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For Flatbed KW


Guest Anthony Oteri

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Anthony,

My thoughts exactly, it's not the same without Ray's enthusiasm and knowledge. Keeps us all on our toes!!

We can only hope no news is good news and Cummins sorted the engine out and Ray and the Old KW are back on the road earning their living.

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LOL. It's good to be noticed. I took a breather from the Freightliner for a few days to relax and find more info. The basic cab structure is just about complete. I should have it primered this weekend. There have been a few moments of frustration and a few "do-overs", but I have a fairly convincing replica, not perfect, but it should pass. The frame is about complete.

As some of you know, I have been off work since April 18. Thanks to shortcuts taken in January by the warranty on my engine. The work authorized was nothing more than a bandaid. This time, Kenworth wasn't taking no for an answer, and they fought to have the properly performed work covered. It isn't a Kenworth or Cummins warranty, hence the problem. Thankfully, I don't have a lot of bills, mortgages, etc, or this would really hurt financially. Even though, losing the time hasn't helped any, either. The truck is back together, and I return to work next week. The only thing left is to sort through the mountain of paperwork so I can pay the bill, and go.

Well, that's all for now. Other than that, not much is new.

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So, Ray, what excatly was wrong with your KW, or don't that really know? Sounds like yo've been having some serious engine problems. Hope you can get back to work soon.

Now, on a lighter note: one of our materials handlers at work wants to get into the trucking industry as a driver. Long haul stuff I guess. He asked me where I thought he should start. Since he doesn't have a Class A lisence, I told him that would be as good a place to start as any. Any suggestions for him? Good companies to start with?

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The truck was down due to several things. #1, when the turbo was replaced in Jan, they installed the wrong one. #2, the valve camshaft failed. Only the injector cam was replaced last time, the warranty only allowed bandaid treatment. #3 Head damage. The intake valve on #2 cyl ground its way through the seat and into the head.

Other little things have gone too. If it wasn't a constant thing, it wouldn't be so bad. I hate having to do the job 1/2 right.

As to your friend, the one thing I can say is that it won't necessarily matter where he starts, as long as he listens to everything they say before getting hired, as trucking companies tend to promise the world. If he goes to a larger carrier, tell him to stay away from the lease purchase programs. They will try hard to sell him on that. You don't always end up with a bad truck, but usually, if you and the company don't like each other after awhile, you can't leave until the truck is paid, unless of course, you let them have it back. Research is your best friend in this business. Although, sometimes looking closely doesn't reveal anything until it's too late. I know of a dark blue T600 that fits that description well. :roll: I wish him luck though. He can make money if he's willing to try. Just make sure before he spends the money on school that he really wants to do it.

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I finally got it back today, and in the morning, I pick up my new trailer. We lease these and trade in every 2 years. This will be good because it needs brakes and I didn't want that expense right now. Feels good to have it back. Now I can build again without stress on my mind. Thanks to all of you who kept me going.

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