How to use a Tacho Machine 

Starting my first hgv job tomorrow night, this helped me load. Much appreciated, mucker

the only blogger who explained it in an accessible and understandable way. respect

Nice and simple, very easy to follow. Thank you 🙏

starting my first job on monday, this video has been really helpful mate thank you very much! especially the manual entry at the beginning, made it sound very simple

Thank you James, I so much enjoyed the educative video targeted to teach and help new coming drivers. just to let you know, your support meant a lot to us. Also to answer your question, yes it does helped me a lot, I felt better than i stated, and I achieved some skills from you. hopefully I get there..Thanks once again

Done 7.5ton for 4 years and class 1 for 8 months, I always thought you had to have 45 min before 6 hrs working time, didn’t know 15 mins extends it by 3 hrs. You learn something everyday lol

Thanks for posting this. Very informative.

Great stuff mate, many thanks.

DVSA love drivers who can do manual entries properly it puts them in a good mood.

Thank you James for letting me know.

Great video, thank you James 👍

Thank you sir and its really helps to any new filipino trailer drivers in europe how to use and understand a tacho machine.

Loved this. Lots of info that I’ve tried to explain to some but you did it so much better. This is why your channel is brill ❤

Excellent informative video for a new driver like myself!

Great blog and explaining it all cheers bud

Great video James. Made what I thought was rocket science very easy to understand. I'm a noob and everyone tells you the tacho is soooooo easy to use but until you've had hands on experience it isn't easy but watching this well explained video I now realise that it is really not as difficult as i thought so great job buddy 👍.

Thanks james very good panel entry very useful

Thank you James keep it up it helped me a lot

This has been an education for me James, as an old retired driver, i was use to the big old clock taco on the dash, before these were introduced i moved to Canada in 2005 and went back to log books again, thanks again for putting this out there.

Very helpful. Thank you ❤

Well executed and informative video, thank you so much James... Keep on truckin'

I will be driver and need to learn everything ,so that was a good lesson. I think they in questions while studying theory test just mess up about it. It's simple. not to worry much about it. thank you James

Brilliant informative video mate. I’m a new pass and this has given me a lot of confidence with the taco side of things! Keep up the good work👍🏼

Thanks so much. You have helped.

Very informative. Cheers.

Nice one James. It is better actually seeing you use it. But yeah I think I’ll need some time to really get my head around it. I’ll watch this again. But nice one. Cheers.

Thanks for video training at present and this stuff helps 🤘😎👍😀

Another epic video and love a good old manual entry

Thank you very much for your explanations. Muchas gracias !!!

Have got my class 2 booked in August and cpc also. The number of questions and studying that has to be done is mind-boggling. I respect the class 1 and 2 drivers a lot more. This video has helped me understand the tacho more as when reading about it I was thinking is it really worth doing it all.

Helpful !

Thanks mate best video..

Great clip there mate well done, , When i have my first break i always take around 17/18mins, VOSA will be happy with that and remember one can often go over there break time " But NOT under your 15min break, Also i have a hour for lunch" so all happy" Cheers for the clip and so easy to understand for new drivers,.

Great vedio it was very informative

Loved the video. I haven't driven on a digital tacho yet. Only the old paper tachos. So found it very interesting. As I want to get back driving again. Thank you 👍

Always wondered how a tacho worked. Thanks for showing

Im soon yo be doing my test, this was really useful, thank you!

Really handy video mate, keep up the great work. I passed my Class 1 yesterday so some handy tips. Cheers

helpfull film . Thx😀

Thanks for the vid mate iam doing my class and the tacho always seems slightly confusing but this helped a lot .

Nice 1 james . New to your channel but I learned from . Thank you my man.👍

Thank you!!

Very informative James Cheers Buddy 👍👍

Great video

you made a simple video for us thankyou.

Happy weekend broi👍

It’s Thanks mate informative video

New sub here pal. I have no intention in driving for a living however I passed my C+E back in 2010 but never touched a truck since. I find your vids really entertaining and as I currently live in plymouth it great to see local area. When I was watching your vid I seen you were at the same junction as me when the blue bike / blue thing was off the road with the police. I seen the back off my car on ya footaggeeeeeg lol. Anyways take care pal and safe driving,

Cheers james much appreciated mate.

Thanks lad not extremely helpful as a complete newbie but still appreciate you uploading the video so I get a rough idea of how to use it somewhat

Great Video, informative. And your right to do it that way, sticking within the Laws. I knew about Tacho's but much prefer Burritos lol. I know about them and how important they are and how hard they come down on them. It was good to see how they work.

Thank you...

Thanks James, I recently just passed my Cat C and looking for 1st job, I got interview next week now so swatting up and your video is helping with this as never used tacho before. Cheers buddy.

Hey James this was great, always wondered how truckers cope with driving & all the (legal stuff!!) Thanks again James, more power 2 u 💪!! Keep trucking 🚚!!

Great Video, I always felt a little anxious about tacho graphs and driving hours etc. but now that i actually seen you use it and explain the breaks and stuff seems pretty straight forward! I just passed my Class 1 earlier this month and Ill be driving soon. Fingers crossed :D

Very nice 👍

Cheers, James. It's a great video so much better when someone showers you how to do it. Rather than someone telling you how to do it, my company is too lazy to teach me but moans at me when I bulls it up. And being a new driver it's not so hard once a good man like you has shown it. But they say there is a shortage for HGV Divers but your find it hard to get a good Class 1 job due to No experience, But how do you get experience if no 1 are willing to take you on? I was a Bricklayer for the Last 35 years... so watch out all of you who are going for your Class 1 Licence there aint loads of jobs out there for us, So be prepared to be knocked back many many times......but great video James.

Great video James cheers Greg from Australia 🇦🇺

Thanks really useful will be using tacho for the frist time next week so good to know how to use B4 I start

As I already commented on one of your previous videos. Totally ridiculous and completely outdated UK/EU rules by splitting driving from other work. Here in Oz, Work is Work regardless of whether or not you are actually driving or on the back of the truck unloading. You are therefore either working or resting.

I can explain the sweat issue to you as a thank you for explaining what the driving school missed to teach me. Your skin produce sweat, when this evaporates into the air, it removes heat and cools down the skin to the proper temperature. The shxt plastic hivis doesn't let fresh air to get to your skin and makes your clothes a greenhouse. The already evaporated moisture reach 100% humidity around your skin. If the air can't carry more moisture, the sweat stay on your skin (this is when you feel it). Plus it can't cool your body which doesn't know why can't cool down so produce more sweat. And finally the sweating turn into swearing (sorry :) )

Chip forward and up. Here in Scotland we saw thumb on face. Wonder many other variations of this there is. Great video James thanks.

Awesome I have been searching RU-vid on how to use tacho as I’ve just passed my class 2 🙏

Hi James hope you are having a great day 😊👍

A very good Thursday evening to you all

Cracking video James,can I do a manual entry for last week? Or just the day previously? Please advise, thanks.

Really could have done with this a few weeks ago… brand new to coaches. I’ve had to teach myself lol

Sweating wearing Viz jacket is because of the high plastic content....Great video.....

Hello James your all videos very helpfull, I have 1 quastion,which camera set best truck blog,pls send details,make one video,thanku

Been a Driver for a few years on old school graph discs, and using the Digital Card. DVSA do love a manual entry ! ( pardon the pun ) ! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

This helped a lot I did my first shift yesterday and i was with a drivers mate who's been a driver for 7 months. No disrespect to him but he didn't do a good job on how to use the tacho

long time sub here watching from america. the reason your high vis makes you sweat is when your body sweats, it gets absorbed my cotton or fabric thou not all fabric absorbs liquid. high-vis are made from synthetic material which do not absorb or absorb very little liquid. hence all the liquid is trapped between a insulator and a absorbent causing you to feel your own sweat. Normally, your sweat would be vented into the air but with synthetic material they just trap sweat and other body liquids. Hope it helps! Not a scientist but a person who's curious about things.

Thanks buddy for that👊As English is not my first language I’m glad that your accent is brilliant as well😜 Happy days. Cheers!

The thing that got me after I passed my test was that there is no training on the Tacho machine at all or doing manual entries during your lessons, oh that's all in your CPC course they say but the problem with that is that you can drive for a company straight after passing your test because you do certain modules in your training that say you are CPC qualified to drive, but you have had no training on the rules for breaks. After my 4 years of driving I still have not had a CPC course on the use of a Tacho machine or the rules for daily rest etc, because the company that do our CPC courses decide what course we are going to do. I have had to learn all that by reading it online and by asking other drivers that I work with. Also Have you ever accidently pressed the eject button instead of putting on break? I've done that a few times lmao

When someone says tacho, I always think of the mexican food. I remember watching an episode of someone that stopped on the motorway with little knowledge of English and when the DVSA/police said tacho, the driver thought the food as well. I also wondered why symbols are used for other work and break, until I realized Europe has 20 languages. Plus, what will happen if severe traffic conditions put you over the driving limit?

❤️❤️❤️👍👍👍

👍very informative mate! The amount of hgv drivers that don’t know how to use a tacho properly is disturbing. It needs to be more exaggerated in getting the hgv license.

Thank you for this. Does it automatically switch to other work when you turn your ignition off or something? and automatically switch to driving mode once you get going? I gather unloading, doing vehicle checks is all classed as other work? cheers

Hi James new to channel just sunscribed amazing video 100% support you channel keep it up 😊😊😊

Am mid way of doing my hgv theory have you got and tips .?

Hi, great video. If you split your 45 minute break into 30 + 15 does Both 2 breaks still need to be completed before 4.5hrs of driving?

So as you get to the farm to unload do you switch the tacho to other work? Or does it do this automatically when the vehicles off?

Is the card issued by DVLA/DVSA or by your company? If by your company, couldn't companies give drivers multiple cards to get around the regulations?

Hi James is the tacho card your photo driving licence

POA no mention? don't you\use that? do you just stick it on break?

Ref 1:47 ... Driver Card Insert

I was told when you get back in the yard at the end of day,to put the tacho on bed symbol before ejecting the card,is this right or wrong?

A great video and very informative, it wouldn't surprise me if there were a few CPC trainers contact you to use it in their 7 hour presentations. Out of curiosity, do you record your RU-vid work (filming, editing and uploading) as other work on your tacho. I only say this as if you were to have a particular anal DVSA enforcement officer who knew you did RU-vid and social media videos, they could get out their little book of fines. Or worse still, if you were to ever find yourself in front of the Traffic Commissioner as part of a public inquiry the fines could be higher or even your licence revoked!! RU-vid and social media videos could be recognised as "Reward", therefore would need to fall in both WRD and Tacho regulations. I don't want to worry you, but the TC regularly have professional drivers in front of them for all kinds of reasons, some of which you would think were quite insignificant, but do lead to a revoked licence! Please don't be put off by my comments, I enjoy watching your videos and find them very educational. Keep up the good work

Great practice of doing 16 and 31 minutes James.. But the question is, how do you frisbie the tacho out the window and use a clean new lmao

I always let it tick over to 16 or 31mins.. call me paranoid 😂 my truck automatically switches to break when the engine is switched off..

Do you not get an infringement for driving without card? It did say driving without card…

Since driving a HGV I’ve realised how poor truck stops are in the UK! Also, having to do a printout on the tacho cos you’ve made an error in a pain in the backside lol

Haven't driven a truck for 10 years because of those stupid things. I operate plant now, no fines for going 5 minutes over on them. The pay is far better too.

i learnt proper tacho use is too much faff. this morning i forgot to put my card in. i've learnt in the past not to put it in whilst doing 56

Could never use it

7:02 This is incorrect, after your first 15 minute break, you can work up to another 6 hours before taking a second break. Therefore not breaking the 6 hour rule. I got an email reply from DVSA confirming an example I gave them of a break around 6 hours and the second break 4 hours later, they agreed this was correct , but covered themselves by saying "only a court of law can give a definitive answer on the ruling!

doing something right is miles from doing nothing wrong. great helpful vid (shame about that flag behind you)

I think you are a little confused about wtd breaks, you said your 15 will then leave you 3 hours to get your 30 min break in. In actual fact if you start at 7am and take your 15 at 12.59 you could then take your 30 as late as 18:59 assuming you don't need to reset your driving time. Wtd is reset with a 15 min break for another 6 hours.

What a stupid ridiculous rule between driving time and work time, the unessessary confusion is pointless.