need info on barr-nunn

I read the insurance for driver + 1 is 72. a week for medical and dental, I was paying 150. a week. So do they only drive their trucks for so many miles and get new ones? I know there are some companies that only do 3 years and replace. Why did they go from 700 to 450, I know you wrote just kept their better drivers, but did they lose business? Are the miles pretty steady? I know you are regional but I thought maybe you hear from other OTR drivers at the terminal. You mentioned they are getting new trucks, any have APU's on them. Also, I read when you go for orientation they give you 150. one time, on your commada card. Is this like a advance on your check or is like orientation pay? I wasnt sure I never use my comm. card, never took advances, just wondering if you remember when you started. This will be my 2nd company that I will be driving for so dont know all the ropes yet, been driving 2 years now. It looks like the company isn't as bad as some of the guys were bad mouthing, every company has it's problems. I know I am asking alot of questions, sorry, but I want to make the right choice since I only worked for 1 company. I like to stay at one company and not hop from one to another. Thanks, sorry for all the questions

 

They turn in the columbia's at around 470k miles. This usually means the only major repair you see and sit for is a clutch . The average turnaround on a clutch has been 30 hours. Need 34 off by breakdown for breakdown pay. Aside from the minor stuff, these trucks are reliable. Some of the midroofs do leak though.

Barr nunn decided against apu's so they only have 10 or so. Instead the spec'ed the new internationals like Crete, with the bunk warmers.

The comdata one time advance is just that. You can take $150 right out of orientation against your next check. After that you can only take a $50 advance per week. There is no fee if you fuel to take the advance. It's a good way to get money and not pay an ATM like fee while on the road.

Yes freight dropped off, as it did for everyone else. We are busy in the Northeast now and I guess they want to fill out the fleet to be able to commit to new shippers.

Personally I hope this happens slowly because I've been moving pretty
good this last half of the quarter. Call me selfish.

 

Hmm, this must be a trend with bad clutches on their trucks. When I first started with them they gave me a Columbia that was about to be turned in after about 30K miles. The clutch was so bad I would grind it just going from neutral into 3rd at a standstill, Don't even talk to me about reverse, I once sat for 5 minutes strait trying to get it into reverse. I told my FM and she said to "bear with it because it was about to be turned in". I got my newer Columbia 2 weeks later and it had no problems about going into gear.

I liked how that newer truck ran, but it had a awful draft that came under the bed in the sleeper.

 

Yea 450k miles is about as much as you can expect out of a clutch. Seems 370-470 is the window. They won't replace it until failure. I knew it was on it's way out, got it to a terminal and was sent down the road. 3 days later it failed.

As far as the draft, I put a queen size comforter folded in half on the mattress. I don't get that draft any more and the bunk stays warmer longer. Not much insulation under the bunk is there

 

It didn't help that there are no side fairings under the sleeper. The wind just whips right thru the floor. The only good thing was it would cool off a little faster once you cut the motor off as there was nothing to hold the heat in.

 

I work 4 a small company with only 5 trucks running local and regional. These trucks get shifted alot more than a road truck and our clutches last 700,000 or more. No rookies though. Grinding going into gear at a stop is not the clutch but the clutch break out of adjustment or worn out, not he clutch itself. If this happens push in the peddel, push the shifer toward the gear u want till u can just feel the grinding and turn off the engine. keep light pressure on the shifter. just as the engine stops turning the trans will slip in to gear. restart the engine. your now in the gear u wanted with no trans damags. This is only till you get the clutch break fixed.

 

Of course you'll have to buy a new STARTER by then! Lol

 

When you are in gear and rolling, and you step on the clutch and the rpms don't drop because the transmission doesn't disengage that's a clutch. that is the failure we have between 370k-450k on the columbia's.

Instead had to shut the truck off, pull it out of gear since i was backing, then crank the starter a little till it fell into first. Shut it down again and dropped the trailer, then pulled away in first by starting the truck. If the truck need to come to a complete stop I had to shut it down in first then, when ready to roll again start the truck. No rookies here.

I never start higher than 2nd loaded or 4th bobtail, float all the gears and still only got 403k till it failed.

 

Wasn't saying u were a rookie just that at one time the truck had drivers that didn't know or care how to take care of a truck.A clutch should still last more than 450. My co. hauls heavy grossing 107,000 most of the time. Only one clutch bad with less than 700 in last 10 years. Now dont get me wrong im not a know it all done it all but this is my experance with clutches. Im a driver that also turn his own wrenches. OTR trucks are spected with eaton fuller SOLO clutches. The solo clutch is a self adjusting clutch. It adjusts when the clutch slips during start ups. If you were tought to start in low gear and shift to not abuse your clutch( the right way ) your clutch will not adjust. The solo clutch was invented for todays rookies that wouldent know an out of adjustment clutch till they burned it up. The OTR companies teach the newbees to start in the highest gear they can to save fuel and these clutches love it. Problem is U and I that tought the right way dont do any good to these clutches. As far as floating, me to. If done right its much easier on the enitre drive line if done right. ( no otr company will ever admit this 2 their drivers cause if done wrong it will tear stuff up ) With that said floating is also bad for these clutches for a reasion you might not think of, lack of movement in the part of the clutch that dose the adjusting. They just set up and the clutch cant adjust even if it is sliped at start up. If you start out like rookie in third or fourth bouncing up and down and DOUBLE CLUTCH like good little drivers these clutches actually last longer! Imagine that! Drive like an old pro floating with no scratching and grinding and the #### adjustment parts of these clutches stop working and the #### thig goes to hell much sooner than it should. This was all told to me by an Eaton rep that came to look at the clutch that went bad on us. They would not warranty it cause we should have read our owners manual. It told us how to slip the clutch to adjust it. This clutch stop adjusting itself at235,000. The driver was old school starting out in low every time to gey 107,000 rolling. Hovever this is not common knowledge with todays drivers and even the companies that own the trucks. Or the companies dont care cause they turn over trucks so often. I do feel your pain sitting around not gettin paid while a clutch is being put in your truck.

 

ok i am currently an OTR driver for barr nunn if you come to B/N do not go OTR go into a region you will be home more often OTR drivers have been sitting a lot on the weekends i average about 2200 miles a week with most of my loads right over 500 miles unless i go into the north east like eastern pa or NJ....i have made some of my best money with the company staying in the north east and running short haul miles OTR drivers run a lot of nights dont know about the regional drivers as far as that....i run alot of JIT (just in time) freight barely have time to stop i brought in 43000 last year and after looking at my logs i was out for 317 days last year i have trouble getting home on time idle policy is basically do not idle if you can help it i have heard of guys getting fired for idle time do not know what the idle times were for these guys i have been talked to many times about my idle time but never punishment mainly they say try to idle less in fall and spring time to conserve for the summer winter months they are strict about logging correctly which is not a problem if you run legal which i do average miles are 2000-2200 for me every once in a while i get 3000 plus usually if i hit over 3000 it is close to 3600-4000 those are far in between though last month or so havent seen anything of 2400 miles i sit alot did i mention that lol i will run a overnight load say for columbus, oh to chicago, il area for example pick up at 12:30 am deliver at 8:00 am then next load is around midnight thats how alot of my loads are currently today i delivered a load at 7:00 am saturday morn and dont pick up till monday morn at 10:00 but its a holiday