(un)/coupling tips?

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
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Hoping for some tips and advice.
I’ve reread trucknetuk.com/phpBB/viewto … g#p2816007 so not trying to cover that ground again.
Specifically the airlines (I have 2) and electrical connections (I have 3 - 1 ■■■■■■■■■ and smaller white and black). Is there any benefit to doing them in any particular order? Any easy way to connect the airlines? (Actros takes ages to refill the airtanks - I always have someone watching and waiting on me!)

How do you incorporate remembering the numberplate into BLACK?

Thanks :slight_smile:

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and the legs. Is there a technique? where are the 3 positions of the handle? (High speed, low speed and floppy - I seem to just fiddle about each time til it works). Do you lock it in position and have both hands on the end, or have one hand on either side of the bend?

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With the suzies it is easiest to start coupling with the furthest away and get closer, so you can get directly behind them and use your bodyweight to help without other ones getting in the way, then disconnect from the closest and move away. If you need to make it easier then just let all the air out by repeatedly pressing the foot brake then build it up again once connected, the air tanks will fill up quicker if you keep your foot on the accelerator.
As for the number plate, I always find it easier to do it first. That way you know you’ve definitely done it, and most coupling/uncoupling tasks require two hands, and it gets annoying picking up and putting down a number plate every few seconds, so just get it out of the way.
With the legs, it’s normally handle all the way out for high gear, all the way in for low gear. I find it easier and quicker to have one hand at the end and the other before the bends. The hand on the outside has more leverage when it’s tough to wind, the inside one can wind quicker when there’s less resistance (ie once the legs are off the ground)

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OK so to couple up…

Make sure park brake on trailer is on. Drop unit suspension, revese until the fifth wheel is under the front of the trailer then raise the unit suspension fully and you should see that the front of the trailer rises. Reverse until the pin locks in place, do tug test. Make sure park brake on the unit is on, you’d be amazed at just how many don’t and find the whole lot running away once they’ve coupled up fully.

Apply safety clip first. The attach airlines and electricals in whatever order you see fit, it makes no difference but put the red air line on first. Try to put them on in order so the leads aren’t all getting crossed over each other. Wind the legs up. Reset unit suspension height, attach number plate, one last check of the fifth wheel safety clip then take off the park brake on the trailer. Walk round do light checks, check tyres, wheel nuts etc.

When dropping a trailer take the number plate off, put the park brake on (although with modern ones it’ll come on automatically when you take the red line off), wind the legs down, remove the electrical and air lines and stow them on the unit, make sure the park brake is applied on the trailer, walk round the back and take the number plate off, pull the fifth wheel pin, drive forward 5-6 inches, lower the air suspension fully on the unit then pull out. Doing it that way won’t drop a load of weight on the trailer legs and bend them.

where are the 3 positions of the handle? (High speed, low speed and floppy - I seem to just fiddle about each time til it works).

The legs have a 2 speed gearbox on them, you pull the handle fully out for high gear which will wind the legs up faster but harder to do if there’s any weight on them usually when the legs are still on the ground, push it fully in for low gear which you use when there’s a load of weight still on the legs and you can’t wind them up reasonably easy in high gear and once it gets really easy in low gear then you can change to high. The middle point is basically a neutral so you can move the handle to stow it if you need to or move it so you can actually pull it out if some numbnuts has dropped it with it stuck behind the side guard rails which some do. Unless your unit can lift the trailer enough to take all the weight off the legs you’ll often find you have to start in low gear first until it gets easier then move to high gear. Be careful if you start off in high gear because if you put too much effort in when trying to turn the handle you can snap the bolt that holds it on so if you find yourself having to heave on it change it to low gear.

Do you lock it in position and have both hands on the end, or have one hand on either side of the bend?

Either. The hands on the end are the way to do it if they’ve got a lot of weight on them before you get to the point the legs lift off the floor or the legs are still because they are a bit bent, one hand on either side of the bend is how to do it the fastest once the legs are off the floor.

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Trailers I use

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If dropping off a loaded trailer do the next driver a favour and DO NOT stow away the leg winding handle, leave it hanging loose pointing downwards.

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The most important thing is to make your routine up and absolutely stick to it.

If dropping an empty or lightly loaded trailer from a Scania 3 axle unit, its best to drop the lift axle because if you wind the legs down fully with the axle raised the trailer will be about 3" higher than almost every other make of tractor and it’s too easy for the many lazy sods out there who just back straight under to miss the pin if they pick it up with another make of tractor unit…no it won’t be your fault as such but it’s to everyone’s benefit not to have a fleet any more wrecked than absolutely necessary.

Check the fifth wheel for enough grease because they can run dry and if dry enough can affect handling, also if the fifth wheel is freshly greased put extra effort into lowering the tractor suspension fully and reverse back far enough so you only have about 6" or so further reverse to couple once you’ve raised the landing legs off the ground, this ensures the grease goes where its needed and not wiped up the front of the rubbing plate.

Always try and lift the landing legs off the ground before final coupling, saves straining the legs.

Always worth shining a torch up the fifth wheel’s bum to check the bar is across after coupling.

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stu675:
How do you incorporate remembering the numberplate into BLACK?

Personally I use BLANK Brake, legs, air, number plate, kingpin. I don’t need reminding for ‘clip’ as I won’t be able to pull the pin without removing it. And when coupling up, I shine a torch into the fifth wheel clasp to check the bar, and then attach the clip. So all in the ‘K’ as far as I’m concerned.

Most importantly, don’t get distracted while you’re doing it!

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the maoster:
If dropping off a loaded trailer do the next driver a favour and DO NOT stow away the leg winding handle, leave it hanging loose pointing downwards.

Absoute +1

I always loft it a bit and drop it a tiny bit higher if heavy too

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Brake
Legs
Airlines
Numberplate
Clip
Kingpin

Think BLANCK not BLACK

edit. Just seen I’ve essentially duplicated this advice. I missed it on the read through

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I remember my instructors advice from 4 years ago. Rough kinda salt of the earth bloke, didn’t look a day over 90, smoked 40 a day etc etc

He said, “just don’t drop the c###”

Sent from my IN2023 using Tapatalk

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stuwozere1:
I remember my instructors advice from 4 years ago. Rough kinda salt of the earth bloke, didn’t look a day over 90, smoked 40 a day etc etc

He said, “just don’t drop the c###”

Sent from my IN2023 using Tapatalk

Sounds like a instructor at ritchies.

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Always put the dog clip on before you do your tug test , if you don’t & you’ve not caught the pin properly you could fly forward and kill the person walking across in front of you

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if your a old timer, you can forget the park brake unless your split coupling i rarely check park brake when connecting up wastes valuable time but everything else is crucial kingpin the REAL old timers dont bother but i dont want to risk it

sometimes your kingpin handle might need pulling out or it wont connect up you can either go out and pull it or you can just slam the unit hard and it force it to connect :confused:

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dozy:
Always put the dog clip on before you do your tug test , if you don’t & you’ve not caught the pin properly you could fly forward and kill the person walking across in front of you

Really? Does everyone do this?

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Great advice all, much appreciated!

Our units are stored at basically a car park without facilities, do you all leave the fifth wheel greasing to the mechanics? Add some yourself? Or find it never dissipates?

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stu675:
Trailers I use

Is this a Mavis rail? There seems to be 2 sets of the 2 airline connectors top facing the cab or bottom right facing the floor. Do I have a choice of using either set? So pull it out and do it all from the floor?
I have only done it from the cat walk so far.

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stu675:
How do you incorporate remembering the numberplate into BLACK?

I always put the number plate on before hooking up and when I am midway round doing the trailer checks.

In my case I often remove it at the fuel pumps because that suits what I am doing. Just develop a routine that suits what you are doing.

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stu675:
Is this a Mavis rail? There seems to be 2 sets of the 2 airline connectors top facing the cab or bottom right facing the floor. Do I have a choice of using either set? So pull it out and do it all from the floor?
I have only done it from the cat walk so far.

It certainly looks like a sliding plate for the connectors to be attached to. This helps to reduce damage to the suzies during tight turns and also means the plate can be moved over for connection purposes. I can’t quite see if the plate can also be extended out to the side of the unit (possibly not). There will be a release handle and a securing clip if so.

It is common to see the extendable plates on trailers such as fridges where there is limited space on the catwalk. If it wasn’t for this, then drivers commonly have to resort to a split couple, which means securing the suzies before engaging the kingpin. It is possible to do this safely, but experience has shown that accidents will happen, so many operators outlaw the practice on safety grounds.

Another method of creating more space on the catwalk is a sliding fifth-wheel. In my experience these can be present but are rarely used in practice, except for specific purposes, which somebody would probably tell you about if you needed to use it.

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Judging from your picture you’re pulling Amazon trailers. When you have those VS42 type trailers with the sliding rail connect your airlines to the bottom connections not the top ones as if you spin around you can get your airlines tangled with a small metal flap on the side of the connecting rail. Also when using Amazon trailers and you’ve pressed the trailer brake in and the trailer still wont move, it’s because they have an anti rollaway feature on most of their trailers now, to release the brake once you’re back in your cab after coupling you have to hold the foot brake with your foot and then release the handbrake and put the cab into gear and then you’ll be able to move. I’ve been dealing with Amazon and their trailers for over 7 years now so if you need any advice or you’re unsure you can send me a message.

As for incorporating the number plate into black what I usually do is get out drivers door walk to the back of the trailer, remove plate, then trailer brake, then legs and airlines which are usually on the same side, then walk around the front of the cab to the pin and pull the pin then get back into the cab with the trailer plate. Back into cab, engine on slowly move forward to hear the pin disengage then drop unit suspension so there is a little bit of day light between the pin and trailer and completely pull out from the trailer and reset suspension.