Trailer brakes won't lock.

[Tsquared]

Greetings All, and Happy New Year.
We picked up our new 5th wheel last summer, just as we were heading out on vacation.
I have not been able to get the trailer brakes to lock-up.
The trailer brakes do work, and will slow both vehicles, but they will not lock.
We have had several different trailers over the years, and on each of them the brakes would lock. It was the point of lock-up that we used to set the controller gain.
Has anyone experienced a similar situation.
Your comments and suggestions are appreciated.

[Racedrvr]

I had a similar situation with mine about 5,000 miles from new. I adjusted the brakes and although they did improve, they didn't perform as well as new. I took it back to the dealer who found that the grease seals had failed and grease was in the brake drums on 3 of the wheels.
I would suggest getting your brakes adjusted. If that doesn't work it's time for a complete brake inspection.

[haggis hunter]

Originally Posted by Racedrvr

I had a similar situation with mine about 5,000 miles from new. I adjusted the brakes and although they did improve, they didn't perform as well as new. I took it back to the dealer who found that the grease seals had failed and grease was in the brake drums on 3 of the wheels.
I would suggest getting your brakes adjusted. If that doesn't work it's time for a complete brake inspection.

Thanks for the reply Racedrvr. The brakes have been adjusted with no inprovement. Will check the grease seals as you suggest.
Thanks again.
Tsquared

[1990Desert]

How old is the trailer? The electro magnets that actuate the brakes lose power over time and might need to be replaced.

If new another suggestion is that they were installed improperly and need to be redone. I have seen the wrong brake shoes put in Semi trailers before so this might be the issue. Part numbers can be confused.

[funfinder5]

Interesting... I've only owned two TT and either would completely lock up the electric breaks (dry surfaces) even with the controller all the way up. These TT's and FW's are loaded down to 80-90% of their GVWR. They are not empty utility trailers bouncing around and locking up a tire at each stop light.

I'm no expert that's for sure, but I don't think my F-450 coach would lock up either (ABS disabled) nor would I expect it to loaded up to its max GVWR (14,500lbs).

What do you do when the road surfaces change on you while traveling? Are you constantly adjusting the gain with one hand while driving? I must of been doing something wrong back in the day as I adjusted the controller once per trailer, remembered the number, and left it alone for years at a time.

[Oaklevel]

Why do you want them to lock up ???? I do not want mine to lock up ! Just want them to stop the trailer...... 10 -14000 plus lbs of trailer is alot of weight to have the tires lock up. I locked the brakes on an empty cargo trailer.....flat spotted the tires & had to replace them.....

[Moose509]

WE had the same issue with our Sabre. Dealer inspected and found as Racedrvr stated, found grease in the brakes, inside grease seal was bad. I use the locked up brakes to make the 5th wheel slide in the truck. Short bed truck, have sliding 5th wheel for manuvering the 5er.

[TGR]

When my 5th wheel was delivered, the brakes hardly worked at all. The dealer checked out my drums and brakes and found them properly adjusted and without any foreign oil, etc., causing problems. Then they took the trailer out on the road and applied the trailer brakes moderately a few times, following a specific procedure they received from the axel manufacturer, so as to not over heat the drums. This procedure set the brake shoes to the drums. Again, this wasn't just randomly done, they used a procedure they received from the axel manufacturer. This fixed my brake problem. You can find bed-in procedures on the Internet but be aware that different applications require different procedures.


It is not uncommon for it to take 300-400 miles of moderate brake usage to set the shoes to the drums. Also, it isn't uncommon for early hard use or constant rubbing of the brake shoes on the drums to glaze the brakes, which causes them to stop working properly. Rather than just going out and trying to set the breaks, ask you dealer or a brake shop to check them out or get the procedure from them and do it yourself.

[rijaton]

If you have an integrated brake controller in your tow vehicle, you won't be able to lock up the trailer brakes since, among other things, it's designed to prevent that.

[EdnKat]

ABS prevents the brakes from 'locking up', once the tires lose adhesion all of the stopping power is out the window. Out of control.

[Tsquared]

Thank you all for your reply's.
I will try to respond to your questions,
- I have had 2 trucks with integrated controllers, and both could lock up the brakes on the trailer.
- Each time I hook-up the trailer, and while driving slowly on a gravel road, I get the trailer brakes to the point of lock-up. Then I reduce the controller gain until the brakes do not lock. I now know that I have max braking to the trailer. The gain setting will change with weight, loading and road conditions
-The trailer was brand new in July last year.
- Will check with the dealer re break-in procedure for the brakes, but they haven't mentioned anything as yet.

[18CrewDually]

Originally Posted by rijaton

If you have an integrated brake controller in your tow vehicle, you won't be able to lock up the trailer brakes since, among other things, it's designed to prevent that.

^^^ What he said. Ford's integrated controller at 15mph will not lock the brakes like many people expect them to, which is a process used to set an add on controller where you would then back off the gain a little to set it. The Ford controller takes speed into consideration and will not give full power at slow speeds. There is a service bulletin on the subject because of so many complaints. This is all based on normal use on Highway surfaces.

[farmncamp]

^^^^ This explains a concern of mine I planned to research more this spring. Thank you!

[Tsquared]

Greetings All,
Thanks for all the information provided during this post.
I have found a video detailing the set-up procedure for the Ford integrated brake controller, 2012 and later.
<http://ca.video.search.yahoo.com/video/play;_ylt=A2KIo9wArsNUMD4AGQwWFQx.;_ylu=X3oDMTByZ2 N0cmxpBHNlYwNzcgRzbGsDdmlkBHZ0aWQDBGdwb3MDMg--?p=2014+ford+f250+brake+controller&vid=560c5f44cfc 4ef074bacdcd5e1594b5c&l=1%3A32&turl=http%3A%2F%2Ft s3.m>
There are several other videos which detail the set-up of after market controllers. Hope this information is useful.

Thanks again

[davido_]

Originally Posted by Oaklevel

Why do you want them to lock up ???? I do not want mine to lock up ! Just want them to stop the trailer...... 10 -14000 plus lbs of trailer is alot of weight to have the tires lock up. I locked the brakes on an empty cargo trailer.....flat spotted the tires & had to replace them.....

Some brake controllers (such as my Tekonsha Primus IQ) have in their set-up directions to find the gain level at which the trailer brakes lock up when the lever is slid all the way to the left, and then to back off just enough to eliminate the lock-up. This provides maximum braking power when needed. It also means the setting will have to be modified to suit trailer load, and road/weather conditions. But it seems like a reasonable starting point.

If your controller's gain isn't set just shy of lockup point, you'll never get the benefit of full braking in a panic stop. If your brakes could stop you in 1000 feet when they're set just below lock-up, then any setting less than that would mean braking distance increases; 1200, 1500... etc.

ABS works in vehicles because it senses that lock-up point, and stays just below it. If ABS hadn't been invented, and instead auto manufacturers weakened their braking to the point that it becomes impossible to apply sufficient force to approach lock-up, the situation would be grim. Fortunately ABS has been invented for vehicles. But for trailers with electronic brakes/controllers, we have to calibrate to lock-up, and then back off just a touch.

[jevanb]

this is what I did, brought the brand new trailer home in 2012, during the test pull around before it came home I complained about the braking, went from a timed to a P2, went back pulled trailer home , still no effective brakes, went out and bought a P3, took back to dealer, they said all good, took back home still no effective brakes, put times back in which felt better, I pulled the hubs and replaced the seals with $15.00 each and I had leaks and only 500 miles on them, better brakes but no effective and no lock up at ~5mph as per the P2-3 directions. took back to dealer (idiots) and factory said all good.. finally replaced the wiring from the pin box back to the mags with MS acft wiring and now I can get whiplash if the setting is too high

[Shermanator]

Did you try pulling the break away switch and seeing if the brakes lock up? Always good to test it anyways....Sherm

[Witch Doctor]

Originally Posted by Tsquared

Thank you all for your reply's.
I will try to respond to your questions,
- I have had 2 trucks with integrated controllers, and both could lock up the brakes on the trailer.
- Each time I hook-up the trailer, and while driving slowly on a gravel road, I get the trailer brakes to the point of lock-up. Then I reduce the controller gain until the brakes do not lock. I now know that I have max braking to the trailer. The gain setting will change with weight, loading and road conditions
-The trailer was brand new in July last year.
- Will check with the dealer re break-in procedure for the brakes, but they haven't mentioned anything as yet.

If you have the new brake shoes, you have to drive at 50 mph then use the controller only to slowly stop and then redo that 10 x's if not you will glaze the shoes and have a problem. The new shoes are alot more aggressive then the old. Not doing that will glaze them and you will have to replace them, That is by Lippert. Had mine put on by them in Goshen last year and they gave me a break in procedure.

[5LowesOR]

I have a 2015 Wildwood x-lite, same issue where the brakes just don't feel like they are slowing me down. If I grab my brake controller to slow down just the trailer I feel nothing. I am tempted to try adjusting the brake shoes, if they are glazed how can I tell? We bought this trailer from an RV show and was the display so the brakes easily had 50 miles on them prior to us taking ownership.

[lbrjet]

The trailer was also driven from the assembly point to a dealership which can be a long ways depending on place of origin. You need to find the problem and fix it. Have you adjusted the gain to the max and still feel nothing with manual trailer braking? If so you need a professional to look at it.


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