F53 tag axle brakes

colonelcorto wrote:
I know this is a subject that is beat to death but where do I start on diagnosing my tag axle brakes on my 1996 F53 chassis? We took the motorhome out this weekend and for the first time I towed my car. I live in Indiana and my tow car weighs 2990 lbs(CAT scaled) so I don't a brake system on it. Camping was great but minutes before I arrived back home we had a hard stop. I was actually kind of impressed at how well it stopped but when I got home and started dropping the car I smelled hot brakes. I decided to give each wheel a feel.

I reached through the hub cap and felt the back side of the steel wheel. The fronts were both hot, as expected. The drive wheels were fairly warm but not as hot as the front. The driver side tag was warm and the curb side was cold.

I believe I have the MORryde tag axle (I'll check tomorrow) and I believe that usually the master cylinder fails. However, since I have some warm brakes on one wheel of the tag that suggests that the master cylinder is not the problem, right? Where should I start diagnosing? MORryde is only a few miles from my house, should I take it by and see if I can talk someone into coming out and taking a look?

Most of the time, with these units, the slave cylinder back there leaks fluid into the large diaphragm. I eventually got tired of it all and disconnected everything, including the vacuum line, plugging it off at the engine manifold.
With having good toad brakes, that I always recommend, we traveled everywhere in the lower 48, without a problem.