Flatbed i$ where the $$$ i$ at.

I work in the Canadian oilfield doing pipeline construction and with my self steer pole trailer or a jeep and wagon hauling pipe, I'm making in excess of $100K/year as a company driver. Never came close to that as a OTR driver running decks.

 

Is that in oilfield? ANd how much are you making??

 

I would say flatbed sucks in a lot of TX. Did it back in boom of Barnett. Then it slowed. Now every criminal illegal with CDL has truck hauling pipe or sand/gravel/rock. There is still money to be made but it is not even close to what it was in 2005-08. Could make a grand a day on 3 LTL pallets and be home by 1 in afternoon and go play golf or fish. Best day I remember was Load of pipe to Acton, back for a load of chemicals from FTW to Mineral Wells at old air base, back to Arlington for some wellheads and other skid freight to Cleburne-Alvarado area. Grossed about $4k and only drove about 250 miles total. When they wanted parts they wanted them NOW and payed very well. Now these rubes with their pickups and 40'+trailers fight each other for the same freight for table scraps. They never learn. You never get ahead working for less.

 

TOOOO many flat beds in TX.
Let me rephrase that , too many flat beds in TX that are willing to drop the price on any and every load.
Im not saying this is the case with you guys , sounds like youre doing well but alot of guys around Houston wear it like a badge of honor and run around for peanuts.

 

LOL,I know thats right......Go down to Houston and all I see are a bunch runnin around with their 45' flatbeds with 6 foot tall BENT UP pipe stakes staring up in the sky

 

Hey hey hey, I take offense to that , the flat I owned as a 48 not a 45.

 

Maybe I don't know the right people, but TX fails to impress me in general. I've made good money hauling a few frac pumps, but it's not steady.

I prefer hauling metals in the Midwest. I hear auto sales are coming back up, so that's good news for steel and aluminum. Car hauling should come back too.

 

Ive always thought that TX is kind of weird. Local brokers will offer you a certain amount ( decent rate ) to go south or west because they know theres nothing coming back, then theres what I think brokers that either dont know and understand the market or pray on carriers that might not know the market and sell 'em this $2.00 a mile crap .
$2.00 a mile to a dead area on a 250-350 mile run , nah thanks you can keep it...... Ill wait for somethign good or bounce out of TX for a couple days trying to make a living .
Ill tell you alot of guys are so set on not leaving TX and they drive the rates down. Well at least thats my opinion.