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Scale House Question

arkjarhead

arkjarhead

Veteran Expediter
Ok little background info. I started a job last night driving a little sweeper truck. Before you go giving me a hard time about that I'll say this lol. It's a decent paying job that allows me to attend college classes. Back on topic, I'm driving this little Iszuzu cabover 6-wheelers. It's like an NPR 300 or something. Part of the route is in Arkansas the other part is in Tennessee. My question is this, when I'm coming back into Arkansas on I-55 (old bridge) and that scale house is open do I have to pull in? The guy that was training me said no, but it sure didn't feel right blowing by that thing, not that I want to pull in there I just don't want a ticket if some DOT man decides to be an idiot, know what I mean?

EDITED for language by OVM
 
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Slacktide

Slacktide

Seasoned Expediter
I would have to say yes you are required if it is registered as a commercial vehicle. Best bet is pull in and ask and get the officers name you seak to. Better safe than sorry.
As a side note, good for you for bettering your situation. Anyone that gives you flack about what you drive is just silly, hey at least you have a job and not riding the government free train... :)
Posted with my Droid EO Forum App
 
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xiggi

xiggi

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Whats the GVW on the truck? I know a guy in Indiana who owns a couple of sweeper trucks, they do very well with them. In the winter they change over to plowing snow with about 60 contractors signed on. In a winter with much snow they make a killing. Smart move doing something that allows you to go to school
 
chefdennis

chefdennis

Veteran Expediter
Most of those sweeper trucks are 10,000 lb gvw or under...so it gets to xiggi's question, whats the gvw?...look at the drivers door jam for the tag...my bet is you don't need to stop..

As forget about the flack from anyone...do what you have to do to allow you to get that education...you are to be congratulated for that...not given flack....
 
P

Poorboy

Expert Expediter
A year or two back I took a bucket truck like the kind that the edison uses but just a little smaller, from Toledo to Washington State. At first I started going through the scales but soon got disgruntled and pulled into one and asked the scale master! I gave him my gross and was told that it was too light and I didn't have to go to the scales and to just bypass them! I blew by a couple then I got stopped in Utah by a State Trooper as he "Thought" that with my gross weight I was supposed to cross the scales. I gave him the name of the Scale master and the state that told me that I didn't have to cross. He called someone, I can only think one of their scales and they told him the same thing. He apologized and actually bought me some coffee at the next truck stop! :D
 
Brisco

Brisco

Expert Expediter
Don't even bother stopping........

DOT Enforcers at Scalehouses could care less about "local service" companies, such as a street sweeping company that services their immediate areaE, even if it is across a state line.

Take Texarkana, Kansas City, and St Louis as an example. There are local "Service Companies" (Bobs Plumbing, DoodDads Local Delivery Service, UPS and FedEx both, etc) that are running back and forth all day long across the state line and past the scalehouses that never stop and the Troopers never go after them either.

The Guy training you said "No", and that should be a good enough answer for ya. Remember, you're in a whole different line of work now. No reason to be putting your knowledge of OTR running towards this little "Job" you have now. Don't try to make a simple little job complicated, know what I mean.
 
Fr8 Shaker

Fr8 Shaker

Veteran Expediter
Yeah I would just blow by it and if they come after you just tell him what the guy your working for told you and tell them if they don't give you a ticket you sweep their lot next time through.
 
Moot

Moot

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
chefdennis said:
As forget about the flack from anyone...do what you have to do to allow you to get that education...you are to be congratulated for that...not given flack....
Click to expand...

I'll give him flack. Where have you been hiding Joe? Nice of you to check in every couple of years.

I'm with Ziggi. Check the GVWR and it couldn't hurt to stop by the scale with some donunts. Is it the Pelican type sweeper that holds the sweepings?

Nice to meet you Dennis. I stopped by for dinner and nobody was home. Went to the Subway and ate in my van. I gotta blast by 20:00 to pick up a load on the south end. It's ready now but I'm waiting on 5 hours and traffic to loosen up.
 
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Brisco

Brisco

Expert Expediter
Fr8 Shaker said:
Yeah I would just blow by it and if they come after you just tell him what the guy your working for told you and tell them if they don't give you a ticket you sweep their lot next time through.
Click to expand...
I'm with Ziggi. Check the GVWR and it couldn't hurt to stop by the scale with some donunts.
Click to expand...


Ya know....if the guy that was training him, or even the company he is working for, had had ANY problems just "driving past" and not stopping at the scalehouses, don't you think they would have covered this issue in his training, or even before he even left on that particular route that goes down that highway and past that scalehouse???

Just about everybody here has to "Live" by DOT and FMSCA rules and regs. (Except you vanners of course) Just because you have to "Live" by those rules, it doesn't mean every swinging driver behind the wheel of a truck has to.

Again, fly right past it. I'm quite sure the guys at that scalehouse has seen that truck go by more than once in the past, and probably have never had a second thought as to whether it was abiding by all DOT rules and regs or not. They could care less about Steve the Street Sweeper and his Sweet Swinging Street Sweeping Sled.:D
 
mcavoy33

mcavoy33

Seasoned Expediter
Moot said:
I'm with Ziggi. Check the GVWR and it couldn't hurt to stop by the scale with some donunts. Is it the Pelican type sweeper that holds the sweepings?
Click to expand...

This is actually some pretty awesome advice. Nothing like being proactive.
 
Jefferson3000

Jefferson3000

Expert Expediter
Moot said:
I'll give him flack. Where have you been hiding Joe? Nice of you to check in every couple of years.

I'm with Ziggi. Check the GVWR and it couldn't hurt to stop by the scale with some donunts. Is it the Pelican type sweeper that holds the sweepings?

Nice to meet you Dennis. I stopped by for dinner and nobody was home. Went to the Subway and ate in my van. I gotta blast by 20:00 to pick up a load on the south end. It's ready now but I'm waiting on 5 hours and traffic to loosen up.
Click to expand...

Mooty,

I take it your van turned out ok?
 
Moot

Moot

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Jefferson3000 said:
Mooty,

I take it your van turned out ok?
Click to expand...

Yeah, the day after I talked to you my mechanic called with the good news/bad news thing. The good news was the problem was a bad gasket and O-ring. The bad news, according to him was, I wouldn't being buying a new van just yet. $500 and I'm rolling again.
 
Dakota

Dakota

Veteran Expediter
Why would everyone give you flack about taking a steady job?
I just gor finished with two weeks of training for my new career(actually my old career that I left to get into trucking)
 
cheri1122

cheri1122

Veteran Expediter
Driver
Dakota said:
Why would everyone give you flack about taking a steady job?

Just because we know him, and you know that's what passes for affection from guys. :D

 I just gor finished with two weeks of training for my new career(actually my old career that I left to get into trucking)

What's the old/new career?
Click to expand...
 
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