Carrying While Trucking

I carry a can of wasp and hornet spray that can shoot 20 feet. You never know when there will be a nest under a trailer you're hooking up. At least that's what I'll tell any DOT officer that finds it in my truck. Other than that, I don't travel to dangerous areas and have no desire to carry onboard.

 

If you're going to Schneider thy will nose around your truck while in the shop so if you have anything just take it out before you put the truck in the shop.

 

If an item you carry has a normal trucking purpose, like a tire thumper or winch bar it's probably not a weapon, for the purposes of policy or regulation. Obviously a firearm is a weapon under any reasonable definition.

Some states classify mace and maybe pepper spray in ways that can cause you trouble in their state. The problem with a stun gun is you have to be in contact with the bad guy. The bad guy knows he's walking over to start something but most people he picks as a target only know an instant before the confrontation.

I'd recommend you don't carry a gun. I felt more in danger 20 years ago doing this job than today. However, if you are going to carry a firearm, carry one with a 10 round capacity, not more. The Communist states with the strictest gun laws classify pistols with magazine capacity over 10 in ways that mere possession may be BIG trouble. Also NJ goes ape-po*p just for possessing hollow-point bullets, which are the most popular self-defense type of ammo. If you are going to carry, carry something that will do the job if needed. So many people think the compromise between no gun and a gun is to carry some derringer with two .22 caliber bullets. Those bring all the grief of having a gun and their only effective use is if you can hold it to the temple of the bad guy. It matter less whether you have a gun that fires 9mm, .40 caliber, or .45 caliber, but a .22 derringer is a paperweight or noise maker that will get you in as much legal trouble as a Navy SEAL's service pistol but without all of that icky stopping power.

 

Here's a pretty good tool that shows reciprocity, just click on your home state and the map will change to show the cooperating states.

On a related note to this question, as a new driver is it worth listing on your application to a trucking company that you have a CCW permit? I know a lot of companies want to know what endorsements you have, particularly hazmat and tanker plus if you have a TWIC card and a current passport. I've been wondering if it would be beneficial to list that you have a CCW along w/ the above to reinforce the notion that you'd have no issues passing any kind of background check?

 

In almost 25 years of trucking The only time my truck has been searched were at chemical plants and refineries. All but one time the search was a quick peek under the truck and under the hood for bombs. Once a guard looked into the sleeper and opened my closet. I'm a tanker driver. I was never searched by cops or guards when pulling a dry van. DO NOT TAKE A PISTOL INTO CANADA.

 

NO, don't tell the govt or your company about CCW.
The govt already knows.
Don't ask. Don't tell.

 

I carry in my truck. ND is constitutional carry, and dont leave the state too often. My boss knows I do. Yes, I know I cant carry out of state, but I dont give anyone a reason to look. Dont ask, dont tell.

 

appendix carry sounds very uncomfortable for someone that sits ALL DAY LONG. I would advise you don't carry until you have been on the road a while to see if you feel you need to. IMO, people outside of trucking greatly exaggerate the amount of crime a typical truck driver experiences. There are only a few places where "lot lizards" even knock on your door, unlike 20 years ago where that was present almost everywhere 24/7. Be alert, know your surroundings, don't hang out with people you don't know.

 

What about long guns? I have a Mossberg 500a w/ a pistol grip that I'm thinking I might keep in the truck and then maybe a Ka-Bar knife to keep on my person.

On a side note one of my best friends keeps an aluminum softball bat in the back seat of his car so it's pretty innocuous if he gets pulled over . . . but he doesn't actually play softball.

 

If a cop searches you they are quite accustomed to the normal gun carry locations and will get their hands on them, boy parts and girl parts no exception.