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Topic: Can't get tire pressure reading (Read 1043 times) previous topic - next topic

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #25
Dan,
You need to check to see if you have a brake caliper locked up and not releasing as that is well beyond normal.
Mike
How do I do this? I'm now in a campground 400 miles from home.
Also, we drove 75 miles today before stopping at this campground, and didn't acknowledge any symptoms.
1998 U295 36' No slides
Towing 2018 Jeep Wrangler
Previous rigs:
  1995 26' Fleetwood Flair
  1998 34' Fleetwood Bounder
  1997 40' Bluebird BMC
  1999 24' Winnebago Minnie Class C

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #26
Tire temp too high - 175 degrees! We immediately got off the road, and I wanted to see if the problem was with the TPMS instead of the tire by switching that TPMS out with another, but I couldn't even get at it as the aluminum wheels were so hot I couldn't touch them.

If you can't remove and replace the wheels yourself, you need to call in either a mobile mechanic or find a nearby by truck shop.  That caliper isn't releasing.  You can drive without that brake in battery, but you can't drive a fire.  Best case scenario?  Drive out the slider pins for the brake pads/caliper, sand them smooth, grease and replace.
1992 Foretravel Grand Villa
U225 SBID Build No. 4134
1986 Rockwood Driftwood
1968 S.I.A.T.A. Spring
1962 Studebaker Lark
1986 Honda VF700C
1983 Honda VF750C
Charlie, the Dog was broken out of jail 24 Oct 2023
N1RPN
AA1OH (H)e who must be obeyed.

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #27
So I'm looking around for a mobile mechanic to come and free up the brake caliper, if that's what it is, tomorrow. But I still need advice on tire pressure.
The placard on the coach, on the wall next to the driver seat, says front tires should be 97 psi and rears 83 at max GAWR. I've been running Uniroyal LS24's with numbers a few pounds below this (as per the Uniroyal charts and my actual weight) for 19,000 miles. The coach last weighed in at front axle 10,840, rear axle 17,020, and would be slightly more with fuller fuel, water, and holding tanks.
What does the group recommend for cold tire pressure, especially since my fronts are now Michelin and the rears still Uniroyal?
1998 U295 36' No slides
Towing 2018 Jeep Wrangler
Previous rigs:
  1995 26' Fleetwood Flair
  1998 34' Fleetwood Bounder
  1997 40' Bluebird BMC
  1999 24' Winnebago Minnie Class C

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #28
Sticker  sounds close or at you charts pressures .

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #29
Dan,
Agree with Mike, your tire pressure on the plaque should be a good range, at least to get home and then look for a comprehensive chart.
This Link may help with the Slide Pins:

Brake Slide Pin Maintenance
Mark & Bev
2001 U295 36' Slide
Cummins ISC 8.3 350HP
Build #5802
Jeep Wrangler Toad

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #30
Scott's Link has some good diagrams showing the pins and related parts.  Hope this helps.
Mark & Bev
2001 U295 36' Slide
Cummins ISC 8.3 350HP
Build #5802
Jeep Wrangler Toad

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #31
Following up on the "brake issue", when was the last time the brakes were serviced(calipers removed, slides checked and lubed, lubed calipers with proper high temp grease and properly purge excess grease)?

If well overheated, likely the brake rotor is damaged and "lazy pad" damaged as well.
Brett Wolfe
EX: 1993 U240
Moderator, ForeForum 2001-
Moderator Diesel RV Club 2002-
Moderator, FMCA Forum 2009-2020
Chairman FMCA Technical Advisory Committee 2011-2020

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #32
Following up on the "brake issue", when was the last time the brakes were serviced(calipers removed, slides checked and lubed, lubed calipers with proper high temp grease and properly purge excess grease)?
If well overheated, likely the brake rotor is damaged and "lazy pad" damaged as well.
Brakes have not been serviced since I bought the coach, 2 years and 19,000 miles ago, and I do not have records to suggest when it may have been prior to that. Is it overdue? Sure sounds like it from what I'm reading.

Regarding my immediate problem, we have driven the coach 75 miles since discovering the overheat issue and subsequent replacement of the tires on that wheel. We did not experience or acknowledge any issues during this drive, and the tires/wheels were not hot when we shut down at the campground. Also, the tire shop that installed the tires yesterday did not mention to me anything about a locked caliper. Should they have noticed this when they pulled both wheels off? Or would the parking brake have been on and the wheel wouldn't spin anyway?
Today is day 31 of our trip and we'd really like to make it home - 400 miles. Is there a way for me to know if the caliper is still locked without lifting the wheel off the ground? Would it be safe to continue driving if we stopped every 75 miles and checked things out?
1998 U295 36' No slides
Towing 2018 Jeep Wrangler
Previous rigs:
  1995 26' Fleetwood Flair
  1998 34' Fleetwood Bounder
  1997 40' Bluebird BMC
  1999 24' Winnebago Minnie Class C

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #33
While a caliper could "lock up", it is much more likely that the "lazy side" just failed to retract properly and this may not occur each time the brakes are applied.

And, yes, if you don't know when the brakes were last serviced, it is absolutely time to do so.
Brett Wolfe
EX: 1993 U240
Moderator, ForeForum 2001-
Moderator Diesel RV Club 2002-
Moderator, FMCA Forum 2009-2020
Chairman FMCA Technical Advisory Committee 2011-2020

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #34
Dan,

To get home you can raise coach and block. 
Find a high school football player, road mechanic, or DIY.
You can cage brake can on this side.
Get pry bar and #4 hammer.
With these tools you can pry the caliper and should be able to get the caliper to loosen with an attitude adjustment with the hammer.
Personally I would completely unhook the linkage after you get the caliper loose then drive 3 legged  (brakes on 3 wheels) home. Look farther down the road and drive slower.
After home you need to service all 4 corners where you have time and tools.

Mike
Pamela & Mike 97 U 320

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters."

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #35
Would it be safe to continue driving if we stopped every 75 miles and checked things out?

What ever you do follow Pam & Mikes advice to cage the can.
Belt and suspenders, disconnect the linkage.
Then: Maybe,
Get tire guy to remove the wheels and bash the caliper loose.
Definitely.  You'll have increased stopping distance but that's under your control.
1992 Foretravel Grand Villa
U225 SBID Build No. 4134
1986 Rockwood Driftwood
1968 S.I.A.T.A. Spring
1962 Studebaker Lark
1986 Honda VF700C
1983 Honda VF750C
Charlie, the Dog was broken out of jail 24 Oct 2023
N1RPN
AA1OH (H)e who must be obeyed.

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #36
Who ever you get to perform a brake job on your coach, make absolutey sure they install "Helper Springs" on each slide pin, PERIOD.  The job is not finished until the helper springs are installed on every slide pin.
Rudy Legett
2003 U320 4010 ISM 450 hp
2001 U320 4220 ISM 450 hp
1995 U320 M11 400 hp
1990 Granvilla 300 hp 3208T
Aqua Hot Service Houston and Southeast Texas

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #37
Update: Made the decision to leave the campground and attempt the drive home, since we couldn't find a mobile mechanic and we hadn't experienced any apparent issues with the brake caliper hanging up the previous day. We stopped at 30 mile intervals for the first 150 miles, getting out to check the wheel temps by hand each time. We ultimately made it to Paul Yasbeck's shop in Leesburg FL where we left the coach and finished the drive home in the toad. Paul will do a complete brake job, and lots of other things that were on our list.
1998 U295 36' No slides
Towing 2018 Jeep Wrangler
Previous rigs:
  1995 26' Fleetwood Flair
  1998 34' Fleetwood Bounder
  1997 40' Bluebird BMC
  1999 24' Winnebago Minnie Class C

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #38
Please come back and tell us what Paul finds when he services the rear brakes.  Always nice to hear the final outcome of these stories.

1993 U280 SE 40' WTBI, Build: 4359
C8.3 300hp, 6-Speed, Exhaust Brake
960 watts on the roof (6 x 160)
Sorento (or BOLT) on a Kar Kaddy SS
"Nature abhors a vacuum"

Re: Can't get tire pressure reading

Reply #39
Update: Made the decision to leave the campground and attempt the drive home, . . . We ultimately made it to Paul Yasbeck's shop in Leesburg FL where we left the coach and finished the drive home in the toad. Paul will do a complete brake job, and lots of other things that were on our list.
Congratulations!  Now buy yourself a set of Carhart work clothes, possibly a jump suit and have Mr. Yasbeck teach you how to cage a can, preferably until you can do it with your eyes closed.  Keep the clothes and the wrench together.
Art

FWIW.  I think everyone has "that friend" the one who skids by on luck, and never found a corner he couldn't shorten.  Ned is one of those guys.  The pertinent story is The Imperial.  One of the big ones.  On the drive home, with friends for moral support, the left rear brake was not releasing.  "I" would choose to not use the brakes unless absolutely necessary and then only lightly.  Not Ned.  He's one of those guys who hopes the brake will "loosen up with use" and to this end he chose to keep "testing" the brakes on the ride back.  One of the passengers was wondering if they'd make it home.  Well Ned and his passengers eventually made it home, the burnt out hulk did not.

FWIW II I grew up reading racing stories, and today I find the pre-war races at Goodwood more exciting than the modern parades.  One of the better stories involved entitled Englishmen, a high speed train and a Bentley.

B Special Blue Train
1992 Foretravel Grand Villa
U225 SBID Build No. 4134
1986 Rockwood Driftwood
1968 S.I.A.T.A. Spring
1962 Studebaker Lark
1986 Honda VF700C
1983 Honda VF750C
Charlie, the Dog was broken out of jail 24 Oct 2023
N1RPN
AA1OH (H)e who must be obeyed.