Interesting and potentially dangerous
dpmule
Member Posts: 6,745 ✭✭✭✭
Sight yesterday. Was out in my stack yard, discussing a cow hay sale with a fellow and we heard a truck coming down our rural road just hammering on his Jake brake. I knew immediately it was going to be a hay delivery to a feed lot near us.
We both looked at the truck and load as he went by and shook our heads in disbelief. The truck had straight 8” at least stacks and they were both below the top of the load of hay, the top two bales on the drivers side that we could see were smoking and next three bales back were coated black with carbon. I’m guessing the passenger side was similar.
He only had a half a mile to go and I never saw a fire truck summoned, so I’m guessing the bales never fully burst into flames and they got unloaded without incident. But I bet they set those bale off separately and not in their stack.
This wouldn’t have been the first load I’ve seen burnt up from similar set up.
Mule
Comments
Some 'trucker dudes' just love jake brakes and use them as much as possible. One owner operator I knew refused to use his since in his words "Why would I put the wear and tear on MY engine & drive train just to save the trailer owner(s) a few bucks on brake shoes?".
I was hauling a load of hay for a local farmer years ago.His 15 year old son was riding with me and smoking a cigarette.A few miles down the road after the young guy flipped his cigarette out the window the hay was on fire.We manage to put out the fire with minimum loss but there was a * spot. His dad ask what happened and the kid said he thought a burning cigarette started the fire.When dad replied'Buddy does not smoke,where did the cigarette come from".The youngster fessed up to dad that he had been smoking.Dad turned and walked away and I don't think the son ever smoked after that.
I was headed for Colorado one fall and noticed a load of hay that had grown a couple of 'heads' in the top row of bales. Someone was sneaking a ride to where ever the load was going. I looked in my mirror after meeting the load and noticed the back of the load of hay was on fire. I'm guessing one of the 'heads' on top had tossed a cig that didn't clear the load. A couple minutes later, I met a KS hwy cop headed east with lights and siren so maybe another driver had noticed and 'called it in'.
I remember seeing a barn that totally burned down from hay being put up that must have been wet??
Spontaneous combustion was listed as the cause.
Burnt up brakes are still way less expensive than a whole new engine and possibly tranny.
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
While I totally agree many show-offs over use the compression (Jake) brake just to make noise. However a compression brake does not put excess wear on the engine or drive train. Other than on rare occurrences, like jakeing an unladen engine, which has been known to break the crankshaft. But yet again this is intentional misuse by the operator. A compression brake simply turns the engine into a large air compressor, thereby allowing it to absorb energy instead of producing energy. If you are trucking off mountain passes/ long steep down grades or on logging roads, which are full of 8%-12% grades, you will soon find that an engine brake just might be a life saving piece of equipment. Truck brakes get hot rapidly, and they can/will completely fail. This is why you see run away truck ramps coming off mountain passes.
As to the OP, I have seen several loads of hay set on fire from poorly maintained exhaust systems.
My 3/4 ton Chevy has engine brakes. They came in handy coming into and out of the Tetons pulling a 6,000 pound camper. Saw a dude with smoke rolling from his wheels as he was coming down from Mt. Rushmore. Small camper and locked up brakes. Would have hated to see him in real mountains.
Susie it think you have what is called an exhaust brake if your truck is diesel. Same principal but accomplished by a different method. If your Chevy is a diesel the transmission should down shift as you apply brakes giving a breaking effect.
Texas police officer sitting in the median of I-20 when a semi rolls past loaded with round bales of hay, and the last bale was smoking like crazy. He scratched his head, said "No one told me there was a Willie Nelson concert planned."
lucky he didn't set the entire load ablaze. A few more miles at speed Ibet he would have