Random LTL Rants (all are welcomed)

For newbs reading this, some (or most) trucks have a safety valve. If you are pulling a single and have a unplanned disconnect, the safety kicks in and prevents your air tanks from purging. The idea is to allow the truck to stay in control by preventing the brakes from locking up.

Now with doubles and triples the dynamics change. A converter dolly is just a fifth wheel and air tank mounted to a tow behind axle. There really isn't much engineering put into them. If you have a disconnect, your E line will s### out air until your parking brakes kick in.

If you really want to have a bad time, the best thing you can do is start panicking and start stomping your brake pedal. Now you have added your service line to piss out air along with your red line.

I actually have a really killer story I want to add at some point that goes along with this.

 

Ok... So I am wrapping up Sober October and celebrating with what will surely end as November I Wont Remember. Here is something I wanted to bring up. This is kinda technical, but if you have pulled sets, this might make sense.

I was leaving my home barn for Missoula with triples. I'll skip ahead a bit by telling you what I did wrong. I hooked my triples just fine, but I forgot to turn the service line valve to "open" on my second trailer. It's an idiotic mistake I learned after the fact.

With all valves pushed in, I got down the road just fine. Most of the initial trip was uphill or straight. 23 miles is how far I made it before I hit Cardwell Pass and had to apply my brakes. Halfway down I heard a loud KABOOM... Followed by another... And then another.

My back box slumped down to my right. Thankfully it was empty cause she was leaning at a 45 degree angle from all of her right tires being gone. I pulled over at the bottom and called up Central.

"Central this is Gary"
- I got a flat and need to talk to service
"Service this is John"
- I got flat tires
"Which tires?"
- All of them

Three of my four tires on my con were blown. The fourth one was hanging on by the belt. I have no idea how the mechanics work, but my rear empty trailer was fine. Maybe someone can explain why the con locked up but the back trailer didn't.

Cheers guys.