Dropping and hooking trailer do's and dont's.

In defense of yard drivers, most don't have the time to play those stupid games. However, if you manage to get on a yard driver's (redacted) list said yard driver might take it out on your company. These guys can park trailers so close to your company equipment that it is almost impossible to move the landing gear handles. Then when they see you coming decide it's break time. I have never really seen yard drivers take the time to get fully out of the dog to spin a handle just to get their freak on. They generally don't do this because they lift the trailer up landing gear down to move it. As I said, yard drivers have other ways to make their displeasure at you and your company known.

This thread reminds me of the other one asking about moving tandems. One of the things that will set off a yard driver is taking up space they need to operate in doing things like this and helping a student do the alley dock. I have almost seen fist fights because of this.

 

I just wanted to say thank you to the drivers who know to drop their trailer with the gear an inch or so off the ground. Thank you. Thank you. I don’t know how many times this past year that I’ve had to lower down a preloaded trailer with 40K+ that was sitting above the top of the 5th wheel. Again, thank you for knowing how to drop your trailer properly. Seems not many people know how to do it properly anymore. It’s a basic skill/knowledge like having a CB or tools. Where’s this industry going?

 

If you don't dump the bags and you pull out with the landing gear anything but fully contacting the ground solidly you will get a horrendous "buh-LAM" sound when you pull out from under the trailer turning heads of everyone in the yard for 500 feet in every direction.

Ask me how I know.

 

I worked at one company for 18 years. EVERY driver that was new to that account dropped trailers too high. It didn't matter if they had 40 years of OTR experience or 6 months of city driving. If they didn't have one of the current drivers show them how to drop trailers properly they ALL dropped trailers too high.

I think the main reasons for this is they never saw the consequences of dropping the trailer too high. OTR you drop a trailer and leave. You may be in another state before anyone tries to pickup your trailer. If you drop the trailer properly, depending on how fast you pull away or if you drop your air suspension, it can sound like you just broke the earth in half when the trailer legs hit the ground, especially with an empty trailer. Also, air ride trailer airbags deflate over time. When the back end of the dropped trailer lowers, the front end pivots up.

The biggest obstacle to solving this problem is the High Droppers simply refuse to change. Dropping a trailer high doesn't affect them after they drop it, so they must be doing things OK. Once you show them how to drop properly, but mostly you make them pick up a trailer dropped too high, then they understand the problem.

Dropping properly doesn't damage the trailer. It makes it so easy for the driver picking it up later. The driver picking up a properly dropped trailer can spin the landing gear up using just one finger. Drop it too high and you can break the shear pin on the torque tube that makes the left and right gear leg go up/down together. You can also cause injury to a driver. We had broken thumbs, broken wrists, broken ribs. If you aren't sure where the landing gear feet should be when you drop a trailer ON LEVEL GROUND, 1 -2 inches OFF the ground is pretty safe.

Yard truck drivers DO NOT HAVE TIME to raise and lower trailer legs to be funny. Keep dropping high trailers and someone will make sure you pay for it by dropping your trailer too low or dropping your trailer 1/16 inch from another trailer.

 

Yes, but that noise is harmless. If you are cranking the landing gear all the way to the ground and then dropping the trailer you can injure the next driver. At our site those injuries included broken thumbs, broken wrists, broken ribs, and a concussion. The airbags in the trailer will deflate and the nose of the trailer will rise as the rear drops.

 

Yep, stay in the dock door, or maybe roll forward a couple of feet to slide tandems. Soooo many drivers think the instant they get green light they have to vacate that dock door. They leave the door with no idea of where they are going. Ive seen drivers leave the dock door and drive all the way to the stop sign by the road and then set their brakes to start trip planning, close their doors, slide tandems, make lunch, etc. SHM!

 

I've been to a dozen paper mills where there is one dock door to unload roll stock and 6 trucks waiting in line. Yes, you vacate the door as soon as you get the green light.

 

No, you don't! I agree if you are in an area where the doors are in short supply and people are waiting I can see moving out as soon as you safely can. The key here is trying to get out of the way to do these things needed before returning to the road. It doesn't really matter if it is a door or a pull off a short distance later. I also have been in these small places and it can be a pain. However, you still don't pull a stupid. If you are going to get in the way you might as well slide those tandems IN THE DOOR anyway. I would also add sliding tandems is really important in some states like California, you let Mr getinahurry bully you into pulling such a stupid in California that you leave a place with tandems all the way back, you deserve that ticket.

One more point about a busy door. I don't base my leaving just on a dang light. I base my leaving on other things including paperwork, a short look to make sure there is not something in my trailer. A professional driver will NOT leave a door until it is safe to leave. If a spot is close by and available to slide tandems so be it. If not I will slide my tandems RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE DOOR, AND there is not one thing anybody can do to make me move!

 

Well yea I didn't say to practice unsafe dock door behavior. I just mean don't slide your tandems and close your doors in bay. GTFO of the way and do your business elsewhere. Unless I'm obviously the only truck anywhere around then I'll slide and close in the dock, but that's not a majority of the time.

 

No Yard Dogs do not crank them up or down period , why would we touch your landing gear with a hydraulic lift , ive got enough to do out here already., it was the last driver who dropped it.
Most trailer gear boxes are froze solid up here to boot , why ever Terry the tire buster fills it with axle grease is beyond me use ATF or leave it dry.

Yes we have some a holes coming in the yard , and no im not there to jam them up , I try to help everyone except the guy that already knows it all , if its to hi or low you can always ask us to pick it up , most of us are there to help not hinder.