downshifting

The service brakes are for slowing the truck, the engine brake is for maintaining speed not stopping the truck.
You can not get it into nuetral as long as you have a load aginst the gears.
If your slowing down to use your brakes, engine brake off.

 

I still double clutch, it was the way I was taught and I do it well without grinding. I barely only press the clutch a little bit though. I have read from several sources using the clutch is better for the transmission my knee doesn't hurt either. Light tap on the clutch, nuetral, give it some throttle, clutch, go into the lower gear. There are times I skip shift and you just learn when you need to do that.

This is something you just learn through practice.

 

@Vastopian: lots of good advice here on downshifting. Focus on getting that down, then you can learn how to properly use your engine brake.

I don't know of anyone who believes the engine brake will stop a truck, but it certainly can be used to assist the brakes in stopping when properly used. When the time comes, of course you can use the engine brake when slowing down, for example coming down an offramp or into a reduced speed zone or into slowed traffic, among others.

 

Huh?

 

or if you are lucky enough to be in a truck with the accelerator and brake both mounted on the floor(instead of the brake hanging from the underside of the dash) you can do both with just the right foot with some practice.

 

10th-7th... think about that folks. Think about that

 

I thought he was joking. Hard to sense the sarcasm, though.

 

Well.. you could let her come all the way down to about 800 in tenth, reducing fuel so she don't get a notion to buck you. Tap it out of tenth, rev all the way up and maybe you will get 7th, if you have enough RPM say 2300. But there isnt anything to back this move up really. More of a stunt that is probably not possible because the RPM range is not adequate.

About the only times I can think of making such large downshifts skipping a number of gears is when the older engines stalled for whatever reason and you had to do a rolling restart as the road speed bleed off. Once relit then you can hunt for a appropriate gear to get her back up to the speed limit.

Computers in the newer engines after roughly 1994 eliminated those old time stall outs. I have not had to do a rolling restart to relight the engine of the old kind since that year.

Another kind would be after a truly heavy emergency braking there is a recent video within the last year or so where a Trucker was cut off on the VA I-295 by a black car and then ends up putting a woodchip truck into the median as he fought off a apparent jackknife on dry pavement. Once past the exit the woodchip had gotten back onto pavement and he was beginning to hunt for a much lower gear to get going again. Those are relatively rare.

I don't know what or how exactly they are teaching the students these days but I have a feeling that it is less in depth and not as "Quality" of instruction as it could be. Be sort of like a instructor telling a ATP Pilot these levers are go when you have the airplane on a very wide road with big numbers under you. //sarcastic... while leaving out the V1, V2 and all the little limitations on said airplane.

 

Remember when we could kill the engine dead by missing a shift with the Jakes on? And if it were a downshift on a grade or coming up to a yellow to red light a little hot, it was a challenge to get her not only re-lit, but stop the whole rig to boot! I started out delivering building materials with a towable forklift(read NO brakes!) in a very hilly area, and man did I have a lot of close calls! You sure do learn how to drive under demanding, emergency situations that way!

 

I've only owned Petes and Kw's. Both have floor mounted pedals, except KW has a suspended clutch. What trucks are you driving that have brake and throttle suspended? I'm just curious to know. I'm on my last truck before I hang it up...or so I tell my wife lol!