climber has to have class B or above

[david miller]

just wandering those that work for company's, do they require you to have a class A or B to be a climber or grounds we just got bought out by a new owner from NJ these are the new requirements. i have mine just wondering is this the norm

 

[Climb020]

More company specific, but know a lot of them do like people to have a class B with air endorsement or at least be willing to obtain one through the company. But in my experience I was never forced to obtain it as per terms of my employment.

 

[NCTREE]

whats a class "A" climber? Is that like having a class "C" license?

 

[treemandan]

I just tell em " ####, I'm climbing, I'm in the pick-up... see ya!"

:chainsawguy:

Dam Straight!

 

[Bigus Termitius]

I just tell em " ####, I'm climbing, I'm in the pick-up... see ya!"

:chainsawguy:

Dam Straight!

LOL! Reason enough to climb.

I'm tired of driving the bucket, but I'm the only one with a cdl class A. My assistant is working on it, has a permit and drives us around some. I'm ready for him to take over so I can cruise in my one ton dumper.

 

[pdqdl]

As an employer, I require everybody working for me to have a drivers license. Not so much because they must be able to drive, but because it is a provable testament to how well they can manage their lives. Drunks and irresponsible people I don't need, and the State does a pretty good job of weeding out the total losers.

It could be that your company has similar attitudes. Also, if you have just one or two guys that can do a specific job, that limits the employers options on how to deal with employee problems. You can bet they don't want to run out of truck drivers and have contracts run behind because the "Class B" drivers didn't come to work that day.

 

[ropensaddle]

Who would want a b anyway?

 

[pdqdl]

Anybody that wants better pay, and can't get an "A".

 

[ropensaddle]

Anybody that wants better pay, and can't get an "A".

Ohhhhh yeah, good point, I go bury my head in sand now k?

 

[beowulf343]

just wandering those that work for company's, do they require you to have a class A or B to be a climber or grounds we just got bought out by a new owner from NJ these are the new requirements. i have mine just wondering is this the norm

The outfit i'm with does require all their bucket operators, climbers, crane operators, and groundies to have at least a class B with air brake endorsement. The company will pay for you to get it too.

 

[ropensaddle]

The outfit i'm with does require all their bucket operators, climbers, crane operators, and groundies to have at least a class B with air brake endorsement. The company will pay for you to get it too.

I would get the A, it is worth it I got the b at Asplundh and retested and drove again for the A several years later . If your going to pull around a bush hog on a twenty ton hudson with the bucket you need the A! I essentially tested twice for my cdl and aced the test both times!

 

[pdqdl]

How I got my class "A"

Back in 1980, my father had recently started driving a semi truck, having been a somewhat unsuccessful property developer prior to that. Somehow, I was getting dragged into the plan. At that time, all that was required to drive a semi truck was to go get a chauffeurs license, then get hired by a trucking company, after taking an open book test on the regulations. Piece of cake! I was now an over the road truck driver, even though I really didn't know anything about the job!

He had a heart attack a short time later, and I was obliged to support my parents at the tender age of 24. I did that for about a year and a half, then we got into grounds maintenance. [We also did that with no training whatsoever!]

Many years later, I discovered that I needed more than a chauffeurs license, and I tried to grandfather in on the CDL test. Sadly, it would seem that I attempted to do that on the last possible legal date to do so, and the Highway Patrol office wouldn't let me take the written test!

So...I took my Class A test in my old rollback wrecker with air brakes, towing my electric brake heavy haul trailer (both were class A vehicles). This old beater truck would barely pass any pretrip inspection, and it developed a worse air leak in the main brake control valve when I took the test. The Highway Patrol gave me one hour to correct the air leak otherwise I would be obliged to test again another day.

I went down the road 1 mile to the nearest truck stop, purchased a little brass plug that obscured the relief-port from the main brake control valve, and presto! No more air leak! There was just one little drawback, however: by plugging the relief port, I prevented the air brake control valve from releasing the brakes after they had been applied.

Hah! Who needs brakes? I finished the pre-trip inpection, then I took the entire driving test without hardly ever touching the brakes. It took about 10 seconds for the brakes to release, and that just appeared to make me extra careful at every stop sign. The Highway Patrol never knew that anything was wrong with the brakes, and I passed with flying colors and a high score.

Who would have thought that you would have to make your truck more dangerous to drive in order to pass the test?

 

[ropensaddle]

Back in 1980, my father had recently started driving a semi truck, having been a somewhat unsuccessful property developer prior to that. Somehow, I was getting dragged into the plan. At that time, all that was required to drive a semi truck was to go get a chauffeurs license, then get hired by a trucking company, after taking an open book test on the regulations. Piece of cake! I was now an over the road truck driver, even though I really didn't know anything about the job!

He had a heart attacka short time later, and I was obliged to support my parents at the tender age of 24. I did that for about a year and a half, then we got into grounds maintenance. [We also did that with no training whatsoever!]

Many years later, I discovered that I needed more than a chauffeurs license, and I tried to grandfather in on the CDL test. Sadly, it would seem that I attempted to do that on the last possible legal date to do so, and the Highway Patrol office wouldn't let me take the written test!

So...I took my Class A test in my old rollback wrecker with air brakes, towing my electric brake heavy haul trailer (both were class A vehicles). This old beater truck would barely pass any pretrip inspection, and it developed a worse air leak in the main brake control valve when I took the test. The Highway Patrol gave me one hour to correct the air leak otherwise I would be obliged to test again another day.

I went down the road 1 mile to the nearest truck stop, purchased a little brass plug that obscured the relief-port from the main brake control valve, and presto! No more air leak! There was just one little drawback, however: by plugging the relief port, I prevented the air brake control valve from releasing the brakes after they had been applied.

Hah! Who needs brakes? I finished the pre-trip inpection, then I took the entire driving test without hardly ever touching the brakes. It took about 10 seconds for the brakes to release, and that just appeared to make me extra careful at every stop sign. The Highway Patrol never knew that anything was wrong with the brakes, and I passed with flying colors and a high score.

Who would have thought that you would have to make your truck more dangerous to drive in order to pass the test?

Lol at least ya got the A

 

[Bigus Termitius]

ol pd is full of fun stories today.

I had a B for a couple years while I was spraying crops and hauling loads to sprayers with straight tankers.

I went back to work for the agbiz firm the next season with the understanding that I would get my A.

So we used a gooseneck trailer that we hauled stuff with connected to the one ton flatbed. The state would not let me take the test at first, but the little rig required an A, so they had to in the end.

A couple weeks later they broke out the semi tanker for me to run, and a trucker was born.

I had a hazmat and all that happiness and went trucking, but I grew out of it. It was good experience and it helps me now, but I wasn't born to drive a cage all day, all night, all day.

 

[mattfr12]

class B is the bare minimum for driving anything over 26,000 pounds. most buckets enless you get into some of the smaller ones without air brakes are over 26,000 pounds usually in the mid 30,000-35,000 pound range. most of your major companies will require you to have one because they want you to be able to drive thier vehicles. making you more valuable to them.