt pressured to run too hard because of having to make a payment. It took a lot of years of working and saving to buy my first truck, but it has been well worth it as far as I am concerned. I set my own hours, run whenever I want and take time off when I want. I am fortunate enough to have a government retirement as well, so that helps...My current truck is a '10 Freightliner Cascadia with a 125" cab and 72" standup sleeper. I also own a '09 Great Dane 53' Dry Van. I have it wired for Direct TV, and Verizon Wireless Broadband Internet..The internet is a life saver, I get 95 percent of my loads that way. My wife travels with me and helps take care of my paperwork...We have a small scanner/printer so when we deliver a load, she scans the bills, attaches them to the computer docs to send to CHRW. By sending them that way, we get paid, usually, within 48 hours.....

 

lol...Well, it will probably come as no surprise to you that I'd really like a Kenworth.
I did all my time in a Freightliner Century when I was OTR.



That's where my inexperience with buying trucks plays in. I really don't know one from another, in terms of what to look for, so it's difficult to really put together a list of needs and wants. I have a hard time seeing myself walking onto a lot and convincing a salesman that I know what I'm looking for in a truck. I would definitely need to a mechanic, or someone with more knowledge than me, spec the thing out and tell me if it's a good deal or not. Kind of an intimidating thought to consider spending that much money on something you absolutely need to work but have no savy regarding what makes one truck good or bad. That's one reason why buying knew has a lot of appeal, but I think the prices would be out of the ballpark for me.

 

Okay, does this mean that a 40k truck is actually a 20-30k truck? If that's the case then in simplifies matters.




Thank you. That's what I'm talking about. It seems to me that software should be available to help keep track of everything and keep it in order. And with wireless internet going up everywhere in the last few years, you should be well connected in your cab and able to find what you loads and communicate with shippers/receivers that way. It's good to hear someone is doing that.

 

The only way to learn what to look for is to look at a lot of trucks and talk with owners. I would not want to pay a mechanic to go with me to check out every possible truck choice. I would wait until I found the truck that I wanted to buy. You can tell a lot about a truck by driving it. You can often get a good feel as to how well it was maintained and driven simply by taking it for a drive. If the interior has been well maintained then the possibility of the rest of the truck being well maintained is greatly enhanced. On the other hand, if the truck has missing parts or damage to the interior, then I would look much more closely at the mechanical part of the truck. Someone who is conscientious of the interior is much more likely to keep the maintenance up on the vehicle. It can also hide some problems, so you need to check out a truck pretty closely. There are some people who will make purchase decisions on cosmetics. That is not a good way to make buying decisions.

There are little things that could easily be checked, such as tires. Excessive or unusual tire wear may be an indicator of alignment or other more serious suspension problems.

It is difficult to tell someone everything to look for when shopping for equipment.

 

That's exactly the case. I bought mine for 17k at auction. Dealer was asking 42K.

 

A car dealer told me once that if you want to find the value of something, go to an auction.

 

Rates on the load boards aren't that great from what I hear. I think you need at least one shipper that you can deal with directly and then use load boards for cheaper "return trips" to your home area.

As for renting, I meant using one trailer, not change them every day, but getting it on a temporary contract to get the ball rolling. There's many subtle spec differences in each trailer (wheel base, weight, winches, type of floor etc.) and renting will give a chance to decide what kind of trailer is best for your application. Once you know that, then you can LEASE or FINANCE something for a longer term (but once you're in - you're in: all these long-term contracts are not cancelable).

 

I just did a load that moved 0.3 miles and weighed 3,000 lbs. It paid almost $300 to the truck. Do you guys think it's possible to start with one state/province only? I know that in my home province of Ontario, Canada it only costs $150/year to be independent (and another 50 bucks for Quebec). Insurance would probably be cheaper too if I tell them I'm not going to leave Ontario?

 

I think that unless you find something dedicated in Ontario that you will find it difficult to make a living within a single province. At one time there used to be a fair amount of freight moving back and forth from Quebec to Ontario. In the U.S. we can get intrastate authority and don't have to get interstate unless we cross state lines. I believe that intrastate authority in my state costs $50. You may save a little on insurance due to the short runs, but I don't think that you will save much on base plates. As long as you stay within about a 500 mile radius of your home base you could possibly save a little on your insurance. I would expect that you would need to either travel to Quebec or into the U.S. and some of the border states such as Michigan and New York. I would check with some brokers who do a lot of freight within the province and see if there is something in the area that might work for you. I would also contact some shippers direct. You never know what might be available.