Not a myth-she went over
It's on at 9pm eastern time-8pm American time

 

Leave the engineering to the engineers, what you are trying to do could (as the other posters added) aid in sending you to prison.. and I'd support that. Tell me the effect on a jury if you are involved in an accident where someone dies and you drag out " I was doing research and disabling my brakes to make me safer"..

Neither are several types of combination vehicles, that does not mean that you monkey around with the brakes trying to prove some pet theory.. There are reasons that they rarely spec hand valves in trucks at most companies nowadays.

And backing off the brakes will do little to nothing to stop that, I've driven doubles and triples in Ice and Snow, the best method I found was slowing the heck down and keep TONS of distance between myself and other traffic. Stab breaking works when done correctly.

Nope,

Nope,

To anything other than the interior of the truck like a TV or Stereo? again, Nope.

Well, go experiment with your car, boat, motorcycle or airplane. There are far too many people who can be effected by someone without an engineering degree tinkering with systems they do not fully understand.

To think that some of the truckers I've seen that cannot engineer themselves to a parking space, bathroom or even engineer their pee bottles into a garbage can or would be out engineering trucks is almost terrifying!!!

 

Don't let ssoutlaw hear you say that!

 

Or Me--oops, I already did

 

The key word here was correctly.. :P

 

I hear ya and it all depends on what pass you're going down.
Sandstone Pass I would-Cajon I wouldn't

 

I do LTL work and pull a 53 dry van in the morning and then do drop and hook with doubles in the early afternoon. I think there are pros and cons to both, but if I had to pick, I'd rather pull the doubles. It's just more exciting to watch them in the mirror then a 53 and also when you turn corners. I always get a kick out of how people freak out when they see you about to make a turn and the second one follows right where the first one went.


I think the obvious stuff has already been covered, so I'll just point out from personal experience that the second trailer does NOT like emergency braking at all and it wont be very forgiving .... and neither will the soccer mom who needs to change her pants when she gets home :lol: But I'l save that story for another time.

Since I'm bored, I'll just post some pictures for others who might be lurking or just curious what doubles look like or how they are connected.



Yes, I have to pull doubles and drive in Colorado winters in a single axle daycab.



This is called the Pintle Hook, its how the converter dolly connects the first and second trailers.


This is the Pintle Hook in the locked position. There are two safety features here. First you need to pull the latch against a spring to open it and when the emergency line has air to it, it pushes a plunger against it to keep it in place.


There are the air lines, electrical line, and a safety chain.


The second trailer connected


Kind of a bad picture, but this is the air control valve that someone mentioned earlier. This also gives air to the brakes on the dolly.


The lines from the dolly that goto the second trailer, also the air release knob to lock and unlock the emergency brakes. I don't think all converter dollies have one of these.


What they look like in the mirror, sometimes the second trailer will hide behind the first one. That kinda freaks me out cause it's like 'omfg I lost it!'

 

Well, I have my first night behind me pulling doubles and you guys are right, it wasnt bad at all. I guess FINALLY no OTR driving for me anymore!!!

 

Yeah I thought the same exact thing, I had to do a couple months OTR during the winter time.

 

Good deal. Glad to hear it. Pulling wiggle wagons is pretty easy, once ya get it down. Just be careful. 8)