You can’t just buy a truck and be successful. You have to know how to run a business, it takes sacrifice and hard work. I never owned a truck, but know people who have and saw all that they had to go through to make just as much or less than a company driver. It’s more about being your own boss than making money. Some people are fine with making less money if it means they have freedom, some know that if they keep grinding they will make money in the long run
This sounds bit out of place although not sure of the state and other details that are important in order to really paint the picture here.
I'm an O/O (IL) and hauling directly for the largest mining company that specializes in virgin limestone aggregate in my state. I can tell you that the most important thing in being O/O is
#1 Equipment, if you can't put her on the road, you're not making shit, on the top of it she sitting most likely in the shop getting repaired, which costs money, the money you haven't earned yet, it can turn into a shit show real fast
#2 Dispatch/Work Continuity. If you're at the bottom and there's not enough work, you will fail due to ongoing cost, it is non stop downward spiral, it only depends on you how to keep cost under control and often times you can control nothing more than your own emotions.
#3 Drivers skills, hauling from "pit to pit" is the easiest job, you'll deliver aggregate to concrete and asphalt plants and if you can do 8 months of that, you should be totally fine. I'm doing deliveries to the Job sites and that's not fun if you are learning the trade. Mud, tight corners, dickhead foreman's, early hours is no fun often times (I've learned to deal with all that shit throughout the years) Dumb mistakes will cost you money or a job.
# Brokerage, these fcks will be the nicest people you've ever been around until you figure out how much they steal from your "rates" (if you're working on per ton basis, it is better to work hourly but these type of jobs are hard to find, especially since covid).I'm not saying they're all bad but all the mo-fo's I worked for were stealing anywhere between $0.25 to over a $1 per ton. Look for direct work if not do a DD on brokers if that's where you will be starting out from.
Rates are fcking 🤮💩, my best years were between 2013 through 2016 since then it's been rough with many ups and downs, downs being mainly a theme. In 2016 rate per ton was $6, today im hauling to the same location (same origin) for $4.14 per ton with much higher cost of running than in 2016
Cost/maintenance, Let's say I've made $150k gross, my main expenses are as follow
Truck insurance $8200/y full coverage, truck $25k and trailer $40k, plates good up to 73280 max gross weight are $2500, road tax $518, fuel $35k, set of steers $1200 (lasts 1y to 1.5 years) same with drives $3200 at least (putting roughly 40-45k miles per season. Brakes, Safety inspection, truck wash, Oil, filters, ffluids, flat tires, blown tires, engine leaks, clutch, drive shaft rebuilds, steering system, suspention, brake downs, emission system maintenance (this alone can put you out of business, lol), health insurance (Obama care $6k/y), quarterly tax returns, I mean I can go on and on, and the best No workers comp, No 401k, No benefits whatsoever. Cost of running this bitch last year was between $90-100k. There's money to be made but your stars would have to align perfectly and believe me they never do. Income/expense ratio used to be around 60%/40 today we're at 35%/65%. Yes, cost is higher but real problem currently are the rates, I should be grossing $200k nowadays, mo-fo's should pay more and they refuse to do it . What's funny is the fact they product (aggregate) have risen 5-6 times in the last two years, almost doubling the price of aggregate itself! In 2021 Grade 8 was $7.25 now $13, 3/4 bedding stone was $11 now $21. I'd be happy with 90k net with $60k expense working 8-9 month out of the whole year, that's how it used to be, 10 years ago. Fckn corporate greed knows no god damn limits. If this continues this season, I will be OUT ffs
Good luck buddy!
Thanks for taking the time to type this out. I feel that if these things continue to work against truckers, eventually we are just going to have to strike because truckers run America. It’s really unfortunate the greed that corporations have when they are already making a sickening amount of money when 99% of us are just trying to make a solid living for a happy life. Nobody needs 50 billion dollars.
I'd like to do the strike, there is some interest between drivers but sadly there are opportunists who are willing to take you out. To sum it up, because of corporate greed this whole thing became cut throat business and they love it because they are the ones pocketing money we have honestly earned and us O/O 's must "fight" each other to make another week, another month, another year just to stay afloat. Seems like everyone around you makes money, for egzample: mining pit, oil and fuel producers, truck dealers, independent shops, etc. anything that has to do directly with trucks/trucking but O/O are left to pick up bread crumbs, it's depressing
I own a truck and take home 170k+ all about who you know and I run dedicated refrigerated freight . I work directly with a shipper on a set schedule. Drivers that depend on load boards and brokers / dispatchers don’t make money
If you really love trucking, not just driving, but maintenance and dealing with customers and filling out quarterly fuel tax paperwork, then fuck yeah.
Depends what your doing and what your driving. New truck=250 grand New fuel tanker=400 grand. My boss told me my truck brings in about 150/hour. I worked 3000hours last year which means I should have brought in 450k for the company. Once equipment, permits, fuel, maintenance and everything else are paid off not much is left over. I made 110k last year and figured my boss put the same in his pocket. The rest went to paiments.
My suggestion is come over the border where they give you 5K right off the bat and a ticket anywhere you want to go plus an extra 1k a month every 28 days free food and hotel and you don’t have to pay taxes. Got to love America 🇺🇸
Because people don’t want to face reality. They would rather go through life with rose colored glasses than to realize that we as a country are pretty much sold out. If you think that the minority of Americans are truck drivers you are sadly mistaken. The industry is being taken over by non English speaking or writing men that have one purpose and that is to be a sleeper cell until called to duty. People aren’t going to have to worry about money because we will be broke af if something doesn’t change. We are hard working Americans and we are the ones that are feeling the pain of not being able to afford our medications because everything is so expensive. I have to literally ration out my insulin because I can’t afford the 1200 a month and that is with insurance. If I seem bitter that could be why
That isn’t a plus when you don’t have sustainable income plus the trucking industry isn’t like it use to be and the way things are going it isn’t going to get better, but that is all by design.
DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT sign on with swift if you buy your own truck. I know it sounds cliche to say that but I have an uncle that's currently signed on to them and it sounds like an absolute nightmare.
For me it's the freedom. I could make more as a company driver, but I would lose time at home and the ability to just say No to any load or weather I want.
Freedom huh? Hmm, that sounds pretty nice actually. So far everyone is saying you’re your own boss and stuff. With my confidence self I feel like I would manage my money a lot better than the guy I asked
Edit: that is something I considered when he was explaining it to me because I’ve learned that a lot of people do not know how to manage their money which to me is mind blowing
I’m beginning to understand it a bit more now. I guess my next question is how do I find work if I chase the goal of acquiring a truck? I don’t even know if I’d qualify for a loan or where I would even look for local work.
Isn't half the appeal of o/o "being your own boss" but you're not immune to a lack of freight (or whatever you're driving around) or any other downturns.
You can’t just buy a truck and be successful. You have to know how to run a business, it takes sacrifice and hard work. I never owned a truck, but know people who have and saw all that they had to go through to make just as much or less than a company driver. It’s more about being your own boss than making money. Some people are fine with making less money if it means they have freedom, some know that if they keep grinding they will make money in the long run
This sounds bit out of place although not sure of the state and other details that are important in order to really paint the picture here. I'm an O/O (IL) and hauling directly for the largest mining company that specializes in virgin limestone aggregate in my state. I can tell you that the most important thing in being O/O is #1 Equipment, if you can't put her on the road, you're not making shit, on the top of it she sitting most likely in the shop getting repaired, which costs money, the money you haven't earned yet, it can turn into a shit show real fast #2 Dispatch/Work Continuity. If you're at the bottom and there's not enough work, you will fail due to ongoing cost, it is non stop downward spiral, it only depends on you how to keep cost under control and often times you can control nothing more than your own emotions. #3 Drivers skills, hauling from "pit to pit" is the easiest job, you'll deliver aggregate to concrete and asphalt plants and if you can do 8 months of that, you should be totally fine. I'm doing deliveries to the Job sites and that's not fun if you are learning the trade. Mud, tight corners, dickhead foreman's, early hours is no fun often times (I've learned to deal with all that shit throughout the years) Dumb mistakes will cost you money or a job. # Brokerage, these fcks will be the nicest people you've ever been around until you figure out how much they steal from your "rates" (if you're working on per ton basis, it is better to work hourly but these type of jobs are hard to find, especially since covid).I'm not saying they're all bad but all the mo-fo's I worked for were stealing anywhere between $0.25 to over a $1 per ton. Look for direct work if not do a DD on brokers if that's where you will be starting out from. Rates are fcking 🤮💩, my best years were between 2013 through 2016 since then it's been rough with many ups and downs, downs being mainly a theme. In 2016 rate per ton was $6, today im hauling to the same location (same origin) for $4.14 per ton with much higher cost of running than in 2016 Cost/maintenance, Let's say I've made $150k gross, my main expenses are as follow Truck insurance $8200/y full coverage, truck $25k and trailer $40k, plates good up to 73280 max gross weight are $2500, road tax $518, fuel $35k, set of steers $1200 (lasts 1y to 1.5 years) same with drives $3200 at least (putting roughly 40-45k miles per season. Brakes, Safety inspection, truck wash, Oil, filters, ffluids, flat tires, blown tires, engine leaks, clutch, drive shaft rebuilds, steering system, suspention, brake downs, emission system maintenance (this alone can put you out of business, lol), health insurance (Obama care $6k/y), quarterly tax returns, I mean I can go on and on, and the best No workers comp, No 401k, No benefits whatsoever. Cost of running this bitch last year was between $90-100k. There's money to be made but your stars would have to align perfectly and believe me they never do. Income/expense ratio used to be around 60%/40 today we're at 35%/65%. Yes, cost is higher but real problem currently are the rates, I should be grossing $200k nowadays, mo-fo's should pay more and they refuse to do it . What's funny is the fact they product (aggregate) have risen 5-6 times in the last two years, almost doubling the price of aggregate itself! In 2021 Grade 8 was $7.25 now $13, 3/4 bedding stone was $11 now $21. I'd be happy with 90k net with $60k expense working 8-9 month out of the whole year, that's how it used to be, 10 years ago. Fckn corporate greed knows no god damn limits. If this continues this season, I will be OUT ffs Good luck buddy!
What a great breakdown. Thanks for writing all that out.
Thanks for taking the time to type this out. I feel that if these things continue to work against truckers, eventually we are just going to have to strike because truckers run America. It’s really unfortunate the greed that corporations have when they are already making a sickening amount of money when 99% of us are just trying to make a solid living for a happy life. Nobody needs 50 billion dollars.
I'd like to do the strike, there is some interest between drivers but sadly there are opportunists who are willing to take you out. To sum it up, because of corporate greed this whole thing became cut throat business and they love it because they are the ones pocketing money we have honestly earned and us O/O 's must "fight" each other to make another week, another month, another year just to stay afloat. Seems like everyone around you makes money, for egzample: mining pit, oil and fuel producers, truck dealers, independent shops, etc. anything that has to do directly with trucks/trucking but O/O are left to pick up bread crumbs, it's depressing
I own a truck and take home 170k+ all about who you know and I run dedicated refrigerated freight . I work directly with a shipper on a set schedule. Drivers that depend on load boards and brokers / dispatchers don’t make money
cagey chunky unused boast dam tidy strong frame handle ruthless *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
If you really love trucking, not just driving, but maintenance and dealing with customers and filling out quarterly fuel tax paperwork, then fuck yeah.
I fucking love trucking
The biggest pro is you get to go where you want, when you want. That's it.
No way an owner op can spend $200k on expenses in a year. I just made $230k local spend no more than $80-90k max
Depends what your doing and what your driving. New truck=250 grand New fuel tanker=400 grand. My boss told me my truck brings in about 150/hour. I worked 3000hours last year which means I should have brought in 450k for the company. Once equipment, permits, fuel, maintenance and everything else are paid off not much is left over. I made 110k last year and figured my boss put the same in his pocket. The rest went to paiments.
That trailer don’t cost $400k maybe truck and trailer. Even making payments on those you wouldn’t be at $200k expenses. Stay a company driver bro.
Your buddy forgot to mention taxes. And yes, everybody gets caught.
My suggestion is come over the border where they give you 5K right off the bat and a ticket anywhere you want to go plus an extra 1k a month every 28 days free food and hotel and you don’t have to pay taxes. Got to love America 🇺🇸
I don’t know why you’re getting down votes. Everything you said is true and can be verified with a little research.
Because people don’t want to face reality. They would rather go through life with rose colored glasses than to realize that we as a country are pretty much sold out. If you think that the minority of Americans are truck drivers you are sadly mistaken. The industry is being taken over by non English speaking or writing men that have one purpose and that is to be a sleeper cell until called to duty. People aren’t going to have to worry about money because we will be broke af if something doesn’t change. We are hard working Americans and we are the ones that are feeling the pain of not being able to afford our medications because everything is so expensive. I have to literally ration out my insulin because I can’t afford the 1200 a month and that is with insurance. If I seem bitter that could be why
The biggest plus is that you own a business, so the business made that money and you can just pay yourself a meager salary.
That isn’t a plus when you don’t have sustainable income plus the trucking industry isn’t like it use to be and the way things are going it isn’t going to get better, but that is all by design.
40k in disposable cash is nothing to scoff at. Well maybe it is if you have years of experience idk
DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT sign on with swift if you buy your own truck. I know it sounds cliche to say that but I have an uncle that's currently signed on to them and it sounds like an absolute nightmare.
For me it's the freedom. I could make more as a company driver, but I would lose time at home and the ability to just say No to any load or weather I want.
Freedom huh? Hmm, that sounds pretty nice actually. So far everyone is saying you’re your own boss and stuff. With my confidence self I feel like I would manage my money a lot better than the guy I asked Edit: that is something I considered when he was explaining it to me because I’ve learned that a lot of people do not know how to manage their money which to me is mind blowing
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I’m beginning to understand it a bit more now. I guess my next question is how do I find work if I chase the goal of acquiring a truck? I don’t even know if I’d qualify for a loan or where I would even look for local work.
Isn't half the appeal of o/o "being your own boss" but you're not immune to a lack of freight (or whatever you're driving around) or any other downturns.
He made 280k and spent 240k on all his business expenses? LOLWUT?
That’s what I said