How come NO ONE talks about the importance of weight scales?

this is totally another example of the schools not teaching the students...not saying the OP WOULD...but whats next....for some of these new kids outta school?? hittin low bridges?? and then sayin, well they didnt teach me about that???? true the schools should be doing a better job, but some of the older drivers... my husband (countryboy) ,wargames, roadwarrior, hammer, ol hand, pete, diesel dave i believe too, (now i am leaving a ton out and i am sorry, i just dont know who you are) i am sure none of them went to truck driving school.....they learned on their own....no one telling them how to scale out, etc..they figured out what the regs were and then figured out how to make their loads legal... ASKED OTHER DRIVERS with more exp. and LISTENED to what they said...no one was there to hold their hands....these are the real truckers....not the ones with the bad names...they had a job to do, and figured out how to do it. asking questions is fine....but arguing with the person giving advice...well, you are never gonna learn anything with that attitude...(this isnt at the OP) these boys know pretty much all the tricks there are to getting your load legal etc....they have been doing this a long time...now that i have gone off rambling...i forgot my point...lol...

 

ok i just went the cat scale website, if your in school or in the truckstop, they have a very nice website , that will show you and teach you, so no more excuses now, but yes they need too teach it in school more , both in class and range, when i went for a refresher course there they was more into range driving , then moving axels and stuff .

 

(see my previous post) oh wait, thats it...the point was, yeah the schools should be teaching more and better, but it is ultimately up to YOU, the driver behind the wheel, to make sure things are done legally....the DOT doesnt care if your trainer didnt show you this, or that...once you climb behind that wheel, start the truck and take it down the road IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to know the rules, regulations, weight restrictions ,height restrictions, hours of service, road restrictions etc....like wargames said, if you dont know....ask....call your company...CALL SOMEONE...dont just go, and so, "oh well i didnt know they didnt teach me that"......its YOUR JOB TO KNOW AND OR FIND OUT!!!!!!

 

Also no reason to cross the Elizabethtown, KY scale on I-65S just past the 91 exit...Get off on the 91, go east <1/2m, turn right on 31(which is a 55mph road), go 5miles(parallel to 65) then turn right at the Pilot and <1/2m back to 65...Not even 1m out of route...

 

Bottom line no matter why it happened it's you that will pay the ticket. In this case I hope you learned a lesson. Sometimes experience can be the best teacher. I do hope you have a good atlas and a truck stop guide now or will get one in the very near future. Most guides tell you things like do they have a tire shop, wash out and cat scales. They tell you how large the parking is and most have phone numbers. Most carriers have a training dept. If yours does next time you are there ask if somebody can help show you some of the tricks brought up here about sliding tandems. Some of the best advice I remember getting was at shippers and asking veteran drivers about this.

 

Loads vary too much for schools to teach weight distribution . As others have mentioned it is best to supervise the loading . An improperly loaded trailer may be impossible to adjust properly .
Besides , some of these students can barely steer and shift . Just picture some of them trying to slide tandems . It would make quite a show watching a CDL mill rig pull into a fuel stop and head to the CAT scale for instruction.

 

true....rickG...the point is...its the drivers responsibility to learn and or know how!!!!

 

Okay, the OP[original poster] was overweight on their tandems and got a ticket. Here is a suggestion. You can purchase a "2012 National Truck Stop Directory" from www.TruckStops.com. I have also seen this book for sale in a Pilot truckstop. It lists truckstops by state, even displays truckstops on a small state map, identifies if they have a scale, how many truck parking spots, showers etc. I highly recommend this book for newbies. I feel it is much better than the "Next Exit" book.
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As for sliding the trailer tandems, here is how I do it. If the following 3 statements are true:
.1. the gross vehicle weight is 80,000 or less.
.2. the steer axle weight is 12,000 lbs or less.
.3. the combination of drive tandem weight and trailer tandem weight is 68,000 lbs or less.
.
then you can take the trailer tandem weight minus the drive tandem weight and divide by 500. If the result is positive, this is how many holes you need to LENGTHEN the trailer wheelbase. If the result is negative, this is how many holes you need to SHORTEN the trailer wheelbase. This will evenly balance the weight between the drive and trailer tandems. This formula is simple, accurate and can be done on the most basic calculators.

 

The above formulae will not work for a heavy mixed load nor for a load that has heavy drums double stacked in the nose.

This is why it is imperative to view the load during the loading process if possible. Sealed loads and mistakes on the shippers part regarding weight listed on the freight bill BOL happens pretty often.

I have had loads of mixed freight that was listed at 42,000 lbs on the bills but after I actually scaled the load discovered the freight weighed over 47,000 lbs and actually put me slightly over gross. Burned off enough fuel to run the load and also traveled through states that allowed higher axle weights than the 34k limit.

Other loads included double stacked 55 gallon drums palletized and strapped down in the nose on a 48 foot trl. The Bills showed the load weighing 42k but due to the way it was loaded I had over 36k on my drives and no room left to slide the trl tires any further forward. The vehicle was under gross but not legal for axle weights.

Moral of the story? Do not ASSume anything. If in doubt weigh the vehicle and make your adjustments as needed up to and including returning to the shipper and having the load reworked.

PS. Lets not forget about those peky bridge laws for 53' trl's either.

 

I haul dry bulk and we load on our air gauges all the time. Some places don't have standard scales. Their bins are scaled so they just dump the product in one hole and it ends up wherever in the trailer.

I would think all trucks...at least most...should have a air suspension gauge. Maybe your trailer doesn't but mark your truck gauge when your drives are scaled correctly. Least that way you know or will be fairly close on how much weight you have on your drives.

And as a lot have said...attitude means everything. The OP came in here with a horrible attitude. Calling the people losers and blaming everyone but himself for his problem.

I'm sorry but you have no one to blame but yourself. You weren't prepared. You can blame your trainer, your school, the LEO, etc... but it all boils down to how prepared you are. And you can't rely on everyone else. You knew you were getting into this profession, you should have applied yourself and been more thorough getting educated.

You have no one to blame but yourself. You can't tell me you've not been in a truck stop...you could have gotten the booklets you need to know where TS or scales are. You could have asked someone for assistance. Put the ego aside, quit feeling sorry for yourself and be a bit more mature. And remember...a closed mouth don't get fed.