Downshifting help

Their is usually 400 RPMs difference between full gears. If you wait till 1,000 RPMs then it should go into gear at 1,400 RPMs.

I did 1200 RPMs and 1600 RPMs because on the older engines I think 1100 was maximum torque. That's also how I was trained. The newer engine today maximum torque is like 1000. You can do 1000 RPMs and 1400 RPMs if you're engine will pull at 1000 RPMs

 

Yes

 

Something like that. As it’s lugging down to 1100, keep foot mashed on gas a bit, so it’s still pulling. Then let up on gas, take out of gear, while increasing RPMs feel for the next gear up. When in sync, it will slide right in. If you can’t find it, might have to rev it a little more, if you rev too high, you can let the RPMs drop back down, and catch it on the way down, slide right in. Till you get good at shifting, and can time it right. You’re better off over revving it a bit, and letting it drop into the next gear, as RPMs are dropping. One trick is when upshifting, get it at 1400-1500 RPMs, and hold it there for a few seconds, soon as you let off the gas, pull it out of gear and into next higher gear, it will fall right into place around 1100

 

You downshift at the same RPMs each time dropping a full gear as you slow down. It's more easy to pick the same RPMs because you get use to reading the RPM gauge. That's why I always used 1200 and 1600.

Most engines won't go over 1800 RPMs on the pedal, so 1500 and 1900 RPMs would not work because engine probably won't go to 1900 on the pedal. If it an O/O truck they could set the engine to go above 1900 RPMs

The splitter on the side of gear handle is like shifting 1/2 gears. I did not use it very much only when pulling hills. If I was in 7L gear and went to 8L and could not pull the hill. I would go back to 7 and switch the splitter to get 7H or I just looked at it as 7 and 1/2 gear. Then I would just keep pulling hill till I got 1600 RPMs and go straight to 8H (top gear). No reason to go 8L if I could pull the RPMs up to 1600 RPMs.

The splitter was only like 200 RPMs difference between gears and a full gear was 400 RPMs. I would always shift a full gear if possible. So I only split the gears when pulling hills and a full gear was to much for the engine to keep pulling above 1200 RPMs.