Wheel lockup issue, sticky brake

[dustboy]

NOPE! STILL MAKING SKID MARKS. It's fine for ~150 miles then SCREEEECH! Unless the new seal is blown, I'm thinking maybe now the other 2-3 brakes are lazy as 48Rob said. I'm going to try moving the drums to see if the issue follows, and checking the other wheels.

The master cylinder takes a long time to release. It has a damper strut that adds a lot of resistance in both directions..I might try taking it out??

[Dale M.]

As much as you have played with all this, you could have converted to electric brakes and been happily down the road.......

Dale

[KCStudly]

There's that pesky voice of reason rearing it's ugly head again.

The other day I caught myself wondering why I didn't just buy a camper instead of breaking new ground on the foamie front. I'm committed to it now, but dustboy could still convert!

20/20 hindsight.

Still, there should be a solution to the lock up, either way.

[dustboy]

Well, I'm sick and tired of this issue. Thinking that the other brakes weren't doing their job, I pulled them and sure enough two of them were leaking gobs of grease. Replaced the seals, but on the way home today, SKREEEEEEE. It's a little embarrassing pulling up to your babysitter's house with tires smoking.

I called my local trailer supply store, and they have 4 electric backing plates in stock. With a controller, he quoted me $350. Looks like etrailer would be a bit cheaper, they have the backing plates for $35, but my LTS has given me a lot of free advice and they can get me rolling in time for the weekend.

[dustboy]

Welp, it took all afternoon and then some, but the trailer now has a whole new brake system!! Of course hindsight is 20/20 but I wish I had done this a long time ago.

Now that I am the world's foremost expert on hydraulic surge brakes, I can tell you that electrics are way better, fully adjustable from lockup to free rolling..and they are much more seamless, no more clunking of the surge actuator and lurching when the brakes kick in. It feels much more like a single vehicle. The peace of mind is worth every penny!

Surge brakes are great if you are U-haul and your customers aren't likely to be properly set up for a trailer; they really are a brilliant invention, in theory at least.

[KCStudly]

Your experience is a great data point for the ongoing debate, and it makes a strong argument for why hydraulic surge brakes are usually only seen in boat trailer applications. Electric brakes are predominant in most applications and it must be for a reason.

[48Rob]

Glad you finally have good brakes!

I should caution you though, electric brakes can sometimes lock up too.
Last year, we hooked up the trailer after camping for a week, and tried to leave the campground as quietly as we could in the early morning.
It had been damp, and a light layer of rust had formed on the drums. Each time I would touch the brakes, they would grab and screech and nearly lock up.
It was very embarrasing, as I had completely rebuilt the brake system, and there was no reason for them to be grabbing.
So I looked down at the controller, to make sure it hadn't been bumped/adjusted, no, it was reading #1, the lightest setting.
So we continued, every hundred feet or so I had to slow down because of the hills, screech! and since the rust was gone, now theywere starting to lock up.
I think we woke everyone in the campground up...

About the time we got to the highway, I decided to look dow at the controller again, It was kind of hard to see since I didn't have my glasses on, so I put them on, and found that instead of being set at #1 the controller was set at 11 oops!

Rob