Brake Replacements

[lawnspecialties]

Took the Cyclone in today to have the bearings serviced. A good friend owns a shop so I know he'll take care of me. He called me with good and bad news.

The good news: The bearings were looking great. No shavings or any signs of problems.

The bad news. He said the first wheel they removed, the brake shoes were totally worn down and starting to grind into the drum (metal to metal). So they stopped the servicing since we might have to do a brake job anyway. It is too late for them to start a brake job right now on a Friday afternoon.

So I called my RV dealership and asked the service manager (another friend) what he thought. The first friend who is doing the repairs said this is very unusual for the amount of time on the camper and considering the condition of the bearings, these pads should never have gotten down this low in this amount of time. The service manager said I could try to call Dexter but he thinks they're going to use the "wearable item" reasoning and I'm pretty much on my own. That may be the case but we'll see.

But here's a big question. Typically when the metal to metal contact has begun, the drum is getting grooved and one would normally replace the shoes and the drums. That's gonna be quite expensive for six wheels. But the service manager said at my dealership that they rarely ever replace the drums. He said unless the drums have warped or are severely grooved, they would recommend just replacing the shoes and go with that. They do a TON of service work and he said he guesses they've only replaced drums maybe four times in his career.

I like that thought. If Dexter does turn me down, this is gonna get expensive. But if I don't replace the drums, that'll save me a ton of money. Has anyone had any similar experience?

[mapguy]

KmYoung wrote:
First thing you need to see what the other brakes look like! How much has this trailer been pulled? Does the tire look worn like it has been locking up?

Kevin

Agree this is a key piece of the investigative part of the repair. All the drums need to come off at one time for comparison...Each axle set of brakes should be compared against the others. IF any one axle set has heavier wear -that set is doing more than it's proportionate share of the braking load and the reasons behind this need to be determined/resolved.

[KmYoung]

First thing you need to see what the other brakes look like! How much has this trailer been pulled? Does the tire look worn like it has been locking up?

Kevin

[64thunderbolt]

is your controller set correctly?

[BobWanderer]

If the brakes went "metal to metal" the drum(s) need to be machined or replaced. The ones that did not get damaged can be reused if they are within specs. Anyone who wants to put new shoes on with damaged drums doesn't deserve your business. As mentioned, brake assemblies are typically cheaper to install than just the shoes and I vote for the complete assemblies. This advice from someone who has done a few brake jobs (A few thousand :W )

[mapguy]

Drums have three areas of concern: thickness- is there enough meat left to remain in spec? Runout- are they still round & wiring tolerance? This is critical for self-adjust brakes. Magnet wear surface. Typically cheaper to get replacement drums than get quality machining on two surfaces...


Putting grooved drums back in service is a questionable practice for a dealer....is this the same dealer who handled your multiple complaints for poor brake performance when the trailer was new?

[Old-Biscuit]

Sounds like those shoes were dragging.....adjusted too tight?

Drums should be turned.........both faces (shoe contact and magnet contact areas)

Alot of times it easier and not much more expensive to buy the whole assembled backing plate (shoes, clips, cables, magnet etc.). Remove mounting bolts and install new assembly

Dexter also has the nev-r-adjust (self adjusting) brakes that are direct replacement.

Brake jobs are never cheap......but one job you should never scrimp on.

[carringb]

Shoes are most certainly a wear item and therefore don't get warranty coverage. Also, it is the trailer manufacture's responsibility to spec brakes large enough to have a reasonable wear life. Drums shouldn't be too expensive. If they are not grooved to bad, I agree re-use is acceptable.

This could also be a good opportunity to upgrade to a better braking system. My next trailer will be getting hydraulic disc brakes.