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BiloxiDave · 04-15-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

I hope this is not an inappropriate topic but with the amount of knowledge here I feel like I can get some quality information that I would greatly appreciate.
I am down to my last week of school and want to keep the process of getting to work smooth and without delay. Due to me being wet behind the ears along with living in Biloxi, MS my options are slim. I definitely want to run flatbed for as long as I can and being 47 yrs old I figure 8 to 10 years. I try to pull as much information as I can find and weigh the good and bad but with the internet you always have to question how accurate the information is to begin with. You can't believe a recruiter cause they are going to tell you what you want to hear. Some companies have done very well to limit information on them via basic google searches and YouTube so there is a lack of information on them. I have read pages and pages of "indeed" employee reviews but who is to say that they don't have a bad attitude because they did something stupid and got into trouble or fired because of it. I have never been a job hopper and don't want to start now so I would very much like to make a good decision being a company driver till I have paid my dues and make it to the point of going owner op.
While I am paying my dues and learning my priorities are money (in a hole), company that I can live with and lastly home time (I'm single and kids are older so can stay out if needed). I am currently looking at: TMC, Maverick, Melton and McElroy

TMC: bad reviews, percentage pay, recruits out of my school, no apu's
Maverick: best reviews, decent pay, epu's, unsure of miles
Melton: Ok reviews, decent pay, apu's, heard of low miles
McElroy: so so reviews, lower pay, weekly home time, heard of low miles

I am not limited to just these but I am a new driver with no experience. I understand that a job is what you make of it and I am here to work. This for me is 100% training to be my own boss, how to drive the truck efficiently, learn the business, keep my cdl clean and build some capital. If anyone can offer any information or suggestions I would appreciate it. I am not asking anyone to bash any company so if you do know of something bad a simple, "I would stay away from xxx" will be more than enough.

Thanks for your time, patience and consideration,
David

jasonlepak · 04-15-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

I pulled a flatbed for a few years before I decided to purchase my own truck and lease on with a company...
I've talked to a few drivers from both TMC and Maverick...
TMC drivers liked the fact that they had newer trucks, but they did say the pay wasn't as great as it should be considering most of the loads they pull have to be tarped.

Maverick drivers said pays was pretty good and they usually got good miles.

TMC runs newer Peterbilts and Maverick runs mostly Freightliners.

Most of my experience was with smaller, "real" family owned companies, and in my experience the smaller companies didn't pay too great with company drivers, but did pay better for owner operators.

I'm pretty sure that even though you're going through the schooling now, you'll have to go a while in the flatbed training with any larger company where they show you their way of load securement and tarping. I know TMC is really big on this, and it shows because they always have a pretty tarp job done on their loads.

Waterloo · 04-16-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

I used to flatbed, and can say it is quite a bit of work, especially if you have to throw tarps and chains. I'm 52, and just had my ass handed to me by my garage. Yes, my garage, I cleaned it out, made some shelving and benches and laid down rubber flooring. I think I would die going back to my flatbed. I don't know what shape you are in, but it can be pretty hard on a guy, especially if you are not used to real physical work, it is the cause of my bad back. Not saying you can't do it, I know guys in their 60's that are still running steel, just something to consider.

As far as flat bed companies, they all have their customers and runs. I have talked to mainly Maverick and TMC drivers, and both seemed happy with their companies. Maverick, from what I have "heard", has more terminals to get a guy home, if that is important to you. I believe the TMC drivers tend to stay out on the road for a couple of weeks or longer, again from what I have "heard". And then we have the loads... Lumber that needs to be tarped can wear a guy out fast, vs a coil of steel or plates. I would really ask what they are hauling, who their main customers are and what they are hauling vs pay and what is expected of you. There is a reason turnover is so high out here. When I started driving I was essentially homeless after a nasty divorce, and still young in my early twenties. Pay mattered, but I was more concerned with three squares and a roof. Trucking supplied that.

Not to change the subject, but have you considered a tanker position? Those are still physical but not as strenuous on us older guys as throwing tarps and dealing with heights. In the winter flatbedding can be a very hazardous occupation, especially when dealing with snow and ice. Tanker, you stay on the ground, pay can be pretty good and you get to see a pretty cool side of the business that many will never see depending on what you are hauling. It also tends to be much more professional, especially in regards to how we are treated by the shippers and consignees. Just a thought... Good luck to you, and do not hesitate to post again with more questions. ;-)

Rawze · 04-16-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

(04-15-2017 )BiloxiDave Wrote: ....
I am down to my last week of school and want to
....

If your goal is to eventually own a truck, read my book... http://rawze.com/book
and read it again.

=====

WHILE YOU ARE A COMPANY DRIVER --- LEARN TO RUN THE TRUCK 63 MPH AND LESS, and save every penny you can. -- Do that, and you will always be successful in your trucking career.

Driving slow and saving money are an oxymoron while being a company driver. You are paid solely on miles so there is no incentive for slowing down. What it will do though, is teach you the discipline on owning a truck with the most success. IT IS A PIECE OF INDUSTRIAL MACHINERY just like in a factory, only it is out in public out on the roadways. Learn how to operate it as such for turning maximum profit with minimum costs. I.E. the LOWEST speeds, least wear and operating costs possible while still maintaining your deadlines. Speed, fuel, and time are your enemies. Learn to manage ALL 3 with great precision to become successful.

Every time you stop, you must make up for it with speed. Every time you go fast, you must make up for it with excesses in fuel and wear costs, and every time your equipment is down, any of the other things you gained slightly by going faster and wasting fuel/time are exponentially lost. Simply managing/lowering speed and fuel efficiency, requiring you to STOP A LOT LESS and manage time very well so that slower speeds can be achieved = totally higher profits EVERY SINGLE TIME!

Practice these things on someone else's dime!. Being a company driver is a free education to learning these things and becoming successful in your own truck ownership later on. Learn to drive at lower speeds so that it becomes second nature by the time you do go O/O. Otherwise you will struggle like all the rest i have seen come and go. Owning is much different than simply driving.

ANY COMPANY YOU GO TO --- FIND OUT what the average mph the loads are booked at. I.E> A lot of the mega-fleets book their loads at 50-mph average from pick-up to delivery (total booked miles vs delivery time). This is very important and determines if you are going to have to drive LEGALLY or ILLEGALLY and be stressed out all the damn time because you might have to run 70+ mph and cook your books!.

I.E> load X goes from point A to point B. To get there you will have to run a minimum of X miles of each 11-hour shift to be there on time. -- >

Here are some hypothetical examples of being required to drive a minimum of. This is assuming that there will be multiple driving shifts between pickup and delivery and includes the time to get on/off freeways, fueling, etc. during a long cross--country trip ...

550 miles in a driving shift = 50 mph average, LEGAL, and you can do it at 60-63 MPH with good time management. Perfect for owner-op and perfect for maximum long term profits later on in your own truck.

600 miles in a driving shift = 55 mph average, LEGAL, but you will have to drive 68 MPH+ (65 minimum and no stopping for s$it) if your going cross-country with multiple 10-hour breaks. Very hard driving job if you are staying legal, most run slightly illegal to achieve this and stop a lot because they are always fighting traffic, delays, stress, and are always having to get coffee and sugar and pee a lot fighting fatigue. Every delay makes them hate their job and the motoring public. they are always driving hard all the damn time and are tired more than necessary.

MORE THAN 600 miles in a single driving shift. For example, 700+ in one shift is A BAD THING!. That is 63-mph average per shift in a long cross-country journey. -- you have to drive 70+ MPH and like a bad out of hell just to be legal once you include fueling, required breaks, etc. --> Most of the time, you are pushing your log books into the illegal zone and/or are running more than one log book and required to break the law just to make deliveries. -- A bad place to start out in trucking, and it only makes you an arrogant cow-boy trucker who is hell bent on speed and power after a few years. Truck ownership involves the "Ain't no one gonna tell me how to drive" attitude, they take-home a lot less money that they can keep. They end up pouring most of it into high fuel costs and repairs because the roads are beating the hell out of their truck everywhere they go. They almost always become arrogant, hate traffic, blame their POS equipment every time something breaks, and the list of bad habits only grow from there.

=====

YOU should not limit yourself to any particular type of trucking operation your first year, flatbed, etc. INSTEAD, Look for a company that does not require you to kill yourself by making you drive too fast or keep impossible schedules without running illegally. Find a company ALREADY ON electronic logs, they are soon to be required by everyone, go out and get some experience first. THEN LATER ON!, if you want to try out flat-bedding so badly, you will know more, have more experience, and be in a much better position to make wiser decisions. Trucking IS NOT LIKE other jobs. IT IS NORMAL to move companies a couple times when you are new to it. It is like being married, only you are the commodity being sought after, not the other way around. Sometimes it works out, but most of the time these days, after all the luster and "newness" is gone, you find out you are getting screwed in ways you don't want to be. Trucking is relentlessly cut-throat and everyone knows this. Jumping from one company to another those first couple years is the norm, not the exception for these reasons. Keep that in mind only ever holding to your employer loosely.

WHATEVER YOU DO!--- DO NOT own or lease your own truck FOR AT LEAST ONE YEAR~!. PERIOD!. Let your rookie mistakes (and believe me they will happen) take their toll on someone else's equipment and the problems of breakdowns and other issues be someone else's for that first year. After that,.. GO BACK AND RE-READ MY BOOK AGAIN before getting duped into a bad deal.

That is my own $0.02c on it, and I am sure there are a LOT of others who would disagree with it because they are as thick-headed as me, but that is what I think. - Remember, I am very successful in my own truck ownership so even if people don't agree with it, it is still some very solid info nonetheless.

kmk · 04-16-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

I would never consider doing flatbed or tanker work, especially my first year. The learning curve vs pay doesn't justify the trouble you could potentially get yourself into. If your goal is to get into your own truck within two years, I would go with a smaller fleet with absolutely the highest aftertax pay, cash is king at the end of the day, when you are building up capital and learning the business. I would stick with van hazmat operation, look for 48-54c per mile, short training period, consistent loads(min 10k miles avg per month) and well maintained equipment, not new vs old. Larger fleets will pay you significantly less and stress you out with their bs. Read this forum, starting with Rawze's book and follow what you get here to the letter. Save your hard earned money and buy your truck once your feel confident in your abilities and your grasp of the the way the business works. Oh, stay away from the truckstop crowd. Sit in your truck and read, learn from the revenue side to the cost structure of it all and make your decisions based on the numbers. It'not quantum physics

BiloxiDave · 04-16-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

(04-16-2017 )Rawze Wrote: [quote='BiloxiDave' pid='14386' dateline='1492313692']
....
I am down to my last week of school and want to
....

If your goal is to eventually own a truck, read my book... http://rawze.com/book
and read it again.

=====

I have read your book sir and watched most all of your videos (including the 58 part of your engine rebuild) Rolling resistance, basic maintenance and repairs, knowing the cost down to the penny, the amount of information that you and the group have provided is the plan for success but most importantly, in due time. Just like you say, have to learn to be successful on someone elses dime.

BiloxiDave · 04-16-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

(04-16-2017 )Waterloo Wrote: I used to flatbed, and can say it is quite a bit of work, especially if you have to throw tarps and chains. I'm 52, and just had my ass handed to me by my garage. Yes, my garage, I cleaned it out, made some shelving and benches and laid down rubber flooring. I think I would die going back to my flatbed. I don't know what shape you are in, but it can be pretty hard on a guy, especially if you are not used to real physical work, it is the cause of my bad back. Not saying you can't do it, I know guys in their 60's that are still running steel, just something to consider.

As far as flat bed companies, they all have their customers and runs. I have talked to mainly Maverick and TMC drivers, and both seemed happy with their companies. Maverick, from what I have "heard", has more terminals to get a guy home, if that is important to you. I believe the TMC drivers tend to stay out on the road for a couple of weeks or longer, again from what I have "heard". And then we have the loads... Lumber that needs to be tarped can wear a guy out fast, vs a coil of steel or plates. I would really ask what they are hauling, who their main customers are and what they are hauling vs pay and what is expected of you. There is a reason turnover is so high out here. When I started driving I was essentially homeless after a nasty divorce, and still young in my early twenties. Pay mattered, but I was more concerned with three squares and a roof. Trucking supplied that.

Not to change the subject, but have you considered a tanker position? Those are still physical but not as strenuous on us older guys as throwing tarps and dealing with heights. In the winter flatbedding can be a very hazardous occupation, especially when dealing with snow and ice. Tanker, you stay on the ground, pay can be pretty good and you get to see a pretty cool side of the business that many will never see depending on what you are hauling. It also tends to be much more professional, especially in regards to how we are treated by the shippers and consignees. Just a thought... Good luck to you, and do not hesitate to post again with more questions. ;-)

Thank you for the info. I have thought about tanker and most recently running in the oil patch. I have a couple reasons for wanting to go flatbed first. I'm still in good enough physical shape to deal with it right now and I would really like to have as many experiences that I can get. The second reason is from somewhat of a friend, he is a lease operator running under someone elses authority and even though it is flatbed, I would say that 75% is drop and hook along with very little tarping, most of that is already tarped, he only has to secure. He makes a ton of money but his problem is that he doesn't have a lick of business sense nor does he seem to care much about his truck so he is just throwing money out of the window. My main goal right now is to learn learn learn for a minimum of a year at the same job.

Waterloo · 04-16-2017, **(Subject: Company Guidance / Advice )**

(04-16-2017 )BiloxiDave Wrote:
(04-16-2017 )Waterloo Wrote: I used to flatbed, and can say it is quite a bit of work, especially if you have to throw tarps and chains. I'm 52, and just had my ass handed to me by my garage. Yes, my garage, I cleaned it out, made some shelving and benches and laid down rubber flooring. I think I would die going back to my flatbed. I don't know what shape you are in, but it can be pretty hard on a guy, especially if you are not used to real physical work, it is the cause of my bad back. Not saying you can't do it, I know guys in their 60's that are still running steel, just something to consider.

As far as flat bed companies, they all have their customers and runs. I have talked to mainly Maverick and TMC drivers, and both seemed happy with their companies. Maverick, from what I have "heard", has more terminals to get a guy home, if that is important to you. I believe the TMC drivers tend to stay out on the road for a couple of weeks or longer, again from what I have "heard". And then we have the loads... Lumber that needs to be tarped can wear a guy out fast, vs a coil of steel or plates. I would really ask what they are hauling, who their main customers are and what they are hauling vs pay and what is expected of you. There is a reason turnover is so high out here. When I started driving I was essentially homeless after a nasty divorce, and still young in my early twenties. Pay mattered, but I was more concerned with three squares and a roof. Trucking supplied that.

Not to change the subject, but have you considered a tanker position? Those are still physical but not as strenuous on us older guys as throwing tarps and dealing with heights. In the winter flatbedding can be a very hazardous occupation, especially when dealing with snow and ice. Tanker, you stay on the ground, pay can be pretty good and you get to see a pretty cool side of the business that many will never see depending on what you are hauling. It also tends to be much more professional, especially in regards to how we are treated by the shippers and consignees. Just a thought... Good luck to you, and do not hesitate to post again with more questions. ;-)

Thank you for the info. I have thought about tanker and most recently running in the oil patch. I have a couple reasons for wanting to go flatbed first. I'm still in good enough physical shape to deal with it right now and I would really like to have as many experiences that I can get. The second reason is from somewhat of a friend, he is a lease operator running under someone elses authority and even though it is flatbed, I would say that 75% is drop and hook along with very little tarping, most of that is already tarped, he only has to secure. He makes a ton of money but his problem is that he doesn't have a lick of business sense nor does he seem to care much about his truck so he is just throwing money out of the window. My main goal right now is to learn learn learn for a minimum of a year at the same job.

The oil patch, I did four years up in ND, it paid good, propane bottle...

Drop and hook with a flatbed? I don't know... I had all of my own equipment, straps, chains, etc., liked to keep my stuff in good working order and knew every piece of equipment on my truck. Going into a scene like a drop and hook flat bed operation would make me nervous, as I have seen quite a bit out here over the years, allot of it sloppy. But, that sounds like it is down the road...

I was going to say above, go dry van for your first year. It is much less stress and will give you time to get aquainted with all of the nonsense we put up with out here on a day to day basis. There is nothing worse than being rushed as you are still learning the business, routing, etc., as that is when mistakes happen. And mistakes out here can get yourself or others killed, or seriously injured. ;-) Just my .02 as I have seen many get into this racket and leave within a month or two due to the BS and low pay.