Downgrades in the snow

The most important thing is to PRACTICE the skill you want to master. You say that you it was "explained to you" that you couldn't use the Jakes or snub braking" running downhill in slick conditions. You have 23 years experience. BUT have you ever practiced using Jakes or snub braking running downhill in slick conditions?

Sure, for many a mouth breather I wouldn't recommend either practice. I would far rather they find a safe place to park when the going gets tough and let those of us that practice the craft get safely on our way.

What you were told is wisdom given by folks that may have never have practical experience doing either. I have practiced using Jakes, with and without the trolley brake, with and without snub braking, in a wide variety of slick, steep downhill conditions. Snow, ice, mud (the Vaseline mud in central Oklahoma after a heavy rain), and rain covered pavement.

The most important thing is that you practice the art of driving in any condition. The very first time I drove a car was when I was 15, getting ready to take my test for my first license. That was during a snowstorm in an empty Piggly Wiggly parking lot in the dead of the night in a stick shift RWD car with my older brother in the passenger seat, coaching me how to turn Brodie's and get on the throttle to drift it without hitting a light pole.

It's never too late to learn new skills and sets. The important thing is to practice.

 

True, but then you can never be a YouTube Hero...

 

For the last 15 years i’ve used my Jakes in the snow. Yet to Jackknife.

Just sayin

 

Exactly. What you're doing with that light pressure is polishing the inside of the drum, reducung the friction with the shoes, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the brakes. You're also causing wear on both the shoes & drums, without applying the brakes hard enough for the auto-slacks to adjust during your descent, so your brakes are getting farther out of adjustment the longer you sit there riding them potentially to the point where you exceed the amount of throw in the brake chamber. If the brake chamber at maximum stroke isn't yet pressing the brake shoes into the drums, guess who isn't stopping?

Select the proper gear and you won't have to touch your brakes.

 

I use power diverter and gearing to keep it held down...also light "stab breaking"(just enough to drop 5mph ever so often)

 

I’ve had 2 less years of total experience than you, but the majority of mine has been spent hauling excess weight loads in the mountains of the NW and Western Canada. If you pay attention to the temperature and snow conditions you know what needs to be done to get safely down the hill, and I would use the engine brake every trip, every downgrade. May not be on the highest setting, but it’s used. And I’ve used the engine brake with and without chains, since you asked.

I’m not going to convince you to try a different way of doing things and you’re not going to convince me that I’ve been doing it wrong, so I’m gonna step out of this conversation now.

 

I like using the engine brake snow/ice because it will tell me how slick it really is. You only have your drive tires slowing you down so it is an "early warning system" as what to expect. It's easy to pull out from the drives slipping if you are expecting it to happen, as you should.

 

40-50 is too fast. Keep in mind you will want to be able to stop in time for that 4-wheeler that spun out and is now sitting on the zipper blocking both lanes. Most people run "out of controll" going down hill. That's fine to get down the hill, but what if the unexpected happens?

It's the difference between stopping in time or plowing into stopped traffic.

 

One thing I havent seen mentioned in any of the replies is engine brakes can fail, it happened to me. Its a good idea to know your truck and how to get down a hill without the jake in any type of weather or road conditions.

 

Had Ling cod...caught today...for supper tonight. Got halibut and chinook in the freezer. Gotta love the Left Coast.