Trucking Tools, Equipment and Gear for Life on The Road

Professional Drivers, to add to the list of tools, equipment or other items you think new drivers should take on the road submit at the bottom of this page.

Trucking Tools and Equipment

What tools, items, and other stuff should you take on the road with you?

The tools you will need to take on the road will depend somewhat on the type of trucking job you have. If you are doing anything specialized you will need tools that other drivers will not need.

Most of these tools and equipment to do the job will be issued or you will be instructed to purchased them and be reimbursed later or you may have to pay the tab yourself.

What we will cover here is the basic tools, equipment and items that you should take with you on the road as a new truck driver.

Personal Items That You Want to Take On the Road

All of the large franchise truck stops will have a towel and wash cloth but if you end up at a small mom and pop sometimes they won't have a towel or wash cloth or it may be falling apart from the bleach. Soap that the truck stops have is not the best so you may want to take your own.

Tools That You Should Take On The Road

- Duct tape
- Electric Tape- Screw drivers (phillips and flat head)
- Vise Grip
- Adjustable Wrench (I don't have one but I could have used it)
- Gloves for fueling, unloading freight

Other Useful Equipment I recommend Taking On The Road With You

- Camera or Camcorder (to record anything that occurs out of the ordinary or as proof of a certain issue or problem. Say there is a hole in a box on a pallet that they leave on your truck. Or supposed some backs into you in a truck stop while your in and leaves. You record these things and there is no debate about it later)

- Voice recorder. This may come in handy if you don't have a Qual-comm or company issued computer for load information. Some phones will be equipped with this capability.

- 12 Volt Cooler So that you can buy your food in advance to save money on the road. Don't buy this in the truck stop, much cheaper in discount store.

- Laptop. This is useful so you can do productive things with your down time.

- Internet Card. Obvious. Well maybe not. Not only for entertainment, but you can use the internet to learn, do research, make money online, or visit us here and tell us how it's going.

What Tools, Equipment or other Items Do You Take OTR

What did I leave out? What tools, equipment, or other items do you take on the road with you that you recommend new drivers should take too.

See what other tools drivers take on the road

vise grips
useful as a hose pinching device, leak suppressor, or even a make-shift wrench

I take a few spare items with me on the road
I make sure to have extra light bulbs, an extra set of airlines/glad hands and a spare electrical line for the trailer-tractor, it may be a small life ...

Truckers should have a hands free headset for your cellphone.
It's kinda obvious. Cell phone headset is to operate your phone handsfree.

flash light Not rated yet
check fifth wheel connection and also helpful getting out of the truck at night on the shoulder so people can see you.

extra bulbs,and tape measure -some items to take over the road Not rated yet
extra bulbs is obvious, but a tape measure is very useful for odd shaped loads, especially for skateboards(flat bed) for rookies

take rubbing alcohol OTR with you in the winter time to put in with window washer fluid Not rated yet
you put it in your washer fluid tank in cold winter conditions. it keeps your washer fluid and windshield from freezing as quick.

Open end wrench Not rated yet
To adjust brakes.

Good hefty ball peen hammer Not rated yet
A lot of times the pins on a trailer are slightly bent and you need to give them a few whacks to free them up.

Along those same lines, spray silicon ...