Forum Discussion

CliffordG's avatar
CliffordG
Explorer
Sep 03, 2013

Weekend Warrior Brakes

Took the TH up to the Big Horn National Forest this weekend and man is that tow up through Dayton to Burgess Junction a toughie! The 8% grade and 25 MPH had my Allison sweating!

One the way up I started getting "Overload" on my P3 controller so before we broke camp I slid under the trailer for some D & T (Diagnostics and Troubleshooting).

What I found was that the combined current draw on the front axle was 7.3, Middle Axle at 9, and Rear axle at 8.7. Testing the magnets on the rear two axles gave me reading of above 4 for each individual magnet.

To stop the Overload from coming up I disconnected the middle axle since it had the worst reading and just had front and rear axle engaging. This stopped the overload error and worked well enough to get me back home.

Now it's time to fix these things and if these WW trailer didn't come with self adjusting brakes I'd like to install them.

I see ones made by Dexter, TowMaster, LCI, etc. What's the right choice in self adjusting brakes for my Weekend Warrior FSW2800? If I need new drums what brand should I get?
Toy Haulers
  • mapguy's avatar
    mapguy
    Explorer
    Sep 04, 2013
    Pretty sure you have 5.2 or 6k ALKO axles with 12x2 brakes on your WW. Get 7k rated Dexter brand self adjusting assemblies. Your existing drums will work if still in tolerance - thickness, runout, and or magnet wear surface. Very important for runout to be in tolerance for proper self-adjust action.
  • trail-explorer's avatar
    trail-explorer
    Explorer
    Sep 04, 2013
    Find out the weight rating of the axles, then you can figure out the size drums and brakes you need.

    It's not really a "Weekend Warrior" specific upgrade, as the axles are the determining factor of what to get, not necessarily the trailer brand.

    DEXTER is the only parts I'd go with.
  • BobWanderer's avatar
    BobWanderer
    Explorer
    Sep 04, 2013
    Its NOT just RV's or T H's or T T's, I was handed virtually every trailer we bought to clean up the electrical systems.
    I could spend weeks describing the krap I came across, like household wire nuts connecting the brake wiring, or a 16 ga inline fuse in the charge circuit with 10 or 12 ga wiring.
    Using the word "Electrician" is an insult to the profession.
  • carringb's avatar
    carringb
    Explorer
    Sep 03, 2013
    dedmiston wrote:
    CliffordG wrote:
    Was the electrician high that day or just drunk?


    That day? I don't even need to know what day "that day" was; the answer is yes.


    And its obvious none of the work was done by electricians. A drunk and high electrician could do way better work.
  • dedmiston's avatar
    dedmiston
    Moderator
    Sep 03, 2013
    CliffordG wrote:
    Was the electrician high that day or just drunk?


    That day? I don't even need to know what day "that day" was; the answer is yes.
  • CliffordG's avatar
    CliffordG
    Explorer
    Sep 03, 2013
    carringb wrote:
    I trust Dexter stuff. Other brands can be hit and miss it seems.

    You may want to re-do the brake wiring while you're at it. My WW had pretty terrible brake wiring.


    The wiring is not up to my standard. I'm going to tear it all out and re-wire with 10 AWG. I haven't decided if I'm going to run conduit or just use split loom but one way or another it will be better than what it is now.

    I'm honestly in awe of the sheer stupidity of some of the cable routing. Was the electrician high that day or just drunk?

    Anyway, +1 vote for Dexter I guess.
  • carringb's avatar
    carringb
    Explorer
    Sep 03, 2013
    I trust Dexter stuff. Other brands can be hit and miss it seems.

    You may want to re-do the brake wiring while you're at it. My WW had pretty terrible brake wiring.

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