Driving a privately owned Semi

I bought a semi can I drive it home with no cdl

 

Thanks Andre. I was looking for an answer to this important question from a while back, and I am glad you responded with intelligent discourse...twice: Once with the answer and then in response to the troll who is evidently a Muppets fan.

 

Well. I am a private for myself only semi driver. I do not haul for money or for business. I am independently wealthy and in the mist of building a farm. I procured a semi as a means to further my effort and do not require any special license to operate. I have been all over the USA without any problems.

 

A commercial vehicle is designated by weight and axles, not for or not for hire.

Air brake certification is required as per FEDERAL LAW for anything with an air charged brake system, and the appropriate liscense is a FEDERAL REQUIREMENT for a vehicle with more than 2 axles, passenger vehicles or vehicles over a designated weight. As per FEDERAL LAW

Please contact your local registry to confirm the depth of your stupidity, they may give you a certificate if you drool enough and ask nicely. People who openly say things like this create massive safety concerns and put peoples lives at risk.

CDL: Commercial drivers license. Is a broad spectrum term used to describe the class of liscense most commonly used for inter/intrastate transport.
Ie.
Class 1: a vehicle with 3 or more axles with an articulated trailer weighing more than X amount of pounds with airbrakes
Class 3: A vehicle with 3 axles weighing more than X pounds that is capable of pulling a trailer without the use of air brakes. Ie. Dump truck/ fire truck.

Other classes are as follows
1. Semi
2. Emergency vehicle
3. 3 axle
4. Cab/person transport
5. Standard car
6. Motorcycle
7. Learner (gdl)

A endorsement: airbrake endorsement, required to operate any vehicle that has air over hydraulic brakes, or any form of air braking system. So it's been law since the 70's.

Do I need to go on?

 

You also have no clue what your talking about.

The signs you're reading will say something like vehicles with 4500kg GVWR =Gross vehicle weight rating.

You still need the appropriate license for the vehicle you are driving. 2 axle with air brakes. You need a class 5 with Air
3 axle or a 'tandem' you need a class 3 with air.

A tandem with a trailer over a certain weight and requiring air brakes you need a class 1 PERIOD. End of discussion, do not pass go, do not collect $200. You don't know what you're talking about, or you're terrible at saying it properly.

BTW.
I'm from Alberta too.

You shouldn't be posting stuff like this where people can read it and think it's okay, then possibly get someone killed. I mean we just finished sentencing the humbolt guy, do we need another one already??

 

If only Dear Lazarus had a TTR Account...

 

So you have a regular DL with no air brakes endorsement? And you drive on open roads/State highways?

 

You will not be able to run a private 18 wheeler in Arkansas or anywhere public roadways without a CDL A and a Tier Two (Remember all CDL's are tied to medical cards to be valid or downgrade to car) the endorsements is combination, airbrake, general knowledge etc. If it's 26001 to what? 33000? Then that's a class B.

RV's I think go to Class C but are permitted to go to 54000 pounds three axle. Our system has no distinction on axles.

There is a catch all for everything else. Cars class D, motorcycles M etc.

 

Most of you folks are dead wrong, I say most because every state can be a a little different. But you do NOT need a CDL to drive an 18 wheeler. I know because I do not have a CDL and drive the attached truck pulling a 48 foot van drop deck converted to a motor home.

 

I have attached both the truck and trailer I drive, again with no CDL.
In order to get it plated I had to plate as a commercial vehicle, plate was based on weight and it was roughly $400 for the the truck and trailer. It had to be plated commercial because that is the only designation for the weight. I paid sales tax when I bought it, had I been commercial I would have had a MC # and would not have paid sales tax. I keep this as proof of what I am or am not doing with the logic that if I had a MC # and was doing anything commercial I would have taken advantage of the no sales tax.
I dont need any special permit or even air brake endorsement. My truck says “not for hire non commercial use only”
I do pay a hefty price for Insurance...$2400 a year through progressive.
The key to how this works is that there is absolutely no commercial activity involved. I’m not hauling race cars to compete with, etx. That would make you commercial.
And for those that question why I didn’t plate as a RV....well you can’t unless you have a single axle and remove the fifth wheel. If you get caught otherwise with a RV plated vehicle it is a hefty fine.
I can run in every state and am only required to meet the requirements of my home state, in this case Ohio. But, I can tell you I have ran Arkansas before with zero issues and was even red lighted at the weight station because I wasn’t paying attention to what they scalehouse wanted. A quick chat inside and I was on my way.