Manually airing up brakes?

[Awesomeness]

I couldn't find anything in the manuals, but is there a way to manually air up the brakes (with an external air compressor)? I need to disengage the parking brake so that I can tow it, but I can't get the engine started.

Thanks!

 

[Jeeperjoe]

For towing you should "cage" the brakes you should be able to do a google search for caging brakes

 

[Special T]

In the air tank there may be a water drain in the tank. I had to move an old trailer that sat a long time. I put an femal are the chuck in and then used a double male to fill it from my air compressor. It lifted the same cam off the shoes so that I could tap the drum and pry on the shoe to get it to release.

 

[NDT]

Charge the air system through the front emergency glad hand.

 

[Awesomeness]

Charge the air system through the front emergency glad hand.

I would have to build some kind of adapter (valve stem to glad hand) to do that?

 

[doghead]

Cage the brakes, standard practice.

 

[NDT]

I would have to build some kind of adapter (valve stem to glad hand) to do that?

Yes, the glad hand has 1/2" pipe thread. Available at truck supply houses and truck stops.

 

[doghead]

If you're gonna tow it and air it up, you'll need a replenishing source of air, or it will leak out and your brakes will apply when your towing it.

 

[doghead]

What do you plan to tow it with and how far?

 

[Awesomeness]

What do you plan to tow it with and how far?

I'll have it professionally towed, to a heavy duty truck shop about 4 miles away.

 

[Awesomeness]

Cage the brakes, standard practice.

Are the caging bolts standard (e.g. can I pick some up at a HD truck shop) or do I need to find special LMTV bolts?

 

[Tga]

I'll have it professionally towed, to a heavy duty truck shop about 4 miles away.

Any professional towing company will have the equipment to tow it properly. They usually tie the air supply from tow vehicle into air tanks on towed vehicle to keep air in the system and brakes released. They may or may not have trailer supply lines, if so they will connect them directly to front glad hands on your vehicle. If the towed vehicle has a major air leak and won't hold pressure then they will cage the brake chambers. They should know that the driveshafts need to be disconnected even for a short distance.

 

[rosco]

I doubt that they will consider dropping drive lines for a four mile tow.

 

[coachgeo]

I doubt that they will consider dropping drive lines for a four mile tow.

Pull rear axle shafts. See sticky on top of front page of FMTV forum. Title is misleading. Something about removing driveshafts.

 

[Tga]

I doubt that they will consider dropping drive lines for a four mile tow.

If they are a professional towing outfit that tows heavy duty trucks they will drop the driveshaft. If they don't do it on their own...make them. They will probably use a wheel lift from the front of your vehicle, if so the rear shaft is all that will need to be disconnected. They won't take it all the way out, they will disconnect it from the rear axle at the u-joint and strap it up to something out of the way. When it gets to where it is going it's just four bolts to re-connect it. Short tows can sometimes be done without removing driveshaft on manual transmission vehicles only...automatic transmissions MUST have driveshaft disconnected even for the shortest of distances.

 

[Suprman]

Cant tow a lmtv with the driveline connected. You can trailer it or pull rear driveshaft and lift the front with a
wrecker. Is it broke down somewhere or are you having it picked up from an auction?

 

[Awesomeness]

Cant tow a lmtv with the driveline connected. You can trailer it or pull rear driveshaft and lift the front with a
wrecker. Is it broke down somewhere or are you having it picked up from an auction?

It's broken down at my house, but with engine issues that I'm not confident in addressing.

 

[Suprman]

What does it or does it not do. It might be something simple.

 

[Awesomeness]

What does it or does it not do. It might be something simple.

I posted about it in another thread, which was why I didn't here, initially. The engine got some kind of vibration (my theory), and in one 40 mile trip it vibrated all the water pump bolts loose, broke the cast mounting ears off the alternator, broke the starter housing and vibrated out some of the bolts (which is now hanging by the cables), and sprung an oil leak. I don't think it's smart for me to drive it anywhere until someone more experienced can take a look at it.

 

[mkcoen]

It's extremely easy to pull the rear axle shafts for towing vs disconnecting the drive shaft. I was broke down on I-10 and had the shafts out and stored before the tow truck got there. I had assumed he would run air lines from his truck to mine so didn't cage the brakes but something didn't work and he had to cage them after all (charged me $25 for something I could have done while waiting for him). The cage bolts are stored on the brake cans so check there 1st before buying some.