Brake Controller for Toad questions

Gonzo42 wrote:
I sent an email request about the ReadyBrake regarding the cable through the firewall and got this response:

We have been in business 17 years and sold thousands of our Ready Brake's.
Not once has putting the 3/8" hole ever tore up or compromised the firewall.
Trust me when i say this. It is not a problem.


> 22:00:03 10/09/14
> ReadyBrake Contact Request
> Revised 10/21/08 by Beyond Engineering
...
> Title: RV-OWNER
>
> Comments:
> How does installing the cable not compromise the integrity of the firewall?

Have you ever actually looked at a vehicle firewall from the engine side? There are so many wires, cables, shafts, etc. already "compromising" it, most using large and small rubber grommets or boots, that the small 3/8" metal fitting, held in place by nuts on each side, that the ReadyBrake cable uses, provides more fire integrity than pretty much any of the factory penetrations.

factoring in the probability of getting a ticket, paying the ticket is likely cheaper than tearing up a set of tires

pops

traveylin wrote:
If your toad is small consider going nekked on auxiliary brakes and you will avoid unnecessarily tearing up tires do to maloperation of complex aux braking systems

pops

and of course you will be illegal in states requiring braking systems. If the LEO stops and tickets you , you will have to come back to fight the ticket.
bumpy

If your toad is small consider going nekked on auxiliary brakes and you will avoid unnecessarily tearing up tires do to maloperation of complex aux braking systems

pops

Another system that hasn't been mentioned is the Roadmaster Brakemaster.

Roadmaster Brakemaster

It is a truly proportional system and is available in configurations for both air and hydraulic brakes. It has a proportioning valve installed in the tow vehicle brake line. It meters air to the cylinder installed in the towed vehicle directly in proportion to the amount of pressure placed on the brake pedal of the towing vehicle.

Installation is a little more involved than some systems, but once installed it's easy to use and trouble free. We had one in our 2001 motorhome that was still working fine when we traded it off with over 100,000 miles on the odometer. I liked it so much I purchased another one for our 2013 motorhome. We have over 17,000 miles on the new one. It works perfectly and is easy to hook up and unhook.

lryrob9301 wrote:
One system that has not been mentioned is the RVIBrake2 system. I have one and it provides proportional braking, installs quickly, with no modifications to toad or motorhome.

RVIBrake2

gee, that "proportional" blurb in their ad sounds exactly how my brake buddy works. I guess if a manufacturer claims "proportional" it must be so.
bumpy

I believe there are several competing products to the RViBrake. I will investigate further.

X2 on the RVi2 unit. Great product, small, light, and easy to hook up.

One system that has not been mentioned is the RVIBrake2 system. I have one and it provides proportional braking, installs quickly, with no modifications to toad or motorhome.

RVIBrake2

I did some research on the M&G system and concluded it is a definite no-no as far as I'm concerned. If it works for you, good.

I've been working on all my own vehicles for more than 50 years and am reasonably proficient so I think I could install this with no real problems.

However, what mainly concerns me is that one has to splice into the brake line to one wheel and install a 'tee' fitting to route pressure eventually to the toad.

If there should be a failure at this point it could be disastrous. Quoted in the article is that in case of failure one would lose braking for one wheel. True, except for some considerations.

It is generally believed that braking is accomplished about 60% by the front brakes and 40% in the rear. So if this particular line should fail for any reason, about 20% of the braking force will be lost.

The most likely time for this failure would be a panic stop (for any of a variety of causes) or while descending a hill.

But then the tow vehicle, while losing some braking force, would have some tendency to swerve. Worse, however, is that now the toad is not helping to brake, and its full inertia is now pushing the tow vehicle, which is what we were trying to mitigate in the first place.

So I submit that IMHO its a bad system for me.