If Ya Can't Find It, Grind It: Floating Gears vs Double Clutching

[@marqueswilsonn]

New clutch for a semi, $1000+ labor. New replacement knee for a trucker, $70000+. You decide which one you'd rather have to replace over time. Float your gears.

[@anthonypassalacqua1380]

Eaton-Fuller recommends double clutching so they can sell more clutches.

[@dentoncox1059]

as a mechanic that works on semis for a living I can tell you I can tell when a truck is double clutched or floated. when double clutched they clutch is lucky to last 300000 miles we have trucks that come in that are float shifted that have 900000 on the original clutch. I personally have never seen a transmission fail from float shifting. I have seen several with shock damage from drivers either dropping the clutch from a stop or double clutching very badly.

[@christopherclements5909]

Thanks, it's good to hear from a mechanic, especially when it's the opposite of what I've been taught

[@thatguy-pl8py]

I can work an 18 speed up and down all day. Clutch is for startin and stoppin

[@jessebaca2750]

that guy I agree with you hundred percent starting off and stop being

[@alvinkelley1255]

Companies won't help you get knee replacement from double clutching a good floater is better than a double clutcher anyday

[@ColAngus]

I thought the reason autos caught-on like wild fire was because fleets wanted to be able to get more noobs behind the wheel quicker.

[@SmartTrucking]

+Col. Angus Yup, that too! Dave

[@mitmaks]

+Col. Angus That is the MAIN reason. Any new sucker can be a super trucker now with the use of auto trans.

[@maverickdallas1004]

+mitmaks ...I've had my fill of manual shifts and I would warmly welcome an automatic transmission in this stage of the game. So would my sciatica and arthritis if I ever decided to get back into trucking.

[@timmiryan3490]

It's about fuel mileage $$$$$$

[@75egcg]

I've been driving 10 years and slowly saw trucks become equipped with auto-manuals. My personal opinion is - and also base on what I've observed, more common on local and highway especially on city delivery trucks (think distribution or p&d). Semis and particularly straight trucks like dump trucks or roll off and etc still widely use manuals. These go off and on road and sideways and diagonally. You'll still almost always find manuals there. Case in point, at the trash company I worked for all the rear, side, front, and I think one compost truck had autos. The torque converter kind. The roll offs were manual. All macks. Save for that one 90's r model rear load that was still working. That was a 5-speed. But the distributor that I worked for was all 100% city streets and alley way driving. The current company I work for has some deal with Volvo and the autos happened to be the cheapest option. I think bc they became popular because of the aforementioned trend. To sum it up, trucks where you would see the eaton fuller 6 speeds or ten speeds are going to auto/automated manuals. Trucks that are used for thing where they'd need 8 speed double L's are sticking with manual. If any of that makes sense?

[@emanuelharrison1917]

I've learned it doesn't matter whether you float, double clutch, or granny style. Every so often you're gonna miss a gear. It just happens. Don't panic, note your road speed, then shift to the corresponding gear that matches.

[@alliedcartage2838]

Emanuel Harrison Yup, well said! :-)

[@maidenrulz73]

Emanuel Harrison I always said that everyone grinds a gear from time to time....what’s important is that you know what you did wrong and you correct it without tearing ‘er apart

[@bf3and4highlights83]

Another completely wrong statement. Completely wrong. While you can damage transmission if you miss a gear, it does not matter if you clutched or not, YOU MISSED THE GEAR. Floating causes long term damage as stated. Why do you think all the big companies are going to auto? Floating. Also known as how to take a couple hundred thousand miles off of the life time of your transmission. As discovered by Swift and Werner using hundreds of trucks/drivers and extensive real world testing. I was taught by the best. He would shift that tractor so smooth you would think it was the best automatic transmission you had ever been in. Clutched and partial clutch every shift/split. Pulled Super B (140,000#) throughout B.C. for a very long time using a 15 double over. I could always tell when in a company truck some (__________) had not used the clutch as it would pop out of gear under heavy load from the teeth being rounded. Up until the day I sold my truck, the transmission would "snick" into gear.

[@graygryphon2008]

Funny, my mechanic that rebuilds my transmission always told me that it did not matter except if you double clutch you put more strain on the throw out bearing. I was double clutching my dump truck when the clutch pedal hit the floor and never came back. Throw out bearing was gone.

[@h3xd3m0n9]

Been a mechanic for 15 years ive seen more damage done from double clutching than floating gear s like twisted drive shafts premature worn. Clutches all sorts of crazy stuff

[@SixtructiveTV]

The reason they use automatic is because, they don't need to teach new drivers how to drive manual.

[@SmartTrucking]

Sad but true! Dave

[@thekeefer7369]

For me, double clutching is like walking, chewing gum, and rubbing my belly and the top of my head at the same time...I'll just stick to floatin' 'em.

[@farfromperfect4643]

Those 3 things you listed are easy as pie...

[@thekeefer7369]

Yeah, but I'm not very coordinated, so for me it's like a three ring circus, lol

[@justinmyslive4108]

Far From Perfect ever do all of them at the same time???

[@alanwhite7562]

I am a road train driver in Australia. I float gears all the time. I am usually pulling 115 tonnes (don't know what that is in lbs) and you have enough to do steering, powering, gearing and watching your rear trailer without having to double clutch every shift.

[@cliftondaigle7345]

That would be 230,000 lbs. One ton equals 2000 pounds.

[@justinmyslive4108]

been driving tractor trailer for 15 years. been floating the gears all this time ain't about to start double clutching now. floating gears greatly extends the life of the clutch. as far as I'm concerned the purpose of the clutch is for starting and stopping

[@drewl4762]

To end the war on floating or double clutching... You can cause the exact same damage on your truck from both practices, you can grind gears while double clutching as you can while floating. I, personally, use both. I usually double clutch when downshifting or if I skip a range and float the remainder of the time. Advise to a new driver would be to do whatever is comfortable for you. The most common problem is rushing the shift and trying to jam and cram it into gear. Just be patient and let the stick fall into gear and you will likely have no problem with damaging the drive line.

[@zanew7718]

Couldn't agree more

[@ethang6735]

Im the same way drew. Im relatively new to the game, but i learned from a truck driver that has been in the game for almost 40 years. I can not, and have never been able to float the downshifts, but i think i do well enough going up. in fact, i think i float gears up shifting ten times better than i could double clutching. I think its because the time it takes me to double clutch drops the rpms to far to make a smooth shift. Ive been told rpms dont matter when double clutching but we wont even go into how many things are wrong with that statement lol

[@aaronsanborn4291]

Drew L I do both...most of the time I go half and half clutch out of the lower gear and float it into the higher...its also situationally dependent down shifting or climbing a hill I double clutch a lot more stress on the drive line in those two situations.

[@pablocarrillo3611]

Drew L SAME HERE. I THINK IF THE CLUTCH IS THERE, IS THERE FOR A REASON.

[@papirivera5356]

Nope. War not over. Millennials have autoshifts and automatics. 25 year old veterans. Lmao!

[@jgodawa13]

Been driving for 24 years been have heard it called floating forever even before I started driving!Have owned my 2000 Western Star since it had 435,000 it has 1,464,000 on it now with original clutch,u joints,rear ends,and tranny and have floated ever gear it's ever been shifted

[@marshallbrannon8855]

I've been driving for 25 years and I still don't know how to double clutch.

[@SmartTrucking]

If you've managed this long I wouldn't worry about it!

[@realgato4641]

I city drive every day with lots of traffic, stops, lights; can’t imagine myself double clutching every gear, heck even when I learned to drive i was taught floating by my boss.

[@papirivera5356]

I was taught to “float” a twin stick 5x4. Back in 1989 when I was 7 years old. Haven’t replaced the clutch yet. My knees are still solid.

[@ronjohansson4344]

Eaton also sells clutches, think about that. I have been shifting without clutch for 32 years and have never had a transmission problem. Sometimes the clutch just slows you down too much and will land you in trouble. There are times, on a hard pull, that I will ease the clutch to disengage from a gear but rarely clutch back in

[@someperson7]

Interesting. This is literally only the second time I have have ever heard anyone come out against floating.

[@railfaninpf]

I've driven truck for almost 40 years hauling bulk milk, triaxle gravel, ashphalt, quadaxle gravel, sand, asphalt shifting thousands of times a day. I double clutch probably 90% of the time and have never had sore knees. I know a lot of truckers with sore knees though, but almost everyone of them is at least 100 pounds overweight. Your knees get more sore from being obese than they do from double clutching.

[@SmartTrucking]

I gotta agree, never had trouble with mine. Dave

[@bfry38]

I agree 100% also it’s about being cool. People constantly hear your not a true trucker if you don’t float your gears blah, blah!! It’s more of a ego thing, I think. I do both though. I usually always upshift floating, but use the clutch downshifting. Everyone is different though. When I downshift I pull it out of gear without the clutch, rev it a bit and clutch it in. That’s my personal preference.

[@luckedout9044]

TRUTH!

[@timp8857]

My knees only hurt wen I’m in the cab to long then once I’m out side walking running or standing the pain goes away

[@HydrogenAgent129]

Well as somebody that has had problems with my knee and well I might be a little overweight I can tell you one of the secrets that I found that takes care of knee problems is by stretching very good especially the back side of your leg and the insides of your legs the more stretching the better especially for your knees

[@jekylljr-trucker7238]

no double clutching for this guy ...haul gravel with gross weights of 135,000lbs no probs with driveline yet (knock on wood) each to their own ...just my 2 cents.... great video keep em coming!!!!

[@shawnjarman9860]

Actually! The big companies don't care about the trucks, their not keeping them long enough that it matters, I know this firsthand!

[@TeeroyHammermill]

I feel I know when to float and when to double clutch. It takes just a slight pressure on the clutch to double clutch-no need to push clutch in even halfway. 90% of the time I float but when pulling a steep grade or starting off down a steep grade, I usually double clutch because it really is easier on the driveline. However, double clutching still requires technique and in most cases it's easier to float IMO.

[@toobiggdaddy]

Been driving since 1985. Haven't used a clutch for shifting since 6 weeks after starting my first job. I AM good at it. No brag, just fact.

[@cmb9059]

From all mechanics I have talked to floating gears if done right is actually easier on the drive line..

[@maxxod1]

2 days into having my class 1 my trainer told me to quit using the clutch and 15 years later I haven’t looked back. Drove the same KW for 10 years. It had 3 500 000 km on it when I left. Two in frames and two clutches. ZERO transmission problems. I’d like to see a double shifted clutch get even close to that. At the end of the day, look at the people running the trucks. Some are just hardest on equipment than others.

[@patl4416]

Back in the day we called it floating gears.

[@FenderFingers72]

If I ain't floating im in the sleeper motorboating. ask the wife she's happy.

[@thebear8841]

Absolutely right. I had the same talk from an Eaton Fuller rep in the 1980's. They can tell if a gearbox had failed by clutch less gear changing. The shift now is to more auto gearboxes as they are more cost effective.

[@adamjulia1]

if i miss a gear i go strait for the clutch it just makes it a lot easier and faster and better all-around then just trying to jam it in

[@B81Mack]

The day I see an Eaton Fuller engineer running a load, and doing it well, I'll take their advice on driving and shifting. Until then... nah.

[@cigaretteman5716]

My truck has 870,000 miles same transmission every gear floated

[@stephensmalldridge9504]

I'm glad you finally said what you did at the last There is a huge difference between floating gears by synchronizing engine RPM to Transmission RPM When you properly float gears, it's smooth as silk with no gear wear When you double clutch you can't feel the gear and can easily grind gears I was a 35 year heavy haul owner operator And ALWAYS floated gears In all that time (pulling big heavy malti axle lowboys I never had a Transmission or driveline failure And my maintenance cost were on me, not a corporate head in an office that couldn't bring a crawler Crain up out of a deep strip mine if his life depended on it My life did literally depend on doing right

[@WPGinterceptor460Interceptor]

been driving 26 years now and always floated gears. never damaged a driveline to this day! even in my own car I don't use the clutch. and YES I have ridden with others who shift rough while floating the gears

[@dilsher12]

WPGinterceptor You will damage the transmission in a car don't care if you have driven like that for a million kms . The synchros snd the cone clutches wear out way faster if you dont use clutch while shifting

[@raven2114]

Float save your knee, Grind and forget the companys.

[@dritt-drittpaniagua739]

Hi Dave, I've been driving since dirt was new. I think I've hauled everything... Heavy Haul, 11 axle oversized with dollies, owned them, I can break them, I can fix them, tanker, flatbed, Dry van, pneumatic trailers, triples and doubles, main box with brownies 4 x 5 transmission.... and I have always double clutch all my life thanks for the video keep up the good work

[@SmartTrucking]

+Charley Paniagua Good to here from a guy with your experience. Drive safe! Dave

[@stevenimel3482]

Youre absolutely right, clutch is there for a reason. However, there is a small majority of drivers on the road who truly take pride in their ability to drive and operate their equipment. To those whose eyes extend beyond the bumper in front of them, to those whose ears tell you everything the ECU shows on your dash, and to those who still get in and out of their truck with pride.... Keep rolling! Shiny side up, rubber side down.

[@loganbaileysfunwithtrains606]

“What’s that funny looking 3rd pedal for?” “Oh that one? Nah don’t worry about that one”

[@SmartTrucking]

Scary!

[@redneck4541]

I float for the most part, however there are times you need to use the clutch to break the torque. In those cases I'll clutch out and float in. I never double clutch. I will also clutch out if I'm up shifting with the Jake on.

[@Blazefork]

We've never had major transmission or driveline issues, I think the biggest reason there is trouble is the application of the throttle. A clutch and linkage will wear faster, and your knee is really expensive to replace, as another comment noted. The way I understand the design of the transmission, the only way the gears will release and remesh is when there is no torque being transmitted. The autoshift is performing the float via computer and the ones I've driven provide a shift process that is much more aggressive than I've performed manually. Probably no good at it but I snarl the gears more when I double clutch than float em.

[@denniscox9277]

my 94 peat has over a million miles on it, I had drive Tran rebuilt at about 700,000 miles and I have always floated, transmission 15 double over.

[@roadglide1136]

He asked you for an explanation of your slang so he *could* learn. Your repetition of your previous statement proved to everybody that *you* are the dumb-ass here.

[@marksanford6534]

Float the gears. The only time you use the clutch is starting and stopping (when doing a professional stop). Other than that, float away. I float gears without grinding them. Then again, I was taught the proper way to float rather than the trial and error method of grind them til you find them.

[@jasnterry1313]

My first truck was an '81 Ford with a Eaton 9 speed overdrive. The label on the back side of the visit said to only use the clutch for taking off, and if the clutch was required for shifting, only press it half way to avoid damaging the clutch brake.

[@chuckg2016]

I'll leave the float vs shift part to the specific manufacturer. Otherwise, this is the most knowledgeable presentation I've seen on here. Good man and obviously professional.

[@imation1987]

floating all the way! now if you're having problems with floating most likely you will be bad at double clutching and vise versa.

[@LJohns4747]

Not necessarily

[@fun782house]

some hydrophilic clutches so hard to push in , i'd rather save my knee , bad design , F them , i'm saving my knee !!

[@donaldgough3224]

ja da trucker. I've been told that companies that bought automatics are going back to standard transmissions. guess they are not cost effective. best news I've heard. stay safe out there brother.

[@Brett235]

I was taught years ago by alot of old hands to not use the clutch. They always said, don't touch that clutch unless your gonna stop. I don't know but I've never used a clutch to shift and have never replaced a clutch or u joints or carrier bearing.

[@tommyandmarshadoss1665]

Drove for over 20yrs always floated gear's never had a drive line issue

[@Dionannan]

Automatic drivers might want to think twice. Recently, I chose to change careers to get away from the 'industry culture'. That has not gone well. Four months into my new 'professional driver' career I was moved into an automatic. It's proformance was good, but it drug on hills requiring you to use the manual override. I have found a lot of local companies; dumps, concrete, garbage require manual experience. The automatic transmission actually downgrades 'your' resume.

[@SmartTrucking]

That's interesting! Dave

[@EduardoSilva-xe3gp]

It's easier to get a new drive line than to get a new knee, just listen to the engine check your rpm she its talking to you " now boy" you will master floating gears if you pay attention to what you're doing

[@motorman2013]

i drive a ch613 mack with 18 speed eaton and i never clutch and i shift more times a day then most highway drivers do in a week as i do shory haul for 12+hours a day and thats how this truck has been driven for the past 10 years no transmission problems

[@rogermarkeson2403]

Being from a 60+ year old school we were told the less iron you move such as in a clutch assembly the less maintenance. I don't know what floating means but we were taught to drive the truck with your right foot and put the gear levers in any hole your right foot would match the R.P.M. To touch a gear was not always a problem, if you had your fist wrapped around one of the levers and went on a ram motion it only happened once and you took a bus home. You move the sticks with two fingers and if you did touch a gear it was your fingers that took the beating. All my years of driving this is what I have taught and why. A clutch and a beginner can tear a gear box all to hell. I even taught my wife not to use the clutch because it was hard for her to push and she had better control with her right foot on the throttle. I'm just having trouble with the new school, no clutch - - no gear levers - - no gauges - - just cruise control - - and idiot lights. Guess they still call it trucking.

[@da-madmodler4692]

For many of my years I was local driver (City) Floating gears is the only thing that saved me and my legs. Even double rubs from time to time. Like you said if the boss is happy with you your doing something right.

[@carlnapp8673]

Thanks a lot, you are the first so far, who had the guts to speak out on the matter. I never felt overburdenend with double clutching. On the contrary to me it's a much easier and safer way to increase road safety especially down steep hills.

[@SmartTrucking]

Yes, it's quite the controversy in this industry. Everyone needs to know how to do it correctly, just as they are trained in CDL school... then branch off and take short cuts later on, with experience. Depends on the kind of driving, the truck, so many factors, what works best.

[@nomar5spaulding]

We have a guy where I work who is extremely conscientious with how he treats everything. I think what you said mirrors what he thinks too. It's not our truck, it belongs to our boss and our company and we have to do our best to take care of it. My boss has this particular guy do a lot of training, cause he's good at it and doesn't mind doing it, and there were a few places we went to where he said to me things like, "Hey kid, if you start floating it, even if you get good at it, don't try it here. You'll be screwed so bad etc." It's definitely true that every driver has to be able to double clutch, even if they mostly don't do it.

[@lewiemcneely9143]

If the jack-leg drivers had to get greasy repairing what tore up it'd make a vast difference. I was that way, brought up old school and you might need something to work with tomorrow. Bills don't stop because the rig does!

[@Kman.]

You should be in the proper gear BEFORE you're in a steep downgrade I would think. I've never had to downshift DURING a downgrade.

[@Broadpaw_Fox]

(Downshifting on a downgrade) It does happen occasionally. I can remember a few grades I've seen that steepen partway down, and I've been on a few on the side roads that aren't marked at all - so you have no idea how steep it is till you're on it past the crest. If it's steeper on the down than the climb (for your direction), you find out the hard way. That's when knowing how to downshift properly is of the utmost importance - regardless of how you shift (float or not). Generally though, if your habit is double clutching, it'll be easier on the equipment in a situation like that when you're suddenly stressed out by the 8% grade that your going down that wasn't marked in the least... those shifts tend to be more abrupt than the usual ones you make whilst accelerating up to speed... ;)

[@tl43]

We always called it power shifting. Known some drivers who were very good, had to do with all ground speed and rpm. Wasn't fast but worked well. Couple of their attitudes were it's cheaper to pull the transmission and fix the gears than it is to pull the clutch to fix it.

[@Trainfan1055Janathan]

My trainer told me to float shift because he was tired of me scraping gears...

[@lovetrain442]

I love my Mack with an automatic. Had my class A for 38 years and I never want to shift gears again.

[@gerardjohns1589]

I got 819,000 miles out of my first clutch , and I don't use the clutch . There was alot of meat left on the clutch the metal between the springs was the week link .

[@maxpuppy96]

your spot on, it is better on the driveline to use the clutch, I do both depending on my mood. The owner of the company uses the clutch 100 percent. I love the guys who float with the engine brake on you can hear the engine brake come on every time they shift think what their doing to a truck.

[@nauseousatom7178]

I've worked for one of the big companies and I asked what they wanted us to do, double clutch or shift without it. They said shift without the clutch cause a clutch costs more to replace. I'm not the best at floating the gears but for the most part I can do it smoothly. I can do both tho.

[@lucasdasilva5631]

sounds like replacing a transmission will still be much cheaper than a knee replacement..

[@lukeoehlerking8648]

When I went to my driving school my teacher watched me double clutch and float the gears and told me that I drive way better without the clutch, I have been driving for 3 years now and haven't broke a single clutch or transmission.

[@randyrudder2451]

I have over 40 year's on the road and another 10 years in the state of Texas. I have been an owner operator most of it. I remember in the old days driving for a man older than I am now who carried a ball pen hammer. He gave most of the driving test you set your foot on the clutch he would smack you on the knee. His oldest so gave the rest and he used a tire bumper. You could always tell who used the clutch they limped when they got back. I own a 1999 W900 86" studio 650 Caterpillar 18 over 3:55 rears on big rubber. 1.5 million miles. I rebuilt my girl from the ground up due to driver's in it before I bought her. Transmission had always been floated clutch was good at 1.2 million but was overhauling transmission so new clutch in at the same time. If I ever decided to put a driver in my truck and found out he did double clutch my girl termination would be the least of his worries. Mind you that is 1.5 million in oversized loads and over weight loads. I guess some are better off with double clutching and some with automatic's but not driving for me.

[@gamdurbrar6711]

AWESOME video commentary. Its a badge of honor as a new driver to learn how to "float" smoothly. Its a badge of honor to the veteran that he be able to demonstrate to anyone, new driver or driver evaluator that he can double clutch every shift smoothly. Anyone can learn to upshift relatively quickly, usually in a few hours. But DOWNSHIFTING, we practice for life. The tiniest distraction, or bit of fatigue, will cause us to "tickle" a shift. When I'm instructing driving, I don't spend very much time teaching "shifting", I spend a lifetime teaching "throttle control!!"

[@NYVET48TFW]

I slip shift (float), got a bad ankle, bad knees and arthritis, I only use the damn clutch to start, stop, and reverse. Period.

[@jamesstepp9982]

I generally do what I call a half-double clutch. Bring it up to shifting speed,ease the shifter into neutral,push the clutch in,shift,release the clutch,repeat as necessary. To downshift,again,slide the shifter into neutral,hit the clutch,rev the engine (as you drive you'll get to know how much),shift down,let off the throttle and release the clutch as the rpm's start dropping. This is what works for me-your results might vary. I first learned this on my '51 Ford 1-1/2 ton with a crashbox,it works just as well on my '54 GMC 2 Ton with a Clark 5 speed and Brown-Lipe 3 speed aux.,and every other truck I drive. I'm sure SOMEONE will come up with a reason I shouldn't do it.

[@SmartTrucking]

Maybe, but it won't be me! Thanks for writing in James! Dave

[@samo8204]

My .02. If you can do it without causing drive line shock, you'll be just fine. If you find yourself being too fast or too slow often, just Dbl. clutch.

[@dilsher12]

I float gears and use clutch depending on the conditions- load ,traction , terrain etc

[@SmartTrucking]

Yup, that's how I do it too. Dave

[@alpham777]

Thats exactly what I do It's a really easy habit to get into if your driving a 13 or 18 speed truck too cause half your gears your not using it anyway. If I'm just rolling thru backed up Chicago traffic I just float low range and usually make super smooth shifts. If I'm pulling heavy weight thru the mountains I usually will clutch just to be sure its smooth as possible more for safety reasons than anything though getting caught out of gear climbing or descending a mountain can get out of hand really quick.

[@rodneypattonsr3179]

Maybe it's different up in your part of the world but down here in the Southwest USA, I have always called it floating the gears. 3 generations of us. I will say one thing, your video are always informative, good and spot on. Keep up the good work! Thank you and be safe out there.

[@SmartTrucking]

Take care Rodney! I miss not being in Yuma every winter!

[@rodneypattonsr3179]

@@SmartTrucking Yuma is nice in the winter but that's on the other side of the State. I'm from the Flag-pole, ( Flagstaff, AZ, for those of you that didn't know that.)

[@leerhill]

Well I'm no longer a company driver but after your informative video I guess I better watch your double clutching video in 12 years driving I've never used the clutch to change a gear sad to say but don't even know how to double clutch thanks for the video and the information

[@germanium1872]

After driving a manual truck for 23 years, I actually like my new automatic truck. I love that it gets 2.5 mpg better than my old truck.

[@leosdreamon681]

Floating isn’t the problem recovering or missing a gear hard grinding is not good

[@germanium1872]

My brother in law messed up his knee with the heavy clutch. He would always double clutch.

[@dwjunior]

I agree. And I can tell you that the personality of the Pete I drove allowed me to easily Float my gears up. Never missed. But down shifting.. I always used the clutch. The Sweet spot was just that way. The Pete didn’t like going down without the clutch. But floating up was effortless.

[@oscardelpilar3753]

I've been floating gears in my Freightliner with 10 speed rockwell Trans . I've owned 10 + years. Chicago city driving I've replaced clutch twice. 2nd time was not necessary as I was doing engine work and had it out so I figured might as well replace it. That clutch was 6+ years old. I've never done any driveline work.

[@trucks8137]

Im no truck driver but im sure your right its better to be on the safe side and always double clutch

[@bigwu100]

+Trucks that's right you are no driver and really you have no idea of what your taking about, try sitting in that son of a bitchin truck 10 to12 hrs a day shifting that damn 10 speed, in traffic, and double clutch. I drive Dallas , ft worth , and catch morning traffic and afternoon traffic, oh i got the patterns down pat but still you get caught in that shit. people who don't drive a tractor fail t realize it takes 9 gears just to get to 50 mph and 10th is for above 55. So when yo leave a light you'll shift 5 to seven times just crossing the street and up to nine in a moment. their isnt time for all that clutching b.s...I pull heaver all day every day in city traffic, if you dont got rock hauling experience you don't know shit, a 53 ft box i guess is a pain in the but but it aint heavy..... But now i got me an automatic mack granite and life is good and she is fast and quiet, good a/c ,she pulls like a beast.

[@jameesmyth7268]

OH and try driving a smoothbore tanker double clutching. Wasn't my knee i was worried about it was my neck and back.

[@SmartTrucking]

Did that for Four years hauling chemicals. I use the clutch. Just be gentle and let the load slosh back and forth once before reengaging the clutch. Dave

[@johnabuick]

Thank you for that, clarifying that there are professional drivers who never heard of the Floating thing. I had some guy on another post tell me I'm an idiot or not a truck driver if I don't know what that means. I've only been driving professionally for about 12 years in the mountains of western Canada but I'm pretty sure I would have heard that term before if it was used in this area. The company I work for has switched over to Volvo's mostly with their i-shift. Works great but when pulling 63.5 you have to careful cause they won't lift off if you end up stopping in the middle of a steep grade for whatever reason. They need one more lower gear cause an 18 speed will do it.

[@TeeroyHammermill]

+johnabuick You must have been pulling heavy loads in the mountains for most of your career.

[@davidpalmisano5115]

I graduated from CDL school last week. We double clutched....and also grinded gears.....a lot....

[@aaronsanborn4291]

I do both...most of the time I go half and half clutch out of the lower gear and float it into the higher...its also situationally dependent down shifting or climbing a hill I double clutch a lot more stress on the drive line in those two situations.

[@Localtruthspeaker]

Did he say using the clutch takes the input shaft out of the motor. When I helped install a clutch I saw clutch plates. When you use the clutch you separate those plates and that's what takes the torque off the transmission. If the input shaft comes out of that motor your gonna be doing some engine machining.

[@1drower]

I was a master trainer.first thing i showed my student was to float ,so that i could sleep at night

[@SanDmaNTheFreakTrucker]

Getting my auto was the best day of my trucking life. I refuse to drive a 10 speed now. If there was a money incentive to drive a 10,13, or whatever but there’s not. Might as well make the job easy as Sunday morning.

[@frank9649]

I was killing time and came across your channel :) I use both, use the clutch and not, depends on the situation. I know guys that adjust their clutch(or have it done) many times a year.Some can go years without.This year is my 42nd with a commercial drivers license, I've always been shifting the same( with and without). I can remember days chaining up in the mud wearing a rain suit :) I guess we all have experiences that are good and not so good ! Thanks for the vid.

[@SmartTrucking]

Thank you Frank! Dave

[@bradyschannel1173]

My dad drives a Kenworth and he has 18 gears and fe floats and it’s a Eaton Fuller

[@evanwest1929]

I’ve killed a few automatics. Never a stick.

[@gerrywilson9162]

Starting and stoppjng. Thats it. Over a million miles on my truck no issues.

[@jasoncolyer6286]

Clutch is used for 2 things stopping and going

[@GoodDayFarm]

Auto caught on because of fuel economy, period. No company cares if you float or double clutch, do what you comfortable with.

[@para82d29]

I’m old School clutch and double clutch! I started out wrenching on Trucks and Trailers before driving! I’ve done a few Clutch replacements, never the funnest thing to do! But better than dealing with a tore up driveline!

[@chrisbanks5098]

when i got hired on at my current trucking job and did my road test boss told me not to use the clutch mainly cuz we do alot of city work

[@SmartTrucking]

Huh. Dave

[@keough-rc6552]

Floating gears is so much easier for me, than double clutching. I’ve gotten pretty durn good at it, but every so often I too, miss a shift. Floating gears also saves my knee.

[@JohnNorris411]

I was trained to drive a manual by floating. I have to admit there was quite a bit of missing and grinding the first couple of weeks but after that, it got much more smooth and now missing or grinding is pretty rare unless I am distracted and forget to hit the splitter. Floating was easy and I had to kind of teach myself how to double-clutch just so I would know how to do it. Double clutching up was easy, double-clutching down was a bit more work to figure out. But once you get floating down and can do it smoothly, it is the way to go. The stress it takes off the knee and even the amount of fatigue it helps prevent when you are running ag up to 12 hr drive, usually 14hr on duty 7 days a week for months with lots of shifting. I would blow my knee out for sure if I double clutched for every gear change in a season.

[@Necronomous]

Well, as a swedish trucker I can say that in Sweden we must use the clutch because of the syncronization rings. Doesn't matter if you float or do clutch, or double-clutch on a non-syncronized gearbox as long as the rpm's are correct. When I was a child I even learned how to float the unsynced gearbox in a tractor. That tractor still works today, and haven't needed to change gearbox through my entire life. I mean, I drove that tractor for 6-7 years, after that dad used it, my uncle used it for several 18+ years. Nice example as well. I learned to drive my friends Plymouth Valiant, where the 1st gear are unsynced, 2nd and 3rd gear are synced. Doesn't matter if you need to put in 1st gear with clutch, if you are doing it wrong on that car, you will be nagging the gear anyway. So I learned to float from 2nd to 1st instead, because the clutch wasn't that smooth doing it with clutch. Yeah after that I also learned, the 1st gear you only needed if the car was standing completely still, but for a smooth ride, you can always float it at right rpm's. And for that you need to listen closely to the engine, otherwise the car will do the same darn thing even if you using the clutch. SKRRRRRRREEEEEEEBONK! Yeah, just checked so all the kogs where in the transmissionbox, think I am floating it next time instead, because, putting clutch down on a unsynced gearbox, will drop the rpm's, and sometimes you can't get into right gear anyway because the rpm wasn't right. Perhaps they where to float the gear, but heck, they was not when you pressed the clutch. Trust me, have driven many trucks where the syncronizationsrings where busted on the gearbox. Only thing to do then is to float the damn gear and have your hand on the shiftstick, otherwise the gear jumps out because of busted rings.

[@m118lr]

I wouldn’t have ENJOYED trucking the years I did..IF I’d had to ‘double-clutch’ EVERY gear. Enjoyed the synchros a LOT!

[@Thind93]

Driveing since 1997. This truck I have for last 11 years. Float gears always no problem all Original 18 speed transmission .

[@lucasmeuchel9997]

i seen a guy that doubled clutchd and didn't know what he was doing thought it was like driving a stick shift in a 4 wheeler no clutch brake left in his and thats how he was trained to shift

[@flofearless9173]

I miss gears alot trying to float..I noticed it's better when u do that double clutching to help u with rhythm..

[@chrisspowell8116]

when i was training at Swift on the road in my instructor truck he would fall asleep and i would float gears lol . when he wake up he would thank for be a good student driver lol

[@SmartTrucking]

Good old Swift! Dave

[@athonynesbitt7956]

Lol i need to stop floating gears, and go back to double clutching