Maintaining a Bendix Slack Adjuster

A Bendix slack adjuster is a critical safety component that helps fleets avoid costly brake maintenance by improving brake drum life, lining life, and fuel efficiency. It also improves Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scores and helps fleets avoid fines by delivering the minimum running clearance that reduces brake drag.

ASAs must be properly installed and maintained to function at their best. They also help to support a variety of higher-level safety technologies by keeping the brake system performing to its engineered specifications.

The American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council recommends lubricating automatic slack adjusters every six months, 1,800 operating hours, or 50,000 miles, whichever comes first. This simple process can prevent the grease inside an ASA from becoming clay-like as it accumulates contaminants.

If the ASA is out of adjustment, it can indicate a larger braking system problem that needs to be corrected. This is why it’s important to follow Bendix’s clear step-by-step guidelines when addressing out-of-adjustment wheel-ends equipped with ASAs.

The first step is to measure the chamber stroke. This is achieved by locating the ASA’s grease fitting and attaching the hose from a grease gun. Once the hose is attached, inject new grease until old grease is forced through the release opening.