wouldn't that 45 psi retarding be at higher RPM speeds? I am not to sure if it would have anything to do with how fast ( MPH ) your going but the RPM your twisting. As the RPM's lower the retard psi drops intill you down shift again to bring RPM's back up.

I just know for the $10 I spent to wire in a switch for the EBPV and the TC lock it works pretty good. How would someone make sure NOT to flot a valve? Lower RPM's when using the EBPV/ brake?

 

I haul a 5th wheel at 10K# and a 3K# boat behind that. The 5th wheel has the electric brakes and the boat has the surge brakes. I only use the truck to haul in summer or plow in the winter and currently have 85K miles on her with the ORIGINAL brakes.

I have considered an exhaust brake, but getting this kind of life out of stock pads/rotors I question why I need it?

I just have to ask... What is EBPV?

 

I don't think anyone believes the EBPV modification works as well as a true exhaust brake (especially if you forget the mod to lock the torque converter), so you comments are welcome.

It's probably a good thing you explained this, because if you look at your picture of the exhaust brake, it doesn't really look that much different from the EBPV. Besides, it's always good to hear from our sponsors.

 

I've seen posts from PSD owners who have compared an aftermarket exhaust brake to the homemade jake brake using the EBPV. Pretty much all of them agree that the aftermarket exhaust brakes do tend to work better. But like Dave said, the EBPV works well too. I think the biggest differences between the two setups would be felt with those who tow heavier loads more often, especially those who tow in hilly or mountain areas.

As for the comment of valve float, that's not an issue. These trucks can see (and quite a few have with mods) higher backpressures from the turbo than what is seen from an exhaust brake..... all without valve float. So for any exhaust brake system, there shouldn't be any issues.

So in the end, it all boils down to your usage and your preference on whether you want and/or need an aftermarket exhaust brake or just wire up the EBPV.

 

I agree, it is based off of RPM, I use speed as a reference for guys to relate to but you are correct, definitely based on RPM. In my years I have never seen a valve float using either retarding systems. In theory it is possible but not very likely. You best bet is to install a back pressure gauge (boost gauge) same thing.

Valid point with the service brakes... towing in the summers is the most wear you would see, plowing obviously puts little wear on the service brakes so its fare to say you have little wear. If you lived in BC or other mountainous terrains and towed a 5th wheel you would be on your third set of service brakes by now. Also if you have ever come down the white knuckle water shed hill here in BC with a large trailer you would consider a retarder just for the confidence and safety alone, not to mention the extension of life on your service brakes.

Thanks for excepting my comments, those of you that know me, know I help first and sell second.

Well put... we usually sell the Brake Loc kit for under 6000Lbs and an exhaust brake for over 6000Lbs but boils down to individual need and affordability.

Thanks again guys, this thread went over better than it has in the past, perhaps I just worded myself better this time. Anyway... thanks and have a great weekend guys!

 

Good question and great answers. I have 2 things to add.

1. Get a tranny temp gauge installed. You will have no way of knowing that your tranny is close to overheating otherwise. If it goes past 220 degrees, pull over and let the truck idle in park. Open the hood to let hot air escape and you will see the temp drop quickly.

2. The brakes. Your stock brakes are fine. The number one rule when towing is DON'T LET YOUR SPEED BUILD UP. When you come to the top of a steep hill, SLOW DOWN. I mean to like 30mph. Then put your tranny in 2 and don't let your speed get above 50mph on the way down. It is MUCH easier to slow the rig from 50 back to 40mph than if you let the rig get above 55mph. Don't ride the brake pedal. If the downhill wants to push you faster and faster, then apply the brakes in short bursts. By that I mean brake from 50mph to 40mph, then take your foot of the brakes. If the hill speeds you back up to 50, then re-apply the brakes to get you down to 40. Repeat as necessary.

 

No one has commented on the fact that he has a short bed truck.
I hope that he will get the automatic dis-engaging 5th wheel hitch, as the standard 5th one will absolutely cause problems when turning and the trailer will hit the rear window of the truck-I have seen this happen, also it is not worth the savings to go with a manual dis0engaging hitch as you obviously have to MANUALLY dis-engage it to make the corners, then re-engage it.

 

Good point on the possibility of a 5th wheel hitting the rear of the supercab.

I have a supercab shortbed and the manual sliding hitch. I've never ever had to slide it back.

But not all 5th wheels are created equal. The geometry of kingpin to front of 5th wheel is different on each model. The front of my 5thwheel does not extend but a foot or 2 past the kingpin.

Just check yours to be sure.

Those auto sliding ones are very slick....and very expensive.

 

Hey Rick, If you want to donate the skin....I will bring the beer....

 

When we are considering the cost of the truck and the cost of the trailer I think the automatic dis-engaging hitch is not really that expensive, and not enough more than the manual one to make a difference.

 

One other minor consideration.....if you have a truck box in the bed, make sure your new 5er won't come down on top of it in a twisted turn such as pulling out of a unlevel driveway, gas station, etc. I put a low profile box in mine because of the looks, but my 5er just barely clears it sometimes. If I had put on a standard height box, it would have been crushed and even worse, the front of my 5er would have been damaged. This may not be an issue on your setup, but I certainly recommend checking it BEFORE you make a twisted turn and find out the hard way.

Jim

 

The only way to know how big a tralier you can tow is to weigh you truck full of fuel, folk and all the stuff you're traveling with and deduct that weight from your GCVW rating. THAT is the maximum LOADED trailer weight you can tow. You will probably be exceeding the rear axle weight limit also.
Don't get me wrong, I know "every bodys doing it" but that doesn't make it right. I've been there,done that. tried to make a 1 ton into a 2 ton. 19.5 wheels and tires, bigger brakes. bigger tranny and engine oil coolers.
What everyone is ignoring is the fact that you are going to be over you GCVW. period. and no the brakes are not the only limiting factor. Wheels, tires, axle shafts, axle bearings, transmission, etc. Yeh, you can do it, but you have exceeded all design and safety factors. what if some dumba$$ stops short in front of you? can you stop? or there is a quick lane change needed to avoid an accident? that trailer is going to give you the effect of the "tail wagging the dog".
And as someone has stated if you are in an accident and you are found to be overweight you can be cited and fined and your insurance can void your coverage because you knowingly exceeded you vehicle limits.
Don't let a unimformed choice on your part create a safety hazard for my family and all the other people on the road.
there, I'll get off my soap box now. I just hate seeing people making stupid choices because some RV salesman says " oh yeah, you can pull anything on the lot."
spend $8 at the scales and then go shopping. Barney

 

Barney gets reps for his post!
And I can second what he went through as well.
I was being pushed downhill with my 13.5k lb Cedar Creek in my F-250 and traffic stopped at the bottom of the hill.
I got stopped in time but in less than 10 seconds I had warped my front rotors and the brakes shuddered from then on.
Six months later I was the proud owner of the 1999 F-550 dually and it will stop the trailer without even using the trailer brakes.

 

had about a 10,000 pound tractor on a bumper pull 24' trailer last week no problems combined weight was probably 22,000+/- a couple hundred. i don't pull long distences much and live where there is mostly flat ground
just make sure brakes are good both trailer and truck

 

Being 2K over the 20K legal GCW for my F350 for 10 years as a fulltime RVer tended to make me one of the safest drivers on the road but no matter how slow you descend grades, how much room you allow for the vehicles in front of you. etc.. accidents can happen and on several occasions I just barely got stopped in time to avoid being a victim of one. Cars just don't appreciate how much longer it takes trucks towing trailers to stop.

I suggest a manual TCC lock-up switch to go with your planned exhaust brake as this will allow you to lock the TCC all the way down to 1st gear and I know of no chip tune that does that. With my manual TCC lock-up switch I'd make all gear shifts and engagements and disengagements of the TCC manually. Letting the 4R100 tranny do automatic up and down shifts and automatically engage and disengage the TCC while the driveline is heavily loaded is what leads to tranny issues. I shifted the auto just like you'd shift a manual by using the throttle to unload the driveline and then executing gear changes using the manual shift selector and the OD button and I put at least 80K of heavy towing on my stock tranny shifting this way with no tranny problems at all.

The 99.5 and later stock GTP38 turbo has a problem with surging which means that if you apply too much load to the engine at too low an RPM the turbo can't maintain the required airflow at that load condition and the compressor wheel stalls. This is very damaging to the turbo and operating it in a surging condition should be avoided. When you tow even moderate grades in OD it's very easy to apply too much load to the engine at too low of an RPM and it's better to manually disengage OD before the engine load is high enough where the PCM commands its automatic downshift into 3rd gear. Turbo surge comes on gradually as you increase engine load and by the time you start hearing its tell tale sounds some damage has already been done to the turbo bearing!

Even though my truck had intake and exhaust mods, the WW mod, etc.., I found that when towing a long steep grade I couldn't even use all of the fueling provided by my DP 40 TOW setting without exceeding 1250 F EGT and I always had to keep a close eye on the EGT gauge while modulating the throttle accordingly to stay below 1200 F which is the maximum safe EGT for towing and that value shouldn't be maintained for more than a minute or so. In stock tune I could stay at WOT and remain at or below a 1,150 F EGT no matter what the grade was and I could pay closer attention to the road and just glance at my gauges occasionally.