Floating Gears

I'm with gashauler here... I've had to work with (and supervise) the dimple brigade. I was brought up in the 'you hired on to do the job, you do the job or leave' school.

Don't get me wrong, I love dimples above .. um.. counter-dimples. Nothing quite like it for resting the eyes. But don't expect my eyeball relaxation to translate into my doing your job for you.

If a member of the brigade persists in the 'helpless female' role, I've been known to add "unemployed" to the front of the description.

In the military, if such an individual didn't pull a fair share of the load, the load was *increased*, not relaxed. No reward for being a slacker.

(Yeah, I kinda changed pronouns here - I realized that while, in my experience, the vast majority of the brigade are female, I have known a few of the male gender who fall into the category)

im6under - ah - but what if you are driving an 8 speed? I have no idea really what speeds are what - I just listen to the engine and when it starts to whine a little, I shift. Typicaly, that seems to be between 1100 and 1400 prm

 

when it comes to rpm to road speed i dont use any formula i just memorize the speed of the gear at 1300 rpm as its different with every truck at schneider i can jump in 3 different trucks and in 5th gear at 1300 rpm one will be doing 13 one 14 and the other 16 and the book says 15

and as far as floating them, if its not grinding there is no added wear and actualy saves wear on the clutch its always fun to try to float into 11th gear in a 10 speed

 

You got it right there..... the helpless female is a "role"..... as anyone with two brains has to have figured out by now.... females are not any more helpless than men....
We have our strengths and weakness' but the helpless thing is pathetic....

Dimple brigade.... that's funny....
Of course I know exactly what you guys are talking about........... but if you think those closet bimbo's annoy you..... think about it from a womans perspective.... ...... I mean, at least you guys "enjoy the view" as you would say.... I don't enjoy the view AND I still have to put up with it.... ...... the only advantage I have is, that.... because I am another woman...... I can lay into them without any worries of "politically correct" repercusions........

I do agree..... and I really don't think most of us do...... but it works both ways though fella's.......are you really going to claim you haven't expected a woman to do something for you because it is more a sterotypical womans activity/job?

Now........ while we are on the subject..... I don't see why this always seems to be such an issue......... I mean, obviously there will be some women who cannot do some of the physical stuff that some stronger men (or women) can do ...... but that is not because of their sex..... it's because of their size or strength....... there are small, weak men out there too ya know......

Sooo.... what's wrong with taking advantage of each person's individual strengths and compensating for their weakness'? Are you guys implying that you never need help with anything?? Just because one person (man or woman) may need help doing something physical doesn't mean they don't contribute just as much to the total job as another person.......... physical labor is only a PART of the job......

I'm going to step down now...... because this is really not my soapbox.... I have never been accused of not pulling my own weight....... if I need or want to avoid something it has nothing to do with my gender...... I just don't want to do it............ when that happens I buck up and pay for it monetarily or I compromise or I work out a mutually satisfactory agreement with someone who does not have the same adversion to the task that I do........ trust me...... rarely is the issue a physical task.... but I also do not think that just because I am a woman I should have to do anything and everything just to prove I am as "competent as a man"......... actually I find the phrase "competent as a man" to be quite, if not extremely humorous........ but that would be another soapbox.........

 

tsk-

Asking for help is not anything at all like playing helpless. Should I look down on my wife (pardon the pun) because she's 18 inches shorter than I am, and can't reach the wok on the top shelf?

I don't hold, and I never have held, different standards between genders for completing a job. If there is a reason a person can't do it, they don't get hired in the first place. If a person puts effort into TRYING to get it done, and asks for help... well, I'll probably help. I won't offer, though, except in certain circumstances.

bat your false eyelashes at me and you may have to surgically remove that doorknob from your fundament. That door closes fast.

Storyteller - do, please, note that I expanded the brigade to include both genders. I agree entirely that a pretty fair number are male, even though I think we both agree that the majority are female.

While I can't empathize, I can sympathize, with how you real ladies feel when you find a member of the dimple brigade in the way of getting the real work done. I've seen my wife deal with it - and gunnery sergeants could take lessons from her in professional dressing-down.

I suppose, when you get down to it, if I were at one of those match-making sites, along with intelligence, humor, and fearlessness, I'd be looking for 'competent'.

 

Lurch....... you know I wasn't really referring to YOU........

I agree..... the vast majority (if not all) of the ones who play helpless are female....... the male versions actually ARE helpless....

Yep..... I'm with her........ I actually very rarely get my panties in a bunch but that right there will do it........ and it is not a pleasant experience for the "woman"........
(not that I could care less at that point).....

(Now for anyone who thinks that the above might be unnecessary or extreme .... please realize the rest of us "real ladies" as Lurch called us.... have to live with the consequences of these bimbos' behavior........ every single time I go to deal with a man for the first time, he is waiting and watching to find out "what kind" of woman I am......I get tired of it..... it is frustrating..... it is a waste of time..... and those are the NICE guys..... then there are the guys who believe that women only come in one style ..... idiot bimbo....ugh!)

No you wouldn't, not if you owned the site ............ you would go bankrupt!!!

 

I asked this question after I got out of school where they excusively double-clutched. They said they didn't want to replace clutches and I wondered why they would rather replace transmissions?? After floating gears for a while , you'll find it's the only way to go. DC'ing will WEAR YOU OUT. Some drivers DC in lower gears when they're starting up an incline because it's easier to miss a gear in that situation and you don't want to lose momentum and stop.

 

GasHauler....... just for the record..... and your amusement, of course..... I think I inadvertantly proved your point when I took my driving test last week........

If you have time, take a look at my last posts on the thread below, about the points I lost on the test........ see if they don't match up with what you are saying...... remember, I was taught to float down ALL my gears so that is what I did on the test..........

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...ivers/44963-can-i-get-some-sympathy-here.html

A little vindication is a good thing...... ya'think?

 

I am totally lost with 'floating up' and 'floating down', and double clutching. Also read a post saying the trainer/tester was messing with someones 'flapper'. Maybe i need a good website to go to, to get me fimiliar with the interior of a truck. There is a guy who lives in the same apartment complex as i do, who parks a truck in the parking lot next door from time to time. He is there now...and maybe i will put a note on his door, asking him next time he is home and has some time, to kinda show me around.

I am attending school within a few weeks, and want to have a leg up on the learning curve. Dont want to be your typical Swift driver.

 

Floating - Shifting without using the clutch.
Double Clutch - Method of shifting using the clutch. Clutch-neutral-clutch-slider 'er into gear.

 

DC-You clutch once to take it out of gear then push the clutch again to put it back into the next gear.....I think?? I forgot?

Floating-You don't use the clutch. You match your speed with the gear you need and just stick it in there at the right RPM's. After some practice you can just hear when you need to shift and it becomes second nature. If you do it gently at the right RPM's, there's less chance of dropping your transmission or grinding off gears.