We will begin our journey soon and have been preparing for months to tow our Durango 4 wheel flat for the first time. Like may others I worry about the reliability of motion operated bake assist systems. I began to think about how I would monitor the unit while in transit. At first, my rear view camera seemed like a viable option because it has the audio and I was hoping I could hear and notice any brake binding but I doubt if I could detect a slight brake malfunction. Has anyone ever used fiber optic cable? I don't have any experience with it but it seems to me that you could install on end in your toads brake light housing and run the other end to a monitor in the RV dash. That way when the toads brake is depressed (even slightly) you will be able to see it via fiber optic monitor.

I have a small red LED on my dash that's connected to the toad brake lights. If the toad brakes are applied for any reason, the LED lights up.

what kind of motion operated braking system do you have? my brake buddy has a wireless transmitter to show when the brakes are applied.bumpy

Bumpyroad wrote:what kind of motion operated braking system do you have? my brake buddy has a wireless transmitter to show when the brakes are applied.bumpy..Does your brake buddy wireless transmitter connect to your toad vehicle's brake switch and truly tell when brakes are being applied? Or, is it connected to the Brake buddy unit, and telling you when the Brake Buddy THINKS it is applying the brakes? There is a difference, even though the two should be one and the same when all is working as it should with your brake system. However, in the case where your supplemental braking system THINKS it is engaging the brakes but is not for whatever reason (as in, when/if it malfunctions), thats when an indicator like dutch mentions that goes directly off of toad vehicle's brake switch, is much, much better. I think thats what the original poster is talking about.And, Dutch is exactly right - There is a very simple way of setting up a monitor on your MH that will tell you when toad brakes are being applied. Using fiber optic stuff is just over-complicating things unnecessarily. All you need is a 12V indicator light of some kind to mount on the MH dash, and some wires and connectors. Readybrake provides most of this with their dash monitor that comes with their brake product, Readybrake. That is what I use, and it works great.

willald wrote: ..Does your brake buddy wireless transmitter connect to your toad vehicle's brake switch and truly tell when brakes are being applied? Or, is it connected to the Brake buddy unit, and telling you when the Brake Buddy THINKS it is applying the brakes? it tells me when the brake buddy activates and knows the brakes are applied. this is confirmed by the pull on the motorhome when applied.bumpy

Bumpyroad wrote:willald wrote: ..Does your brake buddy wireless transmitter connect to your toad vehicle's brake switch and truly tell when brakes are being applied? Or, is it connected to the Brake buddy unit, and telling you when the Brake Buddy THINKS it is applying the brakes? it tells me when the brake buddy activates and knows the brakes are applied. this is confirmed by the pull on the motorhome when applied.bumpy..Unless/until one day the arm on the brake buddy breaks or becomes detached from the brake pedal, and it pushes away, thinking its applying brakes and indicates such to you via that transmitter when in reality brakes are not being applied. Or, until one day the Brake buddy's electronics (or some other part of it) foul up somehow, and cause it to signal to you that it is applying brakes when they really are not. You're basically relying/trusting 100% on your supplemental brake system to know when brakes are being applied and when they're not. When the system (brake buddy or whatever) is functioning properly, this works OK. But when it is not, the indicator could lie to you. Do a search or two on here, and you'll find some cases where this has happened.That is why many of us prefer an indicator wired from the toad vehicle's brake pedal switch. That way you know with 100% certainty what is going on (or not going on) with the toad's brakes. You'll know if your brake system is working right, and is not braking enough or braking too much. I think thats what the original poster is looking for as well.Will

Fiber optic dinghy monotoring | Good Sam Community

22 Replies

wny_pat1
Explorer
Mar 24, 2014
Curt and Marie wrote:
If money were no option I guess I would buy the best system out there. After 26 years Army all I saved was security for life. I don't have the budget to get the latest technology just the common sence and skill with my hands to know how to duplicate working systems. Thanks for all your ideas. Just a newbee
Check this out: http://www.readybrake.com/brake-systems.html. Has to be the simplest, most straight forward, supplemental, progressive, braking system on the market. Uses a straight forward, keep it simple, mechanical design. No complicated electronics to fail.
wny_pat1
Explorer
Mar 24, 2014
moisheh wrote:
Why not step up and buy a real brake system that is not some brick that pushes against a seat. The US gear system is one but there are some others. Most do not require any hookup inside the toad once they are installed.
Doesn't US Gear use a solenoid, cable, and pully to pull on the brake pedal? Very much like Readybrake uses.
Curt_and_Marie
Explorer
Mar 24, 2014
If money were no option I guess I would buy the best system out there. After 26 years Army all I saved was security for life. I don't have the budget to get the latest technology just the common sence and skill with my hands to know how to duplicate working systems. Thanks for all your ideas. Just a newbee
Bumpyroad
Explorer
Mar 24, 2014
moisheh wrote:
Why not step up and buy a real brake system that is not some brick that pushes against a seat. The US gear system is one but there are some others. Most do not require any hookup inside the toad once they are installed. Some even utilize the power brake system. If you need a camera to check up on the system then it cannot be a very good system.

Moisheh

when I first got a braking system I was in favor of the US Gear system. however I priced it and it's installation, and the cost of removal and putting in new toads I quickly gave up on that idea.
I used one of the "bricks" for many years, in many toads.
bumpy
moisheh
Explorer
Mar 24, 2014
Why not step up and buy a real brake system that is not some brick that pushes against a seat. The US gear system is one but there are some others. Most do not require any hookup inside the toad once they are installed. Some even utilize the power brake system. If you need a camera to check up on the system then it cannot be a very good system.

Moisheh
wny_pat1
Explorer
Mar 24, 2014
Curt and Marie wrote:
Thanks Will

There are more than a couple of videos of toads still connected to the back of a coach fully engulfed in flames because the brakes did not fully release. Any professional 18 wheel driver will tell you that you can drag a brake ever so slightly against a rotor and never feel the drag, the friction will do a couple of very bad things. It can ignite the brake pads and/or heat up the rotor and rim so hot that the tire starts on fire. The question of whether or not to trust the electronics of my brake buddy is clear I Don't! I am a newbie and have never towed a dinghy before in my life but at 55 I have accumulated enough life experience to understand the need for redundancy in systems that help insure the safety of my family and others.
Very true. My father-in-law ended up stuck with half a trailer load of rice because of a fire while the other half got ruined from water being applied to the brake fire. A insurance company shelled out over $100.000 for a custom corvette my son was hauling on a 12 car car carrier. He had new brakes installed near Jacksonville Fl and they caught fire near Vero Beach Fl. The custom Vette was sitting right on top that axle where the brakes caught fire and it was totaled. A tattle tail indicator light is invaluable and easly set up.
Bumpyroad
Explorer
Mar 24, 2014
Curt and Marie wrote:
I like the idea of a light on the dash that can be seen from the rear camera. It eliminates elaborate wiring and more systems. I would like to see how that was wired. I am picturing a light, perhaps LED that lays on the dash and is wired into the brake light switch. Toad brakes apply and when the brake lights are on I will be able to see the light laying on the dash light up.

an easy fix would be to get a $9.95 set of magnetic lights at Harbor Freight and stick one of them to the hood of the toad.
bumpy
CA_Traveler
Explorer III
Mar 24, 2014
Dutch_12078 wrote:
One thing that a brake light monitor will not tell you, regardless of the method used, is whether one caliper is sticking and overheating. What will warn you to check for that is a tire pressure monitor system that also reports temperatures. A dramatic increase in temperature without a corresponding increase in pressure tells you that something is amiss and needs to be checked out.
Yup, 3 new friends took Rt 22 into Monatana with it's long 10% grade. They were greeted in Wilson with the sign - Free coffee and popcorn while we fix your brakes. They left $3000 each. :( One went to watch a movie in Jackson on mountain driving...:S
CA_Traveler
Explorer III
Mar 24, 2014
I used an incandescent bulb and base mounted on a small block of wood with a plug for the wires. When not in use it was unpluged and placed in one of the console compartments with the wires.

We also and still do tie a white cloth to the top of the steering wheel to check that it was turning with the camera.

For the MH dash light I located and used a unused wire from the front to the back.
Dutch_12078
Explorer II
Mar 24, 2014
One thing that a brake light monitor will not tell you, regardless of the method used, is whether one caliper is sticking and overheating. What will warn you to check for that is a tire pressure monitor system that also reports temperatures. A dramatic increase in temperature without a corresponding increase in pressure tells you that something is amiss and needs to be checked out.

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Fiber optic dinghy monotoring

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