a visit from the Cops. . .

[Ma Duce]

I saw the other thread about the owner of a CUCV havig issue with cops so I had a run in this morning and thought I would post it after reading his.

I had gone out and fired up Mark's 915 to warm it up. I plan on getting his trailer out to him this weekend and wanted to check out the truck again. I had been gone to the capitol for a couple of days and thought I would take the boys to school inthe truck as another "cool dad" momment.

As I was walking out with the boys I noticed a cruiser stopped in front of the house and starting to drive away. I waved at them in their rearview and they turned around and came back.

They asked my about the truck parked in the drive, it was Mark's 915. So we were talking about it. they asked me if you needed a CDL for one and I hedged saying there is some question about a bobtail rig, but with a trailer yes. The cop replied I wouldn't know, and I would bother a guy other than to see the truck.

They admited to running the plate to see what it was and i gave them a brief talk about it and how my budy collects military vehicles and that just yesterday there was a duece sitting next to it, but I moved it to the shop to work on it.

they asked about how much they cost and the typical stuff when the kids bus showed up and I said I had to be goign to take them to school. we shook hands and I climbed up in the truck and headed for the bus stop.

The boys wanted to be sure their friends saw them in the truck.

We followed the bus through the subdivision, and the kids at the other stop got a kick out of it. Then witht he cops sitting on the side street waiting to turn while the bus loaded, the kids in the back gave the old air horn sign and I abbliged.

The cops laughed and waved as they turned past. At school, we waited our turn to drop off at the front enterance and again the kids wanted to hear the horn. some teachers were out front and one grabbed her cell phone for a pic and they all got a kick out of it.

I can't wait to hear the reports from the kids after school today.

 

[rorybellows]

haha the cop didnt know you needed a cdl to drive that pig? thats strange. do you not need a cdl in your state to bobtail? usually its anything with air brakes needs a cdl. but if not more power to ya. i wouldnt push your luck with a trailer though

 

[Ma Duce]

legally you need an air brake endorsement at the minimum. I don't know the GVW on the 915, but i would bet that your below the 16,000 a average license allows. But the GVWR is for 50K and some cops go by the GVW and some go by the GVWR. but without a trailer, it is next to impossible to get to 50K unless you stacked one BIG block of steel on the 5th wheel.

BUT it is not used for commercial purposes and you can make all kinds of hay out of things.

If i have my way next year, you won't need a CDL or A endorsement till you break 50K curb weight.

 

[islandguydon]

Hello,

Now thats a nice story. I am glad your police are nice and ask questions instead of demanding unlawful/unreasonable requests. I guess it's all about the attitude with them.
God bless you man.

 

[fuzzytoaster]

I wish my father had done those things for me when I was a kid, but I'll surely do them for my kids!

 

[silverstate55]

Local police rarely delve into commercial stuff; that's for the Highway Patrol or Staties (aka AAA with guns).

 

[M813rc]

Thank you for posting that, Ma Deuce. Folks seldom feel fired up to post a positive police experience, so usually all we hear about are the negative ones. My experience has always been that most officers are polite and knowledgeable, but there is always a jerk or two in the mix (often a badge-heavy rookie) whose activities reflect negatively on the rest.

As regards knowing the traffic code, take a look at that thing for your state sometime, it is huge! Most patrol officers seem to know most of the 'normal' code, but when you start getting off into the intricacies of the commercial sections, it is a real quagmire. That's why they have specialist License and Weight (what they are called in Texas) types I guess.

Cheers

 

[91W350]

We have DOT certified truck inspectors in Kansas, most street officer do not have a clue what you need.... GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) is 26,000 for mandatory CDL. Deuces get by because they are under the 26,000 GVWR and have air assisted hydraulic brakes. The 915 would require a CDL as it is rated over 26,000. It is not the actual weight, but the rated weight for the vehicle. I would think most states are similar as there is a Federal Guideline. Glen

 

[Ord22]

that was a cool dad thing you did for your kids!! good deal.

 

[Bighurt]

Nice story, I thought you had a bad ending after the picture and first few sentences.

I love to take the boys out in the trucks, hesitant with the M925 as the seat belts don't work...

 

[m16ty]

In TN, you can gross up to 80K (with air brakes) without a CDL if you run farm tags and do not cross state lines.

If a private individual in TN wants to use a truck over 26k their only option (that I know of) is either farm tags or commercial tags. You may can also get antique tags for a truck that big but you're limited on when you can drive and you can't haul anything.

Although I have a CDL I run farm tags on all my personal trucks. That gives me the freedom to do basically what ever I want to and I don't have to deal with all the commercial regs.

 

[ryan77]

Local police rarely delve into commercial stuff; that's for the Highway Patrol or Staties (aka AAA with guns).

Not in the chicago burbs trucks and overweights are big money to these towns, the police have pickups with portable scales driving around they pull you over and weigh you on the spot. I got hit last year driving the dump truck full of mud cost the company $900.00. Its easy money for these towns!!!!

 

[Flyingvan911]

Cool story. And it helps the MV community to build a good reputation with the police.

 

[simp5782]

DOT here in Montana is kinda iffy. They don't really know on 5 tons and bigger. You legally can drive any truck whatever the GVW is without a cdl as long as your not driving for profit. Even if you hop in ur deuce and drive it doing a job or anything even hauling scrap you have to have a CDL. I registered my 5 ton with a GVW of 48k as a farm vehicle and I dont have to have a cdl. I have been stopped my the Highway patrol here the 2nd day I bought my 5 ton and was driving it home. He stopped me and asked if I could drive any faster since I was burning the road up at a whole 47. Min of the interstate is 45. He asked questions about the truck and wanted to know where he could buy one. He was pretty nice unlike most highway patrols. I used to be a correctional officer and we used to have run ins with them when transporting inmates. I prefer to deal with the marshals.

 

[woodywood]

in tennessee if it is privately owned and not being used for nothing but the owners use it has no weight limit or air brake restriction!thats why you can drive a class a motorhome that weighs in excess of 40000 pounds with air brakes with regular license because its private or a hobby

 

[Flyingvan911]

I wonder if it would be simpler for the federal gov to set a standard set of laws for CMV's and tell the states that everyone goes by them. Every state has something different.

 

[m16ty]

in tennessee if it is privately owned and not being used for nothing but the owners use it has no weight limit or air brake restriction!thats why you can drive a class a motorhome that weighs in excess of 40000 pounds with air brakes with regular license because its private or a hobby

Woody, Don't the motor homes have a special plate that is specific to them? I could be wrong but the only way that I've found to run a 5-ton tractor/trailer without going commercial is to run farm tags. If you have info to the contrary I'd be interested in it.

 

[vkirchner]

Will you send your cops my way, I would like to have a positive experience.