Four down supplemental braking up for discussion

luvrbus · November 25, 2018, 06:28:40 AM

Quote from: sixtyseven on November 24, 2018, 11:26:36 PM
If you look on their website they list what models fit what vehicles so you can tell if your old one will work. also I think you can trade in your old one to save $

yep I have done a couple of trade in over the years

dtcerrato · December 04, 2018, 06:53:23 PM

Received shipment of the M&G supplemental brake system today. I got to say I was impressed as to the quality of components & parts. Aluminum, brass, metal over plastic. Lots of made in USA printed. Especially with all the Amazon & Ebay shopping I do. Looking forward to installing it but may not be until after the holidays. I'll circle back on how that goes & its operation.

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · December 05, 2018, 05:04:51 AM

Just so you know... According to Roadmasterinc.com the most popular towed cars using their tow bars in 2017 order were the following in case you were in the market for a new Toad.

96-2018 Jeep Wranglers
2011-2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee
2007-2014 Honda CRV (not towable after 2014)
2015-2018 Chevy Colorado & GMC Canyon
2013-2018 Ford F-150
2010-2017 Chevy Equinox & GMC Terrain
2002-2012 Jeep Liberty
2012-2018 Fiat 500
2013-2018 Ford CMAX
2007-2016 GMC Acadia
2008-2017 Buick Enclave & 2009-2012 Chevy Traverse

dtcerrato · December 05, 2018, 09:30:23 AM

Curious why the Jeep GC only goes back to 2011 - it should go back earlier. They're a breeze to tow like the newer ones. just saying. Our GMC Sierra was as easy as any popular toad but probably larger/heavier than most want to tow. While sitting in a parking (camping) lot in Whitehorse Canada, I had a Prevost group come to us & congratulate us for having the largest/heaviest toad on the lot. Never realized it until they brought it up. The IL671 pulls anything just fine if you don't mind turtle speed - we never did...

windtrader · December 05, 2018, 11:27:47 AM

I'm speculating but based on the reported car vintages, they may be basing their numbers on what they sold last year.

luvrbus · December 05, 2018, 03:37:09 PM

Quote from: windtrader on December 05, 2018, 11:27:47 AM
I'm speculating but based on the reported car vintages, they may be basing their numbers on what they sold last year.

Your are right Don they just go back to 1996 on the Jeep Wrangler

dtcerrato · January 13, 2019, 05:23:49 PM

A follow up - finally completed the toad supplemental braking system. Many hours on wiring for lights including toad backup lights activated with bus backup lights and a toad brake application indicator light in bus drivers cockpit. The awesome thing I found out about the system is the toad brakes don't apply until about 35psi - up to that point the bus brakes are already applying. This tells me the toad brakes "lag" which is great for decreased wear on the toad. At greater that 35 psi to 50 psi both are doing some hard braking & it's truly progressive. There is virtually nothing in the toad behind the firewall except a tiny cable & clamp to the brake pedal. Everything is under the hood (air cylinder, vacuum pump, & breakaway tank & circuits). Looking forward to road testing (including four new shocks)

sledhead · January 14, 2019, 05:16:16 AM

very nice

sledhead · January 14, 2019, 05:31:42 AM

ok I will ask .... has anyone ever been pulled over about towed braking and get a ticket ?

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · January 14, 2019, 08:27:45 AM

Quote from: sledhead on January 14, 2019, 05:31:42 AM
ok I will ask .... has anyone ever been pulled over about towed braking and get a ticket ?

I never have but my concern is if you have an accident and you did not take prudent measures to ensure the safety of you and your passengers and other vehicles then they may throw the book at you and your insurance company may not cover you. Better safe than sorry.

TomC · January 14, 2019, 02:38:09 PM

Just had the Roadmaster InvisiBrake installed on my car. Totally independent of the bus, uses the running lights as a trickle charger. Have yet to try it. Will try it Thursday on way to Quartzite. Good Luck, TomC

dtcerrato · January 14, 2019, 05:22:23 PM

Okay Dave, you asked the right person here! Answer is No. Been running for 40 years without supplement braking on many different toads - light (VW Beetle) to heavy (full size PU /Camper). What made believers out of us was two fold - 1st a suicide downhill in Alberta Canada caught us by surprise -we survived that one. Then totalling our truck & still dealing with law suit. Fact of the matter is the laws are out there for every state & province on the continent but not enforced & insurance companies can & will default to not pay claims if proper equipment wasn't in place. In our case we decided to get on the other end of "luck" due to our exposure on 15 thousand mile round road trips & having to drive so defensively for all the stupidity & multi tasking going on during driving these days.

Lin · January 14, 2019, 05:29:31 PM

I never felt that there was a need for the auxiliary toad brake but wanted to comply with the law for that very liability reason that Sledhead mentioned. Therefore, I picked up a cheap used Brake Buddy off of Craigslist. I really do not know how well it works in an emergency like a breakaway, which would really be scary. However, it seems to be reasonable compliance to me.

I was curious though, if some units are activated by an airline from the bus, what happens if that line is severed in a breakaway?

Brian Diehl · January 14, 2019, 05:43:44 PM

I have built my own supplemental brake system. The break away is simply a three way valve, a small air tank for a reservoir and a 3 way air valve. The air tank is made out of 3" ABS. The tank is filled every time the breaks are applied and preserved in the tank by a 1 way check valve. Should the truck ever come un-hitched or break away the 3 way air valve will be pulled to the opposite valve opening by a lanyard between the truck and the bus. This will dump the air into the piston which pushes against the brake pedal. The air tank has enough volume to apply the brakes once. Once is all that would be needed. It is not the most elegant solution, but it works.

dtcerrato · January 14, 2019, 05:44:56 PM

Lin the last photo I posted a little earlier in this post shows the break away system for that reason. It is a small tank that stores compressed air on the toad. If the toad breaks away from the towing vehicle, the safety lanyard gets pulled & activates a switch to release air from the break away tank to apply the toad brakes to bring it to a controlled stop. I can't imagine how a toad would be able to disconnect with the safety chains (or cables) but it is part of a fully operational supplemental braking system.