How to be a good spotter.

Taking the time and setting up your plan before doing it.
Also lots of times I have my wife help me and we use a handheld cb. for her.
We find a channel and then we can talk back and forth,when she is spotting for me.
That way no missunderstanding on which way to take the trl. or hearing the word stop...

 

I understand a team or a husband and wife helping each other out backing, they can be fairly trusted to do a good job - or at least be held responsible for anything that goes wrong through various forms or verbal and possibly medievil abuse tactics over the next few months but I would rather people stayed out of my way when backing , I get out and stop and take my time getting into a spot even the really crappy ones and afterwards I feel like a better driver and usually learn something.

Its like honing your backing skills with block walls and car fenders and the occasional kitty

 

Depends on how tight the spot is. If you're just helping them back up close to something I stand at the back of the trailer and will use one of a few methods.

The first is the closing hands method, basically you stand with your arms completely out. As they're getting closer and closer to needing to stop you move your arms closer and closer, kind of like doing a jumping jack really slow. When your hands meet is when they should be stopping.

The other, if its a longer distance they're backing over is to just use the rolling hand to signal backing up and either using a clenched fist or crossed arms to signal stopping. Crossing your arms tends to be more useful at night because its a larger signal to see.

Regarding the direction of steering, I tend to go by the direction the back of the trailer needs to be moving.

As has been noted, the most important thing to agree on is what signal means "STOP!". Once you've decided on what signal means stop then decide on what other signals mean like whether pointing one direction refers to the way the steering goes or the way you want your trailer to go. In general, if you're standing at the back of a trailer they're signalling what the trailer should be doing, if they're signalling at the front they're signalling which way to turn your steering wheel.

What gets to me is when you're doing a complicated backing maneuver (like backing under a load where you need to be squared up and stopped in a very specific spot) and you're getting signals from 5 different people telling you 5 different things. I would say you should always use the minimum number of spotters to avoid confusion for the driver.

Remember that a lot of the signals driver's use are derived from crane operation signals.

And, as simple as it may seem, make sure that both the driver and spotter understand where the truck needs to be placed.

 

I agree with all stated here. However, I am a driver trainer and we need to be able to use visible hang signals at times. Does anyone know if there is a universal hand signal chart for semi-trucks. I have seen them that’s OSHA standards but nothing really based solely for semi trucks.

 

I've never seen one, but what I have seen was the date on this thread.
Nobody's been on it in about 6 years.
Train on

 

The oilfield will make a good spotter of you. Most places I was had to have a spot in front and back. You have to be on the same page signals wise or stuff gets f'd quick

 

Same in the oilfield I always tried to get everyone on the same page cuz of how fast the patch spits out new guys. The way point is the way you turn your wheel. Forget about them mirrors johnny you look at me and you will never hit anything. I always stood in front of the truck where I was easily visible. Some companies had their spots stand in the back. Try that on a tight well pad at night with the glare of flood lights blinding you.

 

The only two things I need from a spotter is to stand on the right front steer about 15 feet away and able to eyeball down the entire right of my trailer. All I want from that spotter is which way should I turn my steer and how much. (Demanding arent I?)

To lighten things up a little bit, I repeat the story for what we did to poor young pumpkin years ago up in Milldale American Eagle 76 one filthy raining night. All the lots below was full so we had to climb onto a muddy shelf for overflow in that muck and make two rows. Pumpkin came up there saw the last spot left and because the mud was a foot or so he had some trouble getting pivoted into that spot.

8 of us professional drivers took a corner all around his truck. Even one at each tractor drive wheels and two playing overseers.

Pumpkin saw us all over and puffed like no problem, we can do this.

Everywhere his eyeballs went, either mirror or outside one of the tractor glass a spotter he was looking at gave him a contradictory signal. Everyone was in on this. Took him oh maybe 5 minutes of working the wheel, moving forward and back 5 feet sawing and working hard before 2+2 = being teased in his overwrought mind.

We put him in there in like 10 seconds after he broke out laughing. He was not too happy but you had to be there.