Recovered my M927 truck

I have, but it's been ~45 years ago.

Mostly, the rear end wanted to lift, possibly tossing the driver over the handlebars in the process...

Oh, jeez, that sounds a lot like my story.

In NJ, we used to have an annual safety inspection that included a brake test. The tester would accelerate the car for about 25 feet and then slam on the brakes. On the floor were four suspended grates that were connected to manometers, which had "go, no-go" lines on their tubes.

So in '67 I took my MG Midget Mk III (around 1400 lb. dry) in for its first inspection. The rear wheels wouldn't even register -- the manometers on the rear wheels didn't budge. So they failed me and I had two weeks to correct it.

The rear brakes were manually adjusted, and they had little square-headed bolt adjusters. I took a crescent wrench with me when I went back for re-inspection. While I was waiting in line, I tightened the suckers down until they were just touching the drums.

I went through the line. Again, they failed. The manometers just registered, but not into the "safe" zone.

I expressed my frustration. The inspectors were sympathetic and told me I could cut into the line for another try. So I tightened the rears down until they were squealing and hobbled around to cut into the line. This time I passed.

When I got out I drove about ten feet, took out my wrench, and adjusted them back where they were supposed to be. The inspectors were not amused. They said I shouldn't do that. "OK," I said, and pretended to tighten them up again.

Anyway, the following year I knew what to do, so I tightened them to the squealing point just before going in. I passed again. But, not wanting to raise their ire, I just kept driving and decided I'd make it home -- it was only a few miles -- and I'd adjust them properly there. The squealing had stopped. I probably put 5,000 miles of wear on the rears.

On the way home, up US 1, there was a curved turnoff to the right that I like to hit at about 50 mph and just start a slide, practicing powering out to see how much power I could apply without spinning (I don't do that anymore). Not thinking about my brakes, I hit it at my usual speed. Hee-haw! The rear end came around and I couldn't steer out of it -- off the road I went, into the nicely manicured Reed Turf Farm owned by my buddy Bill Reed's family.

I plowed some great furrows, mostly sideways, and barely got out of the soft ground. Then I crawled the rest of the way home, reminding myself of the brakes about every 100 feet.

The next day I told my friend Bill that I was the culprit, and offered to pay for the damage. Not to worry, he said. It happens all the time, and they were getting ready to put up a thick steel-and-concrete guard rail, anyway. d8-)

Heh heh, that's a good story! ;>)}

Why does a mere ounce of authority give so -many- people delusions of Godhood?

I forgot to add "That little Mini's brakes really -could- stand it on its nose, couldn't they?"

Many years ago when I lived in California, some bastard stole my Honda motorcycle right out of my front yard.

Insurance paid enough to buy a replacement Honda one year older. About this same time, I started using the front brake with minimal rear brake. After riding that way for several months, I found that my riding friends thought I was nuts and should ALWAYS use ONLY the rear brake.

So I sabotaged my replacement bike by adjusting the brake lever on the rear hub to where it had NO braking ability at all. I took to leaving the keys in the ignition, hoping the bastard would return to steal my bike. I lived very close to the best get-away option, the interstate. So if someone stole it, they wouldn't use the brakes until miles way, probably on an exit ramp.

Unfortunately, I never got to report that bike stolen, never got to hear that there was a semi-human smear on the asphalt.

technomaNge

The best option on a bike is using both brakes. My antique Yamaha even has linked braking along with anti-dive.

That's why they call it antiSKID braking system. To hell with stopping distance, but don't allow the driver to lose control.

Sometimes, on marginal and patchy surfaces, it doesn't really worsen stopping distance much, but when it is very slippery on all 4 wheels, it is bound to take longer to stop. The ABS can control braking independently on each wheel, which is better than you can do with only one pedal.

Jon

ABS unfortunately has a serious flaw - In an unloaded vehicle with stiff suspension i.e. a 1T pickup with no cargo, a bump in the road can easily bounce the rear axle out of contact with the road. If this occurs during breaking the rear wheels will momentarily stop turning, the ABS system improperly activates and you *loose braking*.

Happens with my pickup too.

I feel, extremely strongly, that the proper cure for all those braking issues, is to, one, drive at a speed safe for conditions, and two, maintain a safe distance.

Those certainly help, but in the case of my previous truck (Chev K3500) you had to be in the habit of scanning the road surface when braking to a stop like coming to a light and you would see the bump and momentarily release the brake when you went over it and then reapply to avoid the ABS flaw. If you were coming to a stop at a light and hit a bump there was a real danger of hitting the vehicle ahead of you due to the flaw, and that was driving a reasonable speed and braking at a reasonable distance and rate, not racing up and slamming on the brake as some people do.

I can't imagine ABS on a vehicle with such an extreme weight variation as a pickup truck -- front-to-rear variation as well as overall variation. It sounds like a nightmare.

Which is why you want 4 channel ABS if you get ABS - particularly on a truck. 3 channel ABS controls front brakes separately - but treats the rears as one.

Could also be the same problem that plagues a lot of ABS systems. Faulty sensors.

FYI: Common ABS problem on GM products (mainly the trucks)- Rust between the sensor and the mounting hole on the front hub(s). Symptoms = NO ABS light but ABS applies during very slow speed brake applications regardless of surface traction. Cure = Clean around the sensors very well, remove them, plug the hole with rag or cork, clean the rust off of the hub and sensor mount. Apply a light film of silicone sealer to the sensor and reinstall it. Then brush a coat of sealer around the sensor as a corrosion block.

In the mid 70's DOT mandated that semis be able to stop within a certain distance, full or empty, without sliding outside a 12' lane. The only practical way to comply was to put ABS on the rear trailer wheels. The analog systems of the time monitored the rate of wheel deceleration and either prevented brake line pressure from increasing or momentarily released it if deceleration exceeded an estimate of what tire friction would permit, lets call it 3/4 of a 'g' since they never told me the actual design value and I signed an NDA covering what little I did know.

If the wheel decelerated more rapidly the system assumed it was skidding. There was no way to compensate for stickier tires that could stop faster, and even if it did the car behind with stock tires would run into you. There is a tradeoff between stopping as quickly as possible when you are out alone, and everyone slowing down at the same controlled rate in a line of heavy traffic.

I was a test engineer building the production test stations for these modules, for several GM suppliers. We got to play with ABS and learn how to use and misuse it. In general it hindered an experienced dirt-track driver but helped most people, who hadn't learned to control a slide. I could do most of the tricks, but not at a competitive speed.

When it worked it did allow the trucks to stop faster without sliding sideways whether full or empty. Do you remember the straight dashed tire streaks their ABS would leave from panic stops? jsw

That's why they invented.... The Fuse.

On all cars with ABS, there's always at least one little fuse in the fuse-block you can pull and Presto! No more ABS interfering with what your right foot want.

Might have to pull the ABS FAIL bulb, but that's a separate issue.

-->--

One catch to that. Check your insurance close. Many have out written in there stating if you intentionally disable any of the factory "safety devices" they won't pay if an investigation shows that device should have operated. Stupid but it could be there.