Who has the best deal on e-brakes?

[R Anestis]

I want to get an e-brake for my truck, but I can't decide between Jacobs and PacBrake. I would also like to hear preferences and reasons for them as well as good deals (if there are any right now). I'll probably want to get a push/pull switch, so if anyone has a picture of one mounted in the cab, could you post it? One last thing: I don't want to void my warranty. Thanks for any help.





-Ron

 

[Bob Wagner]

if it's the Pacbrake you want

buy it from the guy that sell hundreds



Call Bill Kondolay 1-866-504-4002



www.dieseltrans.com





and another great source is





www.piersdiesel.com

 

[illflem]

Piers had the B-D brake on sale a while back, it may still be. The price was very good, wish it had been that low when I bought mine long ago. My B-D has performed flawlessly for over five years.

 

[klenger]

I bought the Dodge OEM e-brake from Mechanicsviller Dodge at 800-559-6698 for $540 plus $12 shipping. Very good service.

 

[DAWG-1]

I am in the market fo an exhaust brake also. I am not sure which one I want either.

 

[Ram4Sam]

brake comparison

Go here #ad


for some brake info. It is BD's brochure so keep that in mind.



Sam

 

[SlyBones]

Sam,



Piers just had the BD on sale for a great price. Like in the BD brouchure, pac has better top end retarding power and BD better mid range retarting power. Given you have a manual transmission I would lean towards the BD. And call Piers right away.

 

[HC]

I believe Piers still has the sale on - check the wwcd2 page. The chart that compares BD to others looked like a good set-up for justifying why the BD brake should justifiably cost more. But at Pier's price, the decision got real easy...



I can't speak for the others, but I've had my BD on for about a month now and I'm very happy with it. The retarding power of the exhaust brake isn't quite as great as I expected from reading all the posts, but then again, I seldom need my hydraulic brakes unless I'm in town or going under 20 mph. And the darn thing adds just that much more to the fun of driving this truck...

 

[WestTN]

e-brakes

I have no experience on any brake other than the Mopar Jake brake (later called the e-brake}model.

I can say it was relatively easy to install and the directions were clear and well illustrated. This brake is installed as a replacement for the turn down exhaust elbow on the turbo. I like the operation of the brake. It has a 1 to 2 second delay built in which reduces wear on the actuating cylinder as well as the vacuum pump on the engine caused by instant actuation when you lift off the throttle. A side benefit is that you don't have to shift as quickly as you would otherwise.

I have also heard of a few brakes seizing up after piling up a some miles of use. These are the ones which install in the pipe.

The price was something under $600.

 

[jmeehan]

Here's something to think about. At what RPM do you drive and at what RPM is the brake most effective? That is the only reason I bought the BD. I did pay more but I'm happy.

 

[Ram4Sam]

Sly, I actually bought a BD from Piers a few weeks ago. I liked the fact that it's best performance was at the lower rpm. Now, if I could just get off my lazy butt and install it. It is sitting in the garage, right next to the box with a 4" system

from Jardine. I'm so ashamed.



Lazy Sam

 

[SlyBones]

Ram4Sam,



Glad to see you got one. I was thinking that this is what DAWG-1 should get too. For the manual transmission the mid range retarding power should be best, as a few pointed out. If you follows Bill K's advice and keep your RPM's up for the health of your automatic transmission, then the PacBrake is probably a better choice. As it has the better high end retarding power and not as strong in the low RPM where we try not to stress out our TC's.

 

[BigMike]

I've read a zillion posts on this subject over the past year. Concensus seems to be that they all work great and one isn't necessarily better than the other. I love my BD, but have no experience with any other. As long as it "slows you down", you probably can't go wrong with any one of them. Seems like price is similar as well. Probably can find a deal somewhere.



Good luck.

 

[illflem]

Come on Ron buy a Banks, we're all waiting to see how much HP you gain with one. Really, they look like a good unit, just waiting on the first reports.

 

[mvaughn]

E-brake

I installed a PacBrake and love it. The installation was easy and the instructions were very good. Made a ON-OFF switch that is held to the gear shift with a couple wire ties and small piece of velcro. The switch is a round hole rocker(Selectra #RH19-BG) that I got at the local electronic store. The switch fits in 3/4" PVC pipe that is painted black and is about 1 3/4 long. It fits real well just below the gear shift knob.

 

[WestTN]

best rpm's

The most effective rpms for exhaust brake would be all the way up at engine redline. There was an operational redline on the old trucks of 2500 rpms. This is where the fuel quit coming. Cummins advised that 3100 was okay for e-brake use when downshifting. With the 60 lb exhaust valve springs I think it was 3600.

I don't know what the numbers are for the 24V engines.

 

[scliny65]

SlyBones, you wrote:



"... For the manual transmission the mid range retarding power should be best, as a few pointed out. If you follows Bill K's advice and keep your RPM's up for the health of your automatic transmission, then the PacBrake is probably a better choice. As it has the better high end retarding power and not as strong in the low RPM where we try not to stress out our TC's. "





Can you explain why the trans type matters? I have a '97 AT and am curious about this, as I am considering the purchase of an e-brake.

Also, is there a problem with auto trans and the RPM's. I usually try to keep my rpm's below 2k for fuel economy reasons. Is there a potential problem when doing this?



PS: I only have 55k on this truck, so I am barely broken in.



Thanks

 

[SlyBones]

Well I am no expert on this. Like 85CJ said, think about what RPMs you drive at and what RPM range the various brakes work at. Get the brake that works best for the RPM range you use when braking.



Bill K the automatic guru will tell you the best thing you can to for your auto transmission is keep the RPMs up. -- Having said that I too try to keep it below 2K for economy reasons. However i try not to push it too hard.



The basic problem is having the TC Clutch locked up at low RPMs and then applying a lot of load, typically power. IE 1500 RPMs, Locked TC, and 32-35psi boost is not a good combination. This is a good way to ruin the TC Clutch lining. Various things can be done. Best is a DTT TC Saver. Or when I realize I am in this situation I tap the brake pedal. It causes the TC to unlock.



If you have an auto transmission you need to keep the TC locked up in order for the ebrake to be effective. And the same rules will apply. That 8000# trailer back there with gravity wanting to make it accelerate down the hill is applying load to the TC Clucth. The higer RPMs the better. So keep the RPMs up and get a brake that works good at the higher RPMs.



The manual transmission guys can tell you what RPM range they run at when using the ebrake on the pass with the big 5er attached.

 

[BIG BOB]

I had Piers install a BD Brake Friday before BD Dyno Days. He matched BD's Dyno Pricing. It works great, one of the best components I have added to the "White Obsession"! By the way, he had it installed in 1 1/2 hours. I've read others post about it taking them 3 hours to install.



I had considered the PacBrake, but being I have a 5 speed, I felt the BD would work better for me.

 

[scliny65]

Sly,



95% of the time I drive around town and unloaded.

I was considering the brake because I end up replacing service brakes twice a year.



But, the main reason why I was thinking of one is:

I want that awesome, loud sound when getting of the juice,

just like the sound the big rigs make!!!



Am I wasting my time and $$$ with this since I don't haul loads?

I know that I will also have to upgrade/deal with the TC issues with an e-brake, but what can I do?

Idle hands and a full wallet ( or valid credit card) are the devil's playground!







Please forgive the long posting, but I have a good excuse...

the doctor told me I am in the beginning stages of that dreaded

disease... BOMBITIS!

Uh, oh this could get very expensive!