Landing gear height?

yes it would be ideal but unfortunately in the trucking biz that just won't happen.When I first started this job I was constantly sore for a good 2 months.I used muscles I didnt know I had,lol.During the colder months its twice as hard because the landing gear gets stiff.Then opening the doors for the security guard can be equally hard in the winter after a freshly washed trailer.There is no other way to raise and lower landing gear but manually.Wish there was a button inside the cab to push like some have with tandems,would'nt that be sweet.After doing this so many times a day every day you do get use to it.

 

Uh guys? Yes, it can be done. I've done it, and I'm a hell of a long ways from being superman. It is hard work, and time consuming, but it can be done. And if I could do it with an old POS Knight trailer, anybody should be able to do it with a reasonably well maintained trailer. It isn't easy, but it can be done.

 

I must be superman then because I've cranked up a lot of loaded trailers over the years. Put it in low gear and start cranking. I'm from Canada so some of those trailers had 40 ton in them. I rarely use the truck to lift up the trailer because I prefer to have grease left on the 5th wheel instead of being wiped off by the trailer. I will sometimes back under the trailer with the suspension dumped but stop before it completely engages the fifth wheel and inflate the truck suspension to relieve pressure on the landing gear before backing the last 6" or so.

 

Some of us don't have the time to spend 30-45 minutes cranking up a trailer.

 

Add one more to the list that has cranked up fully loaded trailers. Low gear, use our knees not your back and git r done.

Trailer was so low it was 4 inches under the top of the drive tires. It only took about 15-20 minutes of cranking, including a few breaks to catch my breath. Some have been so hard that it takes three crank movements just to complete one revolution!

Sucks to be that desperate for miles...

Mikeeee

 

Some people don't realize that it IS the job. WHAT are you going to do? Spend 30-45 minutes whining to dispatch about it, and then have to crank it up anyway? It is called TRUCKING. Crap happens. DEAL WITH IT. That is why they are paying you.

 

Confession: I silently whine if it's to high and when its to low... I'm on time frame. this type of problem tightens it up and robs time that could spent somewhere else more productively but I don't call dispatch. if needed a yard dog helps out now and then, if they're around. a proper job done by all means efficiency for all instead of wasting valuable time on carelessness. Granted, some jobs require problem solving and some physical labor however, some require an efficient pace just so one can hurry up and wait.... in line for that unload or load... missing that spot can mess things up even more... or can it?

Yep It's all in a days work..

 

A driver that is always in a hurry are a danger on the road. Sure there are unexpected delays. You deal with them.

I gotta go! Stop trashing the truck stops and reading all the DVD previews then you will have time for other things.

Dump your air, get a yard dog if one is available or get out there and get some exercise.

I had an old Central trailer one time dropped on an incline. The landing gear already in a bind I fought it in low gear and it took everything for me to crank it about 4 turns. So I thought. I slipped and that handle was wound up like a clock. That handle whacked me in the bridge of my nose a few good times. I seen stars. I looked up and there was my boss peeking from the dock around the trailer with a terrified look on his face. "Are you alright"? lol, "Yeah I am okay". I didn't know at the time my face was all bloody where it split my nose at the bridge. I think it hurt my boss more than me, lol.

But them low trailers aren't that frequent that you have to change how you do things.

 

Negative. I have a 15 minute timeline per stop. If the trailer isn't ready to go, I leave without it and bobtail to my next stop.

 

I said this countless times on this forum:

I'm not an OTR driver. I'm on a feeder. I don't go to truck stops. Haven't been to one in years.