8 Speed Truck-backing And Moving Forward With Out Jerking (Concrete Truck)

First off, I hope all of you are having a great Memorial Day Weekend. To our veterans, as am I (served in the Air Force), THANK YOU, THANK YOU for the service you are and have given to our great country. God Bless You.

To my question, How do you drive forward and backward at short increments with a heavy load? Also with your foot on the brake,your foot on the clutch, and the blue button forward on the gear shift (so as not to allow it to roll back), drive forward and backward smoothly without jerking the truck and losing so much PSI from your airbrakes? Also, its hard when you are on inclines or have to go over curbs. I don't want to get the spoter/handler mad, especially with a chute in their hands.

I covet your advice, thank you.

First off, I hope all of you are having a great Memorial Day Weekend. To our veterans, as am I (served in the Air Force), THANK YOU, THANK YOU for the service you are and have given to our great country. God Bless You.

To my question, How do you drive forward and backward at short increments with a heavy load? Also with your foot on the brake,your foot on the clutch, and the blue button forward on the gear shift (so as not to allow it to roll back), drive forward and backward smoothly without jerking the truck and losing so much PSI from your airbrakes? Also, its hard when you are on inclines or have to go over curbs. I don't want to get the spoter/handler mad, especially with a chute in their hands.

I covet your advice, thank you.

R the transmission the same? Is there jerking problems with the big trucks compared to a concrete mixer truck?

Irregardless of the weight of the truck/load, backing is pretty much always the same. You let out on the clutch slowly, until you start moving. At an idle, you aren't moving hardly at all. I've driven gravel truck dropping gravel, and its done that way, for a deep drop. On an incline, you have your foot on the brake, and the clutch, let out on the clutch until you start moving forward, then give it some fuel..It takes practice, and it will be different in each truck, depending on how the clutch is adjusted, and how new it is. But you'll get to know how each truck acts.....kinda like women...

Yap, it's all going to be about clutch control. Also, stay in the lowest gear you can to initially get moving. If you have a high and a low reverse, stay in low.

But it's just going to take practice and patience. Do not be concerned that the guys are waiting on you or you're holding things up. Just put it out of your mind and focus on doing your job safely.

Practice easing onto that clutch. You'll hear the engine RPM begin to drop ever so slightly as it starts to engage. It will do that before the truck even begins to move. That's the sound you're looking for to tell you where you're at with the clutch. Then just slowly ease it out just a bit more to get rolling.

As far as backing down an incline without losing a lot of air pressure, you should be able to put it in low reverse and let out the clutch completely. Let the engine hold you back a little bit. You'll still have to use some brake, depending on how steep the grade is. But you don't want to be rolling out of gear down the hill and using the brakes to slow you down. That's going to take a lot more pumping the brakes and it's a lot more dangerous. Just let it idle in reverse and the engine will do a lot to control your speed.

I'm not sure if we answered your question completely or not. If not, just let us know. We'll be happy to elaborate.

Yap, it's all going to be about clutch control. Also, stay in the lowest gear you can to initially get moving. If you have a high and a low reverse, stay in low.

But it's just going to take practice and patience. Do not be concerned that the guys are waiting on you or you're holding things up. Just put it out of your mind and focus on doing your job safely.

Practice easing onto that clutch. You'll hear the engine RPM begin to drop ever so slightly as it starts to engage. It will do that before the truck even begins to move. That's the sound you're looking for to tell you where you're at with the clutch. Then just slowly ease it out just a bit more to get rolling.

As far as backing down an incline without losing a lot of air pressure, you should be able to put it in low reverse and let out the clutch completely. Let the engine hold you back a little bit. You'll still have to use some brake, depending on how steep the grade is. But you don't want to be rolling out of gear down the hill and using the brakes to slow you down. That's going to take a lot more pumping the brakes and it's a lot more dangerous. Just let it idle in reverse and the engine will do a lot to control your speed.

I'm not sure if we answered your question completely or not. If not, just let us know. We'll be happy to elaborate.

I go back to work tmrw and will definately practice. Appreciate the answers and both of your experience. Thanx guys.