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JMBT

Sledge said above, "But at least with trucking I can be more valuable by owning my own equipment."

YES, YES, and double YES!!! You can be a company driver and have next to no responsibilities pertaining to truck maintenance, load booking, business finance,..etc. Or you can step up to the plate, become an O/O and do the same job,(burn hours of your life moving shi#t down the road) but do it for 3, 5, hell if you get really specialized with your own equipment, 10 times the money in your pocket! Now, of course you are taking on much, much more responsibility. When the truck breaks down on the roadside and it is 12 degrees outside, you can't just phone the company dispatcher to send a tow truck and relax in a hotel room on hourly pay while it gets fixed. However it sounds like you can manage your money and I would be willing to bet you are the kind of guy that can learn what it takes to keep a truck running, so I would say, as I tell many I talk to on the road. If you are going to make trucking a career, you will build a lot more wealth in the long run if you become an O/O. ...And I wouldn't hesitate, time spent behind the wheel for someone else is making them wealthier by the mile.
As far as the truck, MY OPINION ONLY, I have 18 years as an O/O and have owned 5 trucks. The first was a worn out freightliner that I gave $15,000 for, and wore out a second time saving the money to get a newer truck, but it made $$$$$. Money that I squirreled away any chance I got. The second was a brand new truck, and then another, and then.....The last 2 have been powered by EPA mandated bullshit that they call motors. The infamous 871 and the even worse "updated" 2250. Talking to the 2350 guys, it looks to me like they are just continuing to get worse and more complex, which makes it harder for the common guy to fix. Hell without Rawze's help, through his you tube channel, I would have already been f@3ked! There was a time when I would have sworn the newer truck was definitely the way to go, but those days are loooonnnggggg gone! Older, well taken care of ,or better yet already redone, easier to work on or learn to work on, is your best bet! If you are not running Cali, I would buy 2003 or older. There are literally steals to be had on these trucks in the states! 95's - 99's, 2000's anything with an N-14, or even 02's, 03's, 04's that have the first model ISX's. But here's the gitter....find one that has already been redone, and taken great care of. Do a bit of searching they are not that hard to find. My buddy sold a 94 international with a big bunk last year that he had owned since new...22 years, It literally looked and drove like a brand new truck rolling down the road! Everything had been touched, some things multiple times, but with 2.6 million it was mechanically immaculate! Truck brought 35K at an online sale. I saw a 95 359 Pete online the other day frame up restoration, and pics to prove it asking 39K. I have seen many 2000-2003's cheap as well!
If you are running Cali, you will be in a different boat, just like the rest of us, and in this case I would strongly recommend trucks with the 871, as opposed to the 2250's, 2350's. Simpler in my book is nearly always better. More components mean more things to fail, and if you are just learning about wrenching on them, it will be easier to learn!! Less trips to the shop= more in your pocket!!! Just my 2....take it with a grain of salt!

JMBT

Also I believe the term "fleet maintained" is an oxy moron, right???

preacherboy24

I have an excellent credit rating so borrowed money is pretty cheap for me. I bought a used truck that had 730k on the odometer. I de-mandated it and worked the bugs out of it. I will have it paid of in November and will be saving for an inframe. As soon as I have the money it will be built to our specs and should give me a good amount of trouble free miles with no truck payment. I survived '08 and '09 because I had no truck payment so it makes a big difference.

If I were looking for a truck right now I would look for a good Prostar or equivalent with a blown 871 in it. I have seen them for $7000 on ebay with a rebuildable engine. Rebuild the engine to the Rawze specs and you have a solid plan for a million miles.

hhow55

almostfreetrucks.com is a good source

dhirocz

(04-13-2017 )JMBT Wrote: Also I believe the term "fleet maintained" is an oxy moron, right???

You can say that again. Got my first truck, a 2010 T2, at 605k. Spent alot of time fixing problems with it in my spare time, maintaining it, etc... Religious oil changes and preventative maintenance. Ate a cam at 685k. Waiting on an inframe now.

If I knew then what I know now, the first weekend I had it, I would have pulled the top end apart, made sure it was getting oil and that the oil passages weren't plugged, then run the overhead. I'd inspect it as best I could prior to purchase for signs of a bad cam. (Ticking, etc) Pretty sure your typical lot won't appreciate you popping off the valve cover though.

My truck was 'fleet maintained'. I bought it through my company. While my company pays well and I really like my terminal and working relationships with dispatch, corporate suffers from the same bullshit alot of other companies do. Penny pinching. After being promised help with something like this if it were to happen (and I specifically asked about this), their help ended by telling me no and to spend twice as much on a T660...similar miles and powertrain, or a newer '18 Pete with crappar power. Cost benefit analysis is in favor of the inframe.

I'll fix and keep my ISX. I'm good with a T2 and a fresh engine.

If you go used, just be prepared to get your hands dirty. Like I've told others, don't be like alot of fleets...Be proactive, not reactive when it comes to maintenance. That's the only reason right now I'm coming out ahead with the inframe. If I wasn't, I'd be getting another truck...still used...at twice the cost, to boot. Also, don't expect people to fulfill their promises when it comes to money.

Rawze

(04-27-2017 )dhirocz Wrote: ...
You can say that again. Got my first truck, a

...

If I wasn't, I'd be getting another truck...still used...at twice the cost, to boot. Also, don't expect people to fulfill

...

Wow, Very well said.

dhirocz

Someone has to know. I've only been an O/O for a year, and most of the guys who buy used but refuse to roll up their sleeves go broke quickly with an ex fleet truck.

I wouldn't have been profitable much at all last year had I relied on a shop, between the cost and the downtime. I spent so much on parts, I was surprised when I got a tax return last week.

kryten

(04-27-2017 )dhirocz Wrote: My truck was 'fleet maintained'.

Last spring I was talking to what I thought was a company driver. Turned out he had just bought the company day cab and was doing local work around Vancouver BC. He mentioned he had asked the maintenance bunch when the next service was due and was told he was in luck, it had just been done and he was good for another 80000km (synthetic oil don't you know). This is in a daycab that spent most of it's life pulling turnpikes on the prairies or doing city work in Vancouver, extreme service by anyone's definition except a penny pinching carrier.

Waterloo

(04-27-2017 )dhirocz Wrote: Someone has to know. I've only been an O/O for a year, and most of the guys who buy used but refuse to roll up their sleeves go broke quickly with an ex fleet truck.

I wouldn't have been profitable much at all last year had I relied on a shop, between the cost and the downtime. I spent so much on parts, I was surprised when I got a tax return last week.

Before this emission crap, I rarely turned a wrench. Simple maintenance, change the oil, filters, lube, that was about it... A big thing used to be a brake job, bearings or an overhead. And I just let my local shop handle all of that, my repair bills were miniscule and the repairs were never that expensive and the truck was up and running in a matter of hours. It was not even worth running out and buying tools to make the repairs with so many shops around and low rates. And by all accounts, if you just looked after the truck(s), they were very very reliable.

NOW, LMAO!!! Tools baby, diagnostic equipment, big tool chests, electrical service kits, specialty tools out the ass. I am now working on filing my second tool chest... Those days of running it into the local shop are long gone. And so are the mechanics that used to be able to actually fix things. That master of repair that used to be down the street is now dead or retired and has been replaced with a parts changer with a fancy title and tiny paycheck. He only knows what the book tells him, and what steps to take to make the repair, which rarely ever fixes the problem. Sad commentary, but what I have found over the past few years. I just spent most of the week under my truck making repairs and fixing other things, and my back is killing me. They sure don't make trucks like they used to... They finally perfected these trucks from the days of the oil blowing V-8's, and then the government steps in and destroys everything. Buy tools, lots of tools and educate yourself, because you are the first line of defense, unless you are fortunate to have a Gearhead, Unilever or Mr Hagi in the neighborhood.