headed to orientation Tuesday

with a step we get tractors out of Brunswick,ga from time to time, probably savannah if none there

 

Yeah, got a 9' wide load from Savannah up to Honda in Anna, Oh. Paying $2.35/mi.

Battle, the Cali runs pay 80% instead of the usual 75%. I cant go to Cali and Im good with that, I make out fine. Once in a while I see a Cali load that makes me wish I could, but its rare. From what I hear rates out of Cali are A LOT better now because capacity is down due to the rules. My opinion, you are good either way.

 

It's going to be a tough one I guess. I think getting a pre 2003 that has been rebuilt sounds the best for now, especially for the costs. But I guess we will see if my mind gets changed in the next couple months haha.

 

A rebuild is like five grand unless you need the block machined. If you know of a truck in good shape for that price, buy it and I'll give ya a couple more grand as a finder's fee.

 

The rates aren't nearly as bad anymore, but not any better than what we get over here. Imo they would have to be substantially better just to offset the additional operating costs and maintenance downtime of the emissions junk technology. And that's not even considering the initial purchase costs/payments. Problem is, good luck financing a ten year old truck. Underwriters only look at book value, not operating costs.

 

Ya know, that sounds like a mixture of good and bad haha. Sounds like getting a glider or having some fun with a newer engine is an overall better route to take. Decisions decisions.

 

If you have cash, buy an older pre egr truck. A good starter truck in decent shape can be had for under twenty grand. If you don't have twenty grand, you are gonna have to look at newer equipment. And forget about a glider, no one is financing a first time buyer on a new truck unless they got a good thirty thousand down. And if you had thirty grand to put down, you'd be better off buying an older one out right for twenty and saving the extra ten for the inevitable breakdown or screw up that every first time owner has.

For what it's worth, if I was just starting out, I'd go buy the cheapest pos I could get for under five grand and run her hard till she drops over dead. My first truck was so cheap she paid for herself in under a week. However I doubt she could have ever passed a mercer inspection, so ya might wanna pay more than 1500 bucks.

 

That's kind of what I want to do, honestly. I like the looks of the older trucks anyway, but my main things are weight and fuel economy. I definitely want something that will look alright and make me money. Gotta have that pride factor in there. I understand the whole "risk" factor with first time buyers, but it really sucks. I'm not saying I'm perfect, but I've been around these #### things my whole life. I know about a quarter of what the veterans know, but I think I can run things. I've got a lot of other things under my belt than just driving haha. ####### banks. Anywho...END RANT. but thank you much!

 

Knowledge comes with time and experience. Its not rocket science as some guys will lead you to believe. A good thought may be an old JB fleet truck. They are cheap and light. I ran one till last April when i traded up. Only thing that cost me any money was turbo, egr, egr cooler needed replaced. Paid $27,000 for an 05 with 430k on it.