Truck driver slang

FORTHE NEW DRIVERS

Truck drivers once had a highly elaborate and colorful vocabulary of slang for use over their CB radios, but with the high turn over in the industry in recent decades, due largely to the Reagan-era drug purge,[citation needed] this has all but vanished. Most of the newer generation of drivers in the U.S. today speak to one another over their CB radios (or other similar communication devices) in more or less standard English(as understood in the various regions of the country), although a few of the slang words and phrases have remained, and many of these have passed into use in the colloquial language of the general public.
"Smokey"and/or "bear" are still used to refer to police officers, especially state patrolmen, and sometimes "diesel bear" for a DOT officer, though many new-school drivers merely say "police," "policeman" and "cop.""Hammer" refers to the accelerator pedal, and "hammer lane" the left lane or passing lane on a freeway, in which traffic generally travels faster. "Handle",meaning a nickname, was once exclusively truck-driver slang, but has now passed into common use by the public, especially for pseudonyms used on Internet forums.
Most of the "ten codes" have fallen nearly or completely into disuse, except "10/4," meaning "message received,""affirmative," "okay," "understood,"and occasionally "10/20," referring to the driver's location, (e.g., "What's your 20?")
Often older truck drivers speaking over their CB radios are frustrated at new-school truck drivers' lack of understanding of the trucking slang of the '60s, '70s and '80s, and grudgingly resort to standard English when communicating with them


Some truck-driver slang:


Advertising- A marked police car with emergency lights on.
Affirmatory- Affirmative
Alligator- A re-tread on the roadway that came off a tire.
AM- Stands for "Amplitude Modulation." It is the same transmission system that your
car's AM Radio receives (But we'veall abandoned for FM Stereo).
Back Door - The last vehicle in a string of three or more in radio contact with each other.
Barefoot- An unmodified CB radio or running a CB radio without a linear amplifier (i.e.
Using the allowable 4 watts AM or 12 watts SSB).
Base Station - A CB radio station operated from a fixed location.
Bear- Short for "Smokey The Bear." A policeman or high way patrol, RCMP, etc.
Bear bait - wreckless driver / speeder
Bear Cave - Police station or highway patrol station. (See also "Bear Den") .
Bear Den - See above.
Bearin the Air - Police in a helicopter or airplane watching high way traffic (also eye in
the sky).
Beat the Bushes - A "Front Door" driving fast enough to attract a patrol car out of hiding
but not fast enough to get a ticket.
Beaver- A woman.
Big Wheel - The boss.
Bird Dog - A radar detector. See also "Fuzzbuster" and "Smoke Detector."
Bleeding- Interference from another CB channel. (Not the same as "Talking Over.")
Bobtail- A truck without a trailer.
Bodacious- Big or strong transmission, especially when good and clear.
Bounce Around - To pass in a hurry.
Brake Check - A dramatic slow down or stop in traffic ahead.
Break- A request to clear the channel to let the breaker communicate.Usually given with
the channel number (e.g. "Break one two.")
Breaker- The person requesting to break in on the channel. (e.g. "Go ahead, breaker.")
Bucket Mouth - One who talks too much plugging the channel with useless chatter.
Bushel- Weight: One bushel equals ½ ton. (e.g. 25 tons, 50,000 lb. equals 50 bushels.)
CQ- A general call for contact on an open frequency. (e.g. "CQ, CQ this is {insert SSB
numbers here} calling CQ and standing by.")Most often used on SSB.
Camera- Police radar (also "X-ray Machine.").
Center Grove - Grassy median between lanes of highway.
Charlie- The FCC (See also "Uncle Charlie.") in the United States.
Check the Seat Covers - Watch for a female driver with her skirt pulled up.
Chicken Coop - A truck weigh station.
Clarifier- A fine tuning adjustment found on SSB Radios.
Clean- No police or patrol cars sighted.
Clear- End of transmission.
Come On - Your turn to talk.
Copy- To receive (e.g. "You got a copy on me?" or "How do you copy?")
Copy the Mail - To listen with very little talking. (e.g. "Just sitting here copying the mail.")
Cotton Picker - Slang used instead of profanity. However, most CB'ers simply choose
to use four letter words and spare themselves the embarrassment of using this corney
phrase.
County Mounty - A sheriff, deputy sheriff, or county police officer. Again,mostly used in
the United States.
Covered Up - Radio transmission being overpowered by another station (See also
"Talking Over.").
Dead Key - Transmitting without talking. Pour CB ettiquette.
Double Nickel - Fifty-five, or 55 miles per hour. Translates to 90 kilometers per hour.
Draggin' Wagon - Tow truck.
Dropthe Hammer - To put the accelerator down.
DX- A long distance transmission usually caused by Skip. Often the cause of
unnecessary QRM.
Ears- A CB radio or the antenna for a CB radio (e.g. "You got your ears on?").
Eighteen Wheeler - Any semi-tractor truck regardless of number of wheels.
Eight's- Short for eighty-eight's.
Eighty-eight(88) - Love and kisses (e.g. "eight's")
Eyeball- Face-to-face meeting.
Eyein the Sky - A police helicopter or airplane (also "Bear in the Air.").
FCC- Federal Communications Commission (in the United States). Similar to the
Canadian Department of Communications (DOC) and the Canadian Radio Television
Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
Feed the Bears - To pay a fine or get a traffic ticket.
First Personal - A person's actual first name, not their handle. (e.g."What's your First
Personal?"). See Also "Last Personal."
Flip Flop - A return trip (e.g. "See you on the Flip Flop.") or can also refer to a U-Turn.
Foot Warmer - A linear amplifier.
Free band- A band of frequencies below channel 1 and above channel 40 that are- sort
of - free. Some CB'ers modify their radios to use the Free band, though it is illegal in
Canada and the US.
Four Wheeler - Passenger car.
Front Door - First vehicle in string of three or more vehicles in radio contact.
Fuzzbuster- A radar detector. See also "Smoke Detector."
Gear Jammer - Truck driver. See also "Hand."
Georgia Overdrive - Neutral gear.
Get Out / Getting Out - Being heard (e.g. "You're not getting out.").
Good Buddy - A general greeting to a fellow CB'er. Way too corney! It brings back
memories of bad Burt Reynolds movies
Got Your Ears ON? - Are you listening to your CB radio? or "Can you hear me?".
Granny Lane - Slow lane.
Grass- The median strip of a divided highway or the side of the road.
Green Stamps - Money (one green stamp equals one dollar). Usually means money paid
for fine or traffic violation.
Green Stamp Road - A toll road.
Hammer- Accelerator pedal.
Hammer Back - Slow down.
Hammer Down - High ballin' or driving fast.
Hammer Lane - Fast lane.
Hand- Truck driver. See also "Gear Jammer."
Handle- The nickname of a CB radio operator.
High ballin'- Driving fast. See also "Hammer Down."
Home 20 - Location of home town (from 10-20).
How About Ya! - To try to contact a particular CB'er. (e.g. "How about ya Bill? You got
a copy?) See also "Shout."
In the Bushes - Standing by on the channel and listening quietly. See also "On the
Side."
Jamboree- A CB jamboree is an event planned by CB'ers, and usually includes
entertainment, door prizes, food, refreshments and CB displays.
Key Up - To begin transmitting. Can also mean go to another channel (e.g."Key up to
two-five.")
Kicker- Linear amplifier.
Kojak with a Kodak - Police officer with a radar gun. See also "Taking Pictures."
Land line- Telephone call.
Last Personal - A person's actual last name, not their handle (e.g."What's your Last
Personal?"). See also "First Personal."
Lay an Eye on - See someone.
Lights- The signal strength of a received signal or S-meter units. (e.g."You're giving me
about 8 lights"). See also "Pounds."
Linear- An extra power amplifier used to increase transmitter wattage output.
Local Yokel - A town or city police officer. This one tends to have different meanings
depending on where you are at the time.
Make the Trip - Getting your signal from point A to point B (e.g. "Did I make the trip?").
Meat Wagon - An ambulance.
Mercy!- Used to mean 'Wow!' or 'Oh My.'
Minding My Business - Driving according to the rules of the road (i.e. Not speeding or
using the shoulder, etc.).
Mile Marker - The posts along highways indicating mileage (See also"Yardstick").
Modulate- To talk.
Modulation- A technical term. In conversation it refers to the quality of one's audio
signal (e.g. "Your modulation is low and noisy.).
Mounty- Short for County Mounty (sheriff, deputy sheriff, or county police officer). In
Canada, it definitely refers to a Mounty or Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer.
Negatory- No or negative.
Ont he Side - Standing by on the channel and listening. Also means parked or pulled
over on the shoulder of the road.
Over- End of transmission.
Over Your Shoulder - Behind you.
Peanut Butter in Ears - Not listening or failing to copy; CB radio turned off.
Plain Wrapper - An unmarked police car. The opposite of Tijuana Taxi.
Pounds- The signal strength of a received signal or S-meter units. (e.g."You're giving
me about 8 pounds"). See also "Lights."
Pregnant Roller Skate - Volkswagen Beetle.
Pull the Plug - To sign off and turn off the radio.
Put the Hammer Down - To put the accelerator to the floor.
QSL card - Card sent by CB'ers to other stations to verify communications or report
reception usually after shooting skip.
QSY- Change frequency. (e.g. "It's noisy here. Please QSY to another frequency.")
QTH- Generally means "location." (Similar to '10-20.') Most commonly used on SSB.
Radio Check - To find out how your radio is getting out (e.g. "Break for a radio check.").
Rake the Leaves - The last vehicle in a string; bringing up the rear; also"Back Door."
Ratchet Jaw - To talk for a long period of time. An overly talkative CB'er.
React- Radio Emergency Associated Citizens Teams. An organization of CB'ers who
want to render public service (Again, in the United States).
Read- Hear (e.g. "How do you read me?").
Rocking Chair - Vehicle that is between the front door and the back door in a string of
vehicles.
Sandwich Lane - Middle lane.
Scatter Stick - Antenna.
Seat Covers - Occupants of a passenger car. Usually refers to an attractive woman.
See also "Check the Seat Covers."
Seventy-three(73) - Best regards (e.g. "threes").
Shakethe Trees and Rake the Leaves - In a group of vehicles, refers to thepractice of
the lead vehicle (front door) watching for bears tothe front and the last vehicle (back
door) watching for bears fromthe rear.
Shooting Skip - Long distance radio transmission by refracting radio waves off the
ionosphere or troposphere back to Earth.
Short Break - A request to clear a busy channel to let the breaker contact another CB'er
and move to a different channel.
Shout- To call another CB'er on the radio. See also "How About Ya!"
Six Pack - A straight truck or delivery van, usually with six wheels.
Slider- A variable frequency oscillator (VFO) for operating a radio between the crystal
controlled channels. Once a radio is unlocked it can talk between the usual channels with
another unlocked radio.
Smoke Detector - A radar detector. See also "Fuzzbuster."
Smokey the Bear - State Police Patrol or any highway patrol officer.
Smokey- State police or highway patrol officer. Short for Smokey the Bear.
Smokey with Ears - A police car with CB transceiver or monitor.
Spyin the Sky - Police aircraft used for speed surveillance.
SSB- Stands for "Single Side Band." CB Radio channels are composed of a center
frequency and two side frequencies. SSB Radios are capable of transmitting on either
of these side frequencies.
Suicide Jockey - A truck driver who hauls explosives.
Taking Pictures - Police using radar. See also "Kojak with a Kodak."
Talking Over - Interference from another CB (e.g. "Someone was talking over you.").
The Band is Open - Means there are good conditions for Skip.
Threes- Short for seventy-three's.
Tijuana Taxi - A well marked police car with lights and insignia. The opposite of Plain
Wrapper.
Turkey Farm - Rest area.
Twenty(20) - Location (from 10-20).
Uncle Charlie - In the United States it refers to the FCC. In Canada, no radio
nicknames exist for Industry Canada (Some might exist elsewhere).
VFO- Variable frequency oscillator. See also "Slider."
Wallto Wall and Treetop Tall - Very good reception.
Wearing Socks (or Shoes, Sneakers, Boots, or Moccasins, etc.) - Operating with a
linear amplifier to increase the power output.
We Gone - Expression meaning to stop transmitting and usually move to a different
channel.
Wind Jammer - A long-winded radio operator.
Wrapper- The paint (color) of a vehicle. Usually pertains to an unmarked police car
(plain wrapper).
X-ray Machine - Police radar.
XYL- Wife (stands for "ex-young lady").
Yardstick- The posts along interstate highways indicating mileage to or from the state
line. See also "Mile Marker".
YL- Young lady.