Question:
I'll ask you this question. How can the scale man tell if your over lenght.Let me give you an example of what happened to me. I was heading north on I-75 out of Norcross Ga. I travel through the scales at Ringold, everyday. I had however lost my day run and was running the same run only at night.I only carry about 3000 lbs going north, so I wasn't worried about the scales. This particular night I get pulled around back with two other trucks. Well I'm following the scalemasters instruction to pull up, when all of sudden to officers come out with a tape measure. They tell me to get out of the truck and watch them measure my truck, which I did. Well I'm over lenght by one hole. I ask nicely if I could slide it, they said yes only after the write me a ticket.How in the world did they ever think I was overlength? Well I was pissed. I didn't slide but went on anyway. I went across the scales in Knoxville Tn with no problems. I also crossed the same scales in Ga 3 days later with the same trailer, still in the same hole and just got the green light to go on by. I guess those guys had nothing better to do that night.

Answer:
post so I just removed the body of one of em.
[This message was edited by uturn2001 on February 27, 2003 at 17:22.]
Answer:
Either 1. They had nothing better to do.
2. They were training a new scale/DOT officer and you just happened to get picked.
3. They just happened to decide to concentrate on over length trailers that evening. Kind of like sometimes they (DOT in any state) will have some sort of "blitz" on one particular are such as log books, tires, brakes, etc.
Now as far as how they "knew" you were over length. There are a few possiblities.
1. There was some type of mark either on the ground by the scale or painted onto the scale intself that lets the officers know about where your trailer tandems are sitting.
2. Just plain old experience. If you look at and measure enough trailers every day I am sure you can get pretty good at guessing if one is over or real close.
3. It just wasn't your night and you got picked for a "random" check.
One thing that really strikes me as odd is that if they wrote you a ticket why didn't they verify that you were legal before permitting you to leave the scales?
Also just because you run through a scale house or other DOT check point a few times every day, week or whatever, and never have a "problem" does not mean squat my friend. All it means is that you hadn't been caught before.
Only two things I know of are infinite. The universe and human stupidity, and I am not real sure about the universe.
Answer:
If he was real heavy, they probably had him go around and thru again.
They see the same trailers, and learn to regognize which holes they've measured before. Our older Wabash dry vans have a rear lift plate over the tandems, and everyone knows the rear edge of that plate is 41' from the kingpin. They see the same equipment over and over. They knew exactly what that tape measure would sayh.

Answer:
Your probably right when you said that they were training or having some sort of blitz.I can tell you why they didn't check to see if I was legal. As I walked out back to my truck, they had pulled another truck on the scale. I had just gotten to the rear of my trailer when I noticed that the same two officers came back out to measure that truck. While they were busy I just drove off.When I got back to my terminal, I thought I might just slide, when I noticed that a bar was in front to keep it from sliding.I tried to remove it but it had been bent an wasn't coming out.I wrote it up and the shop came out with a torch an cut it out.
Shuffler
I don't remember what brand of trailer it was. I had Walbash, Fruehaff and a Great Dane. I know that I wasn't heavy, just 3000 lbs on it.