72mph # Swift Will get you FIRED

In a perfect world, your words are absolutely correct.

But I live in a world where I set my gearing and jakes so that I will never have to touch the brake on the way down and then come upon a truck passing another truck, both going slower than I am. Rather than stand on my brake the rest of the way down because the guy in the right lane just can't stand to be passed by someone else, I will downshift and ride the jake down the hill in the next lower gear. Without burning up my brakes and without missing the gear. Because I was already in the right gear for my load.

What would you do?

 

One thing I have not been taught about yet, and really didn't even think about, maybe you guys can answer for me. What I am understanding is that your saying along with everything else is that using the jake brake helps you to shift while in a downgrade? In other words, if your not using the jake and you are in a downgrade and you clutch your load will make you pick up speed cause it's the law of gravity; however, the jake stays applied allowing you be able to gear down if necessary? Is this right?

 

You are mixing two (maybe 3) applications. The "jakes" (named after the guy who invented them Jacobs)...are a way to dampen the exhaust coming off the cylinder, creating more pressure inside the cylinder putting more back pressure on the piston...creating a "braking effect". If you have the clutch pushed in, the jakes are "switched off" not dampening the exhaust release...(this is wired in to the clutch, the driver doesn't have to turn off the jakes with the dash switch).

What the other drivers are saying is they allow the engine jakes, with the proper gear selection to maintain the speed they want going down the grade. Without the jakes, a driver would need to be 1 or even two gears lower for the engine/gears to hold the speed back, also applying brakes to maintain the downgrade speed. That is the glory of jakes, they will help hold back the vehicle descending a grade. That is why it is important to not power over the crest of the grade...but to be prepared for the down slope by easing over the crest...if you power over the top, you in effect "launch" yourself into the decline making the increase in speed harder to regain control of.

 

its good to KNOW how to shift on hills, because it will be useful sometime or another. that said dont make it a habit and charge down every hill in 10th.

fired for 72mph? that pretty hilarious i guess i would have lasted about a half a day there. i dont speed im governeed at 65, but i like to charge those steep hills about that speed if i can ride one down.

 

Thats driving a oversized pickup.

Don't get me wrong, I wish it was as easy as that in a what some would say "Real Truck" but, I can honestly say, never having driven a auto semi, but having driven auto cars my whole life, that manual in a semi has more control than auto in my car (I know the two are barely comparable but its all I got.) My car is EASIER, but I control speed better (When I can hit my shifts ) in the semi.

And also, wording yourself like that is going to open you up to all sorts of 'steering wheel holder' jokes.

 

Why would you have to stand on the breaks? Stab them a few times and you'll be down 10mph - as long as they are still cool.

But yes, there will always be something out of the ordinary - like hopefully not what happened in the video earlier ...

 

"Driving a Truck" (What steering wheel holders do) and "Being a Trucker/Truck Driver" Are two diffrent things.

I would be proud of only one of those. Right now, I do one, and am learning to be the other, I been told I got the 'heart and vision' for it, whatever that means

 

Main thing in my opion is never go faster than what your brakes can hold you down the grade.
When using an engine brake, just remember they can fail.
Then you need to go back to plan B which is the old way of slowing down. THE BRAKES....
Yes there are some of us old folks who never had the luxury when we started of having engine brakes..

 

You are thinking of an "exhaust brake" otherhalftw which restricts the exhaust valves or there's a butterfly valve downstream from the turbo.

Jake Brakes are "compression release engine brake's". Going downhill with gravity or just coasting, the truck's drivetrain feeds the crankshaft motion. Then there's the cylinders going up compressing air. The compressed air acts as a spring pushing down on the piston, further feeding the crankshaft motion. The Jake Brake opens the exhaust valves completely either by a solenoid or another exhaust valve and camshaft. This takes away the compressed air and leaves nothing but dead friction fighting the trucks inertia. Stage 1 opens half the cylinders while stage 2 opens them all. That's why they are loud unless muffled.