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<blockquote data-quote="Pointy Elbows" data-source="post: 1532522" data-attributes="member: 21382">The Cali truck situation is a mystery to me.&nbsp; California is one of the largest economies in the world.&nbsp; If it were a separate country, it would be a top 10 GDP country.&nbsp; Throw in several huge ports and you have a massive transportation infrastructure.&nbsp; Plenty of trucks come and go from Cali, and lots of train traffic also.&nbsp; But they have been driving out older trucks, as stated above, for years.&nbsp; I know of California truck owners selling old, low mile, specialty construction trucks as far east as Texas.&nbsp; The operator simply had to unload a useful machine to replace it with a compliant vehicle.&nbsp; I do believe a lot of owner-operators have also left the state.&nbsp; Ports of Entry in California are famously difficult with petty inspections and fines.&nbsp; Throw in emissions rules and California level taxation, and small guys are almost forced to move out. For years, I've heard of truck drivers that refused loads to/from California.&nbsp; They don't want the headache and cost.As for specific item shortages, we've been told that Honda small engines are on back order for months.&nbsp; These things are critical to the contractor world.&nbsp; Honda makes very reliable small engines used on all kinds of jobsite equipment.&nbsp; This particular shortage is directly effecting three of my vendors.&nbsp; We have lost probably 10k in sales simply because the end items were waiting on a small motor.&nbsp; Honda!Simple things like wooden handles, brooms, twisted wire brushes have been spotty in the last two months.&nbsp; I've heard lots about the paint shortages that OP mentioned.&nbsp; Last year, we paid about $3000 for a particular delivery we take often.&nbsp;&nbsp; Last week, it was $4800 for the same run.&nbsp; It may go to $5400 by year end.&nbsp; We've had truckloads fail to pick up inbound supplies for 2 weeks after the load was ready.&nbsp; We've had drivers promise to show tomorrow, just to no-show 18 hours later.&nbsp; It's been a bad year trying to stay on top of freight issues.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Pointy Elbows, post: 1532522, member: 21382"] The Cali truck situation is a mystery to me. California is one of the largest economies in the world. If it were a separate country, it would be a top 10 GDP country. Throw in several huge ports and you have a massive transportation infrastructure. Plenty of trucks come and go from Cali, and lots of train traffic also. But they have been driving out older trucks, as stated above, for years. I know of California truck owners selling old, low mile, specialty construction trucks as far east as Texas. The operator simply had to unload a useful machine to replace it with a compliant vehicle. I do believe a lot of owner-operators have also left the state. Ports of Entry in California are famously difficult with petty inspections and fines. Throw in emissions rules and California level taxation, and small guys are almost forced to move out. For years, I've heard of truck drivers that refused loads to/from California. They don't want the headache and cost. As for specific item shortages, we've been told that Honda small engines are on back order for months. These things are critical to the contractor world. Honda makes very reliable small engines used on all kinds of jobsite equipment. This particular shortage is directly effecting three of my vendors. We have lost probably 10k in sales simply because the end items were waiting on a small motor. Honda! Simple things like wooden handles, brooms, twisted wire brushes have been spotty in the last two months. I've heard lots about the paint shortages that OP mentioned. Last year, we paid about $3000 for a particular delivery we take often. Last week, it was $4800 for the same run. It may go to $5400 by year end. We've had truckloads fail to pick up inbound supplies for 2 weeks after the load was ready. We've had drivers promise to show tomorrow, just to no-show 18 hours later. It's been a bad year trying to stay on top of freight issues. [/QUOTE]

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