Upgrading to disc brakes, have some questions.

[Arcamper]

Our new Montana stops fair I guess. Have not had to do a panic stop yet and hope I don't because I do not have a warm and fuzzy that the 1960's brake technology will work as expected with a 16,000lb trailer. It does have the Dexter Nev-R-Adjust system so they should be adjusting themselves as needed. Anyway I have made the decision to change over to disc brakes since Keystone has not decided to offer this as a factory option yet. They did finally offer LT tires which I got and that's a step in the right direction!
So here is my questions. Who in your opinion makes the best? Dexter, Kodiak, Titan or any other brand. Best price? What will work with my 2014 Ram controller? Right now I am leaning toward Kodiak with a Hydrastar actuator. E trailer seems to have a fair price. I plan on doing the work myself so I think for under $2k I should be able to do it right. Thoughts and comments please.

[me2]

Its not about "brake swept area per pound". It's about where the braking force is applied and how much axle weight is doing the braking.

If you rely on the towing unit to stop the "train" (train, truck+trailer or highway tractor + A or B train), sooner or later it's going to jacknife. The braking force for each trailer needs to come from the trailer itself.

Furthermore, no tow vehicle by itself is going to be able to generate braking forces like a tv and trailer can as a unit.

Case in point, my trailer weighs about 15,000 lbs. I pull it with an 8,000 pound truck. During maximum braking, I'm at the point of skidding tires with 23,000 pounds on them.

If you pulled my trailer with a 20,000 pound Class 8 tractor and relied soley on it's brakes, you'd have only 20,000 + the pin weight of the trailer at the point of skidding. And you'd be stopping 35,000 pounds, not 23,000 pounds. And the unit would jacknife if you applied the brakes hard and the truck and trailer weren't perfectly aligned or traction wasn't good.

In fact, my truck and trailer with properly working brakes on both would outstop the class 8 truck pulling the trailer with no brakes by quite a bit.

[hone_eagle]

Dapper I think you are really searching there , comparing loco loads and semi loads ?
To make a true comparision you need brake swept area per pound.
just throwing out 80,000# trucks or million # trains is not honest .
apples and oranges?

we are not even talking fruit here.

[dapperdan]

me2 wrote:

YZ wrote:
Or I could be towing a trailer under 10K with a 2500 or 3500.. the issue is the same... if your trailer is pushing your TV around, then you don't have enough TV.. tell yourself anything you want...

folks think that as long as a truck can pull a trailer then all is cool,..the brakes on a trailer should be able to handle the trailer....

it is all a circle..

No it isn't. I'm pulling a 14K trailer with a SRW F350 truck. Works excellent. Just like a 20K highway tractor can pull a 100,000 pound B train. What do you think stops the second trailer ? The truck ?

Do you understand what causes a jacknife when braking with a trailer ? Too much braking on the tow vehicle relative to the trailer.

TRAILERS MUST BE ABLE TO STOP THEMSELVES !

Do you think the locomotive stops the train ? Not even close.

Me2 has this EXACTLY right!! I have driven truck most of my life, it takes GOOD brakes on a trailer to stop the rig! I have had the service air line come off the trailer and let me tell you the tractor won't even come close to stopping the rig!

Next time you're in a truck stop ask a driver if his tractor brakes will stop his entire rig, see what he says.

Oh and by the way most all the semi trucks you see going down the highway today have DRUM brakes on those trailers!! Some models of tractors actually DO have disk brakes.

After owning two trailers with drum brakes and now owing one with disk brakes, I'll never own another trailer with drum brakes either! I think OP has enough info from his posting now to make an accurate decision.

Dan

[hone_eagle]

Trailers must be able to stop themselves ?
HAHAH
with drums the same size as my old Pinto? Stopping a trailer that weighs 5X the car?
HAHA
From cold ,once and only once will they function like a brake .......maybe.
get them warmed up and then from 50 mph I doubt they will be there at all by the end.
Ever hear the term 'whistle past the graveyard'?
The train analogy is pretty desperate eh?

[LOFAT36]

Happens on any site you visit, stories, blah, blah etc

[ol_Bombero-JC]

Arcamper wrote:
Our new Montana stops fair I guess. Have not had to do a panic stop yet and hope I don't because I do not have a warm and fuzzy that the 1960's brake technology will work as expected with a 16,000lb trailer. It does have the Dexter Nev-R-Adjust system so they should be adjusting themselves as needed. Anyway I have made the decision to change over to disc brakes since Keystone has not decided to offer this as a factory option yet. They did finally offer LT tires which I got and that's a step in the right direction!
So here is my questions. Who in your opinion makes the best? Dexter, Kodiak, Titan or any other brand. Best price? What will work with my 2014 Ram controller? Right now I am leaning toward Kodiak with a Hydrastar actuator. E trailer seems to have a fair price. I plan on doing the work myself so I think for under $2k I should be able to do it right. Thoughts and comments please.

Sure got off topic, huh!

Maybe you will get some (more) worthwhile comparison info, rather than drivel about locomotives, etc...:R


~

[LOFAT36]

Rubber hoses from the rotors to steel lines for the rest of the install & rubber hose from steel lines to the actuator.

[Bob_Vaughn]

Do these disc brake kits use tubing or hoses??

[me2]

YZ wrote:
Or I could be towing a trailer under 10K with a 2500 or 3500.. the issue is the same... if your trailer is pushing your TV around, then you don't have enough TV.. tell yourself anything you want...

folks think that as long as a truck can pull a trailer then all is cool,..the brakes on a trailer should be able to handle the trailer....

it is all a circle..

No it isn't. I'm pulling a 14K trailer with a SRW F350 truck. Works excellent. Just like a 20K highway tractor can pull a 100,000 pound B train. What do you think stops the second trailer ? The truck ?

Do you understand what causes a jacknife when braking with a trailer ? Too much braking on the tow vehicle relative to the trailer.

TRAILERS MUST BE ABLE TO STOP THEMSELVES !

Do you think the locomotive stops the train ? Not even close.

[YZ]

Or I could be towing a trailer under 10K with a 2500 or 3500.. the issue is the same... if your trailer is pushing your TV around, then you don't have enough TV.. tell yourself anything you want...

folks think that as long as a truck can pull a trailer then all is cool,..the brakes on a trailer should be able to handle the trailer....

it is all a circle..

happy rv'ing...

[me2]

YZ wrote:

me2 wrote:
Here is my disk brake/ torsion axle swap. Its on its 6th year now, totally trouble free. I would never own a big 5er without disk brakes.

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/23960591.cfm

Or, I would never own a big 5er with a TV that could handle it...

however, many on the road hold either above opinion...

Let me guess... you own a MDT or an HDT ?

Anyone that knows anything about hauling knows that trailers are supposed to stop themselves. That is why they put brakes on them.

A highway tractor weighing 20,000 pounds easily handles setups with GCWs of 120,000 pounds. There is nothing wrong with using a 7500 pound pickup truck on a setup with a GCW of 20-30,000 pounds. You don't need a medium duty truck if the trailer is set up properly.

[YZ]

me2 wrote:
Here is my disk brake/ torsion axle swap. Its on its 6th year now, totally trouble free. I would never own a big 5er without disk brakes.

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/23960591.cfm

Or, I would never own a big 5er with a TV that could handle it...

however, many on the road hold either above opinion...

[me2]

Here is my disk brake/ torsion axle swap. Its on its 6th year now, totally trouble free. I would never own a big 5er without disk brakes.

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/23960591.cfm

[YZ]

rjsurfer wrote:
My Titan disc brake system has NO delay, and I'd even go so far as to say it reacts faster than my electric drum brakes ever did.

I'm running all metal brake lines, maybe a difference?

Remember the magnet has to be drawn to the drum then has to be pulled along (rotated) until it generates enough force to the brake shoes all through a mechanical linkage.

If your disc brake system has a noticible delay there is a problem with the setup.

YZ, do you have a disc brake system on your trailer?

___________________
Ron,

No, but I have been following this thread on various forums. Opinions are quite disparate.

It sounds like yours are electric vs hydraulic.

I had originally thought that I made need these (hence my interest) but with road experience, it because a non issue. I have more truck than I need for my rig....even with emergency stops.

One thing less to buy 🙂

YZ





Ron W.

[C_Schomer]

Performance Trailer Braking is another vendor that sells KOdiak/Titan. I see him every year at Quartzite. Ron Russell 405-626-7009. Ronald_russell@sbcglobal.net or www.titandist.com