wayneygogo
Seasoned Expediter
I know in construction I have used laser thermometer and laser distance, just point the laser beam at the object and it gives you a digital readout
Judging height
- Thread starter MikeDamone
- Start date
MikeDamone , you'll probably be just fine out there. At least you are concerned about it now, many new drivers won't look up to check clearances until AFTER they hit their first low clearance object. I'm glad to see you have thought about it.
Power lines I wouldn't be too concerned with I think most of them have to be at least 16ft higg. Most bridges are marked, of course placement of these signs are sometimes right when you get up to the bridge. I find that most people use non trucking gps and that's where some of the problems lie. If when you come up to the bridge and no sign look for truck roures or just where your at. I always tell people if your unsure ask a local business.
Glad you brought that up, Tdave, that's something else I was wondering about. So they make trucker specific gps? Do they give you routes that avoid really thin roads or low hanging objects?
There's an app for that. Seriously, they make rangefinder and height (and width) apps. How accurate they are depends on you.
But many rangefinders for the golf course can be used to measure height. They rangefinder just needs a tilt axis or angle measurement. Cheap rangefinders (most of them) are strictly distance. But some can measure the angles or laser reflection to give you height.
If you want to know...
How tall is that tree?
At what height in the tree is that nest?
How far away is that building?
How tall is that building?
How far is that deer?
What is the angle of that slope?
How high is that cliff?
How long is that bridge?
How far above the water is that bridge?
How close can I get to that wild animal?
Then you need a good rangefinder in the $300-$500 range. The Nikon Forestry Pro is a good one. I don't carry it with me in the truck, although there have been a few times I wish I had it. It's $350 at Amazon. I bought it specifically to measure tree heights and vegetation heights above power lines when we lived out in the county. I have found it to be accurate to within about 6 inches for most things regarding height. That's about 35 feet from the base of the target. The father out you are the less accurate it is. Measuring a tree at 500 yards out, the height will be accurate to within a foot, at least. If you need accuracy within an inch or two, then you'll need a far more pricier TruPulse 200x model, or something like that. But there are a lot of $150 golf range finders that will also do height. The only thing will be accuracy when it comes to trucks and bridges.
But many rangefinders for the golf course can be used to measure height. They rangefinder just needs a tilt axis or angle measurement. Cheap rangefinders (most of them) are strictly distance. But some can measure the angles or laser reflection to give you height.
If you want to know...
How tall is that tree?
At what height in the tree is that nest?
How far away is that building?
How tall is that building?
How far is that deer?
What is the angle of that slope?
How high is that cliff?
How long is that bridge?
How far above the water is that bridge?
How close can I get to that wild animal?
Then you need a good rangefinder in the $300-$500 range. The Nikon Forestry Pro is a good one. I don't carry it with me in the truck, although there have been a few times I wish I had it. It's $350 at Amazon. I bought it specifically to measure tree heights and vegetation heights above power lines when we lived out in the county. I have found it to be accurate to within about 6 inches for most things regarding height. That's about 35 feet from the base of the target. The father out you are the less accurate it is. Measuring a tree at 500 yards out, the height will be accurate to within a foot, at least. If you need accuracy within an inch or two, then you'll need a far more pricier TruPulse 200x model, or something like that. But there are a lot of $150 golf range finders that will also do height. The only thing will be accuracy when it comes to trucks and bridges.
Yeah they make truck specific gps, you just have to know your weight if the truck and your height and enter that into the gps settings.
Well yes and no on the second part of your question. As long as your settings are right and as long as the road is rated for your truck it will route you on the road. I found sometimes that yes the road can handle my truck it still might not be wise to drive on it. I have been on some pretty narrow roads before. I still look at the road atlas before I leave but sometimes you can't tell. As long as I have the correct height I almost never run into a low clearances. I still pay attention to signs which is still a wise choice IMO.
Slo-Ride
Veteran Expediter
All joking aside.. Its best to be concerned with tree branches and wires regardless if where they are suppose to be and at what height.. Trees will knock that roof off as fast as any bridge will at 30mph.. Ya pull a wire out of someone's house and you may find out that the height of it didn't matter as their house burns. Now let's talk about the awning at your local speedway. Not all of them will accept a truck 
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Now let's talk about the awning at your local speedway. Not all of them will accept a truck
. Now let's talk about the awning at your local speedway. Not all of them will accept a truck
Haha, speaking from experience?