Axle issue

[Izzy211]

Recently purchased a new Starcraft 5er. Upon inspection all break pads are shot. Pads peeled off of shoes. Upon farther investigation found axles rated at 4400 pounds each. GVWR of 5 er is 10,500 pounds. Something seems off. I know pin weight carries more load however, I am a little nervous at axle rating. Any help would be appreciated.

[laknox]

Izzy211 wrote:
Break controller st as low as possible. Towed the unit less than 30 miles. This is brand new 2017! My thought was it was towed to the Hershey, PA show with the break away engaged. Either that or it was towed from the show to where I picked it up. Appreciate all of the help.

If the breakaway was pulled, the brakes =should= have locked. Even if they were partially engaged, there =should= be signs of overheating. Drums likely glazed, surface-cracked and/or heat-blued. If this is the case, the dealer/mfr is d@mn lucky it didn't burn up.

Lyle

[DSteiner51]

I bought a 2015 Cougar Lite. It has 4400 lb axles under it. The brakes are ok under normal driving with the gain set at maximum. One panic stop would let me wanting more.

4400lb axles have the same size brakes as the 3500 lb axles although they claim the shoe material and magnets are different. It is not good enough for me. The 4400 lb axles have no options for brake like the 3500 lb axles or the 5200 lb axles. No auto adjust, no hydraulic drum, or no disc brake options. I got a price of $280. for a complete 5200 lb axle with disc brakes. Rather then spending money for new shoes I've decided to make the switch, $560 for two plus actuator and lines. This will only be my 4th trailer I've converted to hydraulic, second to disc brakes. The 5200 lb axle also has the same size brakes as the 6000 lb axle. The Chinese tires are rated over 5000 lb so I should be good to go with reserve capacity on a 9500lb 5th wheel.

An added bonus... while on a cross country if a bearing goes parts can be picked up at most farm equipment store or TSC.

[MFL]

The brake issue will be a warranty item, but should have never happened. If they got hot enough to peel off, I'd want the drums checked/turned/replaced, if out of round or grooved.

The axle thing is marginal, but typical. If they would have used the 5,200 axles, you would have larger drums/better brakes, and added CCC.

Hope they treat you right,
Jerry

[time2roll]

Get some 6000 pound axles and disk brakes all in one swoop :B
Don't forget the new 16" wheels and LT tires.....

[TXiceman]

The axles are barely suitable for a fully loaded trailer, provide they are loaded equally. Typically the two axles do not carry the same load. You could easily overload one axle.

Personally, I'd rather have 5000# axles so you have some reserve capacity. Better check your tire ratings and capacity to be sure you are not close to overloading them.

Trailer delivery folks are really bad about setting their brake controller as high as possible and let the trailer do ALL of the braking and saving their truck brakes.

Ken

[Izzy211]

Break controller st as low as possible. Towed the unit less than 30 miles. This is brand new 2017! My thought was it was towed to the Hershey, PA show with the break away engaged. Either that or it was towed from the show to where I picked it up. Appreciate all of the help.

[downtheroad]

Welcome to the Forum:
Others are correct, the axles are within specs.

Just thinking...
As for the brake shoe issue - check you break controller for proper adjustment and make sure that your break-away pin was not pulled.

[Izzy211]

Thanks for the input. Been using TT and Class C for over 30 years and never have had any problems with brakes or anything else for that matter. Always good to have some different eyes on the issue!

[laknox]

Izzy211 wrote:
Recently purchased a new Starcraft 5er. Upon inspection all break pads are shot. Pads peeled off of shoes. Upon farther investigation found axles rated at 4400 pounds each. GVWR of 5 er is 10,500 pounds. Something seems off. I know pin weight carries more load however, I am a little nervous at axle rating. Any help would be appreciated.

Axles are "sufficient", though I'd like 5k or 5.2k, personally. If this is under warranty, then the brakes should be re-done by the dealer. Sumpin' ain't right, for sure. Double-check that the tires aren't flat-spotted anywhere. I'd almost suspect that the brake controller was set too high or the brakes were =way= out of adjustment at the factory. Also check for any signs of over-heating on the drums. Any issues there, the drums need to be replaced, too.

Lyle

[Old-Biscuit]

Axles are rated to carry trailer weight MINUS pin weight (tongue on TT)

so your 4400# rated axles are 'sufficient' .....not the best but within GVWR of trailer

What is the MAX Load Tire ratings?

[ScottG]

Warranty should cover the "brake" pads unless they have been overheated and abused - which could have happened during the delivery.

[donn0128]

20% of 10,500 works out to 2100 pounds. 10,5 minus 2100 equals 8400. Your axles can carry 8800. I dont see a problem?