buying my frist truck

No they aren't. The mechanical parts on trucks are all basically the same stuff you can buy at a fleetpride or truckpro skipping the dealer altogether if you cant get discounted parts from them. Now if he's replacing cosmetic interior parts and things of that nature none of that stuff is cheap anyways. A well built cab/cab interior is worth a little extra initial cost imo.

 

10-4, You do get what you pay for. As long it wasn't brutalized by a company driver who didn't care about the equipment.

 

Hello all, I am a former Stevens driver, Trainer, Yard instuctor, school instructor, and (gulp), safety supervisor. For the past 3 years I have been an owner operator hauling broadway shows for Clark Transfer. Check out our website. First the good news. We rarely run hard, get paid every minute we wait, and get treated with respect by our customers. The bad news is we don't get home as much as most drivers do, especially if we are on tour with a show. I will be selling my 2001 volvo this august and am willing to take a chance on a good driver. I will finance the truck and help you join our small fleet. If interested you can contact me here or my email is rainmanjwalker@yahoo.com Good luck to you all, I have been right where you are now.

 

Well that sounds like a good job. Can you give us some more indo on here or do you want us to email you for any more info?

 

the new truck vs old truck debate is an age old one. Personally my opinion is the old truck thing only works out if you don't have a payment on it. And I started with a 24 yo truck... And you #### well better be able and willing to work on it every time you get home

 

Yes, I love it. Well like I said you will be hauling shows. Mostly Broadway like Lion King, Mama Mia, Shrek...etc. Sometimes concerts. When you are helping with a show you get mileage based on the mile...i.e. short runs pay more, but it never goes below a dollar. Fuel surcharge is added, and wait time starts from your appt. time. When on tour, you get paid per day. Usually $300-$350 per day. For example I am on a tour now that pays $320 a day and averages 900 miles a week. With surcharge you would make around $2500 a week which comes to $2.77 a mile, plus less wear and tear on the truck. But like I said Not home a lot, however since you live near Chicago it would be a lot more often than me. If you want more info email me any questions you may have.

 

I also agree with the buying a older truck. I bought a 1985 Pete 359 and its still running great. Was overhauled before I bought and many other things done. I payed cheap payments and payed it off quick. Without a huge payment I can do alot of repairs. Besides old trucks are cool and have more character. You can get a idea of how trucking use to be.

 

champagne taste on a beer budget is never good for a starter o/o. a columbia or other inexpensive dependable truck that gets good m.p.g. is the best way to start. I paid 15,000 cash for my truck. with only 400,000 miles on it. it was inexpensive because no one else would want to drive an ole truck like mine, even though it was only 4 years old. but it had no chrome or anything else fancy for that matter. but it got the job done. it is till getting the job done. going on over 11 years & over 1.3 mil miles.

yes I had to work on it. but actually a lot less than most of the newer trucks. still original turbo, 1.1 mil with original clutch,too much more to list. if nothing ever needed repair on my truck I would not have learned so much about my truck & know all the lil bug's or in's & out's about it. it has served me very well. luck? sure that too. preventative maintenance? yes that too. but never a payment ya know what that is? it is peace of mind. what is that worth? priceless. having no payment or a low payment with out a long term note, you can run smart, run hard & long & put some money away sooner than a high payment with lot's of chrome.

this is of course my opinion from my own experience. I look at it this way. your first truck should be like your first car or perhaps your first house. get what you can afford, what is right for what you intend to use it for, then later as your experience & financial ability allows, then trade up. then trade up again years later if it is warranted. if the choice is 2 trucks & both have the same drive train & the same mileage but one is a bare bones freghtliner & the other a pete or a k.w. but there is a difference in price by several thousand, I would pick the lower price tag, not every time but for sure the first & maybe the second time, then later when you know what you want, not miss calculate like so many bankrupt o/o's. go for the looks' chrome, comfort & pride in your ride later. if you can find a nice truck like a pete or k.w. that some one has put a lot of work into & cannot afford to keep it, that would be a good deal, but from a dealer, they alway's have the long hoods at a higher price. a lot of people buy trucks for their looks. do you want to make money or look good? some times you cannot do both. some times you can. my best advice is take your time deciding. go to any truck stop & chances you will fins a co driver who used to be a o/o & lost it all because he had to have the long hood with the long payment. the new ness & the thrill of having something real nice wears off long before the payments do.
my best..

 

Look at the trucks coming off the Walmart fleet. Mostly internationals, but they maintain the heck out of them and the majority of their drivers are oldtimers that know how to drive.

 

i got my truck from Walmart. I am still driving it. great truck. great maint. from them.