Hey everyone,
(Question near bottom)
I've been under the mentor program at Swift for a couple of weeks. I am currently on my second mentor as the first mentor couldn't get me to Vermont so I can hand in my over the road test scores to my state and in return receive my Class A CDL.
Losing out on the first mentor is a shame. He is a truck driver of over thirty years and a mentor of ten years at Swift as a company driver. He knows his industry very well, was very professional, cared deeply for safety, and most importantly he cared to transfer as much of that knowledge over to me in the short period of time I would have been under his instruction. I also want to add that he did not want to see me go as I came in knowing how to shift and that was a nice change for him.
Now I am with my second mentor. He is a L/O and a driver of seven years in the industry and to be honest I don't know how long he has been a mentor. He has numerous rules he has given to himself when it comes to accepting load. His main one, no heavy loads. I originally thought it was because of fuel mileage but after some recent events the truth came out.
He had no choice but to accept a load that weighed 39,000 lbs that was to be delivered in TX after a 900 milesh trip. I drove the first portion until my driving hours were nearly maxed out. We both went to sleep and my mentor continued the rest. Once we got into TX the traffic thickened up and he had to apply the brakes hard a few times. A couple of those times the smell of brakes snuck its way into the cab of the truck. I took note of it.
We T-called the heavy load for a light load that was going to New Jersey. At this point I began to get some rest before I was going to drive. During my rest I heard a air horn go off then shortly after my mentor pulled to the side of the road.
As it turns out the brake chamber bracket of the passenger side rear most drive tire on the tractor was hanging by the air hoses and smacking the ground. The brake chamber bracket adjacent to the one hanging was also cracked and ready to give. Now I am sitting at a terminal waiting to see if I have to switch mentors again or if the one I have sticks with it.
My question is. . . Can exccessive force due to a heavy load and exccessive applied brake pressure be the cause of the brake chamber brackets from breaking? Or are the parts just that cheap? I have a hard time believing brackets "just" break for no reason. Even as a green behind the ears truck driver. It is a 2015 Freightliner 13 speed Cascadia Evolution.
Oh yeah I forgot to finish this quip. The last time my current mentor hauled a heavy load, the same brake chamber bracket that is currently dangling by its hoses had broken before not even two months ago. Sooo. . .?
Air Brake Chamber Brackets Snapped
Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by DeGuzzie, Aug 2, 2015.
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