Trailer brakes weak, a few questions:
32 foot TT, about 7000 pounds plus our gear and stuff: I've noticed the brakes are underperforming substantially. Got the gain on the Prodigy turned all the way up, when I grab the lever and throw ...
Forum Discussion
Update:
I pulled one hub apart today to have a look in there.
They are Dexter and I recorded the ID tag info for part numbers etc. Forgot to measure the ID of the drum, but I measured the OS at 12 inches.
Shoes are ok, some wear but still lots of life left on them.
They are not self adjusting.
I checked the rub mark of the magnet travel on the backing plate. It was moving the max amount it could travel. Looks like it's been years since they were adjusted. Ive never adjusted them. The wheel spins freely with no drag.
Everything was in good shape in there. Some wear on the magnet and drum, but not excessive.
I checked to make sure each wheel was operating, and adjusted the shoes quite a bit until I had the slight drag needed for proper operation.
Didn't take the hubs off the other 3, figured they'd all be about the same.
And as an added bonus, the hubs are equipped with the easy lube grease nipple thingy. Bonus! I own 2 grease guns, went hunting for them tonight. You think I could find them?..... Nope, no idea where they are. Oh well, they didn't have the right grease anyways, guess I'll buy another one and get some good high temp grease.
Hooked it up and took it for a boot, brakes are now satisfactory. Had to turn the gain way down on my Prodigy to avoid dragging the tires on the pavement.
But while I was under there I noticed the tires have really strange wear patterns on the tread.... sort of a cupping wear pattern. One tire has the tread chewed right off on the inside and is badly cracked. Hmmmm.... Gotta buy a new one. Odd date codes too. All letters. Hmmmm again. Goodyear Marathons for 3, one China bomb mismatch. Spare is brand new, never used.
Thanks for the help and input everyone. :)
I pulled one hub apart today to have a look in there.
They are Dexter and I recorded the ID tag info for part numbers etc. Forgot to measure the ID of the drum, but I measured the OS at 12 inches.
Shoes are ok, some wear but still lots of life left on them.
They are not self adjusting.
I checked the rub mark of the magnet travel on the backing plate. It was moving the max amount it could travel. Looks like it's been years since they were adjusted. Ive never adjusted them. The wheel spins freely with no drag.
Everything was in good shape in there. Some wear on the magnet and drum, but not excessive.
I checked to make sure each wheel was operating, and adjusted the shoes quite a bit until I had the slight drag needed for proper operation.
Didn't take the hubs off the other 3, figured they'd all be about the same.
And as an added bonus, the hubs are equipped with the easy lube grease nipple thingy. Bonus! I own 2 grease guns, went hunting for them tonight. You think I could find them?..... Nope, no idea where they are. Oh well, they didn't have the right grease anyways, guess I'll buy another one and get some good high temp grease.
Hooked it up and took it for a boot, brakes are now satisfactory. Had to turn the gain way down on my Prodigy to avoid dragging the tires on the pavement.
But while I was under there I noticed the tires have really strange wear patterns on the tread.... sort of a cupping wear pattern. One tire has the tread chewed right off on the inside and is badly cracked. Hmmmm.... Gotta buy a new one. Odd date codes too. All letters. Hmmmm again. Goodyear Marathons for 3, one China bomb mismatch. Spare is brand new, never used.
Thanks for the help and input everyone. :)
