"Buzz Szarek" <buzz@toast.net> wrote:
> From: "Mark J. Blair " <mblair1@cox.net>
> > In my opinion, every deuce owner/driver should be familiar with the
> > basic procedure for doing a pre-trip inspection of an air brake system
> > (most of which is applicable to the M35's air-over-hydraulic system),
> > whether they live in a state which requires a CDL with an air brake
> > certification or not.
>
> Hmmm, Care to elaborate?
Sure! I guess I should have gone into a little bit more detail in my
previous posting.
> I've always thought the M35 brake system is more like the one in your car
> (and not at all like an air brake system in a truck) only it uses air
> pressure for the "power brake system" instead of vaccuum.
Yes and no... The brakes themselves are not at all like air brakes,
and the brake booster is powered by compressed air, rather than
manifold vacuum. Think about it from the operator's perspective,
though. The operator can't tell that they're not air brakes, except
for the following differences:
1. They apply a bit more quickly than air brakes
2. If the pressure is lost, the service brakes still (sort of) work
3. If the pressure is lost, the parking brake is not automatically applied
The operator still needs to make sure the air pressure is adequate
before driving, take immediate action if the pressure drops too much
when driving, and avoid feathering the brakes excessively (which can
use a lot of air). Most of an air breake pre-trip inspection involves
making sure that the compressor cuts in at a high enough pressure,
cuts out at a low enough pressure, sounds an alarm when the pressure
drops too much, and has an acceptably low leak rate. That's the
inspection that I feel that any deuce owner/driver should understand,
whether they need a CDL with an air brake certification or not.
Obviously, other parts of the air brake inspection (checking slack
adjuster play, making sure that the spring brakes are applied when the
pressure drops enough, etc) do not apply.
-- **** NOTE NEW EMAIL ADDRESS **** Mark J. Blair, KE6MYK <mblair1@cox.net> PGP 2.6.2 public key available from http://www.keyserver.net/ Web page: http://www.qsl.net/ke6myk/
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