Is there any practical use for a trolley break?

Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by Bazerk Wizz Bang!, May 2, 2011.

  1. d o g

    d o g Trucker Forum STAFF Staff Member

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    Sorry, no pic and I admit my memory is kinda sketchy. The last truck I remember having a blue knob was an '81 359. It was all the way to the right of the other knobs the best I recall. It worked the tractor brakes only. If you had a trailer hooked up, you had to push in all three knobs to release all the brakes.

    I guess it was about that time that they started changing the regs on the tractor protection valves because I think I had an '83 that didn't have the blue knob and I think I also remember seeing another '81 Pete that only had two knobs. But those could have just been a difference in specs. Or all of this could just be faulty memory. LOL
     
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  3. ac120

    ac120 Road Train Member

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    I had a '95 FLD and it had the blue knob. My '98 Century Class didn't; the dash just looked so empty without that blue knob! Man, I was heartbroken the first time I looked inside.
     
  4. KO1927

    KO1927 Medium Load Member

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    I drive a 1999 Mack, it's got the blue knob. Round, to the right of the yellow knob; it operates the tractor parking brakes. With this configuration, the red knob supplies the trailer, yellow knob supplies the entire system, and as I said earlier blue is for the tractor only. I'll grab a picture in the next day or so to satisfy everyone's curiosity. (I'm warning you, it's not all that special though.)

    It should be noted that this truck has been rolled over and rebuilt, is known as "Old Iron Ride" and this may or may not be how they are supposed to be set up. I've been told it started life as a dump truck on top of all that. Pretty good truck for a rookie though. It shows 600,000 on the odometer, I ran into a guy who said he used to drive for the same outfit and it had 777,777 when he left, but I'm not sure the math works out for a 1999 truck used locally.

    As for the Johnson bar, I use it during pre-trips and to get the spring brakes to release on one of our older, more finicky lowbeds. Hopefully

    I haven't used the Johnson bar off road yet, anyone care to give me some hints? (I haul wood chips, stump grindings, logs, and the associated heavy equipment if that matters)
     
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  5. DocHoliday

    DocHoliday Medium Load Member

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    Being Serious now about the trolley valve Many use it for sliding the tandems, many of the older trucks did not have a spring on the trolley and you could pull it down and it would hold there until you pushed it back up, now the truck manufacturers have put springs in them where they release quickly in the event you accidentally hit the bar.
    My 09 pete had the spring on it and #### it was fast, I was taught to use it in the event of trailer slide( jack knife) used properly it will help bring the trailer back behind you.
     
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  6. Joetro

    Joetro Road Train Member

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    I don't see where he was "damaging" anyone else's equipment.

    I had the blue knob on the '79 W900 I drove years ago. Also had the low air warning sign that dropped down in front of your face. I miss that truck. Great truck, that one.
     
  7. ac120

    ac120 Road Train Member

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    I remember hearing about those. Weren't they called "wig-wags" or something like that? They really sent a message to the driver!
     
  8. Injun

    Injun Road Train Member

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    Wearing out someone else's brakes is damage.
     
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  9. Jack Smithton

    Jack Smithton Light Load Member

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    "If you ever drive a truck and trailer, that's when you have cargo on the power unit and you pull a trailer but way of a pintle hook, you can use the bar to apply brakes to slide the trailer if you get into a very close area. What you do is lock your divider in go in reverse slowly and pull down on the bar and apply some power. The trailer will lock and you'll slide the trailer over to the side a couple of feet. Then you pull foward and leave. That's an old trick gas haulers use when they have to get an oversize truck into a gasoline station that was built many years ago."




    Gashauler - Can you explain how that worked? How would you determine which way the trailer would slide? If you are only sliding the front axle of the trailer, couldn't you just "seesaw" the truck to move the front axle of the trailer? I just can't picture it. Thanks.
     
    Last edited: May 6, 2011
  10. DrFlush

    DrFlush Road Train Member

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    found the use for the trollehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0uTiB-I0PQ&feature=player_detailpagey brake
     
  11. ac120

    ac120 Road Train Member

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