I don't want to use chains either but if it pays.. There was an article in the paper the other day saying you don't get rich doing what you love you get rich doing what others don't like. I think it was in the USA Today.

I'm freezing as it is right now in Montana. I bought a hat last night but I don't have winter clothes; I don't even really own pants as I wear shorts all year round mostly. This APU only goes up to 86 I wish it would go higher. I need to logon to WearGuard and buy some good thermals. I don't even know if they are still around.

Making good time and want to be there by tomorrow night so I can reset my hours on monday and get another load after I deliver on Tuesday.

No_worries I alway look at the fuel price after discounting the state tax but I don't understand something. Michigan supposedly has &.304 tax but when I fueled up the other day I got 63.776 gallons and it says state road tax came to $9.57. well $.304 times 63.776 comes to $19.387. What am I figuring wrong here?

So far I have spent (I started with a half tank) $819.86 and have a full tank and have about just under 1,000 miles left.

I find myself mostly fueling at the Flying J. I think it was Mike3 who said that he finds the places that don't charge extra for the use of credit card and I have done that too, but the problem is that a lot of times they don't code the purchase right and I only get 1% back and then I have to pay anywhere from $6.50 to $9.00 for a shower so that eats up the savings.

One more thing I am having trouble with, I notice when it is real cold the tire pressure reads very low. When it says "cold" on the tire I don't think they mean freezing like it is now. When I was in Wyoming a few weeks ago, I woke up and checked the tire pressure and it was low, so I figure when I get to the Flying J in Rock Springs where I was going to reset my hours, I would let them get cool again and then air them up. Well when they got cool again they didn't drop to the early morning pressure as it was now noon and wasn't so cold out. So I'm not sure, I mean early morning in the freezing cold is not a true reading I assume? I think I am going to buy those cat's eyes things. I didn't want to spend the money, but it's too cold to be out here airing up all these tires.

 

Rock Springs for a reset....YUCK!! :sad:

try stopping a cabellas they have awesome cold weather clothes.

tootie

 

I wouldn't worry about any notation on the receipt as to the amount of the road tax, it's irrelevant. When your tax person calculates your tax all they'll take off the receipt is the number of gallons. My guess is MI maybe has some multi-tiered allocation of fuel taxes whereby some goes to road tax and some goes into other pots. Purely speculation on my part 8) Don't worry about it.

As far as tire pressures go, everything I've come across on the subject says the most important thing is to make sure your tires are at the recommended pressure when cold, regardless of the ambient temp. Cold air will cause the pressure to decrease so you need to account for that. For instance, you start your day in 70 degrees and the pressure is fine. The next morning (after sitting all night so the tires are "cold") the ambient temp is 35 and your pressure is 5 lbs low. At this point you should add air to bring the tires up to the correct pressure. That pressure is calculated to allow the tire to keep its shape through normal temp variations during driving. Technically, the opposite is true. If you go from cold to warm temps, your pressure may be a little higher. You can certainly adjust, although it's not as important. It's preferable to error on the high side than the low. So, check your pressures after the truck has been sitting for several hours and add as much air as needed to bring it to the recommended pressure, regardless of the ambient temp. You'll probably find that you'll be needing to add air much more often when you go into colder temps, but it pays off in terms of tire life.

This is just the sum of what I've been told and researched. If anyone else finds info suggesting otherwise, by all means post it. I in no way consider this to be the final word on the subject. There should be an industry recommended practices paper, but I can't find it.

 

Try making it to Little America down the road. It's wicked nice. Get a whole roasted chicken and a coke and you'll be in a coma for the rest of your reset!!! Free ice cream cones too.

Merrick, if you have an APU you can buy an electric 110v heater like I have and it will heat the cab up BIG TIME. Most APU's will tell you to plug the block heater in or put a load on the APU so it puts out more heat. I get my electric heater out at night and plug it in so in the morning I just reach down and turn the switch on after I start up the APU. It takes a while for the APU to put out some real heat so the electric heater really gives you a jump start.

I would suggest going online and ordering a flannel shirt from LL Bean and it will be waiting for you when you get home. They also have awesome flannel lined jeans too. LL Bean also carries the Mad Bomber Hat. It's lined with Rabbit fur. You look like a total geek but it is the warmest hat in the world. When it's 10 below and the wind is 30mph you'll be the envy of every trucker.

 

Just one more note on the subject. This is what I have for winter.

One piece snow mobile suit.
Mad Bomber hat
Ski mittens, not gloves with fingers. Mitts are much warmer
Snow mobile boots
Silk long johns
flannel shirts
scarf
Ski goggles

 

I'm a warm weather guy myself...those lined jeans rock! 8)

 

[quote="SteveBooth"]I'm pretty sure some state require you to actually posses chains even if there isn't any snow yet. quote]



Most of the western states have chain requirements during certain times of the year. It will vary from one state to another. They will sometimes check to see that you have the correct number of chains on the truck. Colorado just raised their fines for not having chains.

 

That's why I hung my chains in plain view so it would be just one less reason for them to pull me over.

I also found that my chains are nice and clean. They must be getting sand blasted from my tires. When I kept them in the storage bin they got all rusted up.

 

well Merrick et al super truckers
when you are sitting on the side of the road and wrestling with your chains
There are guys with their own authority
doing 65 mph on a clear hiway

You should have enough sense
to realize that you don't push winter
you just want to survive winter with the least amount of
white knuckle driving
Its going to come anyway
It is a time to just break even until spring
Talk to any experience otr o/o
and you will here the same reply
"if it requires chains, I am not going"
But then again if you are slapping chains thats one less reefer load I have to compete with.
You guys go ahead and run the Rocky Mtns in the winter
I will enjoy reading about the nightmares
I will be home watching TV

 

Ain't that the truth. Tarped short haul LTL in the northeast all winter long......MMMMMM.