Newly Licensed but can't back to save my life

Everyone is giving advice here one thing I have not seen is anyone ask if you have open or closed tandems. Nor have you been asked if closed are they forward or rearward. The position of the tandems can affect how you need to back as well. The mechanics will be similar steer left to push the trailer right and steer right to go left, but the reaction time and angles change with open and rearward tandems than forward closed tandems do. EX a split tandem alley dock you have to position at a lesser angle and hold the turn in longer. You must then steer the opposite direction further to get the trailer back to straight. This may also require more pull ups or GOALs. I believe the assumption has been you are pulling a van or reefer instead of a flatbed much less a tanker. If you are driving a flatbed, it might take you a bit longer to get the moves right out of the gate than the van reefer counterparts. When you are waiting for dispatched loads, or on a 34 i will echo others, practice, practice, practice. None of us got it the first day out I promise. In fact, I am in a refresher course as I have been out a few years before going back to work. Practicing in a controlled environment.

 

Where The tandems are set is a non issue

that just affects the wheelbase and nothing else

the company I hauled trailers for , had some 48 foot trailers with normal
Tandems and some 48s with spread
Tandems
They also had 53s with normal and 53 with spreads
They also had some 40 foot trailers with normal tandems , and a few 30 foot container chassis with the sliding Tri axle that would extend back past the trailer doors to meet the bridge laws .
I also had a cabover and a cabover with a set back steer axle and a long hood conventional ,
Every day was a different mix of tractors and trailers and you just backed them up ,
It’s not complicated ,
It ain’t rocket science . It just takes practice ,
If you can practice for hours at a time , for a day or two , you will greatly improve .
If
You can come to the truck
Terminal on a weekend or your days off and practice for several hours straight , backing up into a space or dock 30
Or 40 times , you will get much better at it . If you spread those 40 backs out over six months , you won’t get any better .

but if you can do those 40 backs in six hours , you WILL greatly improve .