Gear box on a skip truck?

spider_pig

I'm starting a new job on Monday with a recycling company to be a skip truck driver.I only passed my rigid test last month so this would be my first time driving a truck other then the lessons.
My question is would anyone have any idea of the type of gear box I'd most likely be using?
I'm worried it might be something I've never used, I did my lessons in a 4 over 4 splitter box would skip trucks have this one?
Thanks

btb

Best of luck on start, gear arrangement depends on truck, could be 6 speed same as car or if 8 speed, link gives an overview, lots of other info there that may be helpful even if directed at uk audience

http://www.trucknetuk.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=24700

spider_pig

btb wrote: »

Best of luck on start, gear arrangement depends on truck, could be 6 speed same as car or if 8 speed, link gives an overview, lots of other info there that may be helpful even if directed at uk audience

http://www.trucknetuk.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=24700

Thanks for that, plenty of good information there.It was near impossible to get a start anywhere with no experience, it took me a bit to get my head around the 4 over 4 so now iv a fear of it happening with the slap over one if I happen to come across it

guil

I've only drove hino's with the one you describe. Volvo or Scania chain lifts will probably be normal 6 speed.

spider_pig

guil wrote: »

I've only drove hino's with the one you describe. Volvo or Scania chain lifts will probably be normal 6 speed.

From what I can tell the trucks they use are volvo, so I've probably noting really to worry about

Vic_08

spider_pig wrote: »

From what I can tell the trucks they use are volvo, so I've probably noting really to worry about

If it is a relatively new Volvo is it not likely to have an i-shift automated manual?

I admit I haven't set foot in a rigid cab in a long time, maybe these lads are still buying manuals but they are now virtually impossible to buy for coaches and AMTs are taking over in artics as well.

With the dual-clutch version now available the days of manual transmissions are numbered.

guil

Vic_08 wrote: »

If it is a relatively new Volvo is it not likely to have an i-shift automated manual?

I admit I haven't set foot in a rigid cab in a long time, maybe these lads are still buying manuals but they are now virtually impossible to buy for coaches and AMTs are taking over in artics as well.

With the dual-clutch version now available the days of manual transmissions are numbered.

I-shift is brilliant in an artic and way faster than a manual even without the dual clutch. All our Volvo bin trucks have a simpler version of I-shift and its way ahead of Scania or Mercedes.

GustavoFring

Most of them are 6 speed, any of the Iveco or Volvo skip trucks I came into contact in a past life were. Well bar one Volvo that was a 4 over 4 and an absolute pig to drive.

spider_pig

GustavoFring wrote: »

Most of them are 6 speed, any of the Iveco or Volvo skip trucks I came into contact in a past life were. Well bar one Volvo that was a 4 over 4 and an absolute pig to drive.

Just finished the days work and I was driving a 151D 6 speed automatic Iveco, the driver I was with said I'll most likely get a straight 6 manual 07 truck for myself after my enitial training period is over, I'm happy with that and actually loved the job more then I thought I would

_Brian

Well done.
Trucks have come a long way. I spent some time driving an old Custom D ford rigid with straight 5 gears and none ever seemed to be in the save place twice.
Glad to hear you liked the job, I loved the time I spent behind the wheel.

neris

OP have you been over on irishrigs yet? Lads over there will give you a dig out aswell with any questions or info you need

spider_pig

_Brian wrote: »

Well done.
Trucks have come a long way. I spent some time driving an old Custom D ford rigid with straight 5 gears and none ever seemed to be in the save place twice.
Glad to hear you liked the job, I loved the time I spent behind the wheel.

I feel like that now, for the first time in my life I can actually say I love my job. Until last week I was working in a small warehouse as a forklift driver/stores man and hated it. I moved from dublin to drogheda so Travelling up and down the m1 to dublin 6 days a week for 3 years seeing trucks driving along I kept saying I'd love that and eventually decided to act on it and glad I did.

BorneTobyWilde

More than driving involved there. A skip truck, you would need to be an acrobat also I would imagine.

spider_pig

BorneTobyWilde wrote: »

More than driving involved there. A skip truck, you would need to be an acrobat also I would imagine.

It's crazy the amount of manoeuvres involved, for the moment I'm based covering meath and Kildare.It's all mostly back road farmers yards and houses up small roads so it's all very tight with an awful lot of reversing involved.
I originally wanted to drive a rigid but im happy in the skips, its more of an active role as there's loads to do outside of the truck as well as inside.
They also have artics and tankers and roll on/off skips so I've landed in a great place as Ive always wanted to drive trucks.

jimmyw

spider_pig wrote: »

I only passed my rigid test last month so this would be my first time driving a truck other then the lessons.

You jammy git, I dont know how you managed that because I thought that unless you are born into a family of truckers, you are fubbered trying get into the industry..............................................

...........and I always thought too that since skip trucks are smaller than other rigids, they are easier to manage for a newly test passer until you are very familiar with them with regards gears etc on a daily basis.So you win on both counts IMO.

What's your secret?? :(

Atlantic Dawn

What kind of weight can those trucks pull in? If they were full of soil or concrete I'd imagine the large skips your talking 3-5 ton or so?

spider_pig

jimmyw wrote: »

What's your secret?? :(

It was a case of who you know for me. I couldn't even get a reply from anyone i sent a cv into. I was working in a warehouse so I started asking every truck driver that came in did they know anone who would give me a chance. One such driver actually knew the owner of the company and put a word in for me. I got an interview with the owner and the transport manager. He mentioned having no experience was a bad thing and good thing in that I would have no bad driving habits and would take a chance on me.
So far I've been told my driving is perfect I just need more experience on the controlls then I'll be out in my own truck, I can't wait.

Odelay

spider_pig wrote: »

It was a case of who you know for me. I couldn't even get a reply from anyone i sent a cv into. I was working in a warehouse so I started asking every truck driver that came in did they know anone who would give me a chance. One such driver actually knew the owner of the company and put a word in for me. I got an interview with the owner and the transport manager. He mentioned having no experience was a bad thing and good thing in that I would have no bad driving habits and would take a chance on me.
So far I've been told my driving is perfect I just need more experience on the controlls then I'll be out in my own truck, I can't wait.

Delighted to hear that, weĺl done, sticking to your hopes paid off.

jimmyw

spider_pig wrote: »

It was a case of who you know for me. I couldn't even get a reply from anyone i sent a cv into. I was working in a warehouse so I started asking every truck driver that came in did they know anone who would give me a chance. One such driver actually knew the owner of the company and put a word in for me. I got an interview with the owner and the transport manager. He mentioned having no experience was a bad thing and good thing in that I would have no bad driving habits and would take a chance on me.
So far I've been told my driving is perfect I just need more experience on the controlls then I'll be out in my own truck, I can't wait.

Sorry to go off on a tangent with your thread, but I am curious about this subject.I can understand the companies position with regard to experience, but how are people suppose to get experience they need when they ask for it on job adverts?.Its a vicious circle.Its a wonder that Jobbridge is not used more for this.

With regard to the CPC,are people going to keep doing all the exams etc required to start off, and then be faced with this kind of thing to then get into a job?

Is there going to be a shortage of drivers in the future when the current drivers retire as a result of this???

Anyway, good luck in your new position.

GustavoFring

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

What kind of weight can those trucks pull in? If they were full of soil or concrete I'd imagine the large skips your talking 3-5 ton or so?

Potentially well north if that. Wouldn't be unusual to see 8-10 on some loads.

This was back before weighing on the trucks mind.

spider_pig

jimmyw wrote: »

Sorry to go off on a tangent with your thread, but I am curious about this subject.I can understand the companies position with regard to experience, but how are people suppose to get experience they need when they ask for it on job adverts?.Its a vicious circle.Its a wonder that Jobbridge is not used more for this.

With regard to the CPC,are people going to keep doing all the exams etc required to start off, and then be faced with this kind of thing to then get into a job?

Is there going to be a shortage of drivers in the future when the current drivers retire as a result of this???

Anyway, good luck in your new position.

I was thinking the exact same, every trucker said it too that eventually it would dry up so to speak because no one wants to hire you with no experience. I lost count of the amount of jobs I applied for.
It was the exact same when I got my forklift licences i couldn't get anyone to even reply with a no sorry. The way I got around that was i found a company which had ceased trading and stuck it on my cv saying I had 2 years experience. I was flooded with job offers after that and when it came to interview the fake reference obviously could not be contacted, I was just asked to show them I could drive it and that was me hired. Sadly the driving licence is a dead give away experience wise on trucks as it shows the date on it so that wouldn't work.

jimmyw

Wow thinking outside the box there!


I think there should be some kind of scheme for this.If Doctors for instance were doing it that way, then there would be no doctors left in the country.

They do so many years training, and then they do an internship under the supervision of a consultant for some more years until they are a fully fledged doc.