Backing advice?

It was a little easier for me since i do intermodal, i did what jbatmick said practice, practice, the rail yards are best for this IMO look for a large spot and try to get it in the same hole. Once i mastered that i went on my way to learning how to park in my blindside (at most rail yards the cans are parked at an angle) i gotta say once i mastered parking on my blind side @an angle I felt pretty confident with my parking skills which if i hadn't learned would have handicapped in several occasions

 

Practice every chance you get in shipper/receiver/truck stop/rest areas!

The set up for 45°:
1)Drive parallel to the trucks in the row to park...nice and straight, about 5 feet from parked trucks on your left side in 2nd or 3rd gear at idle.
2)When your shoulder reaches the right side of the spot to park in, turn hard right and continue till the tractor is at a 45° angle then straighten the wheels.
3)Continue forward then turn hard left so that tractor is now going straight down the aisle again and you have about 8-10' clearance from the trucks on your right side. Once the wheels and tractor are straight, continue on about 10-15' additional.

That should set you up to just follow the trailer in. Trailer too far to the left (past the spot)? Pull back up to where you started backing but this time cut the wheel to the left a little more to take some cut out of the backing. Trailer too far to the right (back end of trailer not far enough along to back in)? Pull back up to where you started backing but this time cut the wheel right to add some cut (make it sharper) to the backing.

Once you get the 45 down you'll eventually realize that all angles are the same, it just takes more or less cut to time the trailer.

When I first started I practiced every chance I got and the better I got the harder the spot I chose to park in.

Lastly, don't be afraid to get out and look. Over 8 years accident free because if I'm not sure, I get out and look.

TAfool

 

My best advice..drive about 10 feet in front of trucks/parking spot..

Observe the parking lines and how close or how far the trucks you are parking next to, are from them..this either makes the space wider or more narrow..

(This takes practice) As your driving by the space, and your trailer landing gear enters the space, turn your wheel to the right..allow the tractor to advance until your trailer tandems are just past your parking space and crank steering wheel left..

The tractor will be at a 90 degree angle facing away from parking space and trailer should be angled towards empty space.

other factors come into play here..main thing, trailer over hang..if your trailer tandems are pushed forward, you have a good chance of getting into the truck/trlr on your blind side..your going to need to swing your trailer quickly..

This means cranking your wheel to the right and getting your trailer parallel with the spot quickly..problem is, WATCH your tractor..easy to get your trailer started only to have your tractor nosed up to others..

Biggest mistake I see in truck stops..

Jack knifing the tractor to tight to trailer..

Also, SLOW DOWN! It's not a race..if you will just watch how experienced drivers act/react will teach you a great deal.

YOU are not impressing anyone by racing through the truck stop!

There is a reason that those nice pretty trucks and trailers stay that way..Those drivers are able to spot and avoid potential problems by slowing down!

 

That tread was was right on. I got the mirror idea from an old ex-driver up in Maine. We took over an account. I asked him how can anybody back up to this dock without a spotter? Its hard to explain here. I have had real tight backups but this was tight. "Ya see that tree, well those arn't axe marks"!! When backing, this tree is blind till ya hit it. How did you do it? "Well, I kinda thirsty." I went to my tool locker and got a jug of V.O. I had hidden for "snake Bite" and gave it to him. Goes to his pick-up and brings out an old mirror 18x20, lowered my right window and hung it with a coat hanger. To this day I use this unconventional method when ever a I have a real tight spot to back up to. Thought I would share this. Mike

 

8" convex mirrors... When you know how to use them, your life becomes so much easier. I always have an 8" on top 6" on bottom on both sides of the truck, have you ever noticed drivers open their driver door and hang on to the wheel when backing (Peterbilts and W-900's)? Its because they dont know how to use convex mirrors.