Mountain Driving with 1995 42', 42,000 lb. Blue Bird

[brad barton]

Ron,
The truckers are certainly the pros and I have learned a lot from their
experience. But Jim is right to mention RV's are different in many ways. I
hadn't heard about holding the brakes on for longer than a few seconds. I
wonder if newer brake shoe materials can handle that kind of heat better.
Your magnetic retarder works on the principle of creating magnetic eddys or
currents that resist the momentum of the metal in your drive shaft or
differential. But like brakes, it converts motion into heat. It is a silent,
elegant way to slow down your coach. The Jake brake is built into your engine.
It creates back pressure in your diesel engine resisting the momentum of the
pistons. It makes a lot of noise but works very well. The Pac brake is not as
sophisticated or adjustable but does the same thing, only it's built into your
exhaust system instead of the engine itself.
As to questions about weight, I believe the early 2000 Birds were the heaviest.
Mine grosses out at over over 50K, but BB has probably done a lot to cut a lot
of the weight and much of the cost out of its newer coaches. Brad Barton
00LXiDFW bbartonwx@...
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