Money - Looking to earn $5k and up per wk as O/O

http://customcritical.fedex.com/us/owneroperator/default.shtml They are paying 2.58 a mile plus FSC & Toll I always like to pass on info. I have not been in the game in about the same time as you. But I'm ready to get back into it. I have been doing the research.

 

According to the link you provided contractors are paid a percentage of revenue. Nothing is mentioned about 2.58/mi + FSC.

 

I have it in a email I called and talked to them early this week. I was letting people know where you can get the info from. Give me your email and I'll send it to you! William LeSure

 

If your first option when you have a blow out is to call the truck stop to see if the tire is going to cost you $500 or $600, yeah, you're in it to fail. Last tire I blew out cost me $200 to replace. The one before that cost me $50. I wouldn't pay $600 for a tire if it was made out of solid gold. Well, unless I intended on melting it down and reselling the gold at market value. Then it would be a deal.

 

Why not do both?

 

Please let us know which company provides ROAD SERVICE, will R&R a wheel, dismount/mount a tire for $200 (or $50 for that matter) INCLUDING: tire, road service and labor.

I mean, even if you CARRY a spare - you still have to pay for the road service. I don't know anyone (aside from some guys that cruise the local farmers market/truckstop) that will pull a wheel off & mount a tire for $50.

I KNOW how to do my own - but am not likely to carry the tools to do it on a run. And granted - someone who does this for a living can do one in under 15 minutes (maybe 20 for an inside wheel).

Obviously preventative maintenance/replacement is important here - but stuff happens, and if you're not on your "home turf" and you lose a tire, you're not "limp mode-ing" it with a flat steer. You're at the mercy of whoever you can get to come out and fix it.

Rick

 

A lot of companies will if you have the sense to get on a national account with them. Now are are you talking about the price of the tire, like we were, or are you trying to throw off the point by adding in labor and other factors? Cause if you want to add labor and all that in, now you're paying $600 for the tire and even more to have it brought out and put on, which makes even less sense. May as well throw money out the window while going down the road.

 

I believe the conversation here, was related to additional expenses and contingencies (i.e.: emergencies).

So it is, in fact, quite feasible, if you don't happen to have a spare hanging on the the back of the sleeper, or in a rack on the trailer - that a flat, out of your home market - under a load, in the middle of nowhere/night - will cost upwards of $500 to have someone come out - with rubber - and put in on for you.

Single/new O/O, is likely not going to have "national account purchasing power" (depending on if he's got his own MC or is leased on to a "major").

This is the "unexpected variable" we were attempting to enlighten the OP about.

I'm not trying to argue with you here - just getting some clarification regarding the $50 or $200 tire.

Rick

 

Problem with them is they have a lot of down time. I've spoke to people driving for them and the miles aren't very good. They get loads in order they get empty and sometimes sit for several days.

 

I get that. I'm just pointing out that while realizing that tires can cost that much, it's a ripoff to actually pay that much. One company I was on with only had two OTR trucks and was on the national account with Continental. Brand new tires cost us $260. It's gone up a bit in the past two years, but they're still way cheaper than what the T/S has sitting in the showroom even if you're not on the account.

Speaking of which, most of the truck stops and the places that offer road service have a varied stock of used tires out back. That's how I got that one for $200. The TA had a couple racks out back and I only got it because I knew to ask about it. That ended up costing around $275 with labor, so not bad at all.

It's good to plan this stuff out ahead of time so you don't get stuck paying for that $600 tire. I would carry a spare, probably a couple of them. That way you'd be looking at whatever you can get them for, hopefully $300 or less, and $60 or less to get it put on if you can make it in to a shop on the road. Or if you're stuck, $125 for a service call to swap it out instead of $725.