Using mirrors only on a 45 degree back?

Was this a test to get your cdl, for school or a company test?

 

what company?
i would do as they say, then when you are out on your own you can roll the window down and look out when you can not see with the mirrors.
sounds like the one doing the company test is not very well trained themselves.

 

Congratulations. I don't really know the answer, but until a more experiened driver answers i will venture a guess.
Maybe they what to know how well you can use your mirrors to maneuver and judge obsticles. I have seen other divers do it just using their mirrors, and it would be good to be able to do when it is raining, snowing or cold.
I am still new myself so I roll down the window, look behind me, use my mirrors and get out and check. I am getting better and better, although I still don't like to blind side.
How did it go by the way?

 

You can use mirrors only on a 45 but on a 90 you're going to be looking out the window lol. It's stupid IMO, mirrors are for when you start to straighten out. I've never seen any driver use mirrors only when backing into a dock or a hole and I don't see the reason for them telling you to use them ONLY. I would think the main thing any company would want is that you don't hit #### regardless of how you get it in there.

I like to say that mirrors never lie, they just don't tell you the whole truth.

 

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I'm going to step out on a limb here, and guess this was a "blind" test. The cone represented a wall, which you would not be able to see around...in real life.

Therefore you would be forced to get out and look instead of using your mirrors and window, once the trailer had passed the cone/corner. The mirror would be good, to a point (the cone/corner). But after that point, looking out the window is useless.

Get out and look as your instructor/trainer advised. This is a more common scenario than you might think.

 

Blindsides are different for sure. Nothing wrong with GOALing for sure but to deny the look over the shoulder doesn't make any sense if the "wall" is on your sight side. You still gotta have some target to line your sight side up with. I remember one place down in Orlando that it took me almost 45 minutes just to get the truck over to the sight side and another 15 to get it in from there lol.

They had #### scattered all over the docking lot. It was a real PITA. I hate blindsides.

 

If the tail is past the corner. You can't see it in the mirror, or out the window.

So you have NO idea where it is, even if you did look over the shoulder. You have a general idea, but you don't know with 100% certainty.

In real life, all you'll see is the wall and the side of the trailer. Which can be seen clearly in the mirror.

I spend much of my backing using my spot mirrors, and getting out of the truck. If I have to look over the shoulder, I'm hanging out the door. And I hate hanging out the door.

Staying in those mirrors takes practice...and lots of it. Especially if you rely heavily on your spot mirrors. It takes time to develop a feel for it.

 

Yes but in that situation you'd already have a good idea of where the hazards were in the first place and you line the tires and tail up accordingly. I always GOALed when there were hazards and I do use the spot mirrors often but even if I had stacks in the way, I'd be opening the door and looking out.

Never hit anything yet and hopefully never will. What I really hate is backing into unlit buildings. Have to GOAL often because you can think one thing and be completely wrong because there's no light at all. I position a flashlight to be where I want the outside edge of the tandems to be in those scenarios.