Do any of you have a surge brake actuator on an extentable tongue? If so, do you disconnect the brake line before extending the tongue? I'm getting ready to rebuild my brake system, and I need some info on how to procede with it all. Thanks.
surge brake question
- Thread starter kingprawn
- Start date
- Status
Yes
My 2003 H260 factory trailer does have surge brakes and an extendable tongue. The brake line follows the wiring harness inside the tongue, come out at the top of the back of the extension and back forward about halfway, where they are tied to the side rail of the trailer. This way when the tongue is pulled out, the section of hose/wire harness between the tongue and the side of the trailer, just "swings" forward without putting any tension on it. I wish I had a picture to post but unfortunately I don't. If nobody else posts one, I'll post a drawing.
My 2003 H260 factory trailer does have surge brakes and an extendable tongue. The brake line follows the wiring harness inside the tongue, come out at the top of the back of the extension and back forward about halfway, where they are tied to the side rail of the trailer. This way when the tongue is pulled out, the section of hose/wire harness between the tongue and the side of the trailer, just "swings" forward without putting any tension on it. I wish I had a picture to post but unfortunately I don't. If nobody else posts one, I'll post a drawing.
more work
I just looked at actuator/coupler and boy is it a sad piece of work. I wish it was bolted on so I could just replace it. I'm going to attempt some disassembly to find out who make it and if I can still get parts. Looking at the weld on it, I'm surprised the whole thing hasn't broken off yet. I'll throw up some pics after I get it taken apart.
I just looked at actuator/coupler and boy is it a sad piece of work. I wish it was bolted on so I could just replace it. I'm going to attempt some disassembly to find out who make it and if I can still get parts. Looking at the weld on it, I'm surprised the whole thing hasn't broken off yet. I'll throw up some pics after I get it taken apart.
more money
I just took the coupler apart, at least as much as I could. I will need a new one. I'll also need a welder to weld the new one on or a drill press to drill the tongue to bolt it on. It looks like I'll just be crewing on a friend's boat for a while. This sucks.
I just took the coupler apart, at least as much as I could. I will need a new one. I'll also need a welder to weld the new one on or a drill press to drill the tongue to bolt it on. It looks like I'll just be crewing on a friend's boat for a while. This sucks.
ROTF
Well Well, Three years ago I ordered most of those very parts from Champion for that reason. I have bought from them for many years, great folks and they catch on fast! Glad to see they have put that kit together it will help others not and end the fustration I had when rebuilding my trailer. One other thing you might remember is that the brake lines they sell are Stainless. In the three years since I added the tounge extention I've had no problems with the quick coupling, and no loss when disconnecting it. Wat to go Champion!
Well Well, Three years ago I ordered most of those very parts from Champion for that reason. I have bought from them for many years, great folks and they catch on fast! Glad to see they have put that kit together it will help others not and end the fustration I had when rebuilding my trailer. One other thing you might remember is that the brake lines they sell are Stainless. In the three years since I added the tounge extention I've had no problems with the quick coupling, and no loss when disconnecting it. Wat to go Champion!
not the right thing to do
but, it worked good enough last year, so I'm going to put my coupler back together so I can still sail a little bit this year. My ramp is only about 3 miles from my house and it's mostly flat, and there's hardly ever any police, etc... These are the things I'm telling myself to soothe the conscience long enough to get in the water. Because the trailer is so old, I'm going to start buying the pieces to rebuild most of the moving parts. I'm looking into a complete new braking system, which probably won't fit on the existing axle, or with the old hubs, and the new hubs won't work with the wheels I have, and the new wheels will lead to new tires, etc... I seemed to be trapped in the money sucking vortex of my trailer. My wife asked why I don't just replace the trailer. I asked if it made sense to put a $4000 boat on a $5000 trailer. This gets sillier by the minute.
but, it worked good enough last year, so I'm going to put my coupler back together so I can still sail a little bit this year. My ramp is only about 3 miles from my house and it's mostly flat, and there's hardly ever any police, etc... These are the things I'm telling myself to soothe the conscience long enough to get in the water. Because the trailer is so old, I'm going to start buying the pieces to rebuild most of the moving parts. I'm looking into a complete new braking system, which probably won't fit on the existing axle, or with the old hubs, and the new hubs won't work with the wheels I have, and the new wheels will lead to new tires, etc... I seemed to be trapped in the money sucking vortex of my trailer. My wife asked why I don't just replace the trailer. I asked if it made sense to put a $4000 boat on a $5000 trailer. This gets sillier by the minute.
Brakeless 240
A couple miles shouldn't be a problem. I towed my brakeless 240 trailer close to 100 miles on Saturday. Pretty flat and straight until the last 15 miles then hilly and curvy. I'm planning some big trips this year and bought a new surge brake head from Champion a month or so ago. Hopefully this will finalize my repairs.
A couple miles shouldn't be a problem. I towed my brakeless 240 trailer close to 100 miles on Saturday. Pretty flat and straight until the last 15 miles then hilly and curvy. I'm planning some big trips this year and bought a new surge brake head from Champion a month or so ago. Hopefully this will finalize my repairs.
I towed my 240 for 2 years
with the brakes marginal at best, nonexistant towards the end, but then I was using a 1 ton cummins dodge pickup.
with the brakes marginal at best, nonexistant towards the end, but then I was using a 1 ton cummins dodge pickup.
Dodge
I have a 1500 Dodge. It seemed to work reasonably well towing the boat back from Seattle when I bought it. Towing on a major interstate inside city limits is quite a bit of fun. It's ironic that mapquest told me I live 22 miles from the brokerage where I bought the boat, but it took over an hour and a half to get home. And that was at highway speed.
I have a 1500 Dodge. It seemed to work reasonably well towing the boat back from Seattle when I bought it. Towing on a major interstate inside city limits is quite a bit of fun. It's ironic that mapquest told me I live 22 miles from the brokerage where I bought the boat, but it took over an hour and a half to get home. And that was at highway speed.
disk vs drum
Any thoughts on which is better? If I'm going to redo the whole darn thing I might as well get my money's worth.
Any thoughts on which is better? If I'm going to redo the whole darn thing I might as well get my money's worth.
Disc!!
Go with the disc, easy to work on, easy to wash, easy to see. If I'd known what I know now I wouldn't have hesitated, I kept having to buy one more thing, finally stripped the rest off tossed it in the trash and replaced it, by then I had to much in the other pieces to look back. Next time the drums are gone. I'm told the disc are much smother as well. Remember the coupler if you decide to use disc it takes a different coupler, on the new couplers they have allowed for this and you can remove a plate to allow more flow for the disc.
Go with the disc, easy to work on, easy to wash, easy to see. If I'd known what I know now I wouldn't have hesitated, I kept having to buy one more thing, finally stripped the rest off tossed it in the trash and replaced it, by then I had to much in the other pieces to look back. Next time the drums are gone. I'm told the disc are much smother as well. Remember the coupler if you decide to use disc it takes a different coupler, on the new couplers they have allowed for this and you can remove a plate to allow more flow for the disc.
next question
My gross weight for the trailer is 4500#. Can I use the 10" disc in lieu of the 12" drums? The disc system is rated at 6000#. If so, will the mounting brackets for the disks work on my axel which has the 12" drums? I'll probably have to get some better measurements from the company that supplies them to find out, but the cost/power/convenience really has me leaning towards disc unless it will require an axel change.
My gross weight for the trailer is 4500#. Can I use the 10" disc in lieu of the 12" drums? The disc system is rated at 6000#. If so, will the mounting brackets for the disks work on my axel which has the 12" drums? I'll probably have to get some better measurements from the company that supplies them to find out, but the cost/power/convenience really has me leaning towards disc unless it will require an axel change.
Disk
What you need to find out is the spindle size of your axles. This can be determined by the inner and outer bearing part numbers. Depending on the spindle size (weight capacity) you may not be able to find disks to fit. The hubless (14 1/2") rims in your picture are considered a bastard size used mostly on mobile homes. If you can get a disk setup to fit, you will also need new rims and tires. What kind of boat is on the trailer? You have posted quite a few questions and pictures, but not a "complete" photo of what you have. I feel for your delema. I bought a 27'er last year that has been much more work than I first expected. My problems right now are bent axles. The PO allowed the cockpit drains to plug, leading to rain water filling the cockpit. Since the companion way is lower than the top rail of cockpit about 500 gallons of water filled the cabin. 3500# axles can't take a 6000# boat and 4000# of water. Keep us informed of your progress. Bryon I have found the following site quite helpful for trailer parts.
What you need to find out is the spindle size of your axles. This can be determined by the inner and outer bearing part numbers. Depending on the spindle size (weight capacity) you may not be able to find disks to fit. The hubless (14 1/2") rims in your picture are considered a bastard size used mostly on mobile homes. If you can get a disk setup to fit, you will also need new rims and tires. What kind of boat is on the trailer? You have posted quite a few questions and pictures, but not a "complete" photo of what you have. I feel for your delema. I bought a 27'er last year that has been much more work than I first expected. My problems right now are bent axles. The PO allowed the cockpit drains to plug, leading to rain water filling the cockpit. Since the companion way is lower than the top rail of cockpit about 500 gallons of water filled the cabin. 3500# axles can't take a 6000# boat and 4000# of water. Keep us informed of your progress. Bryon I have found the following site quite helpful for trailer parts.
here it is
I have a 1981 Hunter 22 (weight 3200#) on the original single axel MagicTilt trailer. The brake backplates appear to be 12", 5 hole mount plates, so no 10" brake kit will fit without changing the axel. If I have to replace the backplates, and if new ones won't work with the drums I have, I will have to replace the wheels and tires because of the "bastard" setup that is on there now. I would prefer to find perfectly servicable backplates when I take the hubs off. If that happens, then all I will need to do is replace the coupler and brake lines, and perform some maintenance on the brakes and hubs. However, considering how many bolts I've broken on different parts of the trailer, this is probably going to take the expensive road. If I'm going to spend more than a couple hundred dollars on the brakes, I might as well go all the way and make all the running parts of the trailer new. Now if I can just quit spending money long enough to get the parts...
I have a 1981 Hunter 22 (weight 3200#) on the original single axel MagicTilt trailer. The brake backplates appear to be 12", 5 hole mount plates, so no 10" brake kit will fit without changing the axel. If I have to replace the backplates, and if new ones won't work with the drums I have, I will have to replace the wheels and tires because of the "bastard" setup that is on there now. I would prefer to find perfectly servicable backplates when I take the hubs off. If that happens, then all I will need to do is replace the coupler and brake lines, and perform some maintenance on the brakes and hubs. However, considering how many bolts I've broken on different parts of the trailer, this is probably going to take the expensive road. If I'm going to spend more than a couple hundred dollars on the brakes, I might as well go all the way and make all the running parts of the trailer new. Now if I can just quit spending money long enough to get the parts...
Nice looking boat !
I can't see much of the trailer but the boat it self looks pretty good for a 1981, how does the boat look inside ? I think you should go ahead and spend the money now for your new brake system..........you will be a lot happier down the long road. cutting corners on brakes, tires is not a good idea. Glenn
I can't see much of the trailer but the boat it self looks pretty good for a 1981, how does the boat look inside ? I think you should go ahead and spend the money now for your new brake system..........you will be a lot happier down the long road. cutting corners on brakes, tires is not a good idea. Glenn
- Status