THROWING OUT THE ANCHOR
Back in the day when some of us were still cutting their baby teeth, the brakes on wagons of old were only moderate especially when you appreciate that overloading was a way of life and motors were driven as fast as they could – never mind their archaic speed limits. Such a combination meant that retardation – through relatively tiny brake shoes pressing on rather narrow brake drums – was never going to be that impressive, so no wonder it was a life-saving mantra to ‘Always go down a hill in the gear which you need to get up it.’
Thankfully – today – we rarely hear about runaways due to brake fade as generally commercials can stop just as good as they can go. Even the modern day car now has power assistance to ensure excellent response to a touch on the brake pedal while the trend (for both car and commercial) is that electronic sensors can even operate the brakes automatically if they detect something untoward is going on – and that can be before the driver has even noticed.
Yes, things are certainly a lot safer in that respect on our modern day roads, which is of course a good thing. However, those brought up as proud ‘Old School’ members of the wagon driving fraternity might smile as the honing of yet another sixth-sense ability is no longer totally required while delivering freight around our demanding road network. As back in the day, the ability to safely stop wasn’t always a given.
It’s Not Rocket Science
If the thought of reading an article on brakes leaves you a bit cold don’t fret as the technical bits will be kept to a minimum. And really this feature is just an excuse to trawl back through the archives to dig out some great pictures of old as
