Stepping Out With My Own Numbers

I don't do it because of a slogan "don't haul cheap". That's ridiculous. If you're running solo out of a hot area and they're paying $5 a mile or better you're losing money taking a load back,instead of dead heading back if its under 600 miles. Time is money.

 

@TallJoe that's the pickle I keep finding... Should I wait until last minute to see if I find good money out of Shippers that get desperate (but I risk what happened to you) or do I preplan in advance everything and secure loads to keep my trucks moving? I know sometimes it can be a mix depending on the market conditions. But I'm trying to figure out a process that can get me the most in average.

@Misesian great for you! That's what I'm looking for. Having almost a week in advance of booked loads. I'm trying to figure out a way to do this with loads of DAT, but it's hard & takes a lot of time searching for and comparing. Guess that having a call-to-broker could also help a lot.
But I think there should be tools to let you find and pick what load fits your needs in an easier way.

 

Well, the truck had other plans. Partial camshaft failure causing misfire in cylinder 1. Motor shakes and makes all kinds of noise and no power. Had to rent a daycab to finish my delivery. They have one more test to run Monday to see if it damaged the cylinder and then I will get an estimate. It will be steep. The guy told me that if it comes down to taking the cylinder head off to make repairs I should think pretty hard about it because the price will be similar to rebuilding the entire top end. He says there are some things he can do that would allow me to get home with it but I'd have to be empty. My new truck is ready and supposed to be in town by the 20th. I may end up taking this busted truck home, waiting on my new truck, and taking a big financial hit on the trade in value and lost revenue. Most of the money I've made since May will be spent recovering from this. Four months of work down the drain.

 

Rental to finish the last 100 miles of the load. Not a bad ruck. Has the DD13 with a 10 speed manual and just under 400k miles. It's weird driving a daycab.

 

Man, that sucks!

 

Yeah, that blows for sure. Trucking is a tough business for sure, on top of the world one minute, under the bus the next minute. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

Cam shaft failed but didn't damage cylinders. Have to change oil and replace cam along with large portion of the valve train. Looking at about $9k repair bill. A large bill just in time for the new truck that arrives next week.

 

How many miles are on this engine with the failed cam?

 

Sry to hear . I took a hit last month replacing injectors on my dd15 . Had a good previous 2 months and wasnt hurting for cash but yeah it sucked !

 

705k. His final estimate was less than where we started. He is pretty sure he can get it done for 7k or less. Place called Engines Inc in Allentown, PA. Engine shop only, Certified Cummins facility.