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Looking Both Ways To Van or Not to Van : Looking Both Ways

chillout

chillout

Administrator
Staff member
On Time Media Staff
Can I be successful expediting with a van? The Pro's and Con's of vanning.

This post of Looking Both Ways will explore the world of expediting in a cargo or Sprinter type van with the hopes of helping you determine if vanning is for you. We’ll look at facts and real data, some good news, and some realities you may not want to hear. It is very important that you have good information to help with your decision making process.

READ MORE...
 
Mailer

Mailer

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
chillout said:
Can I be successful expediting with a van? The Pro's and Con's of vanning.

This post of Looking Both Ways will explore the world of expediting in a cargo or Sprinter type van with the hopes of helping you determine if vanning is for you. We’ll look at facts and real data, some good news, and some realities you may not want to hear. It is very important that you have good information to help with your decision making process.

READ MORE...
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Thanks! Great article by John Meuller. New comers should find the article extremely helpful :)
 
skyraider

skyraider

Veteran Expediter
US Navy
NorthernBill said:
Great read, thanks. It is hard to figure out some of the numbers in this Bis.
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You could always visit Panther or Bolt or any other company with a headquarters office and they will show you some setups on the lot if some of their vanners are in there. I just copied my friends van basically and set it up like his and it worked. Could do the same with a Sprinter. Lots of vans and Sprinters at truckstops to look at and talk to drivers there to. No need to reinvent the wheel, just go look at what the drivers already got going...................
 
NorthernBill

NorthernBill

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
The part about how many vans may be in operation was new info to me. It's one thing to read about way to many or over 200 in Texas, but over 5000 that surprised me.

All ready made our bed with a sprinter,hope to be laying in it this spring.
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Just read the article.....Like the part..."vans are subject to settlement fluctuation"....LOL no kidding....from hero to zero in 7 days.
 
JohnMueller

JohnMueller

Moderator
Staff member
Motor Carrier Executive
Safety & Compliance
Carrier Management
The picture of OVM in those shorts is famous!
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Ya know.....Our very own Guido has numbers that can rot your socks off...he can tell you what a bag of ice sold for in 1993....he has BOTH sets of numbers now....

CV/cube vs solo straight and they are before all the new logging restrictions....the numbers will shock straight drivers that think bigger is better....this is when ALL costs are factored in....
 
Mailer

Mailer

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
OntarioVanMan said:
Ya know.....Our very own Guido has numbers that can rot your socks off...he can tell you what a bag of ice sold for in 1993....he has BOTH sets of numbers now....

CV/cube vs solo straight and they are before all the new logging restrictions....the numbers will shock straight drivers that think bigger is better....this is when ALL costs are factored in....
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I'm in favor of Ken's position on this. I thought about moving up, too. But after bits and peices of info I picked up on EO, truck stops, did some net searches, etc., I decided to stick with the van.

Of course, my choice is based on the whole picture. Freedom(99% of a time) from DOT and log, ease of movements and parking, etc. To me, the main advantages of a van, would be low operating and maintenance costs. Because of this, even in the slow time, my overhead is bearable and I can sustain much longer.

But, but...the minute Turtle, OVM, Murray, and other gogetters moved into some thing bigger like the straight, I'll be trailing right behind them:) I like to keep up withe Joneses, lol.
I
 
xiggi

xiggi

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
I would guess they are straights and vans on all sides of that equation. Better, worse or even.

sent from my Fisher Price - ABC123
 
JohnMueller

JohnMueller

Moderator
Staff member
Motor Carrier Executive
Safety & Compliance
Carrier Management
Most of us that have been in Expediting for a while know that there are some van owners that absolutely make a killing in their vans and or cube vans. So much of it has to do with their experience, the relationship they have with their dispatch and company, and also right place - right time. These are the same folks that just do not know how to say "NO" to a run, and are always available in service. Likewise, there are some folks that absolutely fall on their face after they get into a van. OVM (Ken) is correct - everyone should realize that just buying a van or truck does not guarantee success, and that bigger is not always better. There are some really amazing, successful, businessmen and women operating cargo vans and cube vans.

Speaking of cube/cargo vans, there was a Chef Dennis siting on the 12th at Bennett and Berdan. He is alive and driving.
 
Mailer

Mailer

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
zorry said:
Are you saying the smarter I get, the luckier I'll get ?
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zorry, you''ve been lucky:) lol.

My thoughts... luck, if you got it, it's a guaranteed rewards. I''ll bypass my opinion on "smart," because there are several ways to say it, lol.
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
work smarter....and be lucky too.....:)

solo Straights are so limited now....they can only run so many miles in a 70 hour cycle...every minute at a dock, every minute fueling up, every minute going into a scale, every minute in a traffic jam, every minute in a bad storm, just deducts from what they can run....and what they can earn....if they get a $1.75 does that even come close to our $1.00?.... .75 a mile difference I don't see that as a whooping difference when overhead and expenses are calculated in....a straight would have to be very very experienced and very lucky as well....
 
zorry

zorry

Veteran Expediter
So, are you saying you need to work much more than 70 hrs per week and live in a sardine can ?

And you said straights are limited "now".

Because it's harder to cheat with e-logs ?
 
OntarioVanMan

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
zorry said:
So, are you saying you need to work much more than 70 hrs per week and live in a sardine can ?

And you said straights are limited "now".

Because it's harder to cheat with e-logs ?
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Don't muddy the water legally they are limited .... You drive one
 
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