Rates are crashing and fuel to the moon!

Oh copy. I run new stuff and don’t really care to see my truck on my days off. It’s easier to let someone else do it.

I was unaware that one had to be licensed to work on safety equipment?

 

you don’t

 

Any work done in the interests of the motor carrier must be logged on duty. Additionally, the definition of 'on duty' in 395.2 specifically mentions "All time inspecting, servicing, or conditioning any commercial motor vehicle at any time".

A pedantic would argue that even stocking the truck with food/laundry should be logged on duty. I wouldn't go that far, but anything that involves wrenches definitely is supposed to be logged on duty. I highly doubt most truck owners actually log that time.

 

That’s what I was getting at. Even to be “certified” you can learn by watching and doing it according to the FMCSA.

 

Right. It’s the same tired argument he brings up all the time, like company drivers are out here logging everything 100% as they do it.

If people aren’t logging at least some on duty time then that’s the chance they’re taking if they ever get audited. If they’re going through your maintenance reports during an audit you’re going to get your wrist slapped if you show doing work yourself with no on duty time.

I grease my truck every other weekend. I have maintenance free u joints and disc brakes. All I have to grease is the front axle and steering components. I can do that, check the rear ends, and give everything under the truck a good once over in around 30 minutes. So when I get home on those weekends I stay on duty after my post trip and knock it out real quick. Anything other than that my truck goes to the shop because I’m not into working on it in my driveway.

 

Well technically I suppose that's correct as long as the work is inspected at a licensed shop before being put in service.

Otherwise why have licenses in the first place, why do you have a CDL?

 

I agree with your assessment and I also blame o/o' and l/o's for the state of trucking in today's market and the low rates.
Where do we go from here?

 

It was 'splained to me that since you have to know how to inspect the brakes to get a CDL, that makes you qualified to play with the brakes. Nobody but a lawyer is going to ask for documents after the fact. Scale house doesn't ask for receipts.

 

And the other side of the argument is that megas do just as much harm to the rates as marginal carriers do.

 

You don’t have to get inspected after you perform repairs. You can self-certify on inspections and brake inspections if you are a carrier or the carrier you’re working for certifies you.