advise

I've never had that problem, been lucky no one has ever messed with my truck or trailer

 

When was the last time he drove, 1975? Most tanks nowadays have anti-syphon sleeves in them and if they don't you can buy them cheap at any truckstop. If you're that paranoid you can by locking fuel caps. Not really sure what your break has to do with it. Hell, that ol' trucker was probably selling his companys fuel out of his truck for half the price!

Oh yeah, and get a dog.... it will be a lot less of a problem to have a dog in the truck then a gun or two or however many you plan on buying.

 

When I was OTR I always fueled at the end of the day so that's one less thing to worry about when I got up.No one has ever syphoned my tanks.

 

I've had fuel stolen once.... the company I worked for didn't have the anti-fuel theft thingies in their tanks, but these days if a little tube can fit down your tank they can steal it. I was at the TA in London, OH, got there late at night and needed fuel for the next day, fueled up and all my fuel was gone the next morning... had just enough fumes to pull around and fuel up again. The way I work it now, as an owner op, is to drive all day, and if I need fuel, I log it with my pre-trip in the morning. I only put in enough fuel to get me to my next stop + 100 miles just in case. Of course, as a company driver you'll have to fuel up where/when you're told. If your fuel stop is also the place you're stopping for the night, why tempt fate? Just fuel up in the morning. /shrug

Dogs never hurt too, and last I heard guns were illegal in semi trucks.

 

dunno, usually get it done while i'm running. ex. if i'm gonna go for 9ish hours, around the 4 hour mark i'll stop and fill up. get a decent break in and have fuel for the rest of the day as well to get started the next. then again right now company i work for lets me choose when and where to fuel. also have 2, 150 gallon tanks, makes it easier to go a whole day plus if wanted without stopping.

 

If given the choice--I prefer to fuel at the start of a shift--combines fueling and pre-trip--truck/engine is cool--easier to check fluids--tire pressures are better checked cold etc...
Just my $.02

 

I hope you never had anybody grab that last parking spot while you were fueling . It would really suck if it was a PRIME driver you had passed 20 minutes ago .

 

I have never had that problem because I don't park at cluster truckstops.I wanna make sure I can get out in the morning.I would say it depends on the city and trkstops.If you park in a busy dumpy trkstop like the J in Dallas or the Pilot,then you may have trouble.

 

No tank comes with them, you buy them and they are as effective as a wet noodle if they want to get into your tank - a long piece of pipe and a good blow with a hammer removes them.

Locking caps can be pried off, I have proof of that - a $300 repair bill for a damaged tank.

They will even drill a hold in the bottom of the tank to get your fuel if you park it over night in a dark spot.

A dog? Some of these guys are really good at keeping quiet, so a dog in a noisy truck stop is useless.

I made it a habit to fill up with I am done with my pretrip, just before I leave. Sometimes it works into the 15 minute on duty time block other times it works out to a 30 minute block but then I have the habit to be ready to roll before I get to bed for the night.