My Experiance with Watkins Shepard!

I've been here 1yr and 1 month. The quailcomm is very easy, once you do it a few times you'll have it down.




American Trucker

 

Got to my last stop at 630am, with a 7am apt.....took until 1130 to get unloaded lol

Then i got a load 30 min deadhead, delivers MONDAY in SC 975 miles Oh well

so since i have forever and a half to get there i wasnt battleing for parking tonight, so i drove as far as Orange, TX to do my 10. I'll drive to somewhere in GA tomorrow for a 10 then to SC on Sat morning and do a Looooooonnnnnnngggggg Reset. I still dont have a apt time for monday broker says maybe they'll do it tomorrow

theres a pilot and a TA right next to the receiver so im hopeing for a early am apt they dont even open to 8 so it wont be too early.



American Trucker

 

First I have to backup a little bit i forgot to post a few things yesterday. So after looseing a good load, sitting for 4 hours to get unloaded, then 3 hours to get loaded. I go to pull away from the dock and notice I feel VERY heavy...... Broker said 42,000 MAX. Well even the paper work says 44,000. 32,000 + 44,000 = 76,000lbs so no big deal right?



Nope KNOWING #### well they were putting on 21 pallets they started with a single pallet in the nose!!!!!! WTF so this load goes to about 3 feet from the doors......GREAT my tandems where already pretty far back so i go to weigh it knowing im going to have to do something (what i dont know yet)

So i get there scale;

11,240
27,740
35,820
-----------------
74,700lbs


Well that means i gotta loose 1,820+lbs off the tandems....My tandems are 2-3 feet from the DOT bumper now and i reweigh after 20 min of fighting this 15yr old trailer

11,380
30,060
33,340
-------------
74,780 But stretch wayyyyyyy out Not likeing that, but nothing i can do, and since i know none of the states im going through are big on whineing about Bridge and i was going to run early am to get going quick i didnt figure to see many open scales.


Ok no fastforward to today:

I leave the TS at 4am and go 15 min up the street and fuel and am out in 15 minutes. And make it to the next scale in LA (first one was closed so i got the green light) 2nd one is OPEN, and i get the RED light....BUT the big sign is flashing that says (all trucks bypass when flashing) so i bypassed

Next LA scale is OPEN, the flashing sign is off, but the digital boards say (truck must weigh, take next exit) But then i get the green light so i bypass......


First MS scale, OPEN but i get the green light.

Next MS scale, OPEN but this time i get the RED light....D'OH!. But as i'm coming down the thing they flip the green arrow over the bypass lane so im going along thinking im good to go....NOPE i'm going the speed limit everything is working on my truck/trailer, seatbelt on, lights on, not doing ANYTHING wrong but sure as sheet here comes the DOT guy putting his gloves on comes out and points to the back and at me..... ####!

So I'm thinking either A they are checking log books like it looked like they were doing to the 2 trucks already back there OR they wanted me to slide the tandems forward......WRONG on both

He again points to the barn out back! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!


CRAP, I know #### well there is nothing wrong with my truck, and trailer as i've been pulling it for a week and pre/post tripped it 14 times so far and even put it in the TA shop to rewire the broken lights....I'm just pissed because A he is about to waste my time and B I've never been inspected before but i always hear stories about DOT makeing sheet up if/when they cant find anything


So I pull over the pit and we go through the lights, and everything check the brakes and what not and he comes back from the trailer and says "your 4th axle, left side airbag is leaking very small but still leaking...." and he walks away. Then comes back and says close your hood pull out and park. (this whole "inspection" of the truck/trailer took him 10 minutes tops he was freezing so he rushed it)


Anyway i pull out and park and wait, and then he comes over with all my paper work, and to have me sign 2 papers. While i'm doing this he walks away to do somthing.....


What he went to do was this: this is was my Truck earned this morning (0830am in Orange Grove, MS EB Scale)






2011 CVSA Inspection sticker, as i thought my tractor was just fine, all brakes were good and everything



BUT the paper I was signing was this: This is what the POS trailer earned itself....






He says, No Ticket, No OOS, just have your company sign here and fax it to this number within 15 days and your all good, just get the trailer to them to fix it when ever you get it there.


I figure this is a DOT guy he SHOULD know how this CSA crap works, i ask about CSA points, i know if there is no inspection there are no points, but in this case there WAS an inspection and i wanted to know how many points.....He says i dont know if you'll get any but your company will Ummm Ya im going to get some but apparently he doesnt know how this stuff works anymore then i do


Now i even checked my airbags again this morning when i did my pre trip and i didnt hear anything......I checked it the one he said was leaking when i parked here today and it sounds like the airline ABOVE the airbag where it connects....I donno i cant put my finger on it but i can hear it...Just my luck




Anyway then i call the broker when i got here to get my apt time.....1PM on monday!!!! come on, really? i'm 3.5 hours away now got here at 315pm today.....thats 70 hours till i can deliver this



Anyway im done complaining for today I'm in Newnan, GA




American Trucker

 

Anyone know who i have to give this Inspection to for them to sign, and fax??????




American Trucker

 

today was easy,

got up, pre tripped, drove 208 miles north to Duncan, SC been sitting here since 11:30am fueled then parked. I'm exactly 1 mile from the receiver and cant deliver until monday 1pm......I'm going to call the receiver on monday to see if i can deliver earlyer on monday morning. I hope next week is better..




American Trucker