Toad Brake System (your opinion)

Moved from class A forum

Dutch_12078 wrote:
Our ReadyBrute Elite tow bar has an integrated ReadyBrake auxiliary brake system. The ReadyBrake system is entirely mechanical, so there are no electronics, motors, or compressors to fail. It's also fully proportional and after the initial installation only requires snapping on a cable to hook up. We've used ours for about 6 years now, and it's been very reliable and maintenance free.

My vote as well, no matter what your coach might be. Also the best bang for the buck.

Used a Brake buddy for ten years without any problems...gets very old moving in in and out.

Last year we upgraded to the Invisi-Brake by Roadmaster, installed by Camping world. I would not recommend it for anyone! It didn't fit under the drivers seat in our Jeep Liberty, but occupies the floor of the rear seat. It indicates its activated whenever my exhaust brake is activated. To do it again I would go with a air connected system.

I was using the Ready Brake Elite, but when I traded the toad I wanted to be able to tow either of my vehicles and any future ones.
I went for the Patriot system which works fine but takes a few more minutes to setup.

I would still recommend the Ready Brake overall, but my neighbor did have some vandal cut off the cable that protruded from the front of his toad. You can hide it so I guess it's no big deal (no one ever cut mine off).

Chris

ReadyBrake is what I recommend...but when you see a toad with a ReadyBrake you are not looking at a FNG !

Another ReadyBrute Elite user.

Dutch_12078 wrote:

DSDP Don wrote:
...the one most talk about is the Ready Brute with the ReadyBrake system. It's a surge brake that is attached to the tow bar and when you slow down, pressure is applied to the surge brake which in turn pulls a cable attached to your brake pedal. The cable is permanently attached and only takes moments to connect. I think it's one of the best, but in my opinion loses it's effectiveness once the air in the power booster is depleted. It needs an air pump.

NSA does offer an optional vacuum pump for the ReadyBrake that maintains a "live" brake booster. It's easy to test and see if one would be effective on a given toad before buying it. Just run a predetermined course with a variety of stops using the standard ReadyBrake setup, and then run the same course with the toad engine running at idle to maintain the vacuum booster. If the difference is noticeable, add the pump.

..To add onto that:

On some vehicles like Ford's hybrids, (our Ford Fusion hybrid being one example), power braking is on ALL the time, even when engine, ignition is off. That being the case, the power booster is never depleted, so the Readybrake never loses any effectiveness like DSP Don alludes to. No need for a separate, optional vacuum pump in this case.

Our previous vehicle we flat towed, a Kia Sedona minivan, did not have this. And, yes, once the air in the power booster depleted, the Readybrake had to pull harder on the cable to engage the brakes. However, the Readybrake actuator is designed to handle this, and I found it did fine, with the power braking (currently with Fusion) or without (previously, on the Kia van).

I agree with Dutch, its a good idea to run the test he described, to see if the pump is worth adding or not. You may or may not notice enough difference to be worth it. I did not.

Will

DSDP Don wrote:
...the one most talk about is the Ready Brute with the ReadyBrake system. It's a surge brake that is attached to the tow bar and when you slow down, pressure is applied to the surge brake which in turn pulls a cable attached to your brake pedal. The cable is permanently attached and only takes moments to connect. I think it's one of the best, but in my opinion loses it's effectiveness once the air in the power booster is depleted. It needs an air pump.

NSA does offer an optional vacuum pump for the ReadyBrake that maintains a "live" brake booster. It's easy to test and see if one would be effective on a given toad before buying it. Just run a predetermined course with a variety of stops using the standard ReadyBrake setup, and then run the same course with the toad engine running at idle to maintain the vacuum booster. If the difference is noticeable, add the pump.

FoxNovGolf.....This is my point of view and I always tell people the same thing. Almost any product you buy, you can purchase Good, Better, and Best, with the exception of braking systems. If I gave you $5000.00 you would still have a hard time picking a system. The reason for this.....these systems come in several types....some are designed for DP's, some use pumps that push against the brake pedal, some are hidden, some have to be installed on the floor each time and then the one most talk about is the Ready Brute with the ReadyBrake system. It's a surge brake that is attached to the tow bar and when you slow down, pressure is applied to the surge brake which in turn pulls a cable attached to your brake pedal. The cable is permanently attached and only takes moments to connect. I think it's one of the best, but in my opinion loses it's effectiveness once the air in the power booster is depleted. It needs an air pump.

So....you have many choices. Some provide proportional braking, some are good just for panic stops (probably more for lightweight cars) and some can be activated from the cab. They all work, you just can't get all the features in one unit. I have the SMI air system and it works great. It has a breakaway and a light that tells me when the breaks are being applied. It works for me, because it's designed for a DP and I've been able to move it to three different vehicles. It's still not the perfect system.

Thank you, everyone. I messed up by not stating I would be hauling with a gas class a. But, that is how you learn, by making mistakes (except for, of course, EOD). Again, many thanks to all who responded.