The Life of a Custom Mowing contractor

[number two]

Good one Jon!
Got my chauffeurs license at 19 in 1973.
Operators license was 6 bucks and 10 questions.
Chauffeurs license was 12 bucks and 55 questions.
Good to to drive anything.
Now,what the hell was wrong with that system?

 

[LHF2019]

I didn't find it in the least bit difficult. Of course I was backing up front steer farm wagons and trailers before I was 9, now at 74 I can still back up quite well.

I jockey trailers at UPS. Did the training last year. First time ever moving trailers. Training is 3 days about 12 hours. Wife told me to be good and not train the trainer knowing how I am. After riding and listening to him explain how to back in to a dock and him getting to know me and what I do he tells me that doing a straight back would be a waste of time. What do you want to do? Told him I'll put it on that door there. After I'm done he tells me that is the first time I had somebody do a double blind back on their first day and of course had no idea what he meant. Training lasted less than an hour signed off that day. Still waiting to maneuver full size trailers and They won't let me double up the trailers and mess around with them. Have a cover driver that will back doubles on to the door to unhook the last trailer. That's what I want to try.

Wife for years been telling me to get my CDL. I keep thinking about it. $$$$$

 

[Hay Dude]

I jockey trailers at UPS. Did the training last year. First time ever moving trailers. Training is 3 days about 12 hours. Wife told me to be good and not train the trainer knowing how I am. After riding and listening to him explain how to back in to a dock and him getting to know me and what I do he tells me that doing a straight back would be a waste of time. What do you want to do? Told him I'll put it on that door there. After I'm done he tells me that is the first time I had somebody do a double blind back on their first day and of course had no idea what he meant. Training lasted less than an hour signed off that day. Still waiting to maneuver full size trailers and They won't let me double up the trailers and mess around with them. Have a cover driver that will back doubles on to the door to unhook the last trailer. That's what I want to try.

Wife for years been telling me to get my CDL. I keep thinking about it. $$$$$

Maybe theres a local employer out there who will send you to the training at no cost to you if you work for them a while, then quit.

 

[Lastkidpicked]

Maybe theres a local employer out there who will send you to the training at no cost to you if you work for them a while, then quit.

This is exactly the way many get into trucking. Last time the kids looked into it, the cost was $8000 and if you stayed for a year then you didn't owe anything.

 

[LHF2019]

Maybe theres a local employer out there who will send you to the training at no cost to you if you work for them a while, then quit.

My cousin has a excavating business and have thought of asking him what he does with new drivers. Through research some businesses can do in house training. Pay him directly and he would also have somebody available in a pinch. Just haven't gone through with it yet.

In Alberta there is also school involved. The cost is $10,000 CAD ($7,000 USD) for a farm license that I believe lets you haul around 100km (60 miles) radius from the farm. A full commercial license is about $15,000 CAD ($10,400 USD).

That's insane. I could run a full rig with no CDL if I wanted to.

FARM TRUCKS (WITH NO TRAILER) WITH AN ACTUAL WEIGHT OR WEIGHT RATING GREATERTHAN 26,000 POUNDS:Intrastate Operation of Farm Truck within 150 Air-Miles of the Farm (Not Crossing State Borders):•

The driver of the farm truck is exempt from:
1. Medical certification requirements.
2. Drug and alcohol testing requirements.
3. “Hours of service” requirements (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Requirements for daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements.
6. Minimum age requirements.
• The driver of the farm truck is subject to other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle”drivers under federal and state regulations.

Intrastate Operation of Farm Truck More Than 150 Air-Miles Away from the Farm (Not Crossing State Borders):•
The driver of the farm truck is exempt from:
1. Medical certification requirements.
2. Drug and alcohol testing requirements.
3. “Hours of service” requirements (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Requirements for daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements.

• The driver of the farm truck is subject to:
1. Minimum age requirement of 21 years.
2. Other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle” drivers under federal and state regulations.

Interstate Operation of Farm Truck within 150 Air-Miles of the Farm (Crossing State Borders):

• The driver of the farm truck is exempt from:
1. Medical certification requirements.
2. Drug and alcohol testing requirements.
3. “Hours of service” requirements (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Requirements for daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements.
6. Minimum age requirements.
• The driver of the farm truck is subject to other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle”drivers under federal regulations.

Interstate Operation of Farm Truck More Than 150 Air-Miles Away from the Farm (Crossing State Borders):
• None of the farm driver exemptions provided under MAP-21 applies.
The driver of the farm truck is subject to the requirements imposed under the federal regulations for:
1. Medical certification.
2. Drug and alcohol testing.
3. “Hours of service” (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Minimum age – the driver must be at least 21 years old.
6. Commercial driver’s licensing (CDL).• The driver of the farm truck is subject to other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle”drivers under federal regulations.

5FARM-TRUCK-POWERED COMBINATIONS (WITH TRAILER) WITH AN ACTUAL WEIGHT ORWEIGHT RATING GREATER THAN 26,000 POUNDS:
Intrastate Operation of Farm-Truck-Powered-Combination within 150 Air-Miles of the Farm (Not Crossing State Borders):
• The driver of the farm-truck-powered combination is exempt from:
1. Medical certification requirements.
2. Drug and alcohol testing requirements.
3. “Hours of service” requirements (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Requirements for daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements.

• The driver of the farm-truck-powered combination is subject to:
1. Minimum age requirement of 18 years.
2. Other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle” drivers under federal and state regulations.

Intrastate Operation of Farm-Truck-Powered Combination More Than 150 Air-Miles Away from the Farm (Not CrossingState Borders):

• The driver of the farm-truck-powered combination is exempt from:
1. Medical certification requirements.
2. Drug and alcohol testing requirements.
3. “Hours of service” requirements (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Requirements for daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements
.• The driver of the farm-truck-powered combination is subject to:
1. Minimum age requirement of 21 years.
2. Other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle” drivers under federal and state regulations.

Interstate Operation of Farm-Truck-Powered Combination within 150 Air-Miles of the Farm (Crossing State Borders):
• The driver of the farm-truck-powered combination is exempt from:
1. Medical certification requirements.
2. Drug and alcohol testing requirements.
3. “Hours of service” requirements (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Requirements for daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements.
• The driver of the farm-truck-powered combination is subject to:
1. Minimum age requirement of 18 years.
2. Other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle” drivers under federal regulations.

Interstate Operation of Farm-Truck-Powered Combination More than 150 Air-Miles Away from the Farm (Crossing StateBorders):
• None of the farm driver exemptions provided under MAP-21 applies. The driver of the farm-truck-powered combination is subject to the requirements imposed under the federal regulations for:
1. Medical certification.
2. Drug and alcohol testing.
3. “Hours of service” (daily driver’s logs, recordkeeping and limitation in driver work and driving time).
4. Daily driver inspections and written reports of the vehicle’s condition by drivers and repairs.
5. Minimum age requirement of 21 years.
6. Commercial driver’s licensing (CDL).
• The driver of the farm truck is subject to other driver requirements imposed on “commercial motor vehicle”drivers under federal regulations.

 

[paulsharvey]

I have talked to a company owner with a small site work business, about 15 guys or so, so Small. He said his problem is, he spends $5000 on the class, and has to pay the guy his hours in the class. He does make them sign a paper saying if they quit within 6 months, they have to pay him back. He can't actually get more than the last check from them, and push come to shove, he can't actually hold the last check, as he is responsible for paying the hours worked. Sure, he could sue them, but thats a lost cause; they dont have the $5000; you'll spend Way more in legal fees; waste many many hours and days over it, and even if you win, blood and turnip...

 

[paulsharvey]

Man, not to turn this into a CDL thread...

About 15 years ago or so; was working for the county, and saw a job next town up, closer to home, for the city, Asphalt Paving foreman, nice raise, close to home, but Required CDL-B. So, (burn me at the stack...) with the old pre-smart phone, sliding cell with the keyboard and screen, I drove to work (1.5 hrs), and read the CDL manual, while driving in, steering with my knee and went to DMV and took the CDL B learners permit, passing easily. (did fail air brakes, tanker, and A, because I didnt bother to read them) I could have came back the very next day to take driving portion, but I didnt have a CDL truck to take it in, so I never did. Didn't get the job, so didnt need the CDL

 

[sixdogs]

You know how we say "Things were easier back in the day?" Well, get ready for this:

18 year old me was working for a mom and pop lumberyard back then, and the yard had a few 18 wheelers. One morning a driver called in sick and they asked me to move his semi out of the yard and park it across the street.

One of the owners sees me and says, "Hey kid. The driver is out today so take his semi over to the tire shop across town so they can put new tires on it."

I was scared to tell him I was moving that truck with no CDL so terrified little me agreed to drive it to the tire shop. I realized on the way that I was going to pass the DMV. I parked at the school across the street and walked into the DMV to ask how to get a CDL.

They said, "You don't have an appointment, but if our tester isn't busy, you can do it now" So I took the written test and the driving tester came out.

"Your boss can wait here while we test"
"My boss?"
"Isn't he the one who drove this truck here? I know YOU didn't drive it, you don't have the license to do that."

Again, I was so shy back then that I didn't want to tell him this whole trip was basically a bootleg operation so I just kind of nodded.

Took the driving test and then waited around for about 10 minutes so they could laminate my new license for me. Then I continued my trip over to the tire shop.

Oh yes! Things were so much easier back in the day.

These are the stories that stitch life together. All good.

 

[Hay Dude]

Back to some hay…

I have been trucking about 55 tons of hay blocks per week for the last 10 weeks. The Ram and the trailer have been getting a heavy workout. Loaded to the max and beyond.

Today here I am taking some bales off of a remote access field stack of hay

and driving them down to a more accessible loading point for truck & trailer.

Loading onto trailer.

Hey there

 

[BackRoad]

Swollen neck...and only one thing on his mind...!

(and it looks like your Kaufman trailer is pretty capable!)

 

[Hay Dude]

Brought another 25 bales down from areas difficult to access with truck and trailer. My new feed-hay buyer coming tomorrow morning for more bales.

Done for the day. Cruisin’ home Ram-style.
I did a complete 25K miles service on the Aisin transmission yesterday.

 

[Molalla1]

Brought another 25 bales down from areas difficult to access with truck and trailer. My new feed-hay buyer coming tomorrow morning for more bales.

Done for the day. Cruisin’ home Ram-style.
I did a complete 25K miles service on the Aisin transmission yesterday.
View attachment 4415014

A decent tranny . . .

 

[Molalla1]

A decent tranny . . .

My '06 dully is a manual . . .

 

[Hay Dude]

A decent tranny . . .

I threw everything imaginable at this transmission. It’s not the most smooth or sophisticated, but it’s tough as nails.
I have pulled close to 500 45-50K loads of hay with it and a few dozen more with excavator or a large tractor.

 

[Molalla1]

I threw everything imaginable at this transmission. It’s not the most smooth or sophisticated, but it’s tough as nails.
I have pulled close to 500 45-50K loads of hay with it and a few dozen more with excavator or a large tractor.

Sometimes not being smooth and sophisticated is better . . . I have had my manual tranny upgraded a bit My 3500 can hall a bit . . .

 

[Hay Dude]

Sometimes not being smooth and sophisticated is better . . . I have had my manual tranny upgraded a bit My 3500 can hall a bit . . .

I hear the new ZF-8 transmission that replaced the Aisin is really nice. Seems like Ford & GM having are again having transmission problems with their 10 speeds. Ram seems to have a real good on with the Aisin.
I have my eyes on a new Ram 5500 in 2027. Gotta talk it over with my accountant first.

 

[Molalla1]

I hear the new ZF-8 transmission that replaced the Aisin is really nice. Seems like Ford & GM having are again having transmission problems with their 10 speeds. Ram seems to have a real good on with the Aisin.
I have my eyes on a new Ram 5500 in 2027. Gotta talk it over with my accountant first.

That is a nice rig!

 

[civilian]

I hear the new ZF-8 transmission that replaced the Aisin is really nice. Seems like Ford & GM having are again having transmission problems with their 10 speeds. Ram seems to have a real good on with the Aisin.
I have my eyes on a new Ram 5500 in 2027. Gotta talk it over with my accountant first.

Replacement? Or an additional one? Jon

 

[Hay Dude]

Replacement? Or an additional one? Jon

Probably a replacement. I have an outside shot at getting a decent sized HOA road snowplowing contract. If I do, I’d probably buy an older, used snowplowing truck, so I’d have 2 small trucks at that point. Also still have the big dump truck, which may be going away in favor of a dump trailer. Don’t need more than that.

 

[Hay Dude]

Jon, you kind of made me think about a subject…prolly belongs in the snowplowing thread, but it’s more of a “business” thing than actual snowplowing.

So I have this long-term customer 10+ years. I mow all their common areas-about 20 acres of zero-turn work. Also cut hay off their 12 acre hay field, and mow some smaller fields they have with a rotary mower, and clean up fallen trees. All in all probably $30,000/year in gross income from them.
Their long-term snowplowing contractor was a guy who lived in the community. He just sold his home and is no longer going to snowplow. Turns out, he traded snowplowing for HOA dues, which are VERY high. Like $250/month.

Anyway, they approached me late summer with this and requested a bid for snowplowing. I gave them a bid probably 2 months ago. HOA peeps were shocked by price. Probably because they were only being charged about 1/2 of what the work was really worth because a resident of the community was doing it cheap and getting to skip on some monthly HOA payments.

So they have been shopping my price around for months. An insider tells me “everyone we ask is booked, and the ones that aren’t want more money than you are asking for plowing”.

Now we are at crunch time. It could snow in a few weeks (unlikely, but it’s pretty risky to not have a contract this late when 75 homes could be snowed-in). I’m aggravated with them, but keeping my powder dry because they are my single largest property maintenance account.

If given the account, I would likely purchase a 20K pickup with snowplow rather than do it with farm tractor. There’s many reasons for this, one being the homes are very tightly packed in spots and the noise from tractor would be too much.

Now I am looking at buying a plow truck when prices for plow trucks have gone up 20% because it’s so close to snowplowing season.

I like my customers, but this one is forcing me into a corner, just to shave off $100 bucks per plowing.

Circling back to the resident who used to plow the community: Now you can see why professional contractors dislike “beer money” contractors. They work so cheap that when they decide to quit, their customers expect professionals to come in and do it for beer money, too.