Custom Rigs

Emanuel Haueis' 2019 International LoneStar

He uses the rig to haul mostly frac sand and grain in B-train hopper bottoms in northern and western Canada and the northwestern U.S. In the summer of 2020, he also got into hauling asphalt emulsion in insulated B-train tankers from Alberta to the Yukon.

January 26, 2021

Channel 19

Meet the driver of Evel Knievel's former haul rig

This latest in Overdrive's 60th anniversary series takes a look at one intersection of the business magazine and U.S. popular culture with the 1973 story on one of the most famous people on the planet at the time, the daredevil and sometime truck driver.

January 25, 2021

Then-trucker Mike Draper behind the wheel of Evel Knievel's Mack haul rig in the 1970s.

Overdrive Radio

Regulated rates, wildcatting, deregulation: A brief history of U.S. trucking

A special tour through the rise of the owner-operator in exempt agricultural markets from the 1930s, to wildcatting later, deregulation later still -- and this cabover monument to one owner's heritage.

January 22, 2021

The 1978 Peterbilt 352 was a model who in earlier years had been driven by Bowerman's father, who passed several years earlier. This one, purchased from a prior owner in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, has origins in Illinois, Bowerman said, and is powered by a Cat 3406A run through a 15-speed transmission, 190-inch wheelbase.

Reader Rigs

Joe Karsten's 2015 Peterbilt 389

He hauls steel out of Chicago west toward Denver with his 1999 East trailer. Karsten has added double-hump fenders with blind mount brackets from I-29 Custom Truck Parts, a rear inverted light bar from Iowa Customs, and more.

January 22, 2021

Reader Rigs

Danny Foss' 2019 Peterbilt 389

The rig is powered by a 510-hp Paccar with an 18-speed Eaton. Foss, the owner of Payless Trucking, runs the truck from Bonne Bay to Boston and back.

January 19, 2021

Reader Rigs

Craig Shannon's 2021 Peterbilt 389

The rig sports a 510-hp Paccar with an 18-speed Eaton. Shannon pulls various types of tank trailers hauling anything from chemicals to cement powder, fuel and, in the winter months, propane.

January 15, 2021

Reader Rigs

David Pyle's 2007 Peterbilt 379

The rig is powered by a 625-hp Cat C15 with an 18-speed Eaton and 3:55 rears. Custom paint and body work was done by Lone Star Truck and Body in Canyon, Texas. Numerous custom touches were added, along with a frame stretch to 300 inches.

January 12, 2021

Channel 19

Look back at Junior Elmore's classic 1970s rigs

Another blast from the past for Overdrive's 60th anniversary -- trucker-photographer Don Christner's discovery of the boneyard of retired small fleet owner Junior Elmore contains plenty diamonds in the rough.

January 11, 2021

Junior Elmore’s Marmon caught Christner's eye right off for a very simple reason: 'I’d never seen a Marmon cabover in the flesh before,' he wrote. 'Up close, it’s easy to see why a Marmon cabover was used in the movie 'Transformers: Age of Extinction' as the Autobot Optimus Prime. Elmore’s Marmon COE #31 HDT-BC-86 was Manufactured 03/1977 in Garland, Texas. This is a complete truck with no parts taken off. Still running when parked in 1999. A good honest work truck that’s nicely spec’d out.' Find more details, and history, via this link.

Reader Rigs

Jean-Eudes Bourque's 2018 Peterbilt 389

The rig sports a 510-hp Paccar engine with a 13-speed Eaton and 3:36 rears. Bourque started the customization by lowering the front end with an air ride kit, then installed a 20-inch Valley Chrome bumper with a 12-Gauge Customs lift bumper kit.

January 8, 2021

Reader Rigs

Michael Bratt’s 2012 Kenworth T660

The rig is powered by a Cummins ISX15 with an Eaton 10-speed. He primarily hauls over-dimensional vehicles and equipment on his 48-foot 2020 Fontaine Revolution step-deck with ramps.

January 5, 2021

Overdrive Extra

2020 through the rearview: From hours reforms to rates chaos and stories from the road, unwinding a tumultuous 12 months

HOS reforms. How COVID changed drivers' day to day. Managing money amid the chaos. Stories of truckers weathering the storm. Rights on the road. Custom trucks.

December 30, 2020

Custom Rigs

Germann Soeth’s 1976 Kenworth K100, in service after long retirement

Owner-operator Soeth spent three years in off-time working on this vintage K100, nearing working order in the nick of time when his main truck broke down.

December 30, 2020

Custom Rigs

See the truck and meet the drivers that hauled the 2020 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree

Take a look back at the truck drivers who hauled the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree and view some of its stops in Colorado on Overdrive today.

December 23, 2020

capitol-christmast-tree-Ouray-2020-12-17-10-13

Overdrive Radio

Back to the ‘Biggest Tailgate in Trucking’ — and Germann Soeth’s 1976 KW K100

The coproduction of Overdrive and Radiotopia brought the reality of working haulers to all audiences. Plus: Germann Soeth's restored 1976 Kenworth K100.

December 23, 2020

Also in the podcast: A taste of an interview I did with owner-operator Germann Soeth out of Frederick, Maryland, with mostly dump work and principally in a 1998 Kenworth W900 that was featured in past at OverdriveOnline.com When we caught back up with owner-operator Soeth in October, though, he was showing a 1976 vintage Kenworth cabover. He was, interestingly enough, getting ready to put it into service hauling loads after a long retirement, given a significant breakdown with his 1990s conventional. Find out how he took the rig from scrap yard to working order over the course of a few years here.

Custom Rigs

Jason Mooney’s 2020 Peterbilt 567 Heritage company tow truck

The rig is equipped with a Century 1135 rotator that is used for towing, recovery and lifting up to 35 tons. It’s powered by a 605-hp Cummins X15 Performance Series with an Eaton-Fuller 18-speed.

December 22, 2020

Custom Rigs

Don Mueller’s 2020 Freightliner Coronado glider

The rig is powered by a 500-hp Detroit 60 Series with a 13-speed Eaton and 3:42 rears. It was built by Floyd’s Truck Center in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.

December 18, 2020

Custom Rigs

The 1982 Kenworth W900A of A.C. ‘Artie’ Daniel

A.C. 'Artie' Daniel talks about the 'most sought-after truck in the world' with his 1982 Kenworth W900A. Check out the video here on Overdrive.

December 16, 2020

The Caterpillar-powered rig was purchased from a previous owner who ran a small fleet among other businesses and used this as his personal truck over many years.

Custom Rigs

Trenton Hershey’s 2000 Kenworth W900

The rig, which has around 1.3 million miles, is powered by a 6NZ Cat C15 with an Eaton-Fuller 10-speed and 3:90 rears. The truck mostly pulls a tanker hauling sludge and waste water from city holding tanks to farms.

December 15, 2020

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Ammex won an 'Operational Excellence' award recently for its regional service to one of its primary customers, Amazon. Its fleet is made up principally of Volvos and Freightliners but also some other owner-operated units, like this Kenworth.

Health-share plans making small-fleet inroads

Four in 10 owner-operators continue to go without health insurance, yet for small fleets, low-cost health benefits are increasingly attractive as a competitive feature. So-called health-share alternatives to traditional insurance are an option.

More trucks competing with fewer spot market loads in the near term will put downward pressure on rates. That could continue through the year as shifting consumer habits and natural market cycles contribute to a bearish environment for spot rates.

As a spot rates sag might loom, truckers would be wise to seek alternatives

Meet the driver of Evel Knievel's former haul rig

Regulated rates, wildcatting, deregulation: A brief history of U.S. trucking

Buttigieg talks trucking regs in Senate hearing

Regulated rates, wildcatting, deregulation: A brief history of U.S. trucking

More episodes »

The Business Manual for Owner-Operators

Overdrive editors and ATBS present the industry’s best manual for prospective and committed owner-operators. You’ll find exceptional depth on many issues in the 2021 edition of Partners in Business.

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