Some Helpful Gear to Keep in Your Truck

As a Class A CDL truck driver, you need to be prepared for any situation – you never know what’s going to happen on the road! That light bulb that needs changing on a trailer in the middle of the night? You’ll need a flashlight. Can’t get traction in a parking lot in the middle of winter? You’ll need salt to throw down and get going again.

When you’re trucking, there’s basically no way to predict what’s to come. To get you started, here’s a list 14 useful trucking tools, equipment and gear to have around:

1. Flat jaw vise grips – If there’s a need to fix something, then you’re set. If you blow a brake line, you can clamp the line and back off the brake so you can drive somewhere to get it fixed.
2. Flashlight – A good flashlight is a definite must for not only using at night, but for when the light is dim and you’re having trouble seeing what you’re working on.
3. Aluminum Tape – Helpful for making a quick patch when necessary.
4. Hammer, a few wrenches, and screw drivers – You never know what you might need to fix.
5. Basic ratchet and socket set – For tightening bolts, screws, and other nuts and bolts that could be loose.
6. Black electrical tape and a sharp knife – It doesn’t make sense to have one without the other.
7. Air gage – You’ll need one to track the air pressure in your tires.
8. Air hose – Can connect it to a glad hand to pump up a tire that’s low.
9. Broom and dustpan – Cleaning out a trailer is tough without both. To take things a step further, get a whisk broom to make cleaning even easier (or a leaf blower!).
10. Work Gloves – You need to keep your hands protected. Make sure to buy a good pair.
11. Coveralls – Perfect for when you need to crawl under a truck or trailer and don’t want to get dirty.
12. Cleaning Supplies – They come in handy when you’re not near a truck stop and need to clean your windshield.
13. Zip Ties and Carabiners – Useful for bunching air hoses together and securing trailer doors.
14. Extra water, oil, and windshield washer fluid – It never hurts to have these items on hand for a quick top-off. 

Most of the items on this list of useful trucking tools, equipment and gear were shared by our class a truck drivers at Paper Transport, Inc. They’re very supportive of one another and most will do whatever they can to help their teammates be successful. Don’t believe it? Well, hear it first from one of our drivers:

“What I like about working for PTI is they just don’t look at you as a truck number. When I call in, they call me by my name … And, my coworkers really keep me at the company too. There hasn’t been a time I couldn’t walk up to a PTI driver and ask for help. It means a lot to me that they don’t mind taking the time out of their schedule to help me.” – Terrie Ursey, home weekly Jacksonville dedicated Class A CDL Truck Driver.

If you want to be a member of a supportive team, please call our recruiting team at 1-855-784-5627 or email them at jobs@papertransport.com. Visit our job portal to apply for a driving position with PTI today.