Men and women new to trucking should get really familiar with CB radio terms and 10-codes. You may already know the terms “affirmative” or “10-4”, but there’s a lot more where that came from. This knowledge is essential for all truck drivers and amusing to everyone else. Here are some terms you should know.
“All locked up” – The weigh station is closed.
“Alligator” – Piece of tire on the road. If you run over them, they can “bite you”, or do damage to your hoses or belts, fuel crossover lines, or the tractor body.
“Back door” – Something behind you.
“Bear” – A law enforcement officer, usually a State Trooper. “Mama bear” – female law enforcement officer.
“Bear bite” – Speeding ticket.
“Billy Big Rigger” – A bragger or supertrucker.
“Bedbugger” – Household mover or moving company.
“Bird dog” – Radar detector.
“Black eye” – There’s a headlight out.
“Bobtail” – Driving the tractor without the trailer attached.
“Break check” – Traffic ahead.
“Break” – When the radio is busy, you can say “break-19” to gain control of the channel.
“Brush your teeth and comb your hair” – Shooting vehicles with a radar gun.
“Bumper sticker” – A tailgating vehicle. Also called a “hitchhiker”.
“Buster brown” – UPS driver.
“Cash register” – Tollbooth.
“Chicken coop” or “coop” – Weigh station.
“Comedian” – Median strip between opposite lanes of traffic.
“Convoy” – A group of trucks travelling together.
“Deadhead” – Pulling an empty trailer.
“Donkey” – Behind you. “A bear is on your donkey.”
“Double nickel” – 55 MPH
“Driving award” – Speeding ticket.
“Downstroke” – Driving downhill.
“Dragon Wagon” – Tow truck.
“Evil Knievel” – Law enforcement officer on a motorcycle.
“Feeding the bears” – Paying a speeding ticket.
“Flipflop” – U-turn or return trip.
“42” – Yes or OK.
“Front door” – In front of you.
“Garbage hauler” – Produce load or produce hauler.
“General Mess of Crap” – GMC truck.
“Go-go juice” – Diesel fuel.
“Good neighbor” – Showing appreciation.
“Got my nightgown on” – I’m in the sleeper ready to go to sleep.
“Got your ears on?” – Are you listening?
“Gouge on it” – Go fast, step on it.
“Greasy” – Icy, slippery.
“Greasy side up” – Vehicle flipped over.
“Green stamps” – Money.
“Gumball machine” or “jackpot” – Lights on the top of a patrol car.
“Hammer lane” – Left, passing lane of traffic.
“Having shutter trouble” – Having trouble staying awake.
“Home 20” – Driver’s home location.
“Kojack with a kodak” – A law enforcement officer using his/her radar gun.
“Local-yokel” – A county, city or small-town officer.
“Lollipop” – Small reflector or marker poles on the sides of highways.
“Lumper” – Casual labor that loads or unloads trailer.
“Meat wagon” – Ambulance.
“Merry merry” – Merry Christmas.
“Pay the water bill” – Take a restroom break.
“Plain wrapper” – Unmarked law enforcement vehicle.
“Plenty of protection” – Plenty of police in the area.
“Pogo stick” – Metal, flexible support on trailer catwalk.
“Rambo” – Someone who is a tough talker on the radio.
“Ratchet jaw” – Someone who talks a lot on the radio.
“Reading the mail” – Not talking, just listening to the radio.
“Road pizza” – Roadkill on the side of the road.
“Roller skate” – A small car.
“Runnin you across” – The weigh station is open and they are weighing trucks quickly.
“Salt shaker” – Road maintenance vehicles that dump salt or sand on winter roads.
“Sandbox” – Escape ramp.
“Schneider Eggs” – Orange cones on construction areas.
“Keep the shiny side up” – Have a safe trip.
“Skateboard” – Flatbed.
“Skins” – Tires.
“Smoking the brakes” – Trailer brakes smoking from overuse.
“Spy in the sky” – Law enforcement aircraft.
“Stagecoach” – Tour bus.
“Through the woods” – Leaving the interstate to travel on secondary back roads.
“Throwing iron” – Putting on snow tire chains.
“Too many eggs in the basket” – Overweight load.
“Toothpicks” – Load of lumber.
“Travel agent” – Dispatcher or broker.
“Triple digits” – Over 100 MPH.
“Walked on you” – Drowned out your transmission by keying up at the same time.
“West Coast turnarounds” – Uppers, speed, benzedrine pills. The idea that one can travel from East to West Coast without sleep. Illegal.
“Wiggle wagons” – Set of double or triple trailers.
“Yard” – Company terminal or drop lot.
“Yardstick” – Mile marker on the highway.
Of course, there’s plenty more where this list came from. This is a lot to learn, but once you’re out on the road for a while, this will come as second nature to you. Stay tuned for a blog dedicated to teaching you 10-codes. Over and out!