Speaking of trailer brakes....

[jcyamaharider]

Has anyone converted over to electric actuators on their trailer? I would love to do this. I have a brake controller in my truck and love the way electric brakes can help get you out of situations. Not so much with the boat but I have had other times when the trailers were loaded wrong a little bit and I could reach down and tap the trailer brake alone and get the little shimmy out.

 

[Boat Crazy]

I have been wanting to do this also, so be pre warned, If you do it to yours, I'll be asking for assistance from you to do it to mine.

 

[jetboater4life]

@Speedling is your man, but he is extremely busy this time of year

 

[jcyamaharider]

Did you covert over @Speedling?

 

[Julian]

I'm about to drive over the mountains....it is something I've considered. Even though diesels engine braking leaves much to be desired...I fear cooking the trailer brakes and wonder if I disabling them would be worse than over heating them....

Do electric brakes handle salt water now?

 

[CDENsomnia]

I'm about to drive over the mountains....it is something I've considered. Even though diesels engine braking leaves much to be desired...I fear cooking the trailer brakes and wonder if I disabling them would be worse than over heating them....

Do electric brakes handle salt water now?

I actually thought about locking the brakes out while I went through the ozark hills especially if I took my superduty with a diesel. In hindsight I should have done that. I think if you have a large enough vehicle especially a diesel that does a lot of engine braking it would be better and still safe for everyone. The truck is made to tow much heavier trailers than our boats at least then I wouldn't have fried my rotors! What good are brakes that don't work anymore.

I would love to hear what it takes to convert to electric brakes...not a fan of surge brakes if you are traveling through steep grades for an extended time. It took about an hour and a half for the brakes to fry!

 

[jcyamaharider]

Just cruising around the net a bit it doesn't look like it will be that hard to convert. Looks like we would have to change the actuators and run the wiring. Around a 200 dollar change???

 

[Speedling]

Ok, when I switched to electronic brakes, I had just upgraded my camper with new axles and brakes anyways so I had extra parts. I bought a couple bearings and the electric brakes for one axle. They are drums and are magnetic operated. Once you pull your hub apart you will see what bearings you will need. I just needed a slightly different size due to how it works with the drums I bought but everything was basicallyununiversal.
Cost? I had the drums turned for $15 each, magnets to work with it for less than $50 and wiring was about $50 for the 7 pin.
I did the work myself so no cost there.
I leave it plugged in even when it gets backed into the water and have had zero issues. You will also need to drain the reservoir and weld it solid but we had stuff to do that at work. Be sure to grind it away first!
this setup means I can bounce my vehicles between the boat and camper all the time. The drums might get a touch rusty, but it must get knocked off quickly because I have no issues with it at all. We enjoy it and it makes teaching the wife how to back up much easier as there is one less thing to worry about.

If I find my exact links for stuff I will certainly link them but it was before last season.

 

[jcyamaharider]

Looks like we can use this product, although more costly, to use our current setup of disc brakes on the trailer.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001MX22BO?cache=1b371c61b8d91c4ab56968de63b8e972&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70&qid=1404041081&sr=8-5#

 

[Speedling]

I bought something like this:
http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Brakes/Dexter/23-26.html?feed=npn&gclid=CKn6kMbhn78CFQQPaQodvaQAjA
but I don't recall the full details of bearing sizes and drum sizes etc.
I had most of the parts, but if you were going to build it all for one axle, it shouldn't cost you more than $200. Then again, if you have it installed by someone, it's gonna probably cost you a decent amount because there is a decent amount of labor involved.
Just bring it over to my place in the winter and we'll set ya up cheap. I gotta pay my mechanic friend something, but he's pretty cool about just helping out.

 

[jcyamaharider]

When the time comes I think it shouldn't be too bad.

 

[pagekl]

Speaking of brakes..... My steel brake line was corroded to a point where I had to replace it. I replaced the brake fluid and was able to only bleed off the left rear brake. All the other wheels, I was able to only get a drip here and there. What is the proper way to bleed the brakes on these trailers?

 

[KXCam22]

• I think the hydraulic brakes are superior to electric brakes - too bad we dont have them on both axles. I wonder if they make a electro/hydraulic actuator that you could replace the surge unit with. Then you could use a typical trailer brake controller in your truck just like a holiday trailer. Cam.

 

[jcyamaharider]

• I think the hydraulic brakes are superior to electric brakes - too bad we dont have them on both axles. I wonder if they make a electro/hydraulic actuator that you could replace the surge unit with. Then you could use a typical trailer brake controller in your truck just like a holiday trailer. Cam.

My post above with the amazon link is just that Cam.