Spotters (yard tractors)

Hi subpartrucker, thanks for adding that. Kindness does go a long way, and I've met some pretty rude drivers that expect you to do everything, except deliver the load for them. I've met some pretty cool yard jockeys too, and the guy in Neenah I spoke of, clearly needed his jaw readjusted.

 

I've met a couple yard guys who were jerks (back when I was on the road) and there is one guy where I work who is a complete a-hole to drivers,but the rest of us try to maintain a positive image in our yard... I've met a few yard guys who have been pretty cool over the years.I try to help if I can and I know what it can be like to go into a yard and need a little help or information or assistance.

 

You assume far too much. My truck runs 11R24.5 tires, has a normal 5th wheel, and is set up like a vocational truck ought to be...and similar to the way most trucks USED to be. Company owner listens to all his ATA buddies running OTR on how to set up a truck, so despite the fact that they are towing dump and tank trailers in and out of mines, quarries, and job sites, they are set up with low-profile suspensions, little ground clearance, lo-pro super singles, low-rise 5th wheels, etc. to keep gaps to a minimum to help aerodynamics (even if bumpers are ripped off and tanks dented pretty much every day somewhere in the fleet). Funny, since we spend more time on 55 mph 2-lanes than we do the interstate, but hey...I don't own the company and I drive my own truck, so my opinion on how they set up their trucks doesn't really matter.

Anyway, the point I'm getting at is that when I drop a trailer, a company truck can back all of the way under without the pin touching the 5th wheel plate. When a company truck drops a trailer, it BARELY clears my frame rails (it'll get caught on the bolts holding my rear frame cross member)...and that is WITH my airbags dumped. Luckily we don't do much drop & hook...but when the dumps have drop legs (no crank), I need to dig the jack from my side box and hope there are some blocks around to raise the nose of the trailer enough so that I can get under it.

There CAN be a pretty significant difference in 5th wheel height from one truck to the next, depending upon tires, suspension, and 5th wheel options. Older trucks with more traditional specs could be a good 8-10" higher than some of these newer trucks spec'd to hug the ground.

 

I've never seen a yard dog touch landing gear, they're way to busy and lazy for that. Just a tip for the newbies, but if you hook up your air lines and give the airbags some air, the nose of the trailer will come down an inch or two. Hopefully you have a trolley valve as well.

 

Oh man! This is a recipe for some free entertainment in our yard that is on a bit of a side hill!
I will always try to help a guy out in our yard with a high trailer unless he's being a complete tool. My reasons for doing this are mostly selfish. Trailers don't always drop the same way from space to space due to the slight incline (I didn't design this yard). So if I make a guy muscle the trailer down he's liable to break the cross shaft and now I'm stuck with him in our tight yard till it's fixed!
Another tip for you flatbed newbies and steering wheel holders.........when you're dropping an all aluminum flat empty leave at least a couple of inches of space under the landing gear! When the trailer gets loaded the weight of the load flattens the trailer out raising the nose of the trailer!

JD

 

PChase... the Peterbilts and Kenworths our carrier buys are about 3" higher than the Cascadias.

 

PChase.....you left out the really important part....
Its Jimmy Hoffa's Penthouse.....LMAO

 

I hate it when I get to a shipper with an empty and drop it in a door and then bob tail to go park and when I come back to pick up the trailer it magically raised up 10 inches higher than when I dropped it. Then they say they never touched it. Its fun trying to crank down 44,500lbs especially when the trailer is old or the landing gear is a little bent.

 

Boo hoo! If you think it was tough lowering it, just wait 'til you find a loaded trailer that is too LOW!