Food grade tanks with baffles ?

It’s nothing once you get used to it.

Just time your shifts if it’s a manual.

Never driven a smooth bore with an auto. Just give ‘er hell I guess???

Obviously don’t go barreling into turns loaded and start and stop easy on ice and snow.

Fill it as full as you can, it cuts down on the surge.

There is really nothing special about pulling a smooth bore as long as you have common sense. Better than bumping docks and waiting for slow people to load you up if you as me.

 

I should add to my post about auto's, I came out of a Volvo with the I-shift, which IMHO is a much smoother shifting trans! I would hate to try to bump a dock with the Pete. When I hook a trailer and try the "tug test" it will keep pulling and spin the wheels well after letting off the throttle.
The Pete has push buttons mounted low on the center of the dash, the Volvo has a "shifter" mounted on the side of the seat. I have to look down at the Pete shifter to be certain I'm hitting the button I want, where I could just reach down to the Volvo shifter and make any changes I wanted without looking.
The mechanic was telling me how the Pete's are breaking U-joints due to the harsh shifting, and they've made the driveshafts much heavier. Maybe Pete can alter the software and make the trans shift better, I don't know.

 

I have driven a dt12 auto pulling a reefer. It started smooth, and shifted really well. I would prefer it over a manual. I would think it would be good with a smooth bore too.

I drove an 18 Spd pulling smooth bore, as my first job out of cdl school. Milk tankers were always half full, so lots of surge potential. I would use the clutch when splitting gears, as I did not want to let off the throttle hard, and cause a surge.

 

Other than fuel tankers the only trailers using baffles are cryogenics.

Liquid Carbonic told us that it was time for a re-build when you felt the load as the baffles had pulled loose....

Some round bore vacuum tanks have internal supports that look like partial baffles.

 

Different strokes for different folks. You couldn't pay me enough to drive for some outfit like disetech or dupre. I'm sure the pay is good but I'd rather pick up molasses at a small mix plant and deliver to a farm or feed store than go to these huge plants with there safety videos, PPE bs, and the "turn your truck off and sit on that bench over there". Not to mention they usually take 3 hours or more, are anal on appointment times, and are just generally on the not so friendly side. At least compared to farms, feed store and grain elevators.

Personal preference I spose

 

Come to Ontario and you'll find baffled food tankers. And yes l pulled milk in them too. And it didn't turn to cream or butter. Although if you pumped it off too fast you could see it trying to in the pump

 

that's a Canadian tank...down here we need fleet to supply a dairy not one huge truck...

 

The Volvo/Mack iShift/MDrive has a software package you can get called gentle shift. It is meant specifically for liquid tanks and other shifting cargo.