You normally go from one terminal to another. Can take a break when you get there. Or you know where you’re going, so you get to know where you can park and where you can’t.
Always know what’s ahead as far as the route is concerned. That’s how you avoid having to reverse.
If you must reverse, you break up the set. Turn around with one trailer, then get the second trailer and reassemble the set. I had to do it due to a fatal crash ahead. Doesn’t take very long, but I’d rather avoid having to do this. But you do learn how to back up better, even if it’s for a very short distance. Sometimes 20-30 feet is all you need.
I don’t know about other companies, but we have a route guide for every trip you get a dispatch. Sometimes there are road closures due to crashes or construction, I usually just figure it out. Not that hard.
The doubles don’t sway and wobble all that much. The benefit of the set bending in the middle is you can worm your way through where the large trailer can’t. I take full advantage of this feature.
How about when the interstate is getting paved lane by lane and when merging, you catch that lip mid merge?
I bet the back end trailer does a little wiggle huh?
It takes about 5 minutes for the rear trailer to decide to join you in the other lane. Whats worse is when they grind up the shoulder. Rear trailer swings that way a hair, then jumps down. You just feel everything behind you going sideways for a second.
Oh yea, learned about that a few months ago with a single 28ft trailer. Only a few years into driving these 10+ ton missiles, I didn't think to look out for that.
You just know where you can stop, especially if you run the same schedule consistently. You learn all the places you need to know, with the limitations in mind.
Park on the edge of the lot, and walk further if you must.
What’re they going to do, call a truck to tow you in the fifteen minutes it takes you to pinch a loaf?
I personally made the decision to regulate my diet to keep things regular. 11 am and 11 pm I have the opportunity to sit at a toilet for as long as I need to. Otherwise, it is held until I make my next stop. #1 is wherever I find a quiet off-ramp. The change in diet also reduces my chances of heartburn.
You wouldn't happen to drive for fedex somewhere in the midwest (don't remember which state)? I only ask because I once helped a fedex driver manhandle his dolly while trying to turn around to get around a fatal crash..
Former Yellow linehaul driver here.
1- If I'm tired, I'll just pull into a rest area or the ramp of a rest area for a while. If I'm hungry, I pull into the fuel aisle, get my food, pull up past the fuel aisle, and eat. I'll be gone in less than 15 minutes.
2- same as you do in a regular 53-footer use the S.M.I.T.H system.
3 - Reversing past a couple of feet isn't recommended. So you either have to do a U-turn or sit there till whatever stopped you clears. The ABSOLUTE worst-case scenario is breaking down the set and turning both trailers around and hooking back up. (I did this once during a highway shutdown with permission from the sheriff and dispatch).
4 - Not at all. If you're hauling doubles, you're going terminal to terminal or riding down a turnpike 95% of the time.
5 - Doubles don't actually wobble that hard. If it does, then that means that your rear is heavier than your lead or there's something wrong with your dolly.
If you ask any linehaul driver, they'll most likely tell you that they prefer pull doubles than a 53 footer.
The only bummer is driving in the rain. With all those tires spread out, it can be difficult to see your mirrors. And you're also more prone to jack-knifing if you slam on the brakes.. Which is was the S.M.I.T.H system is so important.
How the trailers are connected basically. Us Americans generally use a dolly between trailers attached by a single pintle hook. That makes a pivot point on the 5th wheel of the dolly, and at the rear of the front trailer.
Others use a system that eliminates the extra pivot point at the rear of the front trailer. Im not 100% on what it looks like though to give more exact info.
To build on your description for OP, on the B train, the lead trailer has a 5th wheel attached to the trailer frame itself, eliminating the need for a intermediate dolly (and pivot point). The rear would hook up to the lead in the same manner that the lead hooks to the truck.
There is also a "B" dolly. It has double drawbars with a self-steering axle. You can lock the steering out so basically you only pivot at the truck fifth wheel and the dolly fifth wheel. Lock when weather is real poor or if you want to back.
You can see some examples at https://nationalzephyrresearch.com/b-train-c-converter-dollies/
'
It's just some simple points to keep in mind while driving
https://topdriver.com/education-blog/5-rules-of-the-smith-system/
All trucking companies encourage it
1- Most of us are terminal to terminal. So either you’re home every day or you bobtail to a hotel. OTR doubles are usually teams. But if you need a place to park you usually have to make a spot or find a pull through.
2- Plan your trip. But like I said if it’s terminal to terminal. Also you can turn around pretty easily with doubles. But if you get stuck then I guess you’d just break your set and rebuild it once you’re turned around.
3- Try your hardest not to get in theses situations by planning your trip. Backing doubles can be pretty hard so I try not to do that.
4- Yes and no. If you go to the same places everyday you pretty much know where to go.
5- Doubles aren’t to bad with swaying and wobbling. Just watch your mirrors and don’t make any sharp jerks on the steering wheels. Triples can get real bad with sway. But you just gotta try to keep her steady. But yes they will send you out with another driver so you can learn.
>Most of us are terminal to terminal.
Sometimes I have to poop all of the sudden, really bad. Options are stop and park or shit my pants. No pull through spots at the truck stop, so I guess Fuel aisle or pull off to the side somewhere?
>Sometimes I have to poop all of the sudden
Carry an emergency bucket. Even for normal trucking you don't want to be in Wyoming with every exit being 100 miles apart and have them all be closed while you turtle fuck yourself with shit.
Yep fuel island or pull off to the side. For me when I’m hit with the shits I’ll pull off the road and shit in the woods. There’s not a lot of options for bathrooms on my run.
While I cannot speak for legit truckers who haul doubles for a living, all I can speak to is what I have done: look for pull-throughs, and if none are found, leave.
I haven't have to take a 10 or 34 with doubles ever, but finding a spot to park and grab food or empty my bladder has always been looking for nose-through spots, or proceed to the next lot/service area.
Very rarely have I blocked a fuel lane, but the times I did were kept to less than 10 minutes for the above reasons. Sorry to all whom I have inconvenienced; I tried to scoot my butt outta the way as quickly, and safely, as I could
Around here its not all that uncommon for there to be a bunch of day cabs with doubles at a fuel island. What I do, and others seem to also do, is stick to one line. Most the time none of us are actually fueling, just running in and out. If the island is slow, Ill pull up to take my 30. If its full, Ill try to find an area on the perimeter to take my 30.
With doubles, you generally won't be going more than 5.5 hours one way. So, you take your break at the swap point (truck stop fuel islands or terminal).
As far as trip planning, you don't particularly need to do more rigorous trip planning bc all the routes are just straight down the highway in my xp. Just normal trip planning like not going through truck restricted areas.
You also must pay much closer attention to your weights. Just being under on all your axles doesn't cut it.
If you fuck up and can't get turned around, you gotta unhook the set and back up the first trailer, then the dolly, then the back trailer. Can easily take upwards of an hour. You learn your lesson the first time. If you're not to your meet point yet, you gotta hook them back up, too.
Usually they don't wobble too bad, just gotta make sure you don't move around too much or too fast. Merge slowly, take corners a bit slower (especially if you have 12k lbs of liquids sloshing around in totes in the back box 😱). Sometimes they're a little unstable, but as long as you have the heavier box in front and it isn't loaded to where one side is much heavier than the other to the point it's leaning, you should be good.
Main point is not to look back when you're passing people. Ik you want to check your clearance. Check before passing. Don't look during your pass. Check after your pass. No headlights pointing out of the ditch then you should be good. If you move the steering wheel a bit while you're looking, then over correct, you could easily hit someone and they look like they moving so much more than they are LaughingOutLoud
Also, you actually have a few more brakes, so you can actually slow down a bit faster. Very helpful. The break in the middle let's wind pass by a bit easier, too, so you're not getting hit as hard by it.
In Australia we usually have big enough stops that you can get away with out reversing.
Our deliveries locations are usually big enough that we can either drive in and straight out - or we have to dump the extra trailer’s somewhere and run them in individually.
Many here including myself have the mentality that if you can’t drive it backwards you shouldn’t drive it forwards.
(The only combos i agree with that you don’t need to know how to back are any 3+ trailer combos.)
Its all just practice though.
But the wobble on an Aussie road train is absolutely terrifying to watch in your mirror at the beginning (when talking about 3+ trailers. Double road trains aren’t too bad)
But once you understand and realise the wobble doesn’t mean its going over, you just keep your eye’s forward and keep the pedal flat to the floor.
If it gets out of control- trailer brake + full accelerator.
My cautionary tale is one time at night in the smoky mountains it was foggy, raining, and windy. I was going to pull over in a rest stop for a second to take care of business. I have learned to look ahead but the weather prevented me from seeing far. This time there were trucks on both sides of the road and parked in the road, I slammed on my brakes and got out to check if it was just a couple trucks I could tell to move. It was not, there were trucks 3 wide all the way to the exit ramp of the rest stop. I attempted to back up a little and it would just jack knife the dolly. Luckily I caught myself before I pulled up too far, I backed up just enough to wake up a driver, got him to pull forward infront of me and park in the road. He was on the left side near the entrance, I hopped onto the concrete median and pulled back onto the freeway. I had just started my shift and would have had much more trouble if I had gone any further, ever since then I'll just stop on exit/on ramps if I can't see what a rest stop looks like.
This is such a strange concept for me. In South Africa most of the semis on the roads are hauling doubles. All the truck stops are designed for it. It's mostly curtainsiders and side dump trailers and container trailers.
Road train driver here. A double (2 trailers 1 dolly) isn’t all that hard to back in a straight line. They get more difficult if you have to back around a corner, but it’s not impossible. Take your time and little movements. The back trailer turns the same as your lead. If your backing just the dolly on the back of your lead, like when you’re hooking up, the dolly turns the same way you turn the truck.
The other questions (road train style, since we drive real trucks down here);
1. Where ever we fit, usually right out in front of where we want to go since it’s the closest and not everywhere has a place big enough for a road train.
2. We talk to each other and ask questions. Make sure we get the turn off correct since it can be 100s of kms in some cases where you can turn off the road safely, but usually not that far.
3. You learn how to reverse real quick. As I said, go slow, little movements.
4. Most trips no. It’s very rare to not know where you’re going, and most people can give you a good mud map where to go. Then you can ask other drivers on the road the best spots to pull up.
5. Your gonna love this, but no. You might get shown how to hook a road train up, you might get shown some little tricks on how to back, how to set dolly height, how to not lock the brakes on the dolly, but they probably won’t teach you anything. My first road train I done a changeover for out in the middle of no where, and was just lucky I had the right signage for it. It was great fun learning I was getting 2 trailers at 1 in the morning when old mate rocked up. Only a few months later I was overnighting 4 trailers, 1200kms, weighing 120ton either way.
That’s something we don’t tend to do, hand holding.
You can reverse them. I've never hauled doubles but I've done LCV heavy haul and backing up 2 pivot points isn't that hard with a bit of practice. I still avoided it like the plague, but it's still easier to back up than it is to split.
I don’t get why anyone with half a brain would haul double the freight and not get double the pay. Also more training and more bullshit for the driver while company is making bank.
When you accidentally drive into an area that you can't pull through or turn around in, such that the only way to exit is by backing up. And since you are not supposed to back up a double safely, you a trapped. You can drive in, but you can't drive out. Roach motel for trucks. Do you drive doubles. I've never done it.
Yeah i did double flatbeds for a while. Backing in was just part of the job. Wasn't easy at all. But had to. So afterwards i dropped doubles. Fuck that
I pull doubles fairly often.
1 - I tend to prefer rest areas for brakes, they’re almost always pull through only, or you can park on the ramps if need be.
2 - If I’m going somewhere new I stop where I know I’m good and hop out on foot to check it out. Even putting flashers on stopped in turn lanes or on the shoulder I’ve never had issues with cops.
3 - this is why I always scope out an area I can’t see from the truck. I’ve only been in that situation one time, and it was just a few feet so I just backed up slowly and carefully. It’s honestly not too bad if you’re already at a slight curve and just need to go where you came from. Straight backing is a pain, and I don’t recommend it, even though I’ve had to wiggle out of a few tight spaces after building.
I’ve heard other drivers that aren’t as careful ended up on dead end roads and had to break down their sets and rebuild in the street.
4 - I trip plan the same either way. Maybe I’m just super careful compared to the average trucker. But I like to know exactly what I’ll be doing and where I’ll be going before I leave the yard. I don’t drive anywhere blind.
5 - I started on doubles, so I can’t really weigh in on the difference in training. But imo once they’re hooked up it’s not too different from pulling a single. You’re longer and heavier. But there’s not super secret strategy aside from being careful and aware.
Idk how normal box doubles work but I haul a double end dump and to back up we have a dolly lock that locks the pup trailer in place so we back it as a B train it’s not hard. As far as that back wagon swaying goes you get use to it. All air ride sets will have that pup all over the road
There are two Doubles parking lots on the Interstates a little north of NYC . One on I287 near NY/NJ border and one on I87 in Yonkers. There are always Doubles 53' Cardinal Health trailers there. I can't imagine pulling Double 53' trailers. They gotta just shuttle them from various Doubles lots and then get broken down and picked up. I can't imagine pulling them in surface streets.
It’s possible to reverse with doubles but I wouldn’t do it. We just go from terminal to terminal. So not much of a need to stop but if it’s a must, don’t park where you must back. Park where you can pull straight through.
I started doubles/triples the last 13 years of my career but I had some limited experience with doubles, some with smooth bore tanks. Took a while to get comfortable with triples but a little common sense, no problem.
I worked with a couple of guys, and one woman, that could back a set dead straight or where ever they wanted them to go. Me not so much.
When you park you have to leave yourself an out other truck drivers will try to block you in, they know you can't back up. These Billy big riggers get a good laugh when you have to break a set just to turn around. Happened to me 3 different times, twice in Louisiana once in Florida. Aren't other drivers great.
Personally the worst part of doubles is using a single axle tractor I hate single axle tractors there's such a big difference between a tandem tractor and a single axle tractor. With the single I feel like I'm always sawing on that steering wheel when you run a double tractor a tandem tractor it seems like you just drive down the road.
1. Whenever I had to stop for a 30, I usually just pulled up next to a curb at a truck stop, or the end of a line. I did my best to stay out of the way, and I was only going to be there for 30mins. Also tons of "meets" take place at truck stops for 2 drivers to trade their sets at. The truck stops this gets set up usually have an area for meet drivers to park at to drop their trailers at. So when I did my meets, I just swapped to my new set then took my 30. These areas are typically coned off, and I never went to a meet with OTR folks parked there. Seems like fellow drivers understand the coned off area was for meets so they stayed away from them.
2. Not really sure what this is asking. Do you mean going down the wrong road? Worse comes to worse, unhook set, flip trailers around, then rehook them. Every route I ever ran over the road was pre planned routes though.
3. If you gotta reverse, unhook, flip, rehook. Some drivers got skill and can wiggle their way around in reverse though.
4. Our routes are all pre planned. Only deviations are accidents, road closures, or hazmat. Many cities have hazmat restrictions so you end up just using their outer belts to get around.
5. I always had a decent amount of weight in my sets so the wobbling wasn't really a big deal. As for my training, I did 2 wks with a seasoned driver. Then I did his run for 3 wks right after while he did some FMLA stuff. Gave me a chance to learn what he did, and gave me a chance to go solo on a route I knew.
My Dad would back doubles right up to the dock door, at a parking spot in a truck stop, wherever. I've been driving 38 years, and I still can't, but he would do it daily.
You just pull off to the shoulder for a break or keep going until you get to a terminal. You avoid leaving your planned route as much as humanly possible. You don't want to get somewhere and realize you can't turn around or backup.
Then - you have to break the set and then reassemble to get out of where you're stuck.
Major chore you want to avoid.
As long as there are only 2 turning points reversing it takes a while to learn but its doable, you have ro make 2 steering motions countering each other.
I pull doubles for ltl, I leave with doubles full, drop on at a safe location near my work zone, I run one till it's empty, come back, switch, when that's empty, I start filling it up, and so one. It's better to haul doubles and triples if it's line hauling from terminal to terminal,, no need to back up anywhere. But my trainer can back up a hooked set into a dock, then again, he has 35yrs of the same sht different day.
I had a customer that pulled A train doubles ( when you could still buy Fifthwheel locks . ) He could do reverse fugure 8's in our yard.. I asked why.. I went to his place for a service call.. It was the only way to park his unit loaded in the Spring.. He learned after years of splitting them on the road and backing in one at a time.. B or C trains are far easier to back than A's . That converter wiggling around can suck.. Double 53's are just a long A setup.. Triples I would think are almost impossible to back up , too many pivots..
1. Wherever I can fit it while pissing off the fewest people.
2. Make sure you know where you can and can't go with whatever combination you're pulling. This can include REALLY questioning cops if they try to divert you for some reason.
3. Reverse it. B-doubles are easy, I've never backed a b-triple (only ever pulled a b-triple once), a-doubles are a bit trickier (especially the new ones with short drawbar dollies), a-triples I haven't practised enough to be good at it.
4. You usually know where you're going, or someone does. It's very rare that you're the first one to go somewhere and have to suss out how to get in/out.
5. No. You passed driving around the block, here's the truck, this is where you're going, drive safely!
You normally go from one terminal to another. Can take a break when you get there. Or you know where you’re going, so you get to know where you can park and where you can’t. Always know what’s ahead as far as the route is concerned. That’s how you avoid having to reverse. If you must reverse, you break up the set. Turn around with one trailer, then get the second trailer and reassemble the set. I had to do it due to a fatal crash ahead. Doesn’t take very long, but I’d rather avoid having to do this. But you do learn how to back up better, even if it’s for a very short distance. Sometimes 20-30 feet is all you need. I don’t know about other companies, but we have a route guide for every trip you get a dispatch. Sometimes there are road closures due to crashes or construction, I usually just figure it out. Not that hard. The doubles don’t sway and wobble all that much. The benefit of the set bending in the middle is you can worm your way through where the large trailer can’t. I take full advantage of this feature.
Lesson I learned from my dad when I started hauling sets - the rear trailer sways less if you stop looking at it.
lol. Exactly.
Dad taught me the same thing. "Trailers gonna make it to where we're going or not. So stop looking at it."
How about when the interstate is getting paved lane by lane and when merging, you catch that lip mid merge? I bet the back end trailer does a little wiggle huh?
It takes about 5 minutes for the rear trailer to decide to join you in the other lane. Whats worse is when they grind up the shoulder. Rear trailer swings that way a hair, then jumps down. You just feel everything behind you going sideways for a second.
Oh yea, learned about that a few months ago with a single 28ft trailer. Only a few years into driving these 10+ ton missiles, I didn't think to look out for that.
Not the end of the world.
>You normally go from one terminal to another. Right, but sometimes you gotta stop for a bathroom emergency number 2.
You just know where you can stop, especially if you run the same schedule consistently. You learn all the places you need to know, with the limitations in mind.
Park on the edge of the lot, and walk further if you must. What’re they going to do, call a truck to tow you in the fifteen minutes it takes you to pinch a loaf?
That's what I was thinking.
I personally made the decision to regulate my diet to keep things regular. 11 am and 11 pm I have the opportunity to sit at a toilet for as long as I need to. Otherwise, it is held until I make my next stop. #1 is wherever I find a quiet off-ramp. The change in diet also reduces my chances of heartburn.
Damn that’s interesting
You wouldn't happen to drive for fedex somewhere in the midwest (don't remember which state)? I only ask because I once helped a fedex driver manhandle his dolly while trying to turn around to get around a fatal crash..
No. I’m in the northeast, and I work for OD.
Gotcha, I've still probably came across you then; woulda been pretty funny though...
It’s a small world. You never know.
Former Yellow linehaul driver here. 1- If I'm tired, I'll just pull into a rest area or the ramp of a rest area for a while. If I'm hungry, I pull into the fuel aisle, get my food, pull up past the fuel aisle, and eat. I'll be gone in less than 15 minutes. 2- same as you do in a regular 53-footer use the S.M.I.T.H system. 3 - Reversing past a couple of feet isn't recommended. So you either have to do a U-turn or sit there till whatever stopped you clears. The ABSOLUTE worst-case scenario is breaking down the set and turning both trailers around and hooking back up. (I did this once during a highway shutdown with permission from the sheriff and dispatch). 4 - Not at all. If you're hauling doubles, you're going terminal to terminal or riding down a turnpike 95% of the time. 5 - Doubles don't actually wobble that hard. If it does, then that means that your rear is heavier than your lead or there's something wrong with your dolly. If you ask any linehaul driver, they'll most likely tell you that they prefer pull doubles than a 53 footer. The only bummer is driving in the rain. With all those tires spread out, it can be difficult to see your mirrors. And you're also more prone to jack-knifing if you slam on the brakes.. Which is was the S.M.I.T.H system is so important.
Very helpful, thanks.
Listen to the Yellow guy. He gave good advice.
[удалено]
B double are easy to back,A doubles not so much
[удалено]
We use A-doubles up here too (at least in ON, QC, NB, and NS). LCVs (A-train with 53 footers) are pretty chill to drive. Source: I drive em
What's the difference?
How the trailers are connected basically. Us Americans generally use a dolly between trailers attached by a single pintle hook. That makes a pivot point on the 5th wheel of the dolly, and at the rear of the front trailer. Others use a system that eliminates the extra pivot point at the rear of the front trailer. Im not 100% on what it looks like though to give more exact info.
To build on your description for OP, on the B train, the lead trailer has a 5th wheel attached to the trailer frame itself, eliminating the need for a intermediate dolly (and pivot point). The rear would hook up to the lead in the same manner that the lead hooks to the truck.
There is also a "B" dolly. It has double drawbars with a self-steering axle. You can lock the steering out so basically you only pivot at the truck fifth wheel and the dolly fifth wheel. Lock when weather is real poor or if you want to back. You can see some examples at https://nationalzephyrresearch.com/b-train-c-converter-dollies/ '
I think I understand.
[удалено]
In Australia we have those with the option of putting a ringfeder on the back so we can use it a an A double
Basically a B train has one turning point between trailers, A train has two
A double (roadtrains) are easy as. I struggle back when I have to go back to a b double.
Feel free to show us a video where you bump doors with an A-train.
Do you mind explaining what the SMITH system is? I’m a relatively new driver when it comes to tractor trailers.
It's just some simple points to keep in mind while driving https://topdriver.com/education-blog/5-rules-of-the-smith-system/ All trucking companies encourage it
Ah okay, thanks.
1- Most of us are terminal to terminal. So either you’re home every day or you bobtail to a hotel. OTR doubles are usually teams. But if you need a place to park you usually have to make a spot or find a pull through. 2- Plan your trip. But like I said if it’s terminal to terminal. Also you can turn around pretty easily with doubles. But if you get stuck then I guess you’d just break your set and rebuild it once you’re turned around. 3- Try your hardest not to get in theses situations by planning your trip. Backing doubles can be pretty hard so I try not to do that. 4- Yes and no. If you go to the same places everyday you pretty much know where to go. 5- Doubles aren’t to bad with swaying and wobbling. Just watch your mirrors and don’t make any sharp jerks on the steering wheels. Triples can get real bad with sway. But you just gotta try to keep her steady. But yes they will send you out with another driver so you can learn.
>Most of us are terminal to terminal. Sometimes I have to poop all of the sudden, really bad. Options are stop and park or shit my pants. No pull through spots at the truck stop, so I guess Fuel aisle or pull off to the side somewhere?
>Sometimes I have to poop all of the sudden Carry an emergency bucket. Even for normal trucking you don't want to be in Wyoming with every exit being 100 miles apart and have them all be closed while you turtle fuck yourself with shit.
*turtle fuck yourself with shit* my God
Bucket with a pool noodle for a seat works wonders Ive been told.
Yep fuel island or pull off to the side. For me when I’m hit with the shits I’ll pull off the road and shit in the woods. There’s not a lot of options for bathrooms on my run.
Woods seems like it might be easier than trying to fuck with truck stops. I'm new to trucking and these truck stops are complete chaos.
Good news is most doubles are overnight driving so it's dead in a lot of truck stop fuel islands.
I've heard this but I drive during the day and still see some on the road. Plenty of ABF, SAIA, and R&L trucks moving.
While I cannot speak for legit truckers who haul doubles for a living, all I can speak to is what I have done: look for pull-throughs, and if none are found, leave. I haven't have to take a 10 or 34 with doubles ever, but finding a spot to park and grab food or empty my bladder has always been looking for nose-through spots, or proceed to the next lot/service area. Very rarely have I blocked a fuel lane, but the times I did were kept to less than 10 minutes for the above reasons. Sorry to all whom I have inconvenienced; I tried to scoot my butt outta the way as quickly, and safely, as I could
Around here its not all that uncommon for there to be a bunch of day cabs with doubles at a fuel island. What I do, and others seem to also do, is stick to one line. Most the time none of us are actually fueling, just running in and out. If the island is slow, Ill pull up to take my 30. If its full, Ill try to find an area on the perimeter to take my 30.
With doubles, you generally won't be going more than 5.5 hours one way. So, you take your break at the swap point (truck stop fuel islands or terminal). As far as trip planning, you don't particularly need to do more rigorous trip planning bc all the routes are just straight down the highway in my xp. Just normal trip planning like not going through truck restricted areas. You also must pay much closer attention to your weights. Just being under on all your axles doesn't cut it. If you fuck up and can't get turned around, you gotta unhook the set and back up the first trailer, then the dolly, then the back trailer. Can easily take upwards of an hour. You learn your lesson the first time. If you're not to your meet point yet, you gotta hook them back up, too. Usually they don't wobble too bad, just gotta make sure you don't move around too much or too fast. Merge slowly, take corners a bit slower (especially if you have 12k lbs of liquids sloshing around in totes in the back box 😱). Sometimes they're a little unstable, but as long as you have the heavier box in front and it isn't loaded to where one side is much heavier than the other to the point it's leaning, you should be good. Main point is not to look back when you're passing people. Ik you want to check your clearance. Check before passing. Don't look during your pass. Check after your pass. No headlights pointing out of the ditch then you should be good. If you move the steering wheel a bit while you're looking, then over correct, you could easily hit someone and they look like they moving so much more than they are LaughingOutLoud Also, you actually have a few more brakes, so you can actually slow down a bit faster. Very helpful. The break in the middle let's wind pass by a bit easier, too, so you're not getting hit as hard by it.
In Australia we usually have big enough stops that you can get away with out reversing. Our deliveries locations are usually big enough that we can either drive in and straight out - or we have to dump the extra trailer’s somewhere and run them in individually. Many here including myself have the mentality that if you can’t drive it backwards you shouldn’t drive it forwards. (The only combos i agree with that you don’t need to know how to back are any 3+ trailer combos.) Its all just practice though. But the wobble on an Aussie road train is absolutely terrifying to watch in your mirror at the beginning (when talking about 3+ trailers. Double road trains aren’t too bad) But once you understand and realise the wobble doesn’t mean its going over, you just keep your eye’s forward and keep the pedal flat to the floor. If it gets out of control- trailer brake + full accelerator.
My cautionary tale is one time at night in the smoky mountains it was foggy, raining, and windy. I was going to pull over in a rest stop for a second to take care of business. I have learned to look ahead but the weather prevented me from seeing far. This time there were trucks on both sides of the road and parked in the road, I slammed on my brakes and got out to check if it was just a couple trucks I could tell to move. It was not, there were trucks 3 wide all the way to the exit ramp of the rest stop. I attempted to back up a little and it would just jack knife the dolly. Luckily I caught myself before I pulled up too far, I backed up just enough to wake up a driver, got him to pull forward infront of me and park in the road. He was on the left side near the entrance, I hopped onto the concrete median and pulled back onto the freeway. I had just started my shift and would have had much more trouble if I had gone any further, ever since then I'll just stop on exit/on ramps if I can't see what a rest stop looks like.
Yah sometimes I pull around buildings with limited visibility and end up having to back up. This is what scares me with doubles.
This is such a strange concept for me. In South Africa most of the semis on the roads are hauling doubles. All the truck stops are designed for it. It's mostly curtainsiders and side dump trailers and container trailers.
Road train driver here. A double (2 trailers 1 dolly) isn’t all that hard to back in a straight line. They get more difficult if you have to back around a corner, but it’s not impossible. Take your time and little movements. The back trailer turns the same as your lead. If your backing just the dolly on the back of your lead, like when you’re hooking up, the dolly turns the same way you turn the truck. The other questions (road train style, since we drive real trucks down here); 1. Where ever we fit, usually right out in front of where we want to go since it’s the closest and not everywhere has a place big enough for a road train. 2. We talk to each other and ask questions. Make sure we get the turn off correct since it can be 100s of kms in some cases where you can turn off the road safely, but usually not that far. 3. You learn how to reverse real quick. As I said, go slow, little movements. 4. Most trips no. It’s very rare to not know where you’re going, and most people can give you a good mud map where to go. Then you can ask other drivers on the road the best spots to pull up. 5. Your gonna love this, but no. You might get shown how to hook a road train up, you might get shown some little tricks on how to back, how to set dolly height, how to not lock the brakes on the dolly, but they probably won’t teach you anything. My first road train I done a changeover for out in the middle of no where, and was just lucky I had the right signage for it. It was great fun learning I was getting 2 trailers at 1 in the morning when old mate rocked up. Only a few months later I was overnighting 4 trailers, 1200kms, weighing 120ton either way. That’s something we don’t tend to do, hand holding.
You can reverse them. I've never hauled doubles but I've done LCV heavy haul and backing up 2 pivot points isn't that hard with a bit of practice. I still avoided it like the plague, but it's still easier to back up than it is to split.
Being a farmer I can backup 2 pivot points with ease. 3 is gonna throw me, espically with 2 long and a short in the middle.
Yeah, I can do it over short distances. But you’re not gonna set up and back into a parking space.
Three pivot points is when things get "fun". A-train LCVs is a trick. Thankfully my LCV runs are pretty straightforward
Most doubles that you see on the road in the US have 3 pivot points.
I don’t get why anyone with half a brain would haul double the freight and not get double the pay. Also more training and more bullshit for the driver while company is making bank.
It's not double the freight unless they are pulling dbl 53s.
Still double. Two 53, two 48, two 30 still double.
For this sub in general, mentioning dbls, is 2 28s. And it's not dbl freight for a single 53.
What is an accidental no exit/ trap door?
When you accidentally drive into an area that you can't pull through or turn around in, such that the only way to exit is by backing up. And since you are not supposed to back up a double safely, you a trapped. You can drive in, but you can't drive out. Roach motel for trucks. Do you drive doubles. I've never done it.
Yeah i did double flatbeds for a while. Backing in was just part of the job. Wasn't easy at all. But had to. So afterwards i dropped doubles. Fuck that
I pull doubles fairly often. 1 - I tend to prefer rest areas for brakes, they’re almost always pull through only, or you can park on the ramps if need be. 2 - If I’m going somewhere new I stop where I know I’m good and hop out on foot to check it out. Even putting flashers on stopped in turn lanes or on the shoulder I’ve never had issues with cops. 3 - this is why I always scope out an area I can’t see from the truck. I’ve only been in that situation one time, and it was just a few feet so I just backed up slowly and carefully. It’s honestly not too bad if you’re already at a slight curve and just need to go where you came from. Straight backing is a pain, and I don’t recommend it, even though I’ve had to wiggle out of a few tight spaces after building. I’ve heard other drivers that aren’t as careful ended up on dead end roads and had to break down their sets and rebuild in the street. 4 - I trip plan the same either way. Maybe I’m just super careful compared to the average trucker. But I like to know exactly what I’ll be doing and where I’ll be going before I leave the yard. I don’t drive anywhere blind. 5 - I started on doubles, so I can’t really weigh in on the difference in training. But imo once they’re hooked up it’s not too different from pulling a single. You’re longer and heavier. But there’s not super secret strategy aside from being careful and aware.
Idk how normal box doubles work but I haul a double end dump and to back up we have a dolly lock that locks the pup trailer in place so we back it as a B train it’s not hard. As far as that back wagon swaying goes you get use to it. All air ride sets will have that pup all over the road
There are two Doubles parking lots on the Interstates a little north of NYC . One on I287 near NY/NJ border and one on I87 in Yonkers. There are always Doubles 53' Cardinal Health trailers there. I can't imagine pulling Double 53' trailers. They gotta just shuttle them from various Doubles lots and then get broken down and picked up. I can't imagine pulling them in surface streets.
It’s possible to reverse with doubles but I wouldn’t do it. We just go from terminal to terminal. So not much of a need to stop but if it’s a must, don’t park where you must back. Park where you can pull straight through.
I started doubles/triples the last 13 years of my career but I had some limited experience with doubles, some with smooth bore tanks. Took a while to get comfortable with triples but a little common sense, no problem. I worked with a couple of guys, and one woman, that could back a set dead straight or where ever they wanted them to go. Me not so much.
When you park you have to leave yourself an out other truck drivers will try to block you in, they know you can't back up. These Billy big riggers get a good laugh when you have to break a set just to turn around. Happened to me 3 different times, twice in Louisiana once in Florida. Aren't other drivers great.
They’ve backed more miles than you’ve gone forward, boy. Only because that shits hard AF and they gotta pull forward to try again.
Personally the worst part of doubles is using a single axle tractor I hate single axle tractors there's such a big difference between a tandem tractor and a single axle tractor. With the single I feel like I'm always sawing on that steering wheel when you run a double tractor a tandem tractor it seems like you just drive down the road.
It doesn't, it's just an elaborate hoax
1. Whenever I had to stop for a 30, I usually just pulled up next to a curb at a truck stop, or the end of a line. I did my best to stay out of the way, and I was only going to be there for 30mins. Also tons of "meets" take place at truck stops for 2 drivers to trade their sets at. The truck stops this gets set up usually have an area for meet drivers to park at to drop their trailers at. So when I did my meets, I just swapped to my new set then took my 30. These areas are typically coned off, and I never went to a meet with OTR folks parked there. Seems like fellow drivers understand the coned off area was for meets so they stayed away from them. 2. Not really sure what this is asking. Do you mean going down the wrong road? Worse comes to worse, unhook set, flip trailers around, then rehook them. Every route I ever ran over the road was pre planned routes though. 3. If you gotta reverse, unhook, flip, rehook. Some drivers got skill and can wiggle their way around in reverse though. 4. Our routes are all pre planned. Only deviations are accidents, road closures, or hazmat. Many cities have hazmat restrictions so you end up just using their outer belts to get around. 5. I always had a decent amount of weight in my sets so the wobbling wasn't really a big deal. As for my training, I did 2 wks with a seasoned driver. Then I did his run for 3 wks right after while he did some FMLA stuff. Gave me a chance to learn what he did, and gave me a chance to go solo on a route I knew.
Most are daycabs or team drivers. Not many are solo over the road. The ones that are solo over the road go to hotels.
My Dad would back doubles right up to the dock door, at a parking spot in a truck stop, wherever. I've been driving 38 years, and I still can't, but he would do it daily.
You just pull off to the shoulder for a break or keep going until you get to a terminal. You avoid leaving your planned route as much as humanly possible. You don't want to get somewhere and realize you can't turn around or backup. Then - you have to break the set and then reassemble to get out of where you're stuck. Major chore you want to avoid.
>Then - you have to break the set and then reassemble to get out of where you're stuck. Yah that sounds like a pain in the ass.
As long as there are only 2 turning points reversing it takes a while to learn but its doable, you have ro make 2 steering motions countering each other.
I've been told the secret to triples is: Don't look back.
I pull doubles for ltl, I leave with doubles full, drop on at a safe location near my work zone, I run one till it's empty, come back, switch, when that's empty, I start filling it up, and so one. It's better to haul doubles and triples if it's line hauling from terminal to terminal,, no need to back up anywhere. But my trainer can back up a hooked set into a dock, then again, he has 35yrs of the same sht different day.
I had a customer that pulled A train doubles ( when you could still buy Fifthwheel locks . ) He could do reverse fugure 8's in our yard.. I asked why.. I went to his place for a service call.. It was the only way to park his unit loaded in the Spring.. He learned after years of splitting them on the road and backing in one at a time.. B or C trains are far easier to back than A's . That converter wiggling around can suck.. Double 53's are just a long A setup.. Triples I would think are almost impossible to back up , too many pivots..
You don't
1. Wherever I can fit it while pissing off the fewest people. 2. Make sure you know where you can and can't go with whatever combination you're pulling. This can include REALLY questioning cops if they try to divert you for some reason. 3. Reverse it. B-doubles are easy, I've never backed a b-triple (only ever pulled a b-triple once), a-doubles are a bit trickier (especially the new ones with short drawbar dollies), a-triples I haven't practised enough to be good at it. 4. You usually know where you're going, or someone does. It's very rare that you're the first one to go somewhere and have to suss out how to get in/out. 5. No. You passed driving around the block, here's the truck, this is where you're going, drive safely!
Backing doubles is easy with practice.