I have a automatic in my dump truck and the gvw is 25900. I did not have CDl for the past three years of using this truck. Purchased a 12 ton trailer and now need cdl for me to be legal. My truck also has juice brakes no air. Go to dmv and pick up book to study for test. Go to take test for cdl "c" and find out I need cdl "a" because of trailer. OK give me general test, air brake, and combo test. Pass them all and figure how easy was that. Now the road test. I call Ryder to rent truck to take test because why not get air and combo cdl for the future. Cost $300 for day for tractor and trailer. Now I need a driver with cdl. Call my friend who has one of the largest companies in area and has 6 or 7 tri axles and low boy for driver. He says that I can use one of his drivers and lowboy for test and one day practice. I did the practice today and this is my point wow!! that is not easy. I cancelled my test for two weeks because no way will I be able to drive one these in 5 hours of diving. Who new!! Now I appreciate what it takes to dive this thing, a lot like my excavator or dozer. Lots of seat time. This rig had a 12 speed and had to massage every shift. By the end of the day I could move the truck but not reel smooth and down shift was still tricky. Hat's off to you guys !! I will get it in couple more days (like 30 hours or so)but not in 5 or 6. John
John, I'm in the same state as you. Got my permit for Class "A" w/airbrake. The written test was pretty easy. I'm scheduled to start with one of the local truck-driving schools in a few weeks. They'll put me in a tractor-trailer with their instructor for $40/hr. Once the instructor is happy with me, he'll take me (in their truck) for the test. I have a friend with a CDL, but no truck, and I don't know anybody with a tractor-trailer to let me practice...:crying Maybe I just need to take a week's vacation and head up to Minnesota and visit JeffD...:drinkup Good luck... Joe
Electra Glide,bring your scooter along,and come around the first week in Aug. I go out too Sturgis almost every year,with a group of trashy bikers,and we whoop it up for a week.We usually camp out at the Buffalo Chip,and take in the Bands.Got to see ZZ-top 2 years ago,way cool!!:thumbsup I missed last year though,which way double stunk.:crying
I go to Lake George ever year with about 6-10 others and have a very drunk time. That meet is tame compared to Sturgis though, never been but would like to. John
Yup,it's a blast!!I haven't seen too much crazy stuff actually "in" Sturgis,but boy at the campground I've seen things I never would've believed I'd ever see. I wouldn't want my life that crazy all the time,but a week a year too live like a rock star isn't too much to ask for,I guess.Last time out there was my first year there since I "dried up".I made it about half a day,and then WOO-HOO,hard drinkin' Jeffy was back like he never left(except with hangovers this time,I'd forgotton about them) That guy always get's me in trouble. I did manage to get back on the wagon though,but I'm afraid of the "next time".I know how I am!! Where's this Lake George Rally at??I haven't heard of that one,just Sturgis,Daytona,and one in Laughlin NV.
Upsate New York one hour north of Albany on 87 they call it Americade. I am Scotch and know all about what you talking about! They named a drink after us. Don't like hang overs :Banghead
Hmmmm..... Haven't been to Sturgis yet, but it's one of those things on my "to-do"list...
jamc, it gets easier, just keep practicing. I even went so far as to watch someone else do the skills test and then went back on the weekend and practiced with the truck so i could get some visual reference points. When you get to taking the test, dont let the guy with the clipboard scare ya, he has to mark pass or fail so dont worry about what hes writing.
How ironic. You have an automatic and took your driving test in a standard. We have all standards and I took my driving portion in an automatic. What a weird feeling. Nearly the first thing they did is send me along a stretch of 65MPH 4-lane, then down a hill towards a stop sign to intersect with a very busy 4-lane and the truck was going faster than I imagined. We barely stopped before we went head-on into 65-70mph traffic. The automatic transmission shifted without out me really feeling it. We were flying before I knew it. It really flipped me out. Oh .. I passed the written, maneuvering and driving tests, BTW.
I am not scared bring it on! :Cowboy Just a little. I did the same today crash935 and watching someone else does help but it still comes down to "feel". I could not tell you in writing how to do it.
richardbrackin you said "How ironic. You have an automatic and took your driving test in a standard. We have all standards and I took my driving portion in an automatic" The problem with this is that you can not drive your truck in New York. You would have a restricted CDL for automatic only. I want to do this once so I do not want any restrictions to drive what ever I want to drive. I could have a new truck next year or drive for trucking company in the winter if my work is slow.
I was in the same boat as you when I took my CDL test. I only had a few hours on the truck before I took the test. It was a 10 speed. I was told you had to demonstrate double clutching in the driving test and for me this was the hardest. I quickly learned how to shift without a clutch by matching rpms but the double clutching wasn't as easy to pick up. Next time you drive the truck watch the rpm guage and notice how much the rpms drop each time you shift. Then when shifting, watch your rpm guage and it will help you match rpms easier than the "feel" when you are learning. You will find that the rpm split between gears is pretty constant on the 12 speed. When you take the test, relax and watch the guage. When downshifting, slowly increase rpms with slight pressure on the shifter and when it matches, it will suck right into gear. Don't worry too much about downshifting coming to a stop. If you downshift one gear that usually will be satisfactory for the test as long as you don't disengage the clutch or put it into neutral too soon. The rule is that the rig can only "freewheel" for its length. Good luck with the test. You won't regret the anxiety once you have your CDL.
I would offer this for thought when it comes to your driving test. 1 if you rub or run over a curb with your trailer, you will fail. 2 If you coast with the clutch in or put tractor in neutral BEFORE completely stopped, you will fail or lose points for non performance. 3 generally for the double clutching requirement, they will only require that they see you perform this during one or two up and down shifts to demonstrate competency. 4 you will be docked points for failure to check mirrors frequently even while traveling straight down road without lane changes, (situational awareness). 5 speed management, distance management, and traffic management are all worth points. 6 signal early, check mirrors, signal continuously, checking mirrors during lane change, and signal off only after lane change completed, then check mirrors every 30 sec. 7 pretrip inspection for tractor and trailer has 128 points of inspection, get a book, and memorize this section, and set yourself up with a routine for the component inspecitons,, top to bottom, left to right, inside to outside. this will help you considerably with the test. good luck.
When taking the inspection part of the test tell the inspector what you are inspecting (driveshaft, springs, brakes) dont take it for granted that he/she knows what you are looking at. Here they allow a check list. Get your health card before the test. Make sure the truck you take will pass before you go. A lot of coman sence things can cost points. I was lucky I was grandfathered in.
another tip... Pay attention to the weight restriction signs on the roads you travel. After you cross a bridge the instructor may ask you what the weight restriction was for that bridge you just crossed. I just checked. My license has no restrictions listed. It's a class AMV Comb Veh GVWR>26,000#,W/Veh in Tow>10,000#GVWR I don't know if it mattered but I took the skills test in a standard tractor-trailer rig. I wanted to take the driving test in a standard but they provided the students with an automatic. Have no fear. I don't plan on driving in New York. All in-state work here.
Personally it’s harder for me to drive a manual car than a rig. Part of the problem could be the regular driver bangs gears really bad and has the tranny a messed up. The first 13 speed H I drove was hard than hell to hit the gears, because of this so I drove it up and down the frontage roads until I got it took me a few hours. If you have trouble with the pre trip just name everything on the truck they won't dock you for naming things not on the list.
I drove a kw t800 the other day with a 15 in it,, and this tranny/clutch combo absolutely had to be double clutched, or it would bump n grind into every gear due to the the throttle touchiness!
The pre-trip that I learned to do,in order to pass the test,is the same one I still do today.Alot of the other things I've forgotton,or I maybe do without thinking,but that pre-trip has stuck with me. As long as I'm not interrupted during it,I almost always catch any defects that need attention.It's a real good habit too keep. I do remember the thing about not hitting curbs too,while turning,but in the real world that's thrown right out the window. Bob Horrell's advice on watching the tach,and remembering the RPM drops,that's a big help when learning.:thumbsup
Thank's every one for the advise! I drove two days last week and have it down a lot better. I can get up thru all the gears and can downshift. The guy I was driving with made me go into the city and drive around some very hard corners. That rule of not hitting curbs is impossible for some of these. The pro I was with had to back up a couple of times to make corner with out hitting telephone pole or parked cars. We also went and picked up a 110K Moxy and moved that. He was overweight even with permit and had to back down a hill once because the Mack would not pull the hill. That was interesting! I don't want to do that if I drive part time I only want to drive the dump trucks. After I felt a lot better about my driving and it only got better. Take test on the 30th. I have already lined up work for next winter when my business slows down (if it does, hope it doesn't). I can see that with CDL you will never be out of work if you want to work. I think drivers make around 20/hr, not getting rich but helps with payments in the winter.
Gald to hear its getting easier, even riding along and paying attention to what the driver is doing and listening to the truck while hes doing it helps. As for the corners, crowd the line on your left side and if you have to make someone in the turn land move when you start going around the corner, oh well, its better than taking poles down. You shouldnt have any really tough corners on the driving test, they dont like to make it so difficult that they have to fill out a accident report every time. I dont know what they do on the test in your state, but the tester i had has the perfect little spot where he tells you that you have a problem and have to pull over and secure the vehicle (part of the test here), i get pulled over on the shoulder and theres some 2 track to my right going through the woods. He tells me i lost a point because i'm blocking a driveway, I said, driveway my ass, there ins't a mail box for a 1/4 mile either way, he told me that he calls it a driveway and that hes holding the clipboard. Actually had a good time with the tester, jokes and small talk helped, also found out that he rolled a truck in his days of driving. Keep practicing and let us know how its going.
Up here in Vermont there's two different class A licenses. There's Fifth wheel and non fifth wheel. If you have it you can pull everything but if you have non fifth wheel, all you can pull is pintle style trailers. I had to take my skills test twice. the first time i failed both the pretrip and the alley docking parts. The second time things went much better. Pretrip is huge, the best thing to do is take your book and a truck start right in the front, and go counter clockwise. And this is what almost killed me on the second try, was to tell the inspector that I checked to make sure inspection and registration where both up to date. Those are not listed in the manuals here but they are important. Alley docking is pretty easy you just gotta remember to plan ahead for your timing and practice here will take care of the problem.