To me, it's not about price so much as it is about safety. If you are not towing heavy or fequently, yes the Jacobs brake will work fine for you. And, technically, it will work fine for heavy, too. I think the design of the PAC Brake lends itself to a better braking experience, all the way through the RPM band, where the Jake loses effective braking on the lower rpms.

Having said all that...If I could get a Jake for $800, and I don't tow heavy, I probably would.

Tony

 

I have had a PacBrake for 4 years, it works flawlessly. Recently, after installing my twins I had to move my brake due to no room at the turbo area.

I installed a 5" turbo back exhaust and went to their 5" in-line brake, mounting it where the CAT would have been. It works flawlessly too.

Simple install, Very good product. Will do it again on any truck I might get downline. I have a few friends who got the Jake as part of their trucks when new. Several of them have had problems, expensive problems, leaves them alongside the road when the belt goes, and they seem to go frequently.


CD

 

Pac-Brake PRXB for me. It is a joy now, to tow!!!! Hardly ever use the service brakes anymore.

 

Seeing as how we are talking about exhaust brakes..... my mechanic(the one who works on my truck) disn't think I should put an exhaust brake on because it is tough on the valves and springs.

no flames just looking for opinons

 

Just installed a Pacbrake on '06 3500 Mega/48RE. One of the first things that actually bolted into place as advertised. The compressor has moved out from under the fender, to on top the engine. The directions were fairly clear, with decent pics. They don't mention how tight the elbow would be in the exhaust, or to pull out the bolts holding the muffler to the bellhousing, but I won. A floor jack, or strong friend will help lift the pipe back up. The bands holding the brake to the turbo, and to the pipe need to be left fairly loose, as they really grip. If they get too tight, the brake won't be able to twist, to line everything up. One of the wires to the ECM is fairly stiff(black), but the other took a LOT of patience to get it to contact. At least I have a known weak spot, if it quits working. LOL.

 

I just got tires yesterday, so I may not jump on it, but one of the local dealers was advertising it. I've read that the pac brake works better at low RPM, my only reason for considering the Mopar brake is the 3 years of warranty remaining on my engine.

 

I've talked with my dealer and they haven't seen any trucks come in with motor issue because of a E break. I look at it this way they both add the same back preasure for the most part, ones avalible stock the other after market per say. One breaks to a lower RPMs I would think if damage would occur it would be in the higher rpm range most likely so they both stand the same chance. I chose Pac because of the belt and pump issue others have talked about.

 

I am installing my PacBrake tomorrow morning. I can't wait to get it in. It does not look to hard. Wish me luck......

 

Just got back from a week of camping in the foothills of NW Alberta. Towed a 30' trailer, and e brake worked excellent! Went down some looong, steeep hils, and actually had to give it some accellerator!!

 

All the brake manufacturers comply with the same specs as the factory Jake, 60#s max. The valves/springs will actually take about 70#s, maybe a little more - learned that from guys modding with high boost. And, maybe the real worry could even go to the upward stroke of the piston against that pressure??

The PacBrake does work very efficiently at low speeds in low gears, mine would work in 1st gear if I used it there, but since 1st gear is all but a creep it's not necessary to use it there as I see using it. Auto trannys def benefit in the lower gears down to some pretty low speeds.

If you want to get into technicalities, your mechanic should really be thinking about the increased heat retention at the turbo long before the effect on the valves/springs. It has been suggested by several that ALL exhaust brakes put more strain on the turbo. Maybe that would explain the premature turbo failures we have seen, esp on the 6.7L's as of late. Could be some truth here regarding this, I don't really know, it did not affect my stock turbo as far as I could tell.


CD