Whats wrong with truckers?

gunner3006

Active VIP Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2014
Messages
11,835
Reaction score
10,091
Location
grande prairie
Because this is s&m im going to revert back to it. A great sledder can make a poor running sled look good. Or even a under powered sled run like it’s boosted. In the case of our current trucking situation I believe the ratio of great to poor drivers is sadly offset. A great driver can read a hill, corner, road conditions etc etc. Knows his load and what his rig can do.
 

freeflorider

Active VIP Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2011
Messages
2,734
Reaction score
8,480
Location
West koots
Its not. This is a forum, I'm here for entertainment.
It's getting to be a big waste of time for me though.
More important things I should be doing.

Cheers and keep on trucking

As I suspected, your stirring the pot again. this is why I love to sit back and see everyone get stinking mad at the comments and opinions, then you toss in a grenade.
some great reading here troops!
 

Stompin Tom

Active VIP Member
Joined
Jun 7, 2009
Messages
3,787
Reaction score
8,138
Location
BC
Sounds to me like the trucks are not properly equipped for the job if they can't maintain the speed limit.......

Simple solution, Either drop the weight or up the horsepower.

Start turning trucks around at Louise if they don't have the right power to.weight ratio.

Maybe automatic transmissions too.
Seens like alot of guys on HWY miss shifts.

What your asking is basically impossible. There is a reason why rail lines are pretty much flat. That thing called gravity is a biatch. Drive up a hill with your empty pickup, then hook up your 30 foot camper and drive up the same hill, then imagine if you were pulling 63500 kgs up that same hill. Trucks would have to be running about 2000 hp and crazy amount of torque. A set of tires would last about 2000 km and your diffs would blow after about a week.

One other thing, if those "new" drivers can go over the top of a hill faster, they are going to go down the other side faster. Also consider that if your truck is governed at any speed, when going down hill you can kick it out of gear and let your new friend gravity take you up to some crazy speeds.

Frankly I feel the only real solution is better drivers, better training and better enforcement. It would be wonderful if our government spent a bunch more improving the highways, but frankly even if they started today they wouldn't be done in our lifetimes.
 
Last edited:

skegpro

Active VIP Member
Joined
May 11, 2009
Messages
9,930
Reaction score
21,329
Location
In them hills.
What your asking is basically impossible. There is a reason why rail lines are pretty much flat. That thing called gravity is a biatch. Drive up a hill with your empty pickup, then hook up your 30 foot camper and drive up the same hill, then imagine if you were pulling 63500 kgs up that same hill. Trucks would have to be running about 2000 hp and crazy amount of torque. A set of tires would last about 2000 km and your diffs would blow after about a week.

One other thing, if those "new" drivers can go over the top of a hill faster, they are going to go down the other side faster. Also consider that if your truck is governed at any speed, when going down hill you can kick it out of gear and let your new friend gravity take you up to some crazy speeds.

Frankly I feel the only real solution is better drivers, better training and better enforcement. It would be wonderful if our government spent a bunch more improving the highways, but frankly even if they started today they wouldn't be done in our lifetimes.
Hmm some guys seem to be able to do it.

Driver or the truck?
 

Pistonbroke

Active VIP Member
Joined
Oct 10, 2007
Messages
3,357
Reaction score
11,172
Location
Cockring, AB
Hmm some guys seem to be able to do it.

Driver or the truck?

100% driver. When coming on some 18 wheeler moving well in the mountains , maintaining momentum while drivig safely, it’s never a “new Canadian”. It’s usually some cowboy or santa claus looking fella doing a damn good job. O/Os can be spotted miles away by their performance and well spec’d rigs. Funniest thing I ever heard on the radio was some ol boy wondering if the driver responsible for the wreck we were all waiting hours for to be cleared had the airbag in the steering wheel or on his head. LOL
 

S.W.A.T.

Active VIP Member
Joined
Apr 13, 2008
Messages
4,436
Reaction score
7,636
Location
Smithers
Putting out a challenge here to anyone of the "civilians" or perhaps know it all traveling public. I will offer up my truck for a drive for someone here that says they can do better.

Perhaps we can both learn something
 

Cyle

Active VIP Member
Joined
Jan 21, 2008
Messages
7,171
Reaction score
4,722
Location
edmonton
I think what he is trying to say is.......

If you can't keep it within +/- 10km/hr of the posted speed limit then stay off the fawking roads. You suck at your job and probably life in general.

Its not a matter of not being capable, it’s a matter of being smart enough to know better in certain cases. You want a 50,000 track hoe coming off a trailer at 110? See what kind of carnage ensues...... Most of the time they are going that speed for a reason. In the hills you have no idea what kind of power it would take to keep 110, it’s not even close to feasable. I’ve personally only ran up to 46,500kg with 500hp which is not underpowered by any means, and there is hills around the city you cannot hold speed on due to power, nevermind the mountains. Going to find 2000hp for the 63,500kg rigs? Because that’s about what it would take. Never mind the extra suspension, weight, etc probably double the cost of moving goods. But it would keep the dumba$$es happy :rolleyes:

You clearly have never driven with any real weight or you’d realize what it takes. While many drivers are terrible, the average truck driver is 1000x the driver of regular vehicles. Just driving a rig around the city for the day without getting in an accident with so many idiots on the road is an accomplishment.
 

LennyR

Active VIP Member
Joined
Jun 13, 2009
Messages
3,331
Reaction score
14,020
Location
alberta
Its not a matter of not being capable, it’s a matter of being smart enough to know better in certain cases. You want a 50,000 track hoe coming off a trailer at 110? See what kind of carnage ensues...... Most of the time they are going that speed for a reason. In the hills you have no idea what kind of power it would take to keep 110, it’s not even close to feasable. I’ve personally only ran up to 46,500kg with 500hp which is not underpowered by any means, and there is hills around the city you cannot hold speed on due to power, nevermind the mountains. Going to find 2000hp for the 63,500kg rigs? Because that’s about what it would take. Never mind the extra suspension, weight, etc probably double the cost of moving goods. But it would keep the dumba$$es happy :rolleyes:

You clearly have never driven with any real weight or you’d realize what it takes. While many drivers are terrible, the average truck driver is 1000x the driver of regular vehicles. Just driving a rig around the city for the day without getting in an accident with so many idiots on the road is an accomplishment.

LOL, The "average " is 1000 x better driver. OMG , can you imagine how much better a few guys are on this forum are. !!!!! Cause they say they are way way way better than average !
 

skegpro

Active VIP Member
Joined
May 11, 2009
Messages
9,930
Reaction score
21,329
Location
In them hills.
Its not a matter of not being capable, it’s a matter of being smart enough to know better in certain cases. You want a 50,000 track hoe coming off a trailer at 110? See what kind of carnage ensues...... Most of the time they are going that speed for a reason. In the hills you have no idea what kind of power it would take to keep 110, it’s not even close to feasable. I’ve personally only ran up to 46,500kg with 500hp which is not underpowered by any means, and there is hills around the city you cannot hold speed on due to power, nevermind the mountains. Going to find 2000hp for the 63,500kg rigs? Because that’s about what it would take. Never mind the extra suspension, weight, etc probably double the cost of moving goods. But it would keep the dumba$$es happy :rolleyes:

You clearly have never driven with any real weight or you’d realize what it takes. While many drivers are terrible, the average truck driver is 1000x the driver of regular vehicles. Just driving a rig around the city for the day without getting in an accident with so many idiots on the road is an accomplishment.
Lol easy, I was being sarcastic.

I do however believe that most trucks in the mountains underspeced.

2000hp is obviously unrealistic.

But a 2000ft-lb truck would be waybetter, than a 1350ft-lb truck?

Aren't the highway tractors available with split tunes now adays?

Anyways, truck specs definitely not the reason you see so many commercial vehicles in wrecks on HWY 1.
 

S.W.A.T.

Active VIP Member
Joined
Apr 13, 2008
Messages
4,436
Reaction score
7,636
Location
Smithers
Lol easy, I was being sarcastic.

I do however believe that most trucks in the mountains underspeced.

2000hp is obviously unrealistic.

But a 2000ft-lb truck would be waybetter, than a 1350ft-lb truck?

Aren't the highway tractors available with split tunes now adays?

Anyways, truck specs definitely not the reason you see so many commercial vehicles in wrecks on HWY 1.

Underspeced how?

You know what each truck has for a engine and what their gear ratio is and what they have for rear ends?

Curious to know what you feel these trucks should be powered at to be governed at 90km/h
 

DRD

Active VIP Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2008
Messages
2,729
Reaction score
5,390
Location
Red Deer County
Underspeced how?

You know what each truck has for a engine and what their gear ratio is and what they have for rear ends?

Curious to know what you feel these trucks should be powered at to be governed at 90km/h

I wrote my class one with a 300 Cummins, it was pretty much limited to 90, self limiting to 30km/h on the Salmo-Creston pull.
 

S.W.A.T.

Active VIP Member
Joined
Apr 13, 2008
Messages
4,436
Reaction score
7,636
Location
Smithers
I wrote my class one with a 300 Cummins, it was pretty much limited to 90, self limiting to 30km/h on the Salmo-Creston pull.

I pulled my travel trailer through there about 4 years ago and that's a good long pull.

Guess no one wants to accept my challenge. Too many keyboard cowboys, all caulk no balls
 

skegpro

Active VIP Member
Joined
May 11, 2009
Messages
9,930
Reaction score
21,329
Location
In them hills.
I wrote my class one with a 300 Cummins, it was pretty much limited to 90, self limiting to 30km/h on the Salmo-Creston pull.
I would consider that underspeced for the mountains.

But maybe thats just cause I am civilian.
 

skegpro

Active VIP Member
Joined
May 11, 2009
Messages
9,930
Reaction score
21,329
Location
In them hills.
I pulled my travel trailer through there about 4 years ago and that's a good long pull.

Guess no one wants to accept my challenge. Too many keyboard cowboys, all caulk no balls
You have the best iron money can buy, what's the challenge......
 

skegpro

Active VIP Member
Joined
May 11, 2009
Messages
9,930
Reaction score
21,329
Location
In them hills.
I have a few trucks with a C7 CAT, 350 HP 900ish ft-lb of torque.

Work well enough for pulling grain around on the flat land but wouldn't dream about taking them to the hills. Under powered IMO.

The new diesel one tons have more HP and torque than my C7s.

All I am getting at is it is way less stressful driving a capable truck.

My old diesel, a 7.3l was a stressful drive to revelstoke, no engine break on only 545 ft-lb, and a ****ty trans to boot.

Now with my 925ft-lb truck I pull my 10,000lb enclosed with with ease. Not a single hill I can't accelerate up on hwy #1.

Not apples to apples I realize, but just an example.
 
Top Bottom