Truckies. How long did it take before you learned to master 18sp split shift any pointers to know
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tatts2,
Jun 25, 10:39am
How long did it take before you learned to master 18sp split shift. Any pointers to know.
boss_hogg,
Jun 25, 2:58pm
everyone's different. some pick it up fast, others will never master it. my only tip would be to try planning where you want the revs to be when you down-shift. hope that makes sense.
bashfulbro,
Jun 25, 3:30pm
depends, if you have driven trucks with other gearboxes before, no time at all, but starting from scratch, anyone`s guess, it will depend on you.
sas777,
Jun 25, 3:38pm
Never mastered Roadrangers and never will. I always get where I want to go eventually, and will add some more to the piles of metal debris in the gearcasing magnets. One trick I do know, if you lose a gear completely, go into the highest in the present range and work back down. Sure beats stopping completely on SH1 (yes I have held up traffic there, guilty!)
NZTools,
Jun 25, 3:46pm
I learnt on an old 20 spd twin stick. 5 spd box, plus a 4 spd stick shift splitter behind it. Anything is possible after that.
philltauranga,
Jun 25, 5:01pm
First of all if it is a cabover then they dont have the nice precise feel the bonneted trucks do this is because the cabover uses linkages or cables, whereas the bonneted trucks have the stick straight out of the box into the cab and have really good precise feel and I think are easier to learn for a novice. I first learnt on a well worn out T line International and the thing allmost fell into the next gear up and down, shorly after I went onto a brand new 450hp Isuzu 8 wheeler the 18spd in that you needed to be VERY precise with or there was no way it would go in, you needed to be within 100rpm up/down of where it would be reving when the gear change was complete, or it would embarrass you if some one was looking or listining. So the trick I was told is drive off the rev counter, as the truck engine is to quiet for a learner to get the timing right, you will soon learn how many revs the engine will drop between shifts then it is a simple matter of watching the rev counter. In a truck that has a rev differnce of say 300rpm for a full shift without the splitter: Up shift at say 1900rpm, double clutch and let revs drop to 1600rpm and poke it in. Your timing will come with practice before you know it you will have the timing sussed and will no longer need to look at the revs to get the timing right. Same thing goes for the down shift the rev change will be the same lets say 300rpm for a full shift without the splitter being used, so you would let it drop to say 1300 rpm watch the revcounter do the double clutch give it a rev and poke it in at 1600rpm. Easy to type it but not so easy to do in reality for a novice. This only covers full gear shifts, splitting is another paragraph, as is missing a gear when decending a hill, and skip shifting ( 2 gears at once) yet another.
bwg11,
Jun 25, 5:16pm
I got my HT license with a 4-speed crash box with a vacuum Eaton behind it. Really quite easy, as I could already double de-clutch into first in my Morris Minor. Even split shifts (i.e. 2nd High to 3rd Low) were easy to master. The first RoadRanger (a T Liner again) took an hour or two to master, but as philtauanga said some RoadRangers are easier than others.
philltauranga,
Jun 25, 5:55pm
Few more pointers, find the clutch brake, most japs use a small pushdown valve on the gearstick below the range change and splitter, it looks like a add on and not part of the top of the gearlever. This is ONLY used when stationary to stop the gears spinning AFTER depressing the clutch to enable you to select 1st without the long drawn out ggggrrrrriiiiiiinnnnnddddd- clunk.
If its American and dosent have this valve, it will be when the clutch pedal is fully depressed to the floor, usually on unassisted (as in heavy, no hydrulic or air assistance) clutches you will feel it get hard just before it reaches the floor. It is important with these to make sure you DO NOT fully depress the clutch to the floor when moving and changing gears, doing this will activate the clutch brake and wear it out fast, unitl it runs out of adjustment, or just plain stuff it completley.
tatts2,
Jun 25, 6:25pm
Thanks for all the reply's i am just getting into truck driving since i lost my job in the auto trade.I havehad my license since 91 & have just started driving auto's. and there's a chance i may get thrown into a roadranger.
philltauranga,
Jun 25, 6:39pm
Nothing to do with gearboxes but, what type of goods do you carry! Having the licence since 91, but no experince, if doing general flatdeck work I recomend you read "The Truck Loading Code" for a refresher on the laws around securing loads, such as: "twice the weight of the load in chains, when not loaded against a headboard", I see insufficent/ incorrect chains way more than I would like to admit in a public message board, even tho the load wont move unless you crash/ slam brakes, its dissapointing, even more so when they ask me why I have so many on my load which is ALWAYS loaded to the legal amount of chains/straps. This is not so important for dumper, box body, or chiller truck work of course.
bmc460,
Jun 25, 6:41pm
had a guy driving in america with us and he would just keep crunching till a gear went in . bit rough
bashfulbro,
Jun 25, 7:02pm
you and i must be oldies, not many of us left.
ema1,
Jun 25, 9:28pm
Ever tried a Leyland Hippo with a 6 speed with a 4 speed "dog box" and hub reductions, master that and you'll master anything. I've driven Road Rangers various types -pre select jobs - Allison Automatics but one of the nicest was the Volvo's with their own g/box long time ago now on the old G88 models I think they were 16 speed =8 low ratio 8 hi ratio and you could split most of the gears by a air controlled splitter. I recall the clutch and g/shifts were all air assisted. My first experience with aRoad Ranger was in an AEC Mammoth Major. Here you go with a 500 HP Sterling 18 speeder RR box in action. http://www.youtube.com/watch!v=2PSao7P6FwQThere are a few tricks with the Road ranger 13 speeders and the 18speeders .the extra gear and the mistery gear. Check herehttp://www.youtube.com/watch!v=Kuhvye9Fb-A&feature=related
Correction to post #13 (Talking of Volvo G88 models) I think they were 12 speed (not 16 as I earlier mentioned)=4 low ratio 4 hi ratio (Available With Splitter)and you could splitthe Hi ratio gears by the air controlled splitter. I recall the clutch and g/shifts were all air assisted. Would appear to be simillar to the F12 in post #14. Come to think of it, I'm trying to remember from the mid 1970's getting on for 35-40 years ago now!
10 Speed Road Rangers are a common box now adays too and I had a fair bit of driving with these also. here's how you shift them .All RRboxes require double clutching and a good ear for engine revs and watching the rev counter but with time it all becomes second nature to those inclined that is .Some drivers never get it at all! http://www.youtube.com/watch!v=OLMCHk5ZkPQ&feature=related Lots of newer RR boxes have what's called a clutch brake .This stops the box internals revolving at stand still gear engagement. Coming to a stop and then wanting to reverse can instead be done by coming completely to a stop with either forward or reverse gear still engaged then you can select either forward or reverse without the gears crunching on engaging. That means the box internals have stopped revolving unless you release the clutch in neutral which sets them all in motion again requiring a few seconds on depressing the clutch to slow the internals or using the clutch brake to stop the gearbox internals moving thus allowing safe and noiseless engagement. Often you hear drivers engaging gears from a standstill with a some degree of crunching.not good practice really. hope between You Tube examples links you get some idea but practice and experience is the only way to master it all properly.
NZTools,
Jun 26, 5:04am
I'm "only" 43, but I started young, on really old crap, and graduated to nicer gear once I proved myself. Apolicy every employer should use these days i reckon.
bmc460,
Jun 26, 5:44am
is the hippo and mammoth major still alive.
ema1,
Jun 26, 10:50am
Bit like me .old mate!
ema1,
Jun 26, 10:53am
Well I'm nearly 64 and the old stuff considered really old was fairly new when I was introduced to the helm. Big advances since then , same with our cars and everything else really.
horsygirl,
Jun 26, 10:59am
#17."Ive been everywhere man"
ema1,
Jun 26, 11:32am
Yup. Pretty much
NZTools,
Jun 26, 4:52pm
Big advances all right. The unit I am driving now, has a six speed manual box, with a 4 speed fully automatic splitter. Can change from fowards to reverse without using the clutch, and there is no need to use the clutch to take off.
I wonder how many on here can work out what it is.
philltauranga,
Jun 26, 5:10pm
Mercedes!
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