Whether you have one truck or five, you know that maintenance is crucial to keeping your vehicles on the road and making money. Even if you use an outside maintenance provider, there is some work that you undoubtedly will handle yourself.
To help you achieve your maintenance goals, American Trucker has put together this special collection of newly introduced tools, equipment, support systems, and services aimed at creating a better shop for your fleet. Whether it’s a simple device for speeding up a common chore or a new generation of advanced diagnostics, you’re bound to find something that’s just right for bringing improvement to your fleet maintenance program.
Cordless tool line
Promising the power of a pneumatic in a cordless configuration, Ingersoll Rand offers a line of professional tools utilizing 20-volt lithium-ion batteries.
The IQV20 Series is said to last longer between charges. The tool line includes the W7150 ½-in., high-torque Impactool; the W5130 3/8-in. 20V mid-torque Impactool; and the L5110 LED task light.
The W7150 rates best in its class for power-to-size ratio with 1,100 lbs.-ft of torque and 780 lbs.-ft. of reverse torque, the company said. It is 9.4 in. from tip to tail and weighs 6.8 lbs. The tool includes a chemical-resistant, patent-pending metal reinforced housing that gives it maximum durability. The design helps reduce fatigue.
The W5130 is modeled after the W7150, offering the same performance and durability, with even more versatility and accessibility for tighter work spaces. Measuring 6.6 in. from tip to tail, the W5130 combines its 190 lbs.-ft. of torque and small size to accomplish everything from brake repairs to drivetrain jobs with maximum power.
The L5110 light casts 180 lumens and lasts up to 20,000 hours.
www.ingersollrand.com
Heavy-duty overhead door
The Powerhouse Rubber Door from Rytec Doors is designed with heavy-duty construction and high-quality materials for a strong and lasting door enclosure.
Created without wear parts, the “self-resetting,” high-speed rubber door utilizes Rytec’s “release & restore” system to withstand damage and reset at the push of a button. Its ¼-in.-thick SBR panels provide stability and performance, the company said.
A direct-drive, variable-speed motor provides soft starting and stopping and reduces wear and tear. Patent-pending Ry-Tension side columns create a tight seal along the full height of the door, while a bottom loop seal compresses to form a tight seal along the bottom of the door.
The door is operated by the company’s System 4 controller, which enables precise positioning, infinite speed adjustments, and total control of all door functions.
www.rytecdoors.com
Battery tutorials
In addition to producing deep-cycle batteries, Trojan Battery also offers a video tutorial series to help maintain those batteries.
The “Trojan Tips” series provides in-depth information on a variety of battery topics such as deep-cycle battery technologies, maintenance practices, charging procedures, and safety when handling batteries.
Currently, there are 12 videos on the company’s website located under the “tech support” tab; just click on “battery maintenance.”
www.trojanbattery.com
Wheel remover
Kiene Diesel Accessories now offers an “extender” adapter for its K-1350 wheel grabber. The extender allows a technician to safely remove wheels from vehicles on a floor lift.
The Kiene wheel grabber is used for removing seized wheels from heavy-duty tractors, trailers and buses, as well as Ford Super Duty vehicles. It aids in the removal of even the most stubborn seized wheels. With the “extender” in place, the vehicle does not have to be taken off the lift to remove a seized wheel.
www.kienediesel.com
Aftermarket app
Dana Holding Corp. has released its first iPad application for aftermarket customers. The free app provides product and service information and is available for download from the iTunes App Store by searching “Spicer for iPad.”
According to Dana, the app features calculators, a literature library, and an easy-to-use graphic interface. A driveline angle calculator helps determine the appropriate driveline angle in order to ensure performance, safety, and proper driveline functionality.
www.dana.com
Lift alternatives
Rotary Lift has updated its Mod30 inground lift with two new saddle adapters and other design updates to offer greater clearance and flexibility, the company said.
The Mod30 uses either two or three hydraulic posts to lift vehicles. A new lower-profile version of Rotary Lift’s patented universal saddle adapter for the front post offers the same reach as the standard saddle while providing greater clearance between the lift and the truck.
For the rear post, the company is now offering a “six-pack” adapter featuring six receptacles that can hold multiple inserts that swivel 360 deg. as well as slide left and right to allow users to lift the vehicle at recommended spots.
Technicians can operate the Mod30 while standing at an upright control console, which also provides lift status, operation and maintenance information, online training guides, and programmable wheelbase settings to save technicians time.
A complete line of parallelogram lifts has capacities up to 100,000 lbs. and platform lengths from 26 to 48 ft. long. All are now available with a wash bay lift package that is said to maximize available bay space and improve product life.
www.rotarylift.com
Acid spill neutralization kit
The Pig battery acid spill kit from New Pig Corp. offers everything needed to safely neutralize, contain and clean up a battery acid spill quickly.
Available in see-thru bins for quick inventory inspections, the kit contains Pig socks, loose absorbents, and wipers formulated specifically for neutralizing and cleaning up battery acid. Personal protection equipment and a full face shield is also included. The kit features built-in handles for “grab-and-go” spill response. It mounts easily to a wall or can fit onto most shelves.
www.newpig.com
Webb Wheel gets social
To increase the ease with which its customers can locate information, Webb Wheel Aftermarket has added Android and BlackBerry Playbook apps to its social media offerings. The company can now be found on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and by downloading the Webb iPhone, iPad, Android, and BlackBerry Playbook applications.
Through these media sources, commercial vehicle operators, maintenance personnel, and parts distributors can easily view current procedural information, part number interchanges and specifications, and a growing library of technician training tools, all of which can be helpful to their operation.
Webb is a manufacturer of wheel end components with expertise and data concerning the spec’ing and maintaining of hubs, drums and rotors for medium and heavy trucks, trailers and buses.
www.webbwheel.com
Cleaning tools
Cleaning the most common electrical connectors and connections is easier, thanks to a new terminal maintenance set from IPA Tools. The set contains the tools needed to clean and maintain connections and connectors used in applications that include Deutsch, Cannon, 7 round pin trailer harnesses, weather packs, bullet connectors, and common ABS sensor and power connectors.
Included in the set are two sizes of flat male and female terminal cleaners and two gold 7 round pin socket harness cleaners.
www.ipatools.com
Safety paint
To help keep work environments safe and bright, PlastiKote offers its reformulated premium fluorescent line of aerosol paints. The paints come with
PlastiKote’s “twist and spray” technology, which features a twist and lock cap to make spray painting easier.
The paints come in stop light red (FL-6), go green (FL-7), pink (FL-8), caution orange (FL-9), and yellow (FL-10). They are available for safety markings, warning signs and other high-visibility applications.
www.plastikote.com
Service tools
Over time, dual steel wheels absorb a lot of debris, road salts, and other chemicals from the nation’s roadways. The result is oftentimes a rusted and bonded condition. The dual wheel separator from Ken-Tool is designed to eliminate the pounding and prying necessary to separate the duals.
Ideal for use on nearly any dual steel wheel truck, bus or van, the separator slips between the frozen wheels and uses the power of a screw-driven pusher to force them apart, the company said.
The innovative pusher is ball bearing-driven for near-zero turning resistance, and its one-piece design ensures that it won’t fall apart during use. It is heat-treated for long-lasting strength and durability.
Tool components, which have a black oxide or bright nickel-plated finish for rust and corrosion resistance, are laser-etched for easy identification. The forcing screw, pushers and pullers have powerful 11/8 in. diameter x 11 threads for years of reliable service, Ken-Tool said.
A new tire bar from Ken-Tool is said to offer improved strength over previous models in a lightweight design. The T45AS Super Duty Tubeless Truck Tire Iron is 52-in. long and utilizes a 7/8-in. shaft for strength and durability. It has 40% greater leverage than the T45A and the T45AC models.
www.kentool.com
Next Step troubleshooting
Noregon Systems has added critical updates to its JPRO Commercial Fleet Diagnostics solution. The updated version is available to current JPRO license holders with an active support agreement.
It includes expanded coverage for Haldex ABS, enhanced graphical gauges on the key data points and data monitor screens, new wizard for easy initial setup of JPRO Fleet Diagnostics, and links to contact Noregon support or sales from within the application. The new Next Step service information module, which is also included, provides direct navigation to service information.
JPRO Next Step automatically ties diagnostic trouble codes (DTC) to repair information. Once a DTC is found, technicians click on the Next Step logo (located on the JPRO launch bar within the home screen) and a new window opens containing service information associated with the specific DTC. The information displayed includes Mitchell 1’s Repair-Connect.net troubleshooting data.
www.jprofleetproducts.com
Lens restoration
Automotive International offers a lens restoration kit that is said to restore headlights in about 30 minutes.
The ValuGard Nite Brite system is a three-step process. First, a technician cleans the lens and then wet sands the surface using 600 grit and then 1,000 grit paper.
Following a cleaning, the U.V. protector spray is applied. The protectant is 60% solid content, making it durable and resistant to both U.V. rays and road debris. The final step is to cure the coating with the special curing lamp.
“Headlight lens damage takes place gradually and . . . often the driver doesn’t notice how much illumination they have lost,” said Tim Brune, the company’s technical director.
www.valugard.net
Extra protection
Galeton’s new maX HD gloves feature neoprene and rubber protection points at the knuckle and palm for extra protection and lower risk of impact injuries. Spandex finger crotches provide ease of movement and ventilation. The gloves also come with a terry brow-wipe and adjustable cinch strap wrist.
www.galeton.com
Refrigeration check
A programming tool from Thermo King is designed to help technicians improve diagnostic speed and accuracy when servicing the Thermo King Precedent transport refrigeration unit.
ThermoServ includes an updated user interface that is easier to navigate and offers an intuitive design for quick and easy learning, the company said. A direct connection to the refrigeration unit provides faster speeds than series connections and uses standard USB cables.
ThermoServ combines both the function of the Wintrac reporting-based utility program for data loggers and Thermo King OptiSet+, an automatic temperature profile configuration utility, in a single tool for simplicity and consistency.
According to Thermo King, enhanced data analysis capabilities allow users to easily refine data by type, quickly search for specific error code or conditions, and customize graphs to show exact time periods or conditions. Integrated help files eliminate the need for a paper manual.
www.thermoking.com
Battery status monitor
Phillips Industries has unveiled the next generation of its V-Check battery status indicator. The device provides an immediate signal of available battery power.
The V-Check II digitally monitors the state of power for any battery, particularly liftgate batteries, to ensure all work can be performed, Phillips said. If a signal of less than optimum power is displayed, the battery can be charged before a situation occurs where battery power is required but not available.
The V-Check II features a large display surface for the digital readout of the battery state of charge. Both the voltage measurement and percentage of battery life remaining appear every 15 seconds. The Go/No-Go LED light feature instantly shows if the battery is ready to complete the day’s work.
Green indicates available power of 12.6V to greater than 15V; yellow indicates power between 12.4V and 12.5V; and red indicates power below 12.3V.
www.phillipsind.com
Lighting catalog
Grote Industries’ 244-page lighting systems catalog includes information not always found in conventional parts listing materials.
“We know that to stay current, a printed catalog needs to be produced to harmonize with and link to information found on websites and other media platforms,” said Tom Draper, marketing manager. “We feel it’s important to provide solutions that go beyond specific products in order to help distributors and fleets realize productivity and profitability solutions that go beyond hardware solutions.”
The catalog includes product lines and retains much of the material and format of its previous versions but adds QR codes.
www.grote.com
Adjustable pole
The TPM-12 telescoping light pole from Larson Electronics is an industrial-grade product designed to make it easy to position shop lighting. It can be permanently attached to walls, supports and flat surfaces. The adjustable light pole provides a highly convenient method of mounting lighting, speakers, and similar devices, and elevating them up to 12 ft. in height.
www.magnalight.com
Heaters brochure
The Racor Div. of Parker Hannifin Corp. has published a brochure on heaters for fuel and coolant applications. According to the company, all diesel fuels (other than #1 diesel) contain dissolved waxes. At cold temperatures wax crystallizes, leading to fuel gelling and filter plugging. These changes greatly reduce fuel flow, adversely affecting the operability of vehicles. It is necessary to utilize an efficient fuel heating system for all cold weather applications. The brochure details a number of heater types that combat this.
www.parker.com/racor
Parts counter
Lista International’s modular “issue counter” maximizes usable storage and workspace and is designed for quick-moving items within a maintenance shop or repair operation.
The counter is configured with Lista’s modular, high-density drawer and shelf storage cabinets, and can be paired with butcher block, steel or plastic laminate countertops. The cabinets provide clean, safe storage for a diverse array of items of different sizes and shapes such as hardware, tools and repair parts while allowing easy and fast retrieval, the company said. There is ample space on top for computer workstations, reference materials, and parts.
When the drawers are closed, the handles are flush with the cabinet housing so nothing protrudes to snag clothing. Drawers feature either a 440- or 165-lb. load capacity (depending on drawer size), are available in six different full sidewall heights for maximum cubic storage capacity, and have 100% full extension.
www.listaintl.com
Diagnostic tool charging
Snap-on Diagnostics has released a new docking station that can keep its popular diagnostics tool charged at all times. The Verus Pro docking and charging station allows technicians to leave their Verus Pro diagnostic tool on the work bench where it can charge for the next use.
“The new Verus Pro docking and charging station is designed for simple drop-in docking, making for fast grab-and-go portability,” said Mark Schaefer, director of marketing, Snap-on Diagnostics.
With a 15-pin video connector, technicians can hook up to their external big-screen monitor to display Verus Pro results, the company said. A built-in USB hub connects up to four devices, and the multi-position stand allows for easy storage.
www.snapon.com
Tow attachment
Maintenance technicians routinely work on tractors and trailers that may need to be towed around the property or into the shop. Tow Your Own is a company dedicated to making that job easier.
The company’s Model 10 and Model 20 all-purpose fifth wheel wreckers add versatility to its portable towing systems. The system gives the user a flip-down 2x2-in. receiver hitch that allows for additional towing options and attachments. Users can now tow with pintle hook, hitch pin, ball or virtually any attachment system that can install into a 2x2-in. hitch.
www.towyourown.com
Brake diagnostics
Diagnostic coverage of antilock brake systems (ABS) is now available in the ProLink iQ and Pocket iQ handheld diagnostic devices from Nexiq Technologies. With the introduction of the ABS Suite, the ProLink iQ is now a full-service brake scan tool, providing connectivity to tractors and trailers utilizing the SAE J1587 protocol. The complete ABS kit comes with a J560 PLC seven-way adapter (also available separately) that allows direct connection to a trailer without the tractor. With access to an array of tests, techs can quickly obtain a diagnosis of brake systems.
www.nexiq.com
Welding system
Miller Electric Mfg. offers the Millermatic 350P aluminum MIG welder. The unit includes a dedicated aluminum welding power source with a true torque push-pull design, electronic wire spool brake, trigger schedule select, and synergic capabilities in both MIG and pulsed MIG settings.
Its design gives the operator the ability to tailor the arc to the weld by adjusting machine performance at the point-of-use, eliminating concerns over wire feed consistency.
www.millerwelds.com