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brakes draggin?
Guys,
Just got back from a couple of weeks in Hilton Head Island and I noticed that there was a fair amount of black dust on the passenger side drive wheel. I had my son listen for any unusual noise and he didn’t hear anything. I am going to have it looked at either way but just wondering if there was something I could check. I checked it a couple of times on the way home and to the touch the wheels seemed about the same temp from side to side. But the last time I checked later in the day the side with the dust, did seem warmer.
Bill
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6 Replies
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The easiest way to check for a dragging brake (or bearing going bad) is to use an IR temperature gun and check temperatures neat the hub. Check all wheels and compare.
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On a recent trip I noticed my passengers tag running about 15 deg F warmer than the rest of the tires with my IR temp gun. Is this with in an acceptable range?
Didn’t write down the temps, as my old brain remembers, the passengers tag was about 210 Deg and the rest o f the tires were about 195 Deg.
Chuck
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The sun side will also run a little warmer
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Chuck, do you mean hub or tires?
Your experience may vary from mine, but this is what I have found on my coach.
First, my tire pressures are set to 5 PSI over what the Michelin chart specifies for the axles. After a couple of hours of driving on a hot day with ambient temps near 90 my tire and sidewall temps were all within about 5 degrees of one another, with the sunny side slightly warmer.
I have never seen tire tread or sidewall temps greater than 145.
I usually go to the bathroom before I get out to check tire temps so they have about 5 minutes to cool a little.
I also checked hub temps at the same time as tires but I cannot remember the readings except to say they were not much different than the tires.
Now I am relying on the Pressure Pro temps which are not really taken with a temperature sensor, but likely are calculated based on an algorithm.
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Jon:
Have not checked the hub temps because its a PITA to remove the hub cabs to check the hubs. I shoot the tire at the 12:00 position and right where the rim meets the tire.
Sometimes I wonder about my brain as I get older…
You are correct, all tires run around 125 Except passengers tag. That one runs around 135-140.
Chuck
Jeff and Lindsay
91 Marathon XL -
Unless there is a difference in pressure on that passenger tag the higher temp can be a dragging brake or bearing issue.
Aluminum wheels do a good job of carrying heat so after a good run check wheel temps as close to the hub caps as possible. They should all be nearly the same as long as tire pressures are close to the chart values.
If you had a recent hub seal replacement on that tag wheel and the bearings were not tightened to spec that could be a cause just like the dragging brake. I do not know the type brakes you have on your coach, but regardless I think both possible types use automatic slack adjusters with the Knorr Bremse adjuster internal to the caliper, or the Meritor on the slack adjuster. Get the weight off the tag tires, release the parking brake and spin them by hand. You will be able to tell if one is dragging.
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