Also, in addition to the (lack of) air brakes restriction, if the truck has a gooseneck or pintle hitch instead of a 5th wheel, you'll get a restriction on your A for that, too. Just sayin'
And about the CDL ... did we mention the
• Lower tolerances/higher fines for speeding and other traffic violations (You know how now, if you are courteous and generally have a clean record, you will get a warning and a talking to and be on your way? Not any more ... If you see the blue lights and they see the CDL, out comes the ticket book
)
• Lower threshold for DUI/DWI
• Reporting requirements for drug and alcohol testing/infractions
• DoT Medical form submittals and filing
I mentioned my Tech Tip on this subject -- Here's the rough draft, FWIW. Remember, I started this over a year ago...
Also FWIW, here's the rig I used to get my CDL-A (no restrictions). Tractor has air brakes, regular gooseneck trailer with the king pin coupler insert to make it a 5th wheel trailer. Note: a regular semi trailer, with its axles all the way back, would have been a LOT easier ... The parallel parking was challenging to master well enough for the skills test ...
And if you think 45 minutes is a long time for the pretrip ... it isn't
Practice more.
Regards,
John
