Sprinter, straight truck, money, questions

[mojoblues]

I am thinking about going the expedite route. I like time off in between runs so it does not bother me to be on the road and sitting for a while .. Also the idea of a smaller truck seems a bit more relaxed to me.

I have been driving 53 foot semis for about 3 years and made some good money.
I just inherited a few bucks and want to buy a truck. right now I'm tossing the idea of buying a regular tractor trailer or a straight truck with sleeper or even a Sprinter. Paying cash for a truck is no problem for me I have enough ... I am actually semi retired
I'm used to driving a lot. 500-700 miles a day is common for me. LTL too.
I know I can hack the lifestyle. So thats not an issue.
some questions
how much money can I make doing Expedite. 3 weeks on 1 week off sounds great to me
Im willing to do that.

Sprinter $$?
Straight truck with sleeper $$?..seems this should be more money right?

I do like the south and southwest the best. But I have been driving in NY city many times too. I live in Chicago but want to move to Florida or Arizona...toss up right now
Is it possible to run the mainly the Southwest, Texas, Arizona, California, Nevada, Florida etc and still get enough Expedite loads. I will be willing to travel just about anywhere but I prefer those areas..I've seen lot of Sprinters and Straight trucks with sleepers in the south and west truck stops
I know I can get loads to 48 states with a 53 foot trailer

should I buy a 170" Sprinter? Pro - No weight stations or logs books sound great to me
or
should I but a straight truck with a sleeper?
what will make me more money?
Im used to making anywhere from 800 to 1500 a week but Im willing to work less for somethig im happy with
I like that fact its easier to park these kind of trucks too.
Im just wondering if the money will be good enough
can any one tell me the pros and cons of these 2 types of trucks. Money and areas of driving is my main concern. Most Expediting companies say the eastern half of the US is the main areas
But I ve seen a lot of expedite trucks at truck stops out west

what are some of the best expedite companies to work for
I talked to Express-1 and they seem good.

any help on this would be great
Thanks

 

[moose]

I have being in your shoe only a few years back .
i spanned 6 full weeks doing nothing but researching .
and a lot of read here on the forum .
then asking questions .
do the same !

after doing very well for more then a few years as a big truck owner , i have expected to do close to that in Expedite .
did not happened .
not remotely close .
i have also yet to find one solo expediter that did .

if you where doing well on a T/T , continue to do that , it is what you are good at ,
Expedite is not trucking !

you do not say if you own your own business / truck before .
you got to have business skills before entering expedite .

expedite is catering for teams for the most part .

it is most likely that most of the trucks you see out west are team drivers .

it will be very hard to make any scaduall home time doing this line of work .

you do not choose where to go , you take the more profitable loads , if need - relocate , and take the next good load .
this is a 'per load' industry , for the most part.

the good news is that you can get a free training , by driving for an Owner first .
set your self some goals , and a time line .
and don't buy a truck , until you are absolutely know the industry inside out .
Good luck.

 

[jaminjim]

Moose pretty much hit the nail on the head. Don't be in any hurry to buy a straight truck or sprinter. Learn on someone else's dime. Times are very tight right now, even more so as a solo. Stay in a semi for awhile..

 

[moose]

More like hit the Head on the Nail ...

 

[jj214]

running as a single is for those retired and drawing another income. I have been running as a single in a cargo van for 20 years. You will never get rich.

 

[layoutshooter]

Run for a owner for awhile, learn this on his dime, not yours. There are plenty of good owners out there and some even are willing to put on solo drivers.

 

[CharlesD]

I run a Sprinter as a solo, and I have a straight truck team team leased on. Last week was kind of a fluke where I ran more miles than they did, but most of the time I can get a load for that straight, just about anywhere in the country, faster than I can get a load for myself. I burn half the fuel that truck does, I pay the same monthly payment the owner of that truck does, and that truck generally is easier to get loads for.

There are quite a few other things to consider as well. The Sprinter does better on fuel, so that might seem like a big savings, but over the long haul, the truck is going to have more load opportunities. On the other hand, yesterday I was bidding like crazy to try to move that truck out of PA and most of the freight showing up was van freight that I couldn't get enough money on to put in that truck. I could have moved my Sprinter out of there a lot quicker yesterday. You have to weigh a lot of things, but I'd say that the real money maker here is a straight with a team. Last week, that truck did 6 loads in 8 days. 2 of those loads were over 800 miles with a time frame that a solo could not have done legally, so they required a team. The other loads could be done by a solo, but those two loads were worth over $1500 extra revenue to that truck over that period. That's nothing to sneeze at.

 

[moose]

When the time come for you to hang the keys and do an office job ,
call me , I'll lease my truck with you ...

 

[CharlesD]

When the time come for you to hang the keys and do an office job ,
call me , I'll lease my truck with you ...

Right place, right time. We had a bit of luck last week. Every time that truck dropped out, there was another load within hours. A solo could not have done that because of HOS.

 

[spacer]

One other thing you may want to think about, and something that's caused me a bit of grief lately: If you duck out of TT driving for two or three years, and you decide to get back into it, there may be some insurance issues.
Insurance policies for most companies I've talked to so far require a certain level of tractor trailer experience within the last two or three years, and many of the companies which will take 'new' drivers aren't always the best to work for.
Certain "starter" companies have picked up a gnarly reputation.