Best Trucker Gear for OTR Drivers!

I remember when I first started out driving, I was spending a ton of money just for food. It was almost always fast food and it added up quick! I was spending over $400 a month on food for just me. Here is a list of the best trucker gear for OTR drivers you’ll need in order to save you time & money in the long run!

Best 12v Plug-in Cooler for the price

There are a number of brands out there. I have tried several myself but for me the only one that worked good enough was the Coleman 40qt 12v cooler I have only went through one of them in 5+ years.

They are good at keeping things cool, I ended up securing the cooler on the top bunk, it gave me more floor space.

I could store fresh fruits and vegetables, condiments, drinks, and much more!

One downside to the Coleman cooler is the plug-in fuse, I had to replace it once since I’ve had it and that was the only time it had stopped working. From what I’ve heard from other drivers is that they have had to replace several fuses for it over the course of time.

The worse one I tried was the RoadPro 12v cooler/heater combo. It wouldn’t keep things cool at all but the heater worked good, it would fall over and it just didn’t have enough space for me. Plus I went through 2 of them within 3 months time.

Best 12v Portable Stove

You need to get a 12v portable stove! I don’t know how many times I’ve had to stop off in the middle of nowhere with no food nearby, all the fast food joints had already closed and the truck stop just had snack food.

I made a lot of chili in one, you can get a small bread pan and place it in there or just line it with foil. Slice a hotdog or two from the cooler and top it with some cheese, you have a decent meal.

Burritos are another easy thing to cook in these. You can but the pre-packaged burritos or roll your own.

One downside is the plug-in itself, I have been through 3 or 4 of them now since I started driving.

The first one was broke because my Wife would always unplug it from the wire and not the plug, but the other’s the plug itself just fell apart.

Gloves

It doesn’t really matter what kind of gloves you get, you just need some gloves. Unless you like getting cuts and burns on your hands that is.

In driving school, they always harped on gloves. That stuck with me. I had not used gloves every time though, and without fail I would get a cut or burn.

I prefer gloves that had the added grip to them. It makes taking the fuel cap off easier, especially in the winter time!

Dash cam!

Most company truck will have cameras installed but they don’t always work when they need to. It’s happened to me a time or two.

I got a dash cam after the first time my truck was hit parked on the end. Thankfully the other driver did stop and not just take off. I’m just glad it wasn’t my truck and it was a company truck haha he really did some damage.

I have witnessed several wrecks, the nice thing about these are they don’t blink or lie. Most dash cameras you don’t need a computer with to review the video, they have an sd card slot to save the footage that way you can send off the clip if need be.

The only bad thing about having a dash cam is that they can tell on you too. But if you do what you’re supposed to, that shouldn’t be an issue.

Sunglasses

I would always try to start my shift around midnight, that way it’s easier to find parking when I shut down for the day, but there is also less traffic at night.

Needless to say, my eyes are a bit sensitive to light, so I always have my sunglasses on when I’m driving or doing whatever outside.

You do not need those $300 pair of sunglasses either. I just get the cheap glasses. I always managed to scratch or brake the glasses up anyways.

5th wheel release puller

I never realized the importance on a pull bar for the 5th wheel release. It will save you a lot of shoulder pain when you get a bit older.

I got tired of getting covered in mud and other gunk trying to release the 5th wheel, the truck had the pull button release but it had stopped working.

I got mine from a terminal but If you can get your’s there you really need to get one!

Backpack/Shower bag

You don’t really need one starting out, but the sooner the better. I just put all of my shower stuff in a plastic sack. That doesn’t look very professional though.

I bought a backpack that could fit everything I needed to take in the shower. They’re fairly inexpensive and will make your life easier. I had always kept the soaps and stuff in the pack and would just put the clothes in and go.

For the dirty clothes we just had a a few duffel bags, one for clean clothes and the other for dirty clothes. That way they wouldn’t get mixed. Some trucks for have a clothes rack to hang stuff on, but not every truck I’ve been in does.

Motor Carriers atlas

This is a must have for any professional driver! I got the enlarged version, they are more money but well worth it!

It gives you a map of the US & Canada, list’s all the active weigh stations, rest areas, truck restriction and low clearances. If you hit a bridge, you’ll have a HARD time finding another driving job.

Make sure your GPS is giving you accurate routing!

CB Radio

My personal favorite is the Cobra 29 Chrome LTD. I have used some others but in my experience the Cobra out does them all.

With the same truck and antenna setup, I seemed to get better reception with the Cobra as opposed to some of the other brands out there.

Although one thing I did like about some of the other brands was it displayed the frequency on display.

I had a handheld Ammeture radio that I would keep on one frequency and the cb on another frequency.

It came in handy for me when I was doing feed and live haul, each side used different channels. Since I was the low man on the totem pole, I got to do both all the time.

All in all a CB can help you with getting road condition updates from ahead, or get notified if there is a pop-up inspection someplace. I hate those with a passion. The signs in some places aren’t very noticable.

Bluetooth headset

I started out with just a cheap earpiece and it sucked. The call quality wasn’t the best since it picked up a lot of background noise.

It did last for about 4 years then the battery life ran down on it.

The headset’s can be a bit pricey but they are well worth the extra money. It sure beats having an uncomfortable hard plastic piece in your ear for long periods of time.

You could just hang the headset around your neck.

Since you can no longer legally hold your phone while driving, these headsets can really help you out there. Although I’ve heard of some drivers getting tickets in certain parts of the country because in some places they verbiage is “No electronic devices”. That also applies to CB mics.

Conclusion

You don’t have to get everything right away, but the one thing you need before you get off the trainers truck is your Motor Carriers Atlas. This will save you a lot of headache in the future.

Fast food isn’t good for the long term so as soon as you can I would get a cooler and a cooking device.

They have skillets, pots, lunchbox stove’s, crock pots and much more that can make your life easier. Plus there are a lot of companies having Inverters installed in the newer trucks which can help you not have to buy everything new.

Also truck stops are expensive for items. It is a high money industry in general. If you can I would shop around for a better price, especially when you’re first starting out.