I've had fun with RBTs this year, not so much an RM but with my BEA coach MLL738. I use a local haulage company who have a brake test roller. That comes up with different axle weights every time I go there. I had problems with the o/s/r oil seal leaking which has now been partly resolved. when I took the bus for COIF at the DVSA at Gllingham, the weights recorded there were totally different to those recorded locally.

I had a problem not with the o/s/r, but with ovality on the o/s/f brake. However, the certifying officer went away and looked up the regs and said that as the brake locked up, it passed. I haven't noticed any ovality when driving the bus and from a couple of the usual road incidents have found it to stop rather quickly when required.

As for testing abroad, I've taken RMs for test in Germany and Luxembourg; the DEKRA test in Germany seems to just want me to put the brake to maximum front and rear, none of the worry about imbalance or ovality. Much the same in Lux of holding the brake at a certain pressure for so long. i'd suggest that ovality could be caused by the driver's right leg starting to give way like mine does a lot of the time these days! I'd also suggest the testing requirements are not fit for purpose especially when it concerns older vehicles.

Many years ago I had to take a Plymouth or Exeter PD2 for test at Mitcham GVTS. It kept on failing despite all our efforts. It turned out the examiner entered it as a split system which it wasn't, and gave split system test results. Once he entered a non-split, it passed with flying colours. It was one of those with vacuum brakes.

My bus number (if any): RML2532