Hired Gun
Hired Guns are experienced owner-operators who, like Pioneers, choose to drive under a carrier’s operating authority. However, Hired Guns source their truck in the open market to find exactly what they want. Hired Guns normally have good credit and shop for lower cost financing options. They might finance their truck purchase, or lease their truck, or they may pay cash and purchase their truck outright. Hired Guns enjoy their independence, but operate within certain norms established at their carrier. Similar to Pioneers, Hired Guns typically leverage the carrier’s buying networks for things like insurances, fuel, maintenance and tires. However, the primary reason most Hired Guns lease to a carrier is to take advantage of that carrier’s freight network thereby not having to manage sales and revenue collection the way a Lone Ranger does.