CDL ?

[Tyler23]

i wasnt sure where to post this. but ill give it a shot here.. i was looking to get my cdl license. does anyone know what exactly i have to do to get it?.. the guy at the DMV couldnt explain it better than my 8yr old cousin..Thanks

[BK19]

first you need to take the written test along with any endorsements you may need IE air brakes,hazordous etc,then the road test pretty much it

[Tyler23]

any classes?

[LwnmwnMan2]

What exactly are you looking to do with your CDL?

The previous post says it. There is a written test you need to take. Then you need to pass a road course driver's test, as well as a pre-trip inspection.

When I did mine 10 years ago, the pre-trip inspection, you could read off of a sheet, since you're supposed to do the pre-trip inspection report each time the vehicle leaves the shop / property.

[croixflats]

The test are prety easy if you study the manual they give you.

CLASS A - This classification applies only to "combination" vehicles with a Gross Combination Weight Rating (GCWR) exceeding 26,000 pounds, provided the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed exceeds 10,000 pounds.

CLASS B - This class includes single or combination vehicles where the GVWR of the single vehicle exceeds 26,000 pounds. The vehicle in tow must not exceed 10,000 pounds.

CLASS C - Vehicles designed to transport 16 or more passengers, including the driver, and vehicles placarded for hazardous materials, that do not meet the criteria for Class A or B above fall under this classification

You will have to take one or more knowledge tests, depending on what class of license and what endorsements you need. All CDL applicants must take the general knowledge test. There are fifty questions on the general knowledge test. You must get 40 correct to pass. The table below will tell you what additional tests you must take, if any.

Test Name Take If...

Passenger Transport ...you want to drive a bus

Air Brakes ...your vehicle has air brakes

Combination Vehicles ...you want to drive combination vehicles

Hazardous Materials ...you want to haul hazardous material or waste in amounts which require placarding

Tankers ...you want to haul liquids in bulk

Doubles/Triples ...you want to pull double or triple trailers

Skills Tests

If you pass the required knowledge test(s), you can take the CDL skills tests. There are three types of general skills that will be tested: pre-trip inspection, basic vehicle control, and on-road driving. You must take these tests in the type of vehicle for which you wish to be licensed.

1.Pre-Trip Vehicle Inspection: You will be tested to see if you know whether your vehicle is safe to drive. You will be asked to do a pre-trip inspection of your vehicle and explain to the examiner what you would inspect and why.

2.Basic Vehicle Control: You will be tested on your skill to control the vehicle. You will be asked to move your vehicle forward, backward, and turn it within a defined area. These areas may be marked with traffic lanes, cones, barriers, or something similar. The examiner will tell you how each control test is to be done.

3.On-road Test: You will be tested on your skill to safely drive your vehicle in a variety of traffic situations. The situations may include left and right turns, intersections, railway crossings, curves, up and down grades, and single or multi-lane roads, streets, or highways. The examiner will tell you where to drive

What Fees Will I Have To Pay?

Fees are as follows:

Class A $37.50

Under 21 (Intrastate Only) Class A $17.50

Class B $29.50

Class C $22.50

Additional School Bus Processing Fee $ 4.00

Examination Fee, Each Endorsement $ 2.50

[Lip'em]

Just received my CDL this past spring.

First you have to take a written test. The commercial drivers handbooks are available at the DMV from which to study from for the written test. The written test from what i remember is at least 3 parts, and then add another part for each endorsement that you need (air brakes, hazardous, passenger etc). I think the airbrake endorsement is a standard part of the test now if I am not mistaken. There are places online where you can take practice tests.

Next you need to take the pre-trip inspection and driving test on a course somewhere. A lot of times this will require hiring out a company with a truck and trailer to take the test in. I went with a company called Class A Leasing and they worked out of the Fridley drivers examination course. They met me at the course 2 hours early and let me practice with driving the truck and practice my pre-trip inspection. For the driving test they test you on things like backing and turning wide with trailers.

I passed and technically that makes me able to drive any combination on the road including semis. Of course because i have not had any training on semis i wouldn't have the foggiest idea how to drive one. So anyway, I guess what i am getting at is you need to know what you want to use your CDL for. If you are just planning on driving a heavy truck with heavy trailer I would recommend doing it the way I did it. Class A Leasing is the most reasonably priced in town but still don't expect it to be cheap(right around $300).

If you plan on using your CDL for driving semis or passenger buses you probably want to go to a truck driving school and take some classes and behind the wheel training. This may even be required, I don't know.

Hope this helps.

~John

[GotOne]

If you want to be a professional truck driver, get trained properly at a truck driving school. That way, hopefully, you will not kill yourself or someone else. Dakota County Vo-Tech has a great class. Google "The Truckers Report Forum", you will gain a world of Knowledge regarding Commercial Truck Driving.

[paceman]

Isn't there a physical needed as well????

[jeffreyd]

While most of the info is correct there have been changes since 9-11. First is the haz mat part you have to go through TSA background, fingerprinting and clearance to get that endorsement. Second to answer the last post, yes there is a medical card that is required. It is usually good for 2 yrs unless you are disqualified for the 2 yr part for high blood pressure, diabetes, or other problems that are outlined by DOT. My suggestion is to find a company that does the third party training and testing. This way you can bypass most of the DMV stuff and if you have never driven a "truck" before, will give you some time to prepare. Many think that just getting behind the wheel is easy however when you have 80k pushing you down the mountain it takes a lot of seat power to keep from jumping. Good luck, I have had my CDL since they enacted the law.

[NoWiser]

I got my CDL 5 or 6 years back. I had to take a drug test, but I don't believe that was to get the actual CDL. I did what Lip'em suggested and used a company who gave you a brief training session and use of their truck for the test. Interstate Driving Academy I think it was called. I believe that I had to take the drug test prior to using their vehicle. I would highly recommend going this route, it made things very easy. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure you are subject to random drug tests when you have a CDL. Someone else may know. You also have to get a DOT physical every couple of years in order to drive a commercial vehicle. These are quick and can be taken care of at your local clinic.

[BobT]

This thread reminded of an idea that I’ve been entertaining for a while. The owner of Osakis Ag is a tiptoe away from retiring and to my knowledge there is no plan beyond his retirement. If he closes the elevator, I will be in a dilemma with regard to my part-time farm. The next closest elevator is in Garfield or Long Prairie, which are about 20 miles away. It would not be very practical to haul my grain that far using my tractor and gravity box. Being so small, it would be difficult for me to compete with the larger full-timers to secure a truck to get my grain to market. There are other options but because of the added hassles I’d basically be forced to quit farming.

I’ve been considering picking up a dual-axle grain truck with about a 20 foot box so I could haul up to maybe about 400 or 500 bushels at a time (limited by the GVWR) and truck it to Glenwood myself. Before I do that I thought I’d better get acquainted with the licensing requirements, etc. and what I learned has surprised me to say the least.

Get this.

I can buy a grain truck and use it to haul my grain and I do not need a CDL. I can have my 16-year old daughter drive the truck without a CDL. I can hire the neighbor kid to drive the truck without a CDL.

How about this? I could buy an 18-wheel tanker truck and send my child or a hired driver down I-94 to the cities (150 mile limit), get it filled with hazardous anhydrous ammonia, and return back to my farm without a CDL. Does this make any sense or what? The next time you pass a tanker with hazardous chemical signs or livestock think about the fact that the driver might be on a maiden voyage without any formal training.

This news is nice for me because now I know I won’t have to deal with the licensing process or expense but it really doesn’t make any sense. Personally, I think that if anyone should require licensing it would be the farmer. Full-time truckers know the rules and they know how to handle their rigs. The farmer that pulls his out of the weeds for one month out of the year, putting on maybe a couple hundred miles at best, is probably the most dangerous example I can think of.

Well…at least they still require that whatever truck I get will have to be inspected annually to make sure it is road worthy. I’m sure it is not inexpensive but I can support the requirement. It would be a good addition to my maintenance plan.

Here’s the quotation from the MN DOT FAQs.

Quote:

A driver is NOT required to obtain a CDL to operate any of the following vehicles:

• A farm truck when it is:

o Operated by the farmer or immediate family member, or an employee of the farmer:

o Used to transport agricultural products, farm machinery, or farm supplies, including hazardous materials to or from a farm;

o Not used in a contract or common carrier operation; and

o Used within 150 miles of the farm.

Since finding this information I have been told by colleagues that there is a speed restriction that goes along with the farmer's exemption. He thought maybe 25mph? I have not been able to substantiate that. Anyone have any knowledge of this?

[gunflint]

I Owned and drove a dilapidated old Peterbilt when I was logging. At the time I didn't have a Class A and didn't need one as I would stay within the mileage limit set under the farm bill. It was for hauling equipment and had a slasher with it. I had never driven a Tractor/Trailer before hoping in and driving it up and down the Gunflint Trail and the side roads needed to get into the woods.

Now, years later I have a Class A, I've driven over the road and am currently employed as a truck mechanic with a DOT certification. All I can say about about driving under the farm provision is wow, I can't believe I did that. There's a good reason to give farm and logging trucks a wide birth.

[chris63]

You may want to wait and get some driving experience starting in the spring instead of being a greenhorn at the first part of winter.I've been around trucks as mechanic/driver/general interest for over 35 years.We really earn our living in the winter months as starting,performing inspections,(required by law)maintaining becomes much more of a challenge in the winter months.If you do decide to get your CDL please drive carefully as you may /will be operating around others loved ones.Good luck!!,c63

[gunflint]

Chris63 is giving excellent advice and that's years of experience talking. I started driving in January. There's nothing like being a rookie driving 80,000 pounds on ice or in a major snow storm with a big rig in the ditch every mile or two. But you have to keep moving because your paid by the mile and if the wheels aren't turning you're not getting paid.

Driving truck isn't as easy as most people think. After you get some accident free experience and after maybe a year or two there is a chance of getting a local driving job but there's a lot of trucking firms who have closed the doors in the last year and there's a lot of drivers looking for work.

Then there's the nerve factor. Most car drivers don't have a clue concerning stopping distances required to stop a truck and the will bob and weave in traffic and pull out right in front of you because they don't want to be stuck behind you. Then there's making a wrong turn in downtown Albany and ending up in city traffic in a bad neighborhood driving a semi in a no-truck zone with no clue on how to get back to the interstate. I've heard that can be frustrating.

It's an honorable but very under appreciated profession that most people think anyone can do.

[gregg52]

I use to just drive just in the winter OTR (dozer opeator summer)

94 from hudson to wisc illinois border coming back one time

i counted over 100 in the ditch cars and trucks i think 60 of those were big trucks 5-6 wiggle wagons with the tractor poited staight up to the sky

i wondered how they got out specially with a load in their pants

lol...that had to be a hell of a ride

like chris said use your head when you are out there

its not as easy as one thinks

i ended up in one those albany deals gunflint was talkin bout

but it was in south chicago i wasnt really lost but had to make a delivery in a very bad area and it was late at nite

and then couldnt get unloaded til morning had to sleep there

i didnt sleep to well

be sure to practice BACKING UP you can get in some pretty tight spots and other guys waiting to get in

i backed in more than one truck for rookies

[Tyler23]

ok thanks alot guys for the info!... but i am not looking to be a professional truck driver. my uncle owns a semi that he hauls grain for farmers and had mentioned something about me getting my CDL and i could make some extra money on the side driveing in place of him. thats my only reason.. thanks for all the info guys it really helped out

[Powerstroke]

While BobT is correct that farmers are exempt from a CDL for farm related uses, you will not be exempt from rules about how vehicles over 10000lbs GVWR are operated. Not having a CDL doesn't exclude you from being fined for violating any of the rules about the road-worthiness of the vehicle. You are also still eligible to be pulled over for a commercial vehicle inspection.

As someone who gets pulled over for inspections yearly (the pitfalls of working in the metro), the State Patrol never fails to mention that the worst offenders are the farmers who aren't regulated by the same rules. Its not all of them I know, but a high percentage of violations come from a select few vehicles.

[The NONER]

I cant wait its driving me crazy. I am going out on black lake, lake Minnetonka on sunday early ice crappies Rip some lip

[croixflats]

ok thanks alot guys for the info!... but i am not looking to be a professional truck driver. my uncle owns a semi that he hauls grain for farmers and had mentioned something about me getting my CDL and i could make some extra money on the side driveing in place of him. thats my only reason.. thanks for all the info guys it really helped out

Looks like the CDL will be agood investment for you, good luck. A CDL is a valuable asset sitting in your wallet thats for sure.

[Macgyver55]

As someone who gets pulled over for inspections yearly (the pitfalls of working in the metro), the State Patrol never fails to mention that the worst offenders are the farmers who aren't regulated by the same rules. Its not all of them I know, but a high percentage of violations come from a select few vehicles.

As someone certified to actually do the inspections (not a highway patrolman) I can tell you the rules are VERY much different for farm vehicles. Brake specs, tire specs and lighting are all more lax on farm vehicles than they are for commercial ones.

Farmers are however limited to where they can operate their vehicles. They must not be operated more than 150 miles away from their farm.

There are also a lot of regs regarding who needs a CDL, many of which are widely unknown. For instance, my buddy who races his car, has to have a CDL simply because if he wins money in another state and then transports his car, it becomes interstate commerce. They used to get around it by registering the tow vehicle as an RV but now they are being watched too. One way or another they are gonna get the fees.