Good night from...

Well, sitting here at the Super 8. Service mgr told me that the crew is not really working today in a somewhat fast mode. This has been a bad year for me. After sitting 3 days in Bozeman and now this, and lets not forget the 2 weeks in Columbus KW for a drive line.

 

Wow Squeak, I hope it is something simple quick and cheap like a bad sensor or something. I didn't know those DEF systems needed anything more than to be topped off.

What was the deal with the driveline thing. Is it something you discovered like a bad wobble or that they found in a DOT inspection? I had bent Ubolts holding my axle to the leaf spring since before I leased the truck (I only discovered it about 31 days after signing lease, so no warranty) and I was astonished no DOT inspection caught it and even a Level 1 inspector on a creeper never saw it. With my anxiety I thought it was going to be a high dollar fix so I saved and saved, when I finally took it in it was only $600 bucks.

My check engine light has been coming on when going down steep grades with full on jakes then goes away when the throttle is touched when leveling out. I think it is turbo boost pressure.

Finally got loaded yesterday, shippers scale read 146,000 pounds so I had sent in my loaded call and ran down 2 miles to the CAT scale and had to return as the load was 80,800 or so. I'm kicking myself for sending the loaded call in, should have just ran down there and returned for rework, would have gotten detention pay as I ended up doing 8 hours in the sleeper waiting for them. I went back and read the special comments, service failure for the load if not using the shipper's scale. I have a feeling csr will try to blame this late load on me. I blame the greedy shipper for putting too much product on the trailer. I gave the guy on the dock the BOL, he asked for the packing list, I said the checkout person never gave me a packing list. So they had to unload the entire trailer and reinventory it and make a packing list for it. Evidently there was 48,000 pounds of product.

 

Hey Scottie, thanks. It is more than topping off. It is actually like a catalytic convertor on a car. There is a filter and a whole system. Replace the whole system can cost up to $15K. Hopefully it is just a filter, which is only $125, plus the tow. Once you get the red lite, the engine derates, and you can only go 5mph, hence the tow. If I did not idle yesterday to charge the batteries, then I could have drove to KW. If it just a filter, then I pay, if more than that, covered by warranty. As far as the drive line, you can have 2/32 play. I had almost I think about 5/32. It was found at a DOT inspection at the T/A where I live. To catch it, they actually have to put their hands on it and see how much it moves. As far as I know, a Level 1 from DOT on a creeper, he will not find it.

 

Blsqueak, did you notice any difference in ride or drive quality before/after the yoke was replaced? I'm kinda surprised a T/A tech would look so hard at a new truck to find something. I always told myself, if they (T/A Petro) found the bent U bolts and failed my DOT inspection, I would thank them then go on down the road to another place and get inspected again. I have noticed every shop is different. Like I have a small chip in the windshield, been there 2 years, some shops say it is OK other shops say they will pass it 'this time' but it better not be there 'next time' lol. Some will say too much play in the 5th wheel bushings, others say it is within spec. Me, I just play dumb and say I will get those items fixed.

Forgot to say where I am-- 12 points to the person who guesses correctly.
Hint: Superman's hometown.

 

Scottie, you need to start to read the instructions better. Darn, stop taking Abby for a walk and start to read. Sorry about the mess. Now lesson learned, never, never, NEVER send in loaded call until you are ready to roll.

 

got loade pretty quick today. sitting at flying j off i=15 exit 261. crazy nav on qualcom sending east on !-84 and then going thru denver south. fuel route has me taking us 6, us 191 and us 491. took this route going north from el paso last time. fuel route has me taking 40 e to amirillo to fuel. will need more fuel b4 that. first fueled in willard ut and only gave me 111 gal whick put me less than 3/4 tank.

 

You're at the rest stop in Metropolis, IL on the I24 ...

And as far as scaling after the loaded call ... as per direction from the detention department, do another arrival call when you go back, to document the GPS and time you are back at the shipper, then another loaded call when you leave. Back it up with freeform messages, documenting what and why and the weights ... DM can then get you your detention pay and Swift will charge the customer for detention also.

Rest stop in AR on my way to KC ... squeak, I can empathize, just spent a week laid up in a hotel healing.

 

temple, tx parked right outside the gate here at the walmart dc. apparently no swift mtys tonight, but i can go in after my 10hr break and snag one, so the trucking gods smiled upon me tonight, as every place i saw coming up here was packed.. bobtail parking = easy, so happy in that aspect.
stopped in lancaster tonight on my way down, free shower and got out of the truck an hour,saving my shower credits for otr, lol.
that and im starting to get in the habbit of taking a 30min break around the 5-6hr mark in readiness of the new dot rule coming up..

time to chef up some food in the truck tonight and pop on netflix.. till next time, be safe drivers.

 

#### the truck. Man, Regen, DEF, I'm thankful to be sitting here at the Loves at MM 221 i-40 in OK, in an 03 FL with a pre-emission, DD 12.7L with 1.8 million miles. Check it out. Delivered at Clarksville, Murfreesboro, TN, and picked up a load in Florence, AL. Be back at the OKC terminal before sunrise. Good night...

 

It is now 3:30 and KW has not even got the truck into the shop yet, so I guess that I can say, still at the Super 8. The dealer also closes at 2000. Told call back in the morning.