Anyone have experience with horizon transport or star fleet? Good or bad

[Blackhawk7204]

What do you think of these companies?
Who would you recommend them to Anyone?
If not who would be good to haul for?

 

[Cummins12V98]

I met a guy hauling for Horizon a couple years ago at a rest stop. He hauled RV's with a 3500 SRW LB, he said they treated him VERY well and had worked for them for several years.

 

[Tuesdak]

As I posted in the other thread... We worked for Horizon. When push comes to shove you are just a number. Way too many drivers during hard times and couldn't keep us busy. The Comdata card they use is a mess of fees. The good is both companies pay you where some fly by night outfits don't. Backhauls you can count on being without. Again get the oldest and cheapest truck you can. The high new truck payment was a big financial anchor around our neck.

Have you asked them about Hook and Tow or other areas that are not the 'standard 26,000 LBS limited recruitment'?

The best to haul for as suggested in the other thread is a big rig outfit that supplies you a truck and most important a paycheck that exceeds your expenses. IMO you would have better luck hauling Hot Shot. We went into hauling auto parts around the state of AZ and were better off income and expense wise doing that over hauling RV's. It looks like fun during the recruitment process until you realize retired people with other income are hauling RV's just for fuel money to go somewhere. I am not going to change your mind, but, I can serve as a bad example of: been there, done that, went broke, and had our truck repo'd.

Breaking even Hot Shot delivering auto parts and tires in AZ:

Light load didn't need trailer. Other days loaded trailer to ceiling and truck like this as well.

Horizon Yard

1993 Ebay special 6.5TD,$4000 cash. 100,000 miles on it.

+40K on the clock since we got it. Now has more Elk than most hunter's guns!!! And that was with the 28' cargo trailer on it.

Salvage title still making money! 240K on the ODO. This RV hauler broker outfit went under and didn't pay us for a few loads. HINT Horizon or Star wouldn't allow this ugly truck in their fleet. Vain SOB's. :-laf

 

[rowekmr]

I drove for Horizon a few seasons ago. I wanted a part time job driving diesel truck and I thought I loved towing trailers. Breezed through the training and instead of buying I leased a new F350 CC DRW through their program with Enterprise. Problem #1 they delivered a F250 CC SRW. I outfitted it with all required equipment (5th wheel, GN and WD) and made it work. I towed travel trailers and 5th wheelers except the triple axle toy haulers because the F250 already sagged with the heavier dual axle 5th wheelers.

Your profit comes after you subtract all expenses so I learned an important lesson that the heavier/bigger trailers=more fuel burn=less profit. So I put my towing ego aside and started taking the smaller trailers that I passed on before. Business was good even some backloads but all of the sudden no available loads for months. I waited awhile then turned in the truck and walked away with some professional experience. Since I had a full time job I did short distance trips which weren't in demand by the full timers.

 

[Blackhawk7204]

Was the lack of loads because of the 2500 truck or no loads at all?

 

[rowekmr]

Yes they do document the towing capacity of your truck but through their figures and calculations they would load me with any of their trailers on the yard so that included the triple axle tow haulers. They didn’t have any “weight police” guys there actually they thought I was conservative myself lol

So to answer your question they didn’t limit me on loads because of the F250. Since it was a XLT the payload wasn’t that bad vs a loaded Platinum but I like the stability of the DRW.

They have the unloaded weight of the trailers because they are new and you get the spec sheet of them at pick up.

 

[rowekmr]

Something happened in the industry and they went from a lot of trailers waiting to go to very few trailers. What I like about the trailers waiting they would up the pay as an incentive to get them moved because chances were there was a buyer waiting on it at the receiving dealer.

 

[6V92TA]

you'd be better off qualifying for a CDL A license and getting a job with a trucking company driving an 18 wheeler on their dime... since there is such a shortage of truck drivers you can work for a little while, quit and move right to the next company with no problem..