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Who has their CDL?

Yep
no disclaimer needed , right?
I'm from the prk, caint get no worse.
love the " it's this way" guys.
kinda like the electrical thread...
 
PAToyota said:
So, what experiences have people had with the skills test portion? Anything to share about things to keep in mind?
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I have a class A CDL with a passenger edorsement ive had a cdl for 10 years. I actually taking a tanker endorsement on friday

Ive taken the CDL test twice and twice i failed. First company i worked at that required a cdl, required a B and provided a B license vehicle. Second required a A and i had to do a pretrip and drive for the A.

I fuckin failed my pretrip once both times i tested, im a mechanic by trade so it was...embarassing.

First time i didnt chock the tires during the air brake portion of the test

Second time i said the gap was good on the 5th wheel :lmao: both times i drove after the pretrip not knowing i had already failed, passed my drive portion and had to come back and do the pretrip.

They are going to ask you about bridge heights or what did that super obscure sign say, where i test at they take you down a 4 lane county road and there is a stop sign right before going under a bridge whre they make you hang a left to get on the highway.

At the stop sign the road reduces to 2 lanes but only after the sign, where the outer right lane is turn only. If your cruising in the right lane and dont catch the right turn only sign and you switch lanes after it become a solid white line..you fail.

probably going to have you stop and then ask you what triangles you need to put out and where...hope you remember what the speed is on the road.

From what i understand CDL's have gotten easier since i got mine but its still a bitch and most people dont pass the first time.

As for OP in my state (oklahoma) you can get a cdl class A in a pickup, its the hotshot A. You take a combination and general knowledge written test. drive and pretrip hands on. When i took my A they had just removed the ability to Test for a hotshot A and then come back and take a written airbrake that would upgrade your hotshot A to Class 8 A. That may still be the case in your area.

also in my state a 1 ton plus a trailer capable of over 10k lbs is CDL for commercial purposes other than agricultural. But my state is weird my company has a f600 that has air brakes..that is non cdl

My state has also been a real stickler about axle weights on light duty pickups here recently. For example i drive a 19 f550, my combined max weight is 40k But i cant tow a trailer because my rear axle is at max weight..is under single vehicle weight (19,500) but its like 20 lbs from being over on rear axle..
 
grumpy356 said:
So I have thought about this, but honestly, I don't want a job, or license that requires a drug test.

If I want to smoke before bed one night, or even every night, It's NOBODY's business.
( I am not some burn out stoner or anything, I just don't want to take the stupid test)

So with that said, is a class B or a class A license out of the question?
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No unless you get into a accident BUT.

There is a lot of things that DOT wont allow you to take...most medications arnt allowed most over the counter stuff isnt allowed. My state and most states ive looked into the list they point to is the FAA allowed list.

edit:

https://www.leftseat.com/faa-accepted-medications/

https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/avs/offices/aam/ame/guide/pharm/dni_dnf/
 
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A_G said:
Ive taken the CDL test twice and twice i failed. First company i worked at that required a cdl, required a B and provided a B license vehicle. Second required a A and i had to do a pretrip and drive for the A.

[...]
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Thank you, that's exactly the kind of advice I'm looking for.

If I understand correctly, they're saying that if you fail the pre-trip, you fail the whole skills portion and have to take the whole portion over again - pre-trip and driving. That would royally suck...

Watching other "drivers" out there, I keep telling myself that it couldn't possibly be that difficult if all those yahoos were able to pass...
 
pretrip is a piece of cake - a 7 year old can learn it.

Hardest part is learninf to bacj a trailer - if you cna do that, youd have to be lazy SOB not to pass the test.

p.s. I train guys in CA.
 
ridenby said:
Pre trip is detail. Drive like you are being tested, not going somewhere. Rote memory is what is wanted. Zero free thought.
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That's how it was with my Architectural Registration Exam. For the design portion, everyone said to not think about design or anything about an actual building, just do exactly what was requested. I failed it on the first try (the only portion of the nine exams I failed) because I put too much thought into it. The second time I just did exactly what was requested - they want a bathroom beside this office - done; they want one exit from this room even though two would make more sense (but not required by code) - give them one exit; putting these rooms where they want them creates this weird, long, winding hall - just do it; etc... Aced the exam the second time.
 
So, any input on driving a manual? I can float gears, but I'm hearing that you're required to double clutch for the test. That's somewhat kicking my butt at the moment.
 
PAToyota said:
So, any input on driving a manual? I can float gears, but I'm hearing that you're required to double clutch for the test. That's somewhat kicking my butt at the moment.
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On my test (2016) they wanted to see that you were able to double-clutch, but you were allowed to shift as you like for the rest of the road test. Mis-shifts were a few demerits either way.
 
PAToyota said:
So, any input on driving a manual? I can float gears, but I'm hearing that you're required to double clutch for the test. That's somewhat kicking my butt at the moment.
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Dont shift while in an intersection. Buddy of mine failed for doing that
 
Depending on what state you're in, I'm in NY, they give you a book to study for your permit, then in the back of that book they actually list all the shit they grade you on while driving. I see some talk of when and when not to shift, basically anytime that you need to clear something, ie an intersection or railroad tracks, dont shift, run it out in whatever gear you're in.

In my world, we really don't gota worry much about that shit anymore since most trucks are automatic now. But I did take my test in a 6 speed truck with a trailer. The shits a breeze anymore. All ya gota do is go on YouTube to see what ya gota do, or dont do. Most people fear the pretrip exam and rightfully so. Theres a lot of shit to cover that the examiner grades you on, but if you ramble on through it like you know what you're talking about, they generally push you through the pretrip. Again, if one needs to know the best way to go through a pretrip, youtube that shit.
 
montrose818 said:
pretrip is a piece of cake - a 7 year old can learn it.

Hardest part is learninf to bacj a trailer - if you cna do that, youd have to be lazy SOB not to pass the test.

p.s. I train guys in CA.
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Ummmmm
:flipoff2:
You spell like :rolleyes:

edit
 
PAToyota said:
I've heard the don't shift in intersections - and while turning.
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when i took both mine that was the case....when my coworker (last 6 months or so) took his youcould shift in intersections only while traveling straight.


I was supposed to double clutch but i floated and made foot movements :lmao:
 
Shifting on railroad tracks is a big no no, as is having any part of your truck or trailer parked on them while waiting for a stop light or something else. Also if taking the test with a lowboy be aware of any railroad tracks and don't be afraid to tell the tester "No" if your trailer won't clear them.
 
I didn't read the thread but I have a warehouse guy looking to get his and knows a place that'll help you pass for 2200 bucks. They cater to people that don't speak English and set you up with an earpiece to translate questions (and answers)...

Sounded shady but if you've got shit to move shit around...
 
shortbus4x4 said:
Shifting on railroad tracks is a big no no, as is having any part of your truck or trailer parked on them while waiting for a stop light or something else. Also if taking the test with a lowboy be aware of any railroad tracks and don't be afraid to tell the tester "No" if your trailer won't clear them.
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Also the tester prefers "no" to "I'm gonna hit it at 55 so we have enough momentum to clear it if we high center" :laughing:
 
Rustyheep said:
In my world, we really don't gota worry much about that shit anymore since most trucks are automatic now. But I did take my test in a 6 speed truck with a trailer.
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Can't pull that stunt up here.

Automatic will get you a restricted automatic-only license. Also need to road test in a 3-axle-minimum truck with an air-brake trailer in tow to get the top license.
 
PAToyota said:
So, any input on driving a manual? I can float gears, but I'm hearing that you're required to double clutch for the test. That's somewhat kicking my butt at the moment.
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I wasn't required to double clutch, nor has anyone I know of been required to do it here in eastern NC, and the people I've helped train have gone to several different DMV offices to do the test, depending on when they could schedule the test.
 
Baconator said:
Dont shift while in an intersection. Buddy of mine failed for doing that
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True. and don't pop it out of gear or push the clutch in and basically coast up to a stop sign while braking. if you coast more than a truck length you fail. Trust me, even from high range high gear, just brake and don't hit the clutch until she's about to choke off. By then you're slow enough you won't coast too far. Don't worry about downshifting to the stop sign unless you've got that much practice in. Just hover foot over the clutch, hit the brakes and slow down from whatever gear you're in, and by the time it's bogging down you're good to hit the clutch and go on and stop.
 
shortbus4x4 said:
Shifting on railroad tracks is a big no no, as is having any part of your truck or trailer parked on them while waiting for a stop light or something else. Also if taking the test with a lowboy be aware of any railroad tracks and don't be afraid to tell the tester "No" if your trailer won't clear them.
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On second thought, I know that one is true, not positive on the shifting through an intersection, because some trucks are geared so low you'd be creeping. Check the book for that one. But do not shift on a rail road track for sure.
 
Drummer79 said:
On second thought, I know that one is true, not positive on the shifting through an intersection, because some trucks are geared so low you'd be creeping. Check the book for that one. But do not shift on a rail road track for sure.
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What I was told to do was keep enough distance between the truck/intersection that you can get into 3/4 gear before arriving into the intersection and just hold it until the entire truck/trailer clears.
 
Baconator said:
What I was told to do was keep enough distance between the truck/intersection that you can get into 3/4 gear before arriving into the intersection and just hold it until the entire truck/trailer clears.
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That makes sense and may be true. it's been 20 years since my driving test lol
 
I floated gears on my drive test. I told the tester I wasn't great at double clutching as you can't double clutch the dump truck I usually drive. He said he didn't care how I shifted.
 
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