Landstar with a Van,good or bad.?

Especially if you drink the water.

 

Hi Folks,
First a little background. I have been trucking continuously since April of 2008. First I was company, lived in the truck, saved my money, lived cheap and bought my own truck outright for cash. Then proceeded to bounce through 3 different companies over the space of 2 and a half years. I started my own authority and bought an old dry van for cash at the same time. Truck looks ok but is always needing TLC, the van is a bit tatty but very, very functional.
My equipment is solid and paid for.
I am not under-financed, don't take advances or fuel money. I like to keep things simple.
Unfortunately, trying to work the load boards and running a heck of a lot of CHR stuff along with TQL has not really worked out for me. I spent 2 months this year pulling JB Hunt trailers around under my own authority but that got old really fast. Nothing like taking all the risks and being treated like a company driver for poor money to lift the spirits!

It has finally got to the point that I am parked. I can't work for free and there just isn't anything that pays any money coming out of anywhere nowadays. I write this from Decatur , TX (think Dallas, Fort Worth). Made my last delivery on the 23rd Oct, that was another CH Robinson charity load out of PA.

Finally decided to just stay put until this Landstar application finally bears some fruit. I made the application on the 18th of August. Today is the 3rd of November.
Yes you read that right!!

It has taken over 2.5 months to get to this point where I am so close to an orientation I can taste it. Unbelievable!!

So I set about reading these threads about Landstar because I have that kind of time - lately. I am a bit confused.
Some say that it is better to forget Landstar and run your own authority - tried that and it basically was a waste of time.
Some say that it is better to run your own authority UNDER Landstar - I feel that is kind of pointless.
Some say become a 'BCO' - this I have checked with 4 drivers face to face. Each has said it is a good idea. One guy had 4 years and loved it. Another had 4 months and said he was grossing, grossing mind you, $4k to $6k every week. They had helped him buy a trailer and his take was that he will never leave Landstar.

So as you can imagine I am a bit confused sitting here waiting for this phone call to come into orientation.

What do you think fellahs? Am I being foolish, yet again? Can working the load-boards at Landstar coming into it cold work? Is there hope out there?
I really want to read what you have to say.

 

Forgot to mention that I have had my own authority since April 28 2014. Phoned OOIDA and cancelled the insurance a few days ago, still all legal until Dec 4th

 

Yes, I too have heard good things about Mercer. Thanks for the heads up and I wish you good luck my friend.

The real question here is freight base. How much freight has anybody got. What is needed is a company that has got a ton of private customers that supply regular well paying freight 12 months a year. This what I am banking on with LS. I will take the 28% hit so as to get regular work.
At least that is what I am hoping.
However it isn't 28% is it? I am already seeing an increase with forced workers comp ins. I expect there is rental for the qualcom and a bunch of other little things. I am praying that I am wrong.
So far I have sat for 11 days going back and forth with LS.
This is on top of the original application filed on the 18th of August!
Tomorrow an equipment inspection which I have to pay for and I am waiting for a drug test appointment which I have also paid for.
Then when I finally make it to orientation it will be 3 days downtime. After that I actually have to learn how to work their loadboard and find my first run. Next actually do the run and then put in the paperwork. Could be the end of November before I see a dime. Then there is escrow etc and all the little charges that are going to be taken out until this or that is paid for.

I tell you a man could go broke making money with LS.

I am hoping someone is going to come on here and tell me I am mistaken, that I am going to be happy there.
Oh well, we live in hope.

 

it depends on what your trying to do, there isn't going to be steady year round freight at landstar, fact is a lot of the good loads never hit the board, i ran 6 loads this week and only got one of those off the board, and the majority of the freight that is on the board is brokered freight. since about July the volume and rates have droped off quite a bit. the problem is at landstar you can only haul what a agent finds for you usually, with your authority you can haul for anybody you want. i went to orientation with a guy and he didnt make it a year before he left and got is authority and said e should have done it sooner.

 

Just my 2 cents, Landstar is not hungry for dime a dozen drivers so their application process can be very slow, but at 2 months and counting, call corp. I came over middle of Sept and my application process took 3.5 weeks.
Once in, realize not all loads make it to the board. How do you work around that, start planning yourself out more than the next week. Currently I am booked out through the end of November. Gross will only be 16.5k but with 3 trips through the house, and a slow load for the Thanksgiving week.

 

Are u using E-logs?

 

Yes I am.

 

I am giving up my authority to sign on. Reason?? There is no freight out there. I can't function @ $1 /mile. I have completed the orientation with Landstar and am waiting on QC install etc. From what I have seen this last couple of days and speaking with plenty of Landstar drivers this is better than being 'out there'. The rates are better and there are just more loads. Think I can make this work. Just going to take some time to settle in.