Big dreams with little knowledge.

Not gonna work as the cost for insurance and equipment is to high. You really need to run at least 5 days a week or very close to it.

But if you can do some side jobs fixing trucks and such on time off that would work. You could make some decent money doing that if you have the tools.

 

You can do it but it will be painful and unprofitable. Expenses don't pro-rate. With your own authority you'll need your own insurance. As a rookie with no experience that'll be more than $400/wk. Not clear on what you mean by, "rent a truck". Are you planning on just walking into Penske/Ryder and renting a truck for 3 days every week? There are issues with that.

The 40 hours on your other job will count against your HOS. You'll either have to take a 34 hour break every week to reset your clock or run on perpetual recaps. If you go the recap route you'll need to wait at least 10 hours after finishing your week at the other job before you start driving.

You'll need to find jobs that you can finish and get back to your starting point in under 30 hours. Not sure on how you're planning on booking jobs. Most brokers won't work with a brand new authority. Finding loads, booking loads, invoicing and accounts receivable will easily chew up a lot of time. IFTA, taxes and other compliance paperwork will chew up more.

Realistically, you'll be looking at close to 20 hours of drive time per week. That's IF you can find a load that week.

 

Your better off focusing on being the best mechanic you can be. You'll make more in the long run as a shop or mobile tech.

 

Its one of those nich things that CAN work but is FAR more likely to bankrupt you. Your best bet would be to form a relasionship with a couple of nearby truckstops that dont have a shop in them, buy a somewhat nice looking used pickup or service truck and pack it with a bunch of tools parts and a couple advertisement signs and offer basic maintaince and repair to trucks in the lots. Lot of drivers who would happily buy a filter or get an APU oilchange for example from a traveling mechanic chargeing standard or slighly lower prices. Hell buy an oil vaccum and you could offer full services in the lots at a competititve rate and a lot of drivers would take you up on it.

 

The smart business sells the convenience, not the service per se. That's how brokers got to be so prevalent. When things are easy and convenient, they will come.

 

Bingo. There was a guy doing that at a ma and pa i stopped at a few months back. He was offering APU oil changes for a pretty competitive price. Got mine done for about $25 more then i could do it myself for. And the upside is i didnt need to get dirty or dispose of the oil. He also did a wheel seal for me for less then the peelot could do it for. And i am blatently stealing and shareing his idea.