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

[Pete Masterson]

The Jake Brake or Jacob Brake is a particular brand of engine brake
manufactured and sold by Jacobs Vehicle Systems, Inc. While the term
Jake Brake technically only describes Jake Brake brand engine brakes,
it has become a genericized trademark and is often used to refer to
engine brakes or compression release engine brakes in general,
especially on large vehicles or heavy equipment. See Wikipedia for a
full entry at:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jake_brake>

The magnetic retarder used on some earlier BBs is similar to the
technology used for "dynamic braking" on diesel-electric railroad
locomotives. The diesel-electric locomotive is actually a diesel
generator (up to 5000 HP) that powers electric motors to drive the
engine. On down grades, the motors are electrically switched to
become generators, and the power produced is directed to very heavy
duty grids and discarded as heat. Realize that these things produce
600 amps at 600 volts and that's a _lot_ of heat! (Great for toasting
marshmallows.)

Pete Masterson
aeonix1@...
'95 Blue Bird Wanderlodge WBDA 42'
El Sobrante, CA




On Jun 25, 2007, at 4:28 PM, Ron Thompson wrote:

> My BB has an engine retarder. I have no idea what that is
> exactly. I assume it is using the compression of the engine to
> hold back the transmission which will hold back the BB
>
> What is a Jake Brake?
>
<snip>