We have an asphalt plant we haul sand to, one of APAC's . I absolutely hate hauling into their sites. The wheel-loader operators are morons. They don't know how to maintain the areas so frame-less end-dumps can dump on somewhat level ground. If that's not enough, it is always waaaay too soft.
We're suppose to back up to within a couple of feet of the pile, however it's just not possible. The past week I've got stuck every time. Each time I've had to get myself out. Why? Because my tow-hook or pintle hitch's pin bent when the loader tried pulling me out. Yep the pin bent, and pulled through the bumper.
Here's a couple of pics showing how the tractor and trailer sinks. I just back until it stops, can't go any further and can't pull forward.
This too, is a place where dispatcher does not want to hear about not level. I think part of the reason for this is, he's also a broker. He gets paid not only his salary, but his broker fee.
Getting Stuck, Caterpillar out
Discussion in 'Tanker, Bulk and Dump Trucking Forum' started by Eaton18, Jul 31, 2016.
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Most plants wouldn't want to deal with trucks being stuck all the time. The loader operators have better things to do. What's the ground like around the stone piles......?
The same guy being the dispatcher and the broker too is a huge red flag......
Most guys work direct at the good plants up here. -
YIKES! Hate to try that with my tandem!
Empty is worse trying to pull out post dump I'd probably just sit there and HOP HOP!! -
Ok, this is a lot different than the other place you showed. ( although, I have been in situations like this) This is clearly unacceptable. The best thing you can do is have pictures of this. You didn't mention if it was your truck or not, if it was my truck, and they complained about it, I'd run up on the scale, and let 'er go right there ( scales are usually nice and level), and say, "Have a nice day". Loader operators can be the laziest schmoes on the planet, kind of like forklift operators at union grocery warehouses. They don't want to scrape the pile too close to ground, in fear of contaminating the sand with whatever is under there, but they could "back drag" it a little better. Don't be intimidated by these clowns, you are at the controls, and if you don't feel safe, don't do it, and take the sand back to the pit, and do something else. It's not like there aren't any other opportunities for drivers these days. Good luck.
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You're correct about not wanting to deal with stuck trucks. Most of the time they just drove around us, until we had to use them to pull us. -
As far as dumping elsewhere, I have, at this same site, when we first started hauling into it. They didn't have the plant set up, just various piles. I couldn't get level anywhere close to the sand pile. So I dumped about 20' in front of it. Loaderman asked me to dump closer, while he was busy talking on his cellphone. In fact he was parked in my way. So proceeded to tell him that I'll dump anywhere I feel it's level and safe to do so. He has a bucket on his machine, and he needed to learn how to use it. If not I could show him how, since I've ran loaders before driving a truck!!201 Thanks this. -
Something you can do in those sorts of situations is to draw the tractor back as the trailer is going up ONLY until the pile starts forming behind the trailer. Then, nice and smooth, release the trailer brakes and set the tractor brakes. That way, instead of "digging in" as the bed goes up and all of the weight is transferred to that one axle making it impossible to pull forward, it will draw the trailer towards the tractor for the last stage or two. Then, because all (or almost all) of the product is on the ground instead of still being held in the trailer, and the trailer axles aren't dug in, you should be able to ease forward and start lowering the bed. If you're still worried about being stuck, lock in the power divider before attempting to pull away as you're lowering the bed.
RockinChair, gwilli89 and Eaton18 Thank this. -
2. I always start my dump, by setting the trailer brakes using the trolley bar since it applies more pressure then the "red knob" emergency valve. So I always walk the tractor back first. I have a certain depth I watch for the material to be at coming out of my trailer before switching from walking the tractor to walking the trailer forward.
The trailer and tractor tires would start sinking immediately. In fact, it determined where I dumped, since I could no longer move without spinning, ie; hoppity-hop. I also like to flatten/level where I dump in these areas, by driving forward and back a couple of times if possible. However not so in this area.
3. The rear trailer tires would sink more when the bed raises, causing the "dishing" under them, and the sand being piled up in front of them when I attempted to pull the trailer forward.
4. I was not the only one getting stuck. Drivers with 10+ yrs with this company pulling only end-dumps had the same problem.
The information you provide is excellent for those inexperienced drivers just starting to pull end-dumps. Thank you for your input. -
I had to do the inch-worm crawl one night about 250 feet THROUGH and past a turn. Pulled into an old mine land reclamation area about 8 pm one night to kick off a load of fly ash. The loaders had marked where we were supposed to be dumping. For whatever reason they had picked a different area that was wet and soft. I sunk while making my turn.
And because I was in the turn, unlevel, and loaded....lets just say it took a long while to inch-worm my way out only being able to raise the bed minimally. -
Using the trolley to hold a dump is a bad policy. I assume you are sitting in the truck and dumping. Should something go wrong - you jump out in a hurry, trolley releases or is bumped off by you --adios truck with trailer in the air. Or you just regularly use the trolley to hold the trailer and a hose pops, diaphragm blows, trolley releases -- adios truck and trailer. Have seen it happen. Truck rolled out of a commodity building and straight into high tension power lines. The end result was some charred equipment. Fortunately no one touched the truck or trailer while it was charged. Under most circumstances if the parking brake won't hold the brakes are out of adjustment, one or both can springs are weak, drums worn too thin, etc. Fix the problem to avoid a bigger problem.
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