Air dryer

[eagle19952]

So what did they do before Bendix.....

[chev49]

large fire with a worm on top of it...

[luvrbus]

Alcohol injection

good luck

[bevans6]

In the air system, to absorb moisture, or in the driver, so he didn't care?   

[buswarrior]

The moisture was allowed to travel into the air system, where most of it dropped out in the first tank, by tradition called the wet tank.

But the whole system was far more humid than a coach equipped with an air drier.

Which sticks things when it goes below freezing, and mixes with the lubricant in the valves to reduce its effectiveness over a long time.

And a disinterested or distracted human being has to be depended upon to drain the wet out regularly...

Those pesky humans are always a serious flaw in any system!

Exit, stage north.

happy coaching!
buswarrior

[TomC]

Even though the air/water separators are optional on our medium duty trucks, I always ordering them for our stock trucks.  Los Angeles-even though a desert-being right next to the ocean has high humidity at times.  My '77 AMGeneral has a air/water separator factory installed; my first truck in 1980 I had one installed; my 1985 has one.  My favorite it the Bendix AD-9 since it is very easy to overhaul yourself (about every 3 years). Air/water separators not only takes the water out, but filters also.  Good Luck, TomC