Skipping scales

Seriously, if you are going to go around a scale, invest some time and miles. I don't like the Perryville MD scales for example, so I run 301 up from DC and miss it completely. It also saves tolls and lets me miss Baltimore completely, so there are advantages and nobody assumes I am just trying to dodge a scale.

 

Cops know the good cut arounds to avoid scales. I got pulled over a couple months ago for (avoiding the scale) after I finished laughing in the morons face I told him I just made a delivery 1mi behind me, asked him if he wanted to see proof of that, he stormed away. But many would have wanted to see proof, remember America is dead and there is no such thing as innocent until proven guilty anymore, ESPECIALLY when it comes to trucks. YOU DID IT! Better off not trying to avoid them. If your doing everything right you (should) be OK.

 

The only scales in Wyoming that I stop at are the ones when I first enter the state. Like if I'm taking I-90 I will stop at the first scale after leaving Montana but I don't stop at the other ones and never had them come after me.

 

I've never dodged any west coast scales.I don't trust any of those roads.but many others I have because I knew what routes to take like a few in no.SD.is and some knew the time they were closed.

 

What it all boils down to is sometimes you wind up the victim of someone elses screwup, like if you relay a load that's loaded wrong, and you have to make a judgement call between, for example, spending the weekend in Wilcox, AZ while dispatch figures out a way to get your load reworked without returning to the shipper in Chandler or risking running around the scale in Lordsburg, NM and sleeping in your own bed that night.....with a beautiful woman...maybe.

Those things happen and sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and play a little dirty.

 

I understand another's screw up. I got to where I would not accept a repower of a load that was listed on the bills at over 20,000 pounds until I saw a CAT scale ticket. If the driver had not scaled or it was messed up I called the company. When I drove for USA Truck a driver picked up a preloaded trailer at Budweiser in VA. They did not put enough bulkheads in it and the load was way to heavy at the front and was not fixable. This driver took it as far as the TA in Baltimore. To this day I don't know how he got it through the VA scales on I-64 or the ones on I-95 near DC, or for that matter out of Budweiser. I refused to move it and called safety whom backed me up. This is what happens when you get in a hurry. This driver did not take the time to scale it at Budweiser and then wanted to pass it off on me. I understand the company got a Budweiser distributor in Baltimore to open the seal and fix it. No telling how much that cost USA Truck.

 

The load I relayed was only 37k, but it was on like 10 pallets in the nose. So much weight was concentrated on the drive axles that even with the trailer tandems all the way forward I was at 37k on the drives. It was Krispy Kreme donut supplies for the El Paso stores.

Carlos, one of the dispatchers, decided to punk the driver who relayed with me. Called the driver and asked if he scaled in Chandler before he left. When he said no, Carlos told him I got popped at the Lordsburg scale. After he panicked a bit, Carlos told him he was just jerking his chain but that with a load where 37k was only on 10 pallets, he needed to make sure they spread that out. Told him luckily I was the kind of driver who had learned a few tricks of the trade in order to get the load delivered.

 

I'm guessing he knew it was probably FUBAR and ran US60 and US1 to get around those scales.

 

how does one stop getting notifications for a particular thread without turning off all notifications?

 

nevermind, i figured it out... thanks