First 5th Wheel--Bad Braking???

bowler1 wrote:
... maybe the trailer brakes will get better as I break them in (user manual said it takes about 1000 miles to do this)...

^ This could be your problem.

When I purchased our new 5th Wheel, hooked it up on the dealer lot, pulled forward and tested the trailer brakes they did absolutely nothing. I refused to take delivery until the brakes were repaired.

After several days of back and forth with the dealer they managed to convince me the brakes weren't defective, they just needed to be broken in. They pulled a drum and found nothing wrong. According to them, the guy transporting the trailer from the factory had a faulty brake controller and the trailer brakes had never been used. They insisted the brakes would gradually improve over the first several hundred miles of use.

Turns out they were correct. By the time I got home with the trailer (50 miles) I could tell the brakes were getting better. After a few hundred miles of use they work great.

The newer rams have brake control options for different types of trailer brakes. Located in the Uconnect apps

What year Ram do you have?? Newer ones you have to chose between electric hydraulic, electric, heavy, and light. You may need to go from light electric to heavy elecric. Also, make sure it is not set to electric hydraulic.

I had this same problem with my second 5th wheel a few years ago. We purchased it slightly used from a dealer. The brakes did not feel like they did much. I was pulling with a Ram 2500 Cummins with no exhaust brake so I noticed quickly that this 5th wheel was either significantly heavier than 5th wheel number one or there was something wrong with the brakes. I replaced my controller and saw no change. I ran a heavier wire from the controller to the connector in the bed of the truck and saw no change. The dealer claimed he had checked the brakes before I picked it up and there was no problem. He also said the previous owner did not tow much and it was just short distances to the lake where he camped. So what was the problem?

I pulled the brake drum to inspect for myself and found the brake shoes covered in grease!! The previous owner apparently used the "easy lube" grease fitting on the axle and had pumped huge amounts of grease before each trip. The grease seal could not hold it and so the brakes were covered. I was out of the 30 day warranty provided by the dealer so I tackled the job myself. I removed the brake shoes, soaked and cleaned them in gasoline and lacquer thinner to remove all the grease....or so I thought. I did this on all four wheels. After reinstalling and adjusting the brakes they were great!!! Then after a few trips I started to notice the brakes seemed less effective again. So again I pulled a wheel and could tell there was an oily residue on the shoes. My new grease seals were fine. Apparently the residue was coming out of the brake shoe. I cleaned all of them again. This helped again. Then several months later same issue!!

So the bottom line is this. Always hand pack bearing and do not use the easy lube feature. If you have grease on your brake shoes then REPLACE THEM WITH NEW ONES. You cannot get all the grease out of a contaminated brake shoe. After replacing my shoes i was able to lock up all four wheels by using the manual lever on the controller.

I would say that the trailer brakes need adjustment!!
Can you lock then up when going slow if you do it with the slide lever.
If you pull hard from stop will the brakes hold??