lncoop
Vice Admiral
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2010
- Messages
- 5,147
My 21' barge is on a single axle trailer with surge brakes and a Titan coupler. The brakes haven't worked for the two years I've had the rig. I'm confident towing without them, but I've recently learned they're required by law (after re-confirming with highway patrol and receiving different info), so of course they need to be addressed. Several weeks ago I checked the reservoir and discovered there was no fluid in it, only rust and scale, which was no great surprise. I cleaned all of that out and filled it with brake fluid but didn't bother attempting to bleed because I quickly became convinced the entire system was junk anyway (based on knowledgeable input from iboaters and others) and determined the best and most cost-effective solution would be a conversion to electric. I wasn't prepared to spring for that at the moment but resolved to take care of it before the boating season began in earnest. Fast forward to now.
I towed it to a lake 70+ miles away on Friday without incident. I had to come home early but left it for the group to use with the agreement that one of them would tow it home today (wouldn't normally do that, but that's how much I trust this particular group). The trailer sat empty on grass at the resort for about thirty hours and got rained on quite a bit. My buddy called this morning to tell me that the curb side wheel was locked up. I told him to put some weight on it while someone else pulled the trailer and see whether that freed it. It did, and they left the resort that afternoon with it in tow. He called me again fifteen miles from my house and told me that the wheel had locked up again, smelled like something burning, and was too hot to touch, so I went to meet him. By the time I got there the wheel had cooled down and was turning freely again. I had already called for a rollback because my insurance covered it and I didn't want to risk further damage.
While I waited for them to arrive I noticed a very small amount of grease had escaped from the hub, I assume as a result of the heat. The trailer doesn't have bearing buddies. It just uses rubber plugs that can be removed for greasing. I've never had any bearing issues. I periodically jack up the trailer and jiggle and spin the wheels, never finding any play or noise, and I place my hand on the hubs any time I stop while towing and they are never more than barely warm, so I assume what happened was not bearing related but brake related. I'll at least jack it up and listen while I spin the wheel tomorrow afternoon, but I want to know what you guys think.
Based on what I've said does it sound plausible that the brakes could have simply locked up on one side after not working at all for nearly two years? Is it possible that they're trying to work now that there's fluid in the coupler? Could I have created this problem by adding the fluid? What are the chances the heat cooked the bearings? How should I proceed? The trailer mechanic I spoke to several weeks ago said he has seen brakes in that condition that he was able to fix by merely replacing the master cylinder and bleeding the lines.
Need to have this resolved by next weekend if possible, so I'm looking forward to input. Thanks everyone.
I towed it to a lake 70+ miles away on Friday without incident. I had to come home early but left it for the group to use with the agreement that one of them would tow it home today (wouldn't normally do that, but that's how much I trust this particular group). The trailer sat empty on grass at the resort for about thirty hours and got rained on quite a bit. My buddy called this morning to tell me that the curb side wheel was locked up. I told him to put some weight on it while someone else pulled the trailer and see whether that freed it. It did, and they left the resort that afternoon with it in tow. He called me again fifteen miles from my house and told me that the wheel had locked up again, smelled like something burning, and was too hot to touch, so I went to meet him. By the time I got there the wheel had cooled down and was turning freely again. I had already called for a rollback because my insurance covered it and I didn't want to risk further damage.
While I waited for them to arrive I noticed a very small amount of grease had escaped from the hub, I assume as a result of the heat. The trailer doesn't have bearing buddies. It just uses rubber plugs that can be removed for greasing. I've never had any bearing issues. I periodically jack up the trailer and jiggle and spin the wheels, never finding any play or noise, and I place my hand on the hubs any time I stop while towing and they are never more than barely warm, so I assume what happened was not bearing related but brake related. I'll at least jack it up and listen while I spin the wheel tomorrow afternoon, but I want to know what you guys think.
Based on what I've said does it sound plausible that the brakes could have simply locked up on one side after not working at all for nearly two years? Is it possible that they're trying to work now that there's fluid in the coupler? Could I have created this problem by adding the fluid? What are the chances the heat cooked the bearings? How should I proceed? The trailer mechanic I spoke to several weeks ago said he has seen brakes in that condition that he was able to fix by merely replacing the master cylinder and bleeding the lines.
Need to have this resolved by next weekend if possible, so I'm looking forward to input. Thanks everyone.
:facepalm:
