PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-626
PS, The Preventative Maintenance Monthly
ISSUE 626
JANUARY 2005
Exercise
You would have trouble moving if
you sat in the same position for
days or even weeks. Same goes for
your MLRS. If it sits and sits with
no exercise, moving parts start hav-
ing trouble moving. The answer is
weekly exercise. If you can actually
take your MLRS out on the road,
that would be ideal. If that's not
possible, start it up and run it at
high idle (1,000 rpm) for an hour.
That charges the batteries. Bring
the firing system up, move the LLM
in all directions, and simulate loading
and unloading pods. Try to give all
the moving parts a chance to move.
Lube According to the LO
If you try just to remem-
ber everything that needs
lubing, you'll probably miss
some things. One that we
find is often missed is the
boot for the cab lift. If you
don't lube it, the cab will be
difficult to raise and lower.
Something that the LO
doesn't mention and should
are the four lube points
under the foot pedal plate.
Lube them with a light-
weight oil monthly or the
accelerator pedal will bind.
Relax the Cab Lift Mechanism
If you leave the mechanism
tightened down after securing
the cab, the hinge that holds the
cab in place could break when
the cab bounces up and down on
the road. After you lower the cab
all the way down, turn the nuts
on the two cab anchors 3/4 turn
past finger tight. Then turn the
cab lift mechanism counterclock-
wise until you feel it relax.
SGT Kenneth Berry
SPC Joseph Myers
SGT Daniel Bryant
1/39 FA
Ft Stewart, GA
PS 626
JAN 05
23
(Editor’s note:
Your suggestions
should fire up MLRS crews every-
where. Thanks for the help.)
MLRS…
Lessons Learned
the
Hard
Way
Dear Editor,
Through our experiences with the MLRS in the field, we've learned
these lessons the hard way. We hope they make operating easier for
other MLRS units.
Check the Generator
One of the first things you learn about the MLRS is how important
voltage is for it to operate properly. If the launcher doesn't get 27.5 to
29 volts, it starts having system faults. Most of the time weak batteries
are the cause and replacing batteries cures the problem. But sometimes
it's the generator that's the culprit, not the batteries. You replace the
batteries and soon start getting faults again because of weak voltage.
So before you start swap-
ping out any batteries, dig out
your multimeter and do a volt-
age check on the generator.
With the engine running, put
the positive lead on the gen-
erator's power point and the
negative lead to ground. If you
don't get a reading between
27.5 to 29, you might have a
generator problem. Have your
mechanic check it out before
replacing any batteries.
Do voltage check on generator
before replacing batteries
Turn cab lift
mechanism
counterclockwise
until you feel
mechanism relax
Don’t forget lube
points under foot
pedal plate and…
…cab lift boot
I feel so much
better
since I started this weekly
exercise program.
thanks
for taking
one for
the team!!
626.22-23(C!)
11/26/04
12:16 PM
Page 1
Click here for a copy of this article to send to a friend
Back to TopBack to Top
