Does your home jurisdiction require air brake endorsement?

06Fargo wrote:

Tom_Anderson wrote:

06Fargo wrote:
Well this turned into a lengthy discussion mostly off the original question...

Lots of poking fun at people who think a driver should understand the operation of the brakes on a heavy vehicle... :h

I find it just as :h that nobody seems to think it's important that anybody understand the operation of hydraulic brakes on a heavy vehicle. I mean, the end result of air brake failure and hydraulic brake failure are both potentially life-threatening. At least with air brakes, the spring brakes may stop you when you lose air pressure, but hydraulic brakes won't even do that if you lose or boil your fluid.

I said "the" brakes... as in all the brakes, whatever type they are.... on a heavy vehicle...

Sorry. Even though I quoted your post, that wasn't directed at you. It was just related to what you said.

For the record, I have not said anywhere in this thread that drivers should not be familiar with their braking systems. I said that I find it odd that nobody seems to care unless the coach is equipped with air brakes, as though nothing can go wrong with hydraulic brakes or a gas-powered coach with brake failure can't hurt anybody.

This thread may have started out as a sharing of information, but it has degenerated into a poo slinging fest. I'm unsubscribing and won't be back.

Tom_Anderson wrote:

06Fargo wrote:
Well this turned into a lengthy discussion mostly off the original question...

Lots of poking fun at people who think a driver should understand the operation of the brakes on a heavy vehicle... :h

I find it just as :h that nobody seems to think it's important that anybody understand the operation of hydraulic brakes on a heavy vehicle. I mean, the end result of air brake failure and hydraulic brake failure are both potentially life-threatening. At least with air brakes, the spring brakes may stop you when you lose air pressure, but hydraulic brakes won't even do that if you lose or boil your fluid.

I said "the" brakes... as in all the brakes, whatever type they are.... on a heavy vehicle...

Tom_Anderson wrote:

FormerBoater wrote:


-Automatic slacks adjust themselves only if the brakes are engaged > 60%.

-In normal operation the brakes are engaged far less than 60%

The spring brakes engage the brakes at least 60%. So, as long as you use the parking brake regularly, you're covered.

One of the posters here said that going through the adjustment procedure will not effect brake pedal travel. In my coach (Meritor brakes) this is certainly not true. If the slacks are not calibrated/adjusted you may encounter a situation where you are fully stroking the brake pedal (pedal to the metal) and your brakes are not 100% engaged.

I didn't say the brakes would be 100% engaged if they were out of adjustment. I said the pedal travel wouldn't change. Are you saying that if your pushrod travel is 1", your brake pedal won't go down as far as it will if travel is 1-1/2"?

For those who leave their opinion here that you should be measuring or having mechanics adjusting automatic slacks...here is a video with a read from the NHTSA manual.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnGi_lqueo0

I couldn't bring myself to watch that whole video, but I skimmed through it and I didn't see the part where it said not to check or measure pushrod travel. And I missed the part in this thread where anybody said you should manually adjust automatic slack adjusters.

So helpful Tom, I encourage those with interest in this topic to do their own research.

On another board a person who had just attended the Spartan Chassis school last week stated that the 2 most important things emphasized had to to with air brakes. Neither of those 2 things have been memorialized here by your opinions in this thread.

Tom_Anderson wrote:
I have a commercial Class A license and, to the best of my knowledge, there is no such thing as an air brake endorsement. There is only an air brake restriction if you are not allowed to operate a vehicle with air brakes (most likely because you took the driving test in a vehicle that did not have air brakes).

It's true that many people driving RVs with air brakes have no idea how the system works beyond the fact that it stops when they step on the brake pedal. But how many people driving RVs with hydraulic brakes have any idea how their brake systems work? Why is there no outrage over that?

Main difference between hydraulic and air brakes is that hydraulic pressure is used to apply the brakes, whereas in air systems, air is used to keep the brakes from applying. You lose hydraulics...NO BRAKES. Lose Air...Brakes apply. Much safer.

Executive wrote:
Next up! Time to start a thread on adjusting the slacks in a WalMart parking lot....:B:B:B....Dennis

Dennis did you the slackers in tking lot? :E:B: B: B

Executive wrote:
Next up! Time to start a thread on adjusting the slacks in a WalMart parking lot....:B:B:B....Dennis

As long as you don't have your slide out!!

You have to keep it in the back of your mind that there are a lot of people out there who think RV drivers require more training than regular car drivers. Some day they might accomplish their objective. Actually, I'm not really looking forward to that day.

Next up! Time to start a thread on adjusting the slacks in a WalMart parking lot....:B:B:B....Dennis

06Fargo wrote:
Well this turned into a lengthy discussion mostly off the original question...

Lots of poking fun at people who think a driver should understand the operation of the brakes on a heavy vehicle... :h

I find it just as :h that nobody seems to think it's important that anybody understand the operation of hydraulic brakes on a heavy vehicle. I mean, the end result of air brake failure and hydraulic brake failure are both potentially life-threatening. At least with air brakes, the spring brakes may stop you when you lose air pressure, but hydraulic brakes won't even do that if you lose or boil your fluid.

Well this turned into a lengthy discussion mostly off the original question...

Lots of poking fun at people who think a driver should understand the operation of the brakes on a heavy vehicle... :h