What to take on the road...

Here's a list of the items I take with me when I leave the house(abbreviated - you guys don't need me to tell you I have 12 pairs of socks, 12 pairs of underwear, 4 pairs of jeans, 8 shirts, etc. etc.):

Laundry detergent
Extra soap (for those truck stop showers where the soap is that crappy hand soap pump stuff)
Small tool box with a cheap socket/wrench set, large and small phillips-head screwdrivers, large and small flathead screwdrivers, diagonal cutters, needle nose pliers, framing hammer, vise-grips, crescent wrench, ball of twine, some baling wire, plenty of large zip-ties, electrical tape, and DUCT TAPE.
Small pocket knife (I use the Kissing Crane Coalminer - the blade is good steel, the knife is cheap, and I don't mind if I scar up the plastic handle) - sharp enough to shave with
Arkansas hard wetstone for the knife
2 towels and 2 washcloths
A few old hand towels that are now grease rags
Kingpin lock (spring for a good steel one, not the aluminum ones)
One foot long piece of 4x4 wood (rest areas on the MassPike require trucks to be chocked when parked, and an officer with an axe to grind can and will write a nice big ticket for that)
Expanding file for my trip paperwork
Electric cooler with lots of soda pop
Small propane stove
Cooking pot with lid
Paper bowls and plastic spoons
Some cans of non-condensed soup
Case of bottled water
Humidor full of Punch Excalibur Spanish Honduras #54 Maduro cigars (Punch seconds - great smoke for about $1/stick), a cigar cutter, and a butane torch lighter, and maybe some Rocky Patel Vintage 1992's for special treats (optional)
Lots of paper towels - at least 6 rolls when I leave the house.
Windex
Spray air deodorizer (I like the citrus stuff)
Small stapler and some scotch tape
Tunes! About 100 CD's worth
Laptop computer
Spare marker light, tail/brake light, headlight bulb, dashlight bulb, and tag light bulb
Whisk broom

That's everything I've ever needed on the road; much of it is really optional. Adjust for length of time you spend on the road, etc.

 

LOL its called the doghouse
You dont say if your male or female..yes there is a difference in what you "need"
CAMERA with card reader for your computer you can store your pictures on photobucket or other photo site. You can get a cheep digital for about $20 and a card for about $10 you dont have to do like me LOL Canon Rebel digital SLR
Do you have your TV/DVD player?
Make sure you have both sweet and salty snacks
extra lock
tire gauge
make sure you have atleast 2 load locks and if you can get a extra better
Broom after you have been on the road if your a refer driver you can get a refer broom
rubber ties ( yall know what they are called with the metal hooks....)
We have 2 folding chairs the kind in the bag great if you have to wait to get loaded and its nice outside gets you OUT of the truck.
RAIN X gotta have
I have convinced my S/O driver that the 300 count sheets are well worth the extra cost ..you can get a full set twin size with 2 sets (4) of pillow cases for $25 they dont slip off the bed and they feel better. Have atleast 2 sets.
Rug to put your shoes on so you dont get mud and dirt in the sleeper


You dont say if you have support at home......that is a MUST well you can work on that part if need be LOL cuz that way you send your laundry home with them and pick up new clean set

OOHHHHHH Street & Trips add on your computer GOOD GAWD dont trust the directions
Truck stop Guide a MUST
Laminated atlas yes its $30 but it will last you
Hope this helps will ask S/O and he might add a couple more he always says when I leave 250 pounds comes off his truck .....yeah I am taking his laundry.

 

Oh, I forgot these items when I posted my list:

Extra pair of shoes

Tire inflator - This is a 50' hose with a glad hand on one end and a tire chuck on the other. Mine actually has a quick-disconnect fitting on the hose and a corresponding nipple on the tire chuck - that way I can use the truck's air compressor for stuff at the house. This thing has saved me many hours and has paid for itself at least 4-5 times over just from not losing miles at a tire shop when I pick up a trailer with a tire that's leaked down flat and the auto-inflate system isn't working.

Laminated Rand McNally Motor Carrier's Road Atlas

Webcam (see my YouTube channel - TruckerRedbeard)

Raincoat

Coveralls (simple cotton cloth utility types in the summer, plus insulated in the winter)

Can opener

Ball-point pens, Sharpie markers, and White-Out

Peanut Butter

Saltine Crackers

Small wastebasket wedged between the passenger seat and the cabinet behind it

Appropriately sized trash bags

Extra pair of prescription glasses (total of 2 pairs clear, 1 pair dark tinted)

XM Radio

Cobra 29 NW LTD Classic with Road King mic, peaked and tuned at the CB shop in Dickson, TN (exit 163 off I-40)

Little Tree air fresheners (I've switched from the citrus spray to the vanilla trees and a vanilla gel thing that clips to a vent)

IdleAire window adapter

3 load locks

Feather duster

Shower bag (small overnight bag - big enough to hold a change of clothes, shampoo, and my "shaving kit" which actually contains toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, razor, extra blades, shaving cream, soap, deodorant, and washcloth). My advice, which I try my best to follow, is that this particular set of items be used no less frequently than once every 48 hours

Dawn dishwashing detergent - add a decent squirt, maybe half a teaspoon or a little less, to each gallon of windshield washer fluid from about April to about October. The regular blue kool-aid will not remove bugs. Add some Dawn, and it does quite a bit better.

Flashlight! Spring for a good one. I spent about $25 online and got the best flashlight there is - the 6-cell Mag-Lite.

As for wi-fi at the truckstops, T/A and Flying J have their own systems. I have a subscription at Flying J because they have better wi-fi, but I occasionally use T/A's and pay for it with my Road King points when I need to get online from a T/A. Pilot and Love's used to have it, but their provider was Siricomm, which is now defunct. Any truckstop with IdleAire also has it, and it's pretty cheap, but you have to get an IdleAire membership plus buy wi-fi time. There are a few truckstops scattered around with free wi-fi, plus a lot of rest areas in Iowa, Texas, and New York have wi-fi.

I think that about covers it

 

Co-Pilot has proven many times to be reliable but use your best judgement. These mapping programs are out of date by the time you get one. New roads always being built and road name being changed.

To add to the list:

1. microwave
2. coffee pot
3. clip board
4. camera
5. note pads
6. pens
7. trash can
8. water jugs
9. extra 12 volt outlets

 

Dont forget.....

DVD's ( movies and XXX )

GOOD Mags when your stuck in the dock waiting.

Baseball bat ( Good for Hunts Point, NYC, lotlizzards ETC )

Babywipes....You may be in a place with no showers, good for the hot spots.

Computer games a must.

remember to get as much stuff as you can from home or Wal-Mart dont buy anything from the truck stops more then you have to, HIGH PRICE

 

There is a sticky thread on the 'Experienced Truckers Advice' page called "Packing list for students"---check it out http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...s-advice/16652-packing-list-for-students.html


here's another good one http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...37724-items-needed-for-going-out-trainer.html

 

They've pretty much covered all the bases but I found that the keyring clamp things (you know they kinda look like the clamps that rock climbers use to secure their ropes with) come in handy when you have a trailer door that you can't seem to get to stay clasped or has no clasp. There are many other ways to do it but this is the quickest and easiest way IMO.

Also, the HUGE paper clip things they sell at the flying j's. They look just like a ginormous paper clip, these come in handy for the trailer doors too.

I also recommend a couple of rubbermaid containers that are long and flat, not tall at all that you can keep your jeans in so they don't get wrinkled (if you've got a truck with some room under the bunk that is). I don't like hanging my clothes up because they tend to get a little funky from the smoke and the absence of ventilation in the cabinets. I use the containers in stead and my clothes stay neatly folded and free of funk. Better than keeping them in a duffle where they get moved around often.

Now if you're a student going out with a trainer, by all means use the duffle Oh yeah and definitely get a fifth wheel puller. These come in handy for more than just pulling the fifth wheel. One use I found was when you forget to take the chock from under the wheel at a dock, once you pull up on em, there's hardly any room to back since you're only a few inches from the dock and it can be a bear to get it out from underneath. Most chocks have either a metal handle or a ring on the side and the fifth wheel puller will allow you to yank it right out with ease.

Also good for putting on chains if you should ever have the misfortune of having to do that.