ROG:
Fair point - might put it on a hand out post test.
Now that is a [zb]ing good idea ROG i like that 
ROG:
I kEeP fORgETtiNg To TurN OfF THe CApsLOcK
Reef:
⌠with that and the4 ways
If you check using the â4 waysâ youâre only checking the indicator and side repeater bulbs. The fact that they work doesnât necessarily mean that the indicators also work.
The indicator circuit on most vehicles is a separate circuit. PROOF: The 4 ways can usually be operated without the ignition. Indicators usually cannot.
A glance in the fusebox of your vehicle should confirm this. Also, try temporarily removing the fuse for the 4 way and then see whether the indicators will still operate (ign on) If they do, and youâve still got the 4 way fuse in your hand, then thereâs your proof.
If you check exactly as you described, I feel that you havenât checked the indicators themselves.
This isnât pedantry, because as you said, it could save you a tug. , a PG9, a summons, a punishment and a rocket from your boss!
montana man:
Reef:
OK⌠BUT WHY ARE YOU SHOUTINGâ â ? IM NOT DEAF!!!He was obviously trying to be heard over the lovely welsh ladies BAAAAAAAA
You leave my missus out of it 
I didnt say that i was testing the circuitry did i, it tests the bulbs are working (and i suppose for that matter the wiring from the unit via the suzies to the bulbs) If there is a problem with the left or right indication working due to a relay or switch fault then im gonna know about it from the inside of the cab via the tick tick tick (or lack of) and or the green indicator and trailer repeater lights on the dash arenât i
So stop being so bloody analytical of everything i post 
montana man:
Reef:
OK⌠BUT WHY ARE YOU SHOUTINGâ â ? IM NOT DEAF!!!He was obviously trying to be heard over the lovely welsh ladies BAAAAAAAA
Heâd need a bloody bullhorn to be heard over my missus 
Reef:
I didnt say that i was testing the circuitry did i, it tests the bulbs are working (and i suppose for that matter the wiring from the unit via the suzies to the bulbs) If there is a problem with the left or right indication working due to a relay or switch fault then im gonna know about it from the inside of the cab via the tick tick tick (or lack of) and or the green indicator and trailer repeater lights on the dash arenât iSo stop being so bloody analytical of everything i post
Actually not necessarily so Reef
You can have the âclickety clickâ and the trailer indication arrow showing on the dash and still not have the correct indication showing on the trailer. 
There may be a fault in the indicator wiring loom of the unit for example 
and it not be sending the signal to the trailer but showing it does so 
Also I have had a ânumptyâ wired suzie which indicated the trailer opposite to the unit and I had checked the lights on 4 way when picking up the trailer and this showed all working
Not that I am being at all pedantic
but you are slacking so somebody had to do it
Iâve had an instance where I was hearing the âclickety clickâ and seeing the dash indication, but it was the tail-light flashing and not the indicator. On the 4-ways it was the indicators.
Reef:
I didnt say that i was testing the circuitry did i, it tests the bulbs are working (and i suppose for that matter the wiring from the unit via the suzies to the bulbs) If there is a problem with the left or right indication working due to a relay or switch fault then im gonna know about it from the inside of the cab via the tick tick tick (or lack of) and or the green indicator and trailer repeater lights on the dash arenât iSo stop being so bloody analytical of everything i post
It wasnât the fact that you wrote it- Iâd have offered the same observation anyway. Like you said, and you were right in your original post that aroused my comment, you wouldnât know without youâd checked and nobody wants a tug. It is possible for a vehicle to have a fault whereby you can hear the tick tock, but without a trailer indicator working- that after having tested by the 4 way method.
The last two posts were made whilst I was composing this- My typing speed really is a problem. Thanks to those concerned- It wasnât personal Reef- honest.
My observation was based on my own experience of having discovered such a fault, but I canât provide an explanation, because Iâm not an electrician.
Fair enough MM, Neil and Dave, Iâve never had this fault so i wasnt aware of it something else to look out for then.
Reef:
Fair enough MM, Neil and Dave, Iâve never had this fault so i wasnt aware of it something else to look out for then.
No probs Reef, weâre all here to help each other
dieseldave:
Reef:
Fair enough MM, Neil and Dave, Iâve never had this fault so i wasnt aware of it something else to look out for then.No probs Reef, weâre all here to help each other
Even tho you are foreign
If you run on the road in a lightweight empty trailer with the air suspension pumped fully up you are increasing the risk of a roll over as the suspension will not deflect in the instance of say clipping a kerb, its just the same as with deflated air bags, Its like going back 20 years to tractors and trailers with very hard steel springs if your old enough to remember them!
Reef:
Scanny if you wanna ask on what people dont check
thats not the point of this post mate. the point is that the trailer suspension is something that should be checked but no one has ever told you that. its not what you SHOULD check but arent TOLD to check. lights etc are part of the walk around as we were trained to do but the trailer suspesion has never been officially explained to me (possibly due to the fact that i was trained on an old one with ratchet brakes) at any stage. its something i picked up along the way. surely that is an issue that should be addressed considering the potential consequences
Much as I hate to admit it, reading the post above the man has a valid point.
With a bit of luck this sort of stuff will go into the Driverâs CPC when it beginsâŚ
(Runs away from firework thrown into proceedings⌠
)
Lucy:
With a bit of luck this sort of stuff will go into the Driverâs CPC when it beginsâŚ
i think that depends largely on who writes it. if its coming from the dft i would expect it starts with showing us what a pen looks like. truck drivers are far more intelligent than the government gives us credit for
But do you actually know that Scanny? And surely the best way to infuence these things is to support them and then get involved in their shaping once they get tested in practice?
I think weâre making an awful lot of assumptions about the CPC without being in full possession of the facts, and possibly writing it off unfairlyâŚ
Didnât that bloke from Priority Freight in Dover have a few column inches in the Commercial Motor a couple of weeks ago, Im sure he said that he had been preparing some aspects of the drivers CPC.
I think there was already a CD rom available.
I agree with training but common sense has to come into it too.
You cannot train for all eventuallities. No one has ever shown me how to use the ashtray in my truck but I sort of worked it out myself.
Lucy:
But do you actually know that Scanny? And surely the best way to infuence these things is to support them and then get involved in their shaping once they get tested in practice?I think weâre making an awful lot of assumptions about the CPC without being in full possession of the facts, and possibly writing it off unfairlyâŚ
i dont know anything about it other than its coming and its costing us ÂŁ25 for yet another card to carry HOWEVER, previous experience dictates that the government never listens to our representatives so i dont see why this would be any different. look at the WTD. it was supposed to make our wages level out for fewer hours. has it happened?
other examples are the drivers CPC itself. we know its coming, we know it is designed to raise our professiolism and image (yeah right ) and we know how much the card will cost but how much is the training going to cost? how will pay for it? what does it involve? the deadline is closing but we dont know what is going to happen (although the existing drivers have another 5 years on top to find out)
digital tachos. they came out a year ago and digitach 2 is already being mentioned. there are flaws all over the place. its another example of the government bodies not having a clue of what is needed
Wheel Nut:
You cannot train for all eventuallities. No one has ever shown me how to use the ashtray in my truck but I sort of worked it out myself.
true and admittedly, i do mainly shop work but surely anything regarding road safety SHOULD be explained. that is the basic is this trade after all. much of what we do is on the job training which is largely down to the variety of work available but the suspension is part of the vehicle, not the body so most of the trucks on the road will have adjustable suspension on their trailers which (in my opinion) means it is basic stuff and should therefore be part of the training and incorporated into the walkaround checks
mikermhh:
If you run on the road in a lightweight empty trailer with the air suspension pumped fully up you are increasing the risk of a roll over as the suspension will not deflect in the instance of say clipping a kerb, its just the same as with deflated air bags, Its like going back 20 years to tractors and trailers with very hard steel springs if your old enough to remember them!
Thats true Mike. It also makes them bounce all over the place when you go down windy hill causing traffic to use lane three to pass you even when you are in lane one !!