Quick questions about a 13-speed trans

Try again. The broken spring are in the pressure plate, not the springs in the clutch disks which has nothing to do with the starting gear.

No danger of me working for you or anyone else, I own the equipment so I make the rules. Me and my drivers will start in the lowest gear necessary to start the load, always using low or first regardless the load or even starting downhill I find amusing. I would have loved to see you drive the truck I had on 4:88's and always start in low or first.

 

OMG.....did I start a war?????

I didn't mean you don't ever use low.....I....ME.....am never to use low. Our average load is only about 25k though, theres times we're loaded and can take off like we're bobtailing!

Which is why I say YMMV.....some people do it different. I've been taught unless we're maxed out, I don't need anything lower than 1st. Again, YMMV.....its all a matter of who yells at you louder when you do it.

 

i have seen lots of broken clutch springs--but cant remember seeing any pressureplate springs broken
kinda think it has to do with a light clutch and too high of gear take off-low is good for a hill or mud the rest of the time--its always first--never higher

 

Used to have to drop my load in the middle of a muddy field. If you couldn't make it to the drop point before you sank, it meant you were out of the truck in the mud dragging chains around, and the guys at the site were pissed because they had to drag you backwards.

Trick was to line up with the pile, stick it in high range reverse and just mash the gas, so you have enough speed to keep your momentum up before you sink. Scary and really hard on the truck, but it proved to be the best method much of the time.

Can't really think of any other situation that would require high range, and other than that job I don't think I have ever used it on purpose.

 

My point exactly, low is not needed with a light load unless you have like 2.64 gears.

I believe if I told you I had a tail light go out you would somehow try to attribute it to "starting in too high of a gear". What gear ratio would you find it acceptable to start in a gear higher than 1st? There was a vocational truck for sale with 5:33's, would 2nd be acceptable there or would the transmission explode from such unheard of abuse?

haha, a place we used to haul for made job-site lumber deliveries with a semi and a roll off trailer. Their driver got tired of catching hell for not putting the load where the idiot contractor wanted it, to keep from getting stuck. So he had enough and did exactly what you described. Backed up as fast as possible and swamped the truck to the frame. Cost like $600 to get it winched out, shut the boss up though. Became drivers discretion on where to put the load.

 

At least there was equipment on site to get us freed up when we got stuck. Tow bills would have killed us otherwise.

Was not out of the ordinary to sink it up to the frame, but we did what the company wanted us to do. They made so much money that they were worried about losing the contract, so we would do pretty much anything asked of us without question.

Looking back, it was a crazy amount of fun running a truck in those places. But, I'm not as young and fearless as I was in those days, so not sure I could handle it anymore.

 

JFaulk99 your status says you are a student. Is that true? You speak as if you have experience and knowledge. Are you sure you are not a seasoned veteran?

 

Never use high gear...

 

It shows in his bio,that he is a student.

 

Don't cha know? It's used when you miss your exit on the interstate. That way you can back up faster to get back to it. G'ssssss you should have known that.