CWRV Delivery

CW doesn't require a rig to be washed, where nearly all other dealers / transport companies to. Its more a requirement of the dealer, not the transport company. The transport company does reimburse me, so long as I provide a receipt.

Don't even get me started on this nonsense. It's the one thing that irritates me the most about hauling.

I've nearly gotten in to a few arguments with dealers about washing a rig again, or dinging me the ridiculous wash fee, both of which I had already washed.

CDL and a medical should not be a deal breaker , they are easy . I have ran " hot shot " and RV delivery and had a fine , fun time , I tend to drive twenty or thirty thousand miles a year , some I get paid for and some we do just for the hell of it . The driver will carry keys for the trailer and we sleep in bags on the floor or bed depending on how we feel . Food cost are no big deal as I eat whether I am working or not . We are not expecting to make a large profit , we just hope that we see a lot of the country and break even .
We usually run the interstates going out and then lollygag on the small roads coming back . As far as living near the factory , that is no advantage as a round trip is the same distance no matter which end that you start . It is a fun way to break even and have a little fun . If you busted your ass trying to get rich then you will be disappointed . Some times we will hang around dispatch for several days waiting for something interesting . All work makes Jack a dull boy .
I once owned a trailer that would haul three autos on a pickup , we get paid miles for each auto . It was kinda like a job , hanging around auto auctions , looking for three cars going the same way . Pretty good money but not many interesting things to see or do as when you hooked up with a good auto dealer he wanted you on call and ready . Ain't no such thing as a free lunch .

rowekmr wrote:
I was hoping that I could do the shorter runs that maybe the full timers wouldn't want and live about 1 1/2 from Elkhart if that is where the loads originate. My only limitation is I would be using a F250 SRW with a short bed and see many companies prefer long beds but the ones that don't just require a slider hitch. Do companies have rules forbidding you from having passengers (family)?

Some allow passengers, but I never researched it fully.

Short runs are possible, but before you jump headlong in to it, I'd try doing a lot more in depth research, and the only real way to get an idea of what short runs might exist for you is to somehow get in touch with the actual dispatch people. The recruiting people won't tell you squat about what destinations exist.

The best way to do it part time, as a weekend gig, is to have a few dealers that you can go to, so the trip is fairly consistent.... and not have to travel a significant distance out of the way to get back home after your run. If you can find dealers that are a straight line trip between them and the factory, and where you live, all the better, so you minimize your empty miles.

This is exactly what I do (above). but I do it off and on, when I have time.
The area where I live, there's a plethora of dealers within a 30-40 mile radius. Some of them have multiple sales lots.
The factory in Pendleton makes several different brand names, and all the dealers sell different brand names, so that means there's a lot of units coming up to the area near where I live.

I'm about 12-15 miles from the interstate I take when I deliver, so it really works out well for me since I don't do it full time and don't have the free time to be gone for multiple days at a time.

One option, depending on the time of day is pick up a unit in which the delivery route takes you through (or within 10-15 miles of your home town), spend the night, finish the trip the next day.

Once example of me doing exactly that is when made a delivery to Missoula, MT. I picked up the RV, drove back home, spent the night at home, the drove from home to Missoula the next day.

TXiceman wrote:
A lot of miles on the truck, insurance, CDL, medicals, and in the end no money.

Ken

Insurance does cost a fortune - about 2 to 2.5 times what a personal vehicle policy costs.

CDL, not required for Washington licensed driver.

My current hauler truck doubles as my DD and is a short bed which I put a canopy on. I've seen a few other drivers pull in to the dispatch yard with similar trucks.

I have the DRW long bed as my truck camper hauler.

Pendleton / LaGrande area factories have very few 5th wheels.

chevor wrote:
Those companies that say that want a long bed truck and 5th wheel are lying. The Majority of Campers sold are bumper pull.

They almost all say they require a long bed and 5th wheel hitch. It's the recruiters that are saying that.

When I talked to the dispatch folks, they were OK with a long bed or short bed truck, and no 5th wheel hitch.

I have a long bed and and short bed truck. When I started, I made 2 or 3 runs with the DRW long bed. I had been contemplating selling my Jeep JKU-R and getting another truck, long before I started hauling, for daily driving, so I asked if a shortbed was OK. The dispatch guy said there's very few 5th wheels coming here for delivery, so that's fine.

When working with the recruiter people, they kept telling me "you need a 5th wheel hitch." After several rounds of questions, I finally got someone to admit "by not having a 5th wheel hitch, you are limiting yourself to what you can haul."
That comment comes under the premise that someone is going to drive full time and come back to the lot with the expectation that they can "turn and burn" (leave with another rig, regardless of what it is).
So, if all they had were 5th wheel rigs, and you didn't have a 5th wheel hitch, you'd sit idle until a bumper pull came in.

The earlier quote is very true - I never thought of it before, but Chevor is right, most RVs are bumper pull.

It seems to me the Transport companies that advertise the most have the strictest rules. I read a few of their requirements for the trucks and I'm glad I'm not working for them. Some say your not even allow to have a tailgate on the the truck.
I haul with a short bed truck with a non sliding fifth wheel. Hauled over 300,000 miles like that. Work for 2 smaller companies. Both had no problem with it.

chevor wrote:
Its your personal vehicle they can't tell you that. You do have to follow hours of service laws. 11 hours driving, Max of 14 hours on duty, then 10 consecutive hours off duty before being able to drive again. Those companies that say that want a long bed truck and 5th wheel are lying. The Majority of Campers sold are bumper pull.

Sorry, but as a Hauler...You are Wrong...You can Get companies that ALLOW "Riders", but not all.

And it is not "Really your vehicle"..Your Truck is Leased to them, and have to follow their rules, as well as D.O.T.

Most DO NOT allow short beds, even with slider.

I haul, I know .

A lot of miles on the truck, insurance, CDL, medicals, and in the end no money.

Ken

Its your personal vehicle they can't tell you that. You do have to follow hours of service laws. 11 hours driving, Max of 14 hours on duty, then 10 consecutive hours off duty before being able to drive again. Those companies that say that want a long bed truck and 5th wheel are lying. The Majority of Campers sold are bumper pull.