Hows it going lads , 1st post , working down under at the moment & I was looking for a bit of advice ! Driving a 17 tonner at the moment (Nissan Diesel which seem to be very popular here) but supposed to start driving a 1999 Kenworth K100 next week which will be interesting cos I’ve never driven a crash box before !!(Bar a v.brief stint in a 1979 Daf DKS!) Looking for some advice cos its sink or swim next week as the money driving the Nissan is rubbish and being a bit of a chancer I told him i had plenty crash box experience . its a 15 speed Eaton road ranger , appreciate all comments cheers
i’ve driven those things plenty. the switch on the side of the stick is for deep reduction. most likely the swith is blue. until you get used to working the crash box, ignore this switch, it will make life a lot easier. but to give you info on how it works, it splits the lower end. meaning the blue swith will only work when the switch on the front of the stick is in the down position( refered to as the low side). when in the low side, press the blue switch in whatever position in won’t go when in the high side( i can’t remember so bear with) and place the stick into first. release the clutch and start moving. as you are accerating, move the blue switch. when the tacho gets to about 15 or so, let off on the accerator a bit and the rpms should drop by about 200 accompanied by a click. you’ve just shifted. like i said using the blue splitter is tricky. fyi 13 spds split the high end only and 18 spds split both the high and low end. now for how you should drive these things. the clutch on a crash box has an added feature. when the clutch is burried it activates the clutch brake which stops the input shaft on the ■■■■■■ from spinning. useful when starting out. because of this, avoid slamming the clutch to the floor, it will make shifting much more of a pain and it will wear out the clutch break. to start out, burry the clutch to activate the clutch brake and place the stick into first, if the ■■■■■■ grinds into first, the clutch brake is already worn out. release the clutch and start rolling. rev up to about 15-17 and as you release the accerator, push the stick out of gear, let 'er drop about 300-400 rpms and place 'er in 2nd. on eatons especially i can do this with my pinky finger. it cannot be forced. do this up to 5th, while reving up in 5th, click the range selector to the high side (up). 6th is in the same position as 1st. repeating the pattern to 10th. in the high side, take the motor up to 18-20 on the tach. because of the higher revs the tach will drop off more in between shifts. down shifting is harder. when in gear and rolling, the tach needs to be at 15 or below shift down one gear or at 10 or below to shift down two gears. i should of said this earlier, you need to neutralize the torque in the ■■■■■■ to take the truck out of gear. you can either push the clutch in slightly or fiddle with the accerator. if you pushed the clutch to take it out of gear, you need to release the clutch while the stick is in the neutral position (i.e. not in gear). i prefer fiddlin but you do whatever works for you. so take the truck out of gear and rev up the motor, when the rpms are right the truck will go into gear. a trick is to hold the stick slightly in gear so that it lighly grinding. when the rpms match the speed of the vehicle, the shifter will practically fall into gear. if you can shift a car without using a clutch, then this won’t be anything new. until you get used to it, avoid shifting on hills, things can get ugly quick if you miss a gear. hope this helps
Sorry I cannot help with your question but welcome to TruckNet Uk ronseal .
welcome ronseal…if the answer above seems a bit difficult…try finding a truck thats parked up (maybe driver is having lunch)…and ask him if he can quickly show you how things work…practical experience counts for a lot…but…basically they are very easy once you get use to them…just think of a 4 speed box…which you change normally…then flick the switch to the high position…and do it all over again…and the overdrive switch to increase the speed further…depending on the system and gearbox fitted…once youve mastered it…you`ll be able to skip gears when you want…and drive without using the clutch…except for take off
good luck anyway
yo ronseal, jsut like to say as a newbie myself ,welcome to trucknet,just a suggestion,but if you have time off at the weekend try and go to a truckstop and have a chinwag with some drivers there.they should put you right.best of luck for next week…regards twin shift.
Welcome to TruckNet Ronseal
A few days in that rubbish heap and you will love the Nissan
Ronseal.
Welcome mate. If the above good advice seems a bit intimidating, just take it easy and don’t panic. When you get the hang of it the crash is much easier to handle - no more pulled shoulders and elbow joints.
Whereabouts are you in Oz or NZ. Spent a fair bit of time down that way myself years ago.
Salut, David.
Pat Hasler:
A few days in that rubbish heap and you will love the Nissan
Nissan? I thought they were huts. Excuse me but your prejudice is showing again Pat Nissan? I thought they were huts. Oh hang on. so’s mine
Salut, David.
Lads thanks a million for the replies !! Especially gorgeousload , helps a ton mate ! Went into a Kenworth dealer today, told him i was interested in buying a 98 K100 he had out the front and offered my bosses Nissan Diesel as a trade & arranged a test drive for tomorrow!!(I heard the crash boxes are fairly durable ) So at least i’ll have a bit of experience for next week, great website this , i’ll let ye know how i go anyway !! Spardo I’m living in Bondi Beach its cool , ■■■■ n Bull & the Teagardens are my main watering holes , you know 'em?Weather’s starting to go downhill tho on the way into winter ,lashing rain all day here & wipers are half knackered typical aussies !! Getting sick of the Nissan now tho, Moving furniture tomorrow , looking forward to a return to the fridge work , the furniture blankets choke a fella with dust! anyway guys thanks again for all the help & keep it between the ditches
you’re welcome.
Hi Ronseal,don’t worry mate a bit longer over here in Gods on country you will be talking with an Aussie accent and hanging it on Poms!LOL
Not sure if has also been pointed out to you in regards to the 15 speed R/Ranger about the different gear shifts of a 15 speed direct box and a 15 speed Overdrive box.
15 direct is the 4 pattern and the 15 O/Drive has the 2 top shifts in each range in an opposite direction.To be in top gear you shift into the "3"slot and the “4” slot is 2nd highest.
Instead of 1st 3rd
2nd 4th
Overdrive goes;
1st 4th
2nd 3rd
How long are you staying mate?
Might clarify that explanation again.
Overdrive 15 Speed Road ranger;
…1st…4th
…2nd…3rd
And don’t worry about deep reduction i.e 1st 4 gears in low range,until you get the swing of the box.
Also it is amazing after over 30 years of building cabovers Kenworth still have the engine hump protruding into the cab,albeit not as pronounced as earlier models.
hey ronseal, look at the shift in the truck. the thing can be anywhere. i’ve seen them on visors, on the dash, about anywhere. fifteen speeds usually have a pattern like this:
R 1 3
| | |
| | |
L 2 4
Low isn’t used much. so work the four speed pattern, click it into high range, then repeat the pattern.
ronseal:
Went into a Kenworth dealer today, told him i was interested in buying a 98 K100 he had out the front and offered my bosses Nissan Diesel as a trade & arranged a test drive for tomorrow!!(I heard the crash boxes are fairly durableSpardo I’m living in Bondi Beach its cool , ■■■■ n Bull & the Teagardens are my main watering holes , you know 'em?
Hey Ron, that is what I call really creative thinking! Hope he doesn’t run an ownership check on the little Jap though.
Well whaddya know, Bondi Beach? My flat was on the rocks at Ben Buckler, the far end of Ramsgate Ave. Can’t say I know the places you mention but things have changed somewhat since '69 I should think. I spent a lot of my time up Kings Cross as, when I was taxi driving , that’s where the base was. All my truck driving was done in N. Queensland and the Northern Territory. Couldn’t get a start in Sydney.
Hope all goes well with the KW
Salut, David.