ThaddeusW Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 What is that weird time clock looking device I see either built into the dash or hung off the dash of the older trucks? Quote -Thad What America needs is less bull and more Bulldog! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CML Service Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 That would be a tachograph. They were used to record speed, RPM and time of day on a round graph paper the size of a CD. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James J. Neiweem Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 My guess would be that you are looking at the old time big brother device that had a piece of circular chart paper which rotated in a circle. One revolution equaled 24 hours. There was an ink pen device which left an ink trail on the chart. The ink trail represented engine RPM vs. time. The truck fleet manager was able to determine how long a driver stopped at a dinner for example by seeing the amount of time the engine was at 0 rpm or idle rpm. Also they could determine engine abuse by noting over reving on non governed engines. In short they could tell how the truck was driven in a 24 hour period. Big brother is much more advanced today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GearheadGrrrl Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 We used to have a lot of fun with them- I know drivers who made their own tachograph charts with a toothpick! They "broke" so often that the company had the standard speedo and tach installed as well as the tachograph so the truck wouldn't be out of service half the time with a broken tachograph. Then the company tried the fancy european tachographs... And the drivers "accidentally" found that closing the door when the vehicle was in motion would break these $1000 tattletails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Packer Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 Some of these had a speedometer in them also.By putting a rubber band at the right place, the graph would read the "correct" speed instead of what the company wanted to see!Packer Quote Keep a clutchin' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 The old squre ones ,the older guys told me that apiece of pencil eraser could block the speed needle.I bought four of them,3speedo,1 RPM for $11.50tax iincluded in a box.Maybe some day I will do an old fleet truck reproductionPete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulldog man Posted June 19, 2006 Share Posted June 19, 2006 We had a 87 R686ST That was a ole GA PC LUMBER TRACTOR TRUCK (W/2STICK INSTED OF STRIGHT 5 SPDrare i think barry any ideas ?) Converted to a dumptruck it also had the square box tachograph w/ speddometer in it where a regular Mack speedometer would go up to 80mph the tachograph goes only up to 70mph . Dash in this R model was made to fit the tachograph it looked strange in the "redsliegh" (our driver for this truck looked like a slender santa clause & truck was cherry red paint ) insted of having the regular speedometer Later Bulldog Quote You Cant Fix Stupid. But You Can Numb It With A Sledgehammer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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