float or double clutch

be kind, dont grind

 

I say do whatever you can do the most efficiently where your not grinding gears and jerking around etc.

 

Im honestly not even good at double clutching any more, lol thats probably not necessarily a good thing though...

 

is "road test" for dot cdl? or for company job interview/test?
my friend said when she went to her orientation (she never did the school training thing), they took her out with an empty trailer, she floated and skipped gears, gave the guy a nice smooth ride. had no problem. she worked there several yrs.
if for company, I'd ask them, 'is this a see how I really drive? or see if I know how to drive?"
if for dot, update cdl, I'd call local school, or dot office and ask what is common procedure for testing.

 

I think most of the road tests for your initial license, they will want double clutching. Once you're on your own, do what you're comfortable with.
Any road test with any company I've been with, the tester just told me to drive like I always do. The only time I had any problem was with a straight ten, I was more familiar with a 13, and in my mind, going back to 1st from 5th, just didn't feel right at first!
One thing I always said, in a humourous way, to the tester, grab a cup of coffee, you won't spill it with my driving. In other words, be as smooth as you can, no jerking the wheel, no jamming gears, just relax. I was told by one guy, that I was the smoothest he'd ever seen, I just chuckled and said, "You must not get out much".LOL

 

If you're going to work for one of these mega carriers (especially as a new driver), you'll be expected to double clutch. When I worked that relief position in January for a seven truck outfit, they encouraged floating. The guy I work for now... didn't even administer a road test.
People who only float gears and forget how to double clutch find themselves in for a rude awakening if they ever get into sitework driving or anything else which often takes you off the beaten path, though.

 

My company never did a road test but during training they mentioned they prefered floating. So I learned to float gears. I still remember double clutching..it actually saved me a couple of weeks ago. I had to drive another truck and the synchronizers was trash around 6th gear. It was almost impossible to float 6-7th. I could float up or down but had to double clutch once I got around those gears.

 

Yah telling on yah self . . . . . .

 

When I took my CDL A road test in Austin I floated all the gears. IMO I think its a whole lot easier and more convienent than double clutching. Double clutching IMO gets kind of confusing and wears out your left leg quick. Good Luck!

 

Of course when you get your CDL you'll be expected to double clutch and use every gear. When applying at a company it all depends on the company. I gave many of test for new applicants and some commented I was tougher than the CDL test. I hope so.

I expect you to know what gear to be in at any given time. You need to know what gear will move the truck with no applied power and start from there. I don't want to see you downshift every hole. I'd like to see you slow down smoothly then say if a signal light changes hit the gear and go. I want to see you double clutch and float if you can. But I don't want to see you float and not be able to double clutch. You've got to be able to pull the grade loaded at over 100,00lbs and downshift from highway speed until the truck pulls the grade. You don't shift in a turn if at all possible and you must shift through an intersection. You don't want a gasoline tanker creeping through the intersection at 5 mph or lower. Plus use all the Smith Technics if you know them or use your good sound defensive driving skills.

Every driver will rub a gear once in awhile but banging a gear will cause damage. I've only seen a driver bang a gear when floating. The shifter doesn't go in all the way and the driver applys power and it jumps out of gear. I feel that double clutching prevents that and the shift goes all the way in. For a new driver that doesn't know for sure the road speed with the engine speed, double clutching is a must. Just don't go all the way to the floor with the clutch pedal while moving. If you do you'll damage the clutch brake.