Over The Road and R & R Trucking

Goal: Enhance the utilization of the storage capabilities of the headache rack.

Reason: There was only one shelf in the tools and lubricant section.  The chain and binder section needed a way to separate the chains and added capacity for the rubber straps.

Having only one shelf meant that things got stacked on top of each other and naturally the item you were looking for was on the bottom.  The second shelf was modeled after the first and it holds my tool bags nicely. 

I use canvas tool bags instead of a steel box because the items can be packed tighter into a small space.  I use smaller canvas bags within the main tool bag to group “like” tools together.  This makes it real easy to just grab the bag that you need for the job you are working on.  Drill bits, sockets, screw drivers are all grouped into smaller bags.  I also have a medium sized bag that has the “most used” tools in it. I use this tool bag 90% of the time.

We solved the problem of the tangling of the chains by building compartments for each chain.  Now when the truck in bouncing down the road the chain bounces in it’s own compartment instead of snaking its way to the opposite side of the rack to get tangled with a chain on the other side.  The compartments are made from slotted panels that interlock.  They are set inside the rack in two pieces so it can be removed.

We took the top hanger from the rack and cut it in two lengthwise and welded it back together so that we now have two rails to hang the rubber tarp straps on instead of one.  I can now buy another box of straps because when I have all my tarps out I run out of straps.

The student responsible for the modifications to the rack is AJ Morris & Michael Button – Thanks Guys!

Goal: Prevent air from traveling from beneath the truck to the space between the truck and the front of the trailer, utilize the space between the frame rails for storage, and cover the tires to prevent water and mud from splashing on the headache rack when raining.

Reason: According to a white paper published by Volvo, closing off this area will save fuel but they didn’t mention how much for this specific modification.  A space for the storage of tires chains and the third tarp was needed.  The headache rack was getting blasted with rocks and mud and a good fender is hard to find for a Volvo with side fairings.

This addition really provided a finished look for the area behind the cabin.  Out of all the additions that were made this one is the one that drew the most comments.  I am certain there were several of these made in fabrication shops around the US since ours was made, but none with the craftsmanship of the one I have.  People were amazed when I told them that a high school shop made this one.  The deck plate fits like a glove and has held up quite well these last six months. 

The main complication of this project was the box that fit between the frame rails was too big and there was barely enough room for the bolts that hold the headache rack to the frame.  We could not use the u-bolts that came with the rack and had to switch to straight bolts with steel plates above and below the frame rail.

The students that worked on this project showed great attention to detail and were very precise in their measurements, cuts and welding. 

Thank you Cody Hansen and Geoff Franklin

Goal: Provide a space for various communications antennas.

Reason:  Most trucks come with an antenna on each mirror bracket.  The newer ones use antennas with multiple frequency ranges to cut down on the number of antennas needed.  They combine the CB antenna with FM or AM antenna in a single mast.  This helps reduce the number of masts but more is needed for the addition of cellular, XM, GPS, digital off-air, satellite TV, scanners and the like.

It is standard practice to mount the additional antenna on the mirror bracket.  I have seen them mounted on the side handles of the truck.  Both of these methods cause additional wind resistance while in-motion.  I have mounted them on extension poles fixed to the back of the truck with the antenna sticking out above the cab.  This cut down on the wind resistance but you are limited in the number of antennas you can place on the end of a pole.

I decided the only way to accommodate the number of antennas needed was to build a shelf/rack that they all could be mounted to.  Unfortunately they are not all the same height and they all have different clearance requirements.    We calculated the requirements of each and found a good height for all antennas except the satellite TV.  We would need to move the SAT TV down to a shelf of its own.  

We did not have the SAT TV and it would not be available until after the unit was scheduled to be done so we obtained the dimensions of the unit by applying a scale to a picture we found.  We designed the shelf to replace the QualComm bracket that was attached to the back of the truck and also support the inside ends of each of the communication shelves.  The outside ends would be supported by additional brackets mounted using the bolts that hold the fairing to the back of the truck.  None of the brackets could be bent at a 90 degree angle since the back wall of the truck tilts forward slightly.  The end brackets also needed to be bent more toward the middle since the back edge of the truck also tilts forward.  We discovered this on our first set of brackets and this prompted the second set that you see in the pictures.

We needed the rack to be wide enough to hold the QualComm antenna and also wrap around the SAT TV enough to make things look right.  We also needed the rack to be at least one inch from the wall.  This meant the exhaust pipe and the rack were in conflict for the space that the exhaust pipe currently occupied.  The rack won and we shortened the stack by about 6 inches.

I discovered that most trucks are 13’2” in height.  The maximum height for trucks across all states is 13’6”.  This means we have 4 inches that we can use above the top of the cab for clearance for the antennas.  However, if the antenna doesn’t need this space it stays below the 13’2” height to prevent more wind resistance.  At this point, the antennas all seem to be working well and have not been adjusted since the pictures have been taken.

The student that worked on this project showed great attention to detail and made very good use of his time.  I am very pleased with the end result. 

Thank you Ed Gayewski

Goal: Prepare a space for 6 additional group 31 batteries.

Purpose: To expand the capacity of the stored energy to reduce the amount of time the engine will need to idle.  The stored energy will serve the onboard electronics and the HVAC system.

The batteries are wired in parallel configuration and are connected to the existing battery bank to make a total of 10 group 31 batteries.  When the HVAC system is installed the new bank of 6 batteries will be isolated and the load balanced between the two banks.

The box was designed to fit in the storage area directly under the door on the passenger’s side of truck.  The project has four parts; the base, the box, the lid and the buss bar.

The base is made with two pieces of angle iron, sharp edge down, inside edges facing each other, parallel to the frame on the truck.  The angle iron is boxed in using 2 flat iron pieces attached to inside edge on the end of each angle iron piece.  On top of the flat iron pieces are two additional flat iron pieces that form a slide for the box.  The first piece located ¼ of an inch wider than the width of the box.  The second piece overlaps the first to hold the lip of the box down.  A third piece of angle iron was used as a strut between the two angle iron pieces.

The box is made of sheet metal and is folded to form the front bottom and rear of the box.  The box is shorter in the front than the back to allow for easy access for the placement of batteries in the box.  The sides of the box are pieces of sheet metal cut to match the front and back and then welded to the folded section of the box.

The top is made from smaller angle iron, sharp edge down with all four sides in angle iron and the sharp edge towards the middle.  There are four L shaped tabs (two in front and two in back) welded to the outside edge of the top frame to allow attachment of the top to the box.  Attachment is done with holes in the bottom of the tabs and the top of the box with a bolt passing through.  The top also has angle iron struts, with the sharp edge facing down, to provide added strength.

The buss bar is made from copper and is 1/8” thick and 1/2” wide and will carry 200 amps at 30 degree C.  The batteries are clustered in a “six pack” configuration with three batteries wide and two deep.  The batteries are arranged to have the positive terminals in the inside and the negative along the outside edge.  The buss bar connects three batteries each and there is an additional crossover bar for both the negative and positive to tie the two banks together.

The original design worked with very few adjustments.  We did discover a mistake but too late in the project to make a change.  The battery box was supposed to accommodate the batteries plus 1/4” of space around the all of the batteries.  As it turned out, the batteries fit snugly in the box.  I am concerned with the expansion that will happen in the summer months. 

The student responsible for this creation is Matty Summers and I am grateful for his help – Thanks Matty!

Over Christmas break I contacted a friend of mine who teaches a shop class for the local high school in my home town.  I had several fabricating projects that I needed done and since he knows everyone in town I asked him for a recommendation.  He told me that he had some great students and that he recommended them.

There were four projects in all; a communications rack, a battery box, some modifications to a headache rack and last but not leaset the deck plate and fenders.  I am very pleased with the final products and will be posting articles and pictures in the coming weeks.  My goal is to post a project per week so you will have to come back and see what the students have done.

We are operating at 85% of Expected Revenue

Total Days Available= 94

Dead Head Percentage= 19%

Time Sitting Percentage= 38%

Average Cents Per Mile= 1.98

Average Miles Per Week= 3109.0

Average Revenue Per Week= $6.155.22

Cents Per Mile Goal= $1.85

Miles Per Week Goal= 4000

Revenue Per Week Goal= $7,200