How do O/Os with custom trucks keep them so clean?

The guys that have those trucks are the ones that obsess about cleanliness. They do all they can to stay away from dirt, and then spend time every day cleaning them.

 

Decades ago a real Big Strap showed me by example- He would wash and/or polish something on the truck every day, rain or shine.

Then there was Stoney. I met him the day he got out of San Quentin. He was back driving a truck a few hours after he got out, working for another o/o on the same haul I was on. A couple of years later he came to work for my Dad & I. Every day he would come to work, lift the hood, check the oil, carefully wash the windows & mirrors, wash the top of the hood & the drivers side fender with a mitt & dry them with a towel.

I finally had to ask; "Why don't you ever wash the rest of the truck?"

"I only wash the parts I have to look at when I'm driving it."

 

When we have to go to the spot market for freight, I sit more than when we are hauling for our direct customers... mostly due to rates; if it's a monday morning in a crappy lane, I might sit for a day, or two... or three sometimes before I bounce or catch a fish. After I get bored of the internet, or trolling on the CB (the original internet chat room), I will bust out my variable speed makita polisher, a bottle of green zephyr and an extension cord. Last time, I had 2 different trucks stop next to me and ask how much to do their wheels, lol. I felt so dirty.

 

I'm looking into getting a polisher. What model is your Makita?

 

I have a nice Snap-On polisher I could sell or borrow to you indefinitely.... I used to polish religiously every Sunday when I was driving a 379 and working locally. sad to say those days are way behind me now. I'm a once a month Blue Beacon man these days. Maybe some day I'll be driving the big shiny ones and have a shop to get in and nit-pick once a week again....

 

To me there is no sense in driving a dirty truck. If u can't afford a $110 wash n wax every week and a polish every month or so you are not doing business right. I will wash my truck just to get new dirt on it. And maybe twice a week.

 

This is what I use- works great, about $200 @ my local home improvement center; http://www.dewalt.com/tools/metalworking-polishers-dwp849x.aspx

 

When I get home next week I'll dig out the box and see. It used to have the model on the tool, but after so much use it's hard to tell the case is blue, let alone what the model is. I ordered it from ACE hardware. It's variable speed which I like because there's no chance of burning or scarring the soft aluminum when it's set low. If I do any polish work for others, I will set it really low for that reason. If I recall, it was $249 at ACE hardware.

 

Once you get the tanks and wheels cut and polished, it's actually quite easy to keep them up. Get done driving, take an hour to wipe down the tanks and wheels and shine them back up. The polish makes the bugs slide off.

In my rooster cruiser days, we'd run at night (triple digits...night running was less traffic and you were less likely to cook your tires). I would start in the afternoon, wipe down the grill, bumper, tanks and wheels, breather, rain x on the windshield, and made sure all the chicken lights worked. Put a coat of wax on the hood and fenders, dress up the tyres, get on the CB and make an announcement that the King was leaving the parking lot.
Ease on the on ramp, sun just about to set, truck looking saweet. Get on the bigroad and ease through the gears. Flash your lights and let all the slow trucks that move left to let you on back over. Give the throttle a little more pressure...ease through the gears until you reach 11th. That turbo would scream to life. Get a bear report, set the cruise for 10 over. Meet another large car going the other way, get a better bear report, put her in the big hole and hammer down. 10 hours from Atlanta to Miami (and that was with the stop at Sheffield for some food (the food was good!)

if you're going to have a large car (it's more than a wide open truck), you have to look good.

I hear the old hands say, "It's not fun out here no more." And they're right, half you guys think it's a sin for a truck to run over 60 mph. But some of us still have fun. Some of us will continue to take Pride in that Ride.

took an oversized load out to Kansas and stopped overnight that that Hook in Dodge City. No freakin restaurant so we walked over to that bar a few blocks down, ordered a pizza and had some adult beverages. Guess it was a bullhaulers watering hole the bullhaulers pulled up a chair and started buying rounds. The pizzas came and beers fled. Finally the barkeep asked us if she could go home. You know, I haven't found out yet why so many of you guys talk about how you hate OTR.