Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

[noizmaker]

Previous owner failed to disconnect and broke surge break system.
I'm leaning towards towing approx 100 miles for the off season. I'm trying to decide if it's worth fixing or can these be modified and turned into an electric break system? Is one system better than the other? Hauling 25ft boat @ 4400lbs with a 95 F150 1/2 ton 4x4 5.7 liter. Seems like a no brainer to have some type of breaking system on the trailer with a lighter truck. Thoughts? Thanks in advance.

 

[dan t.]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

Yes you need brakes with your set up.No you cant convert to electric short of replacing everything exept the drums, and maybe even them if they dont have the slip ring for the magnet to grip on. What is wrong with the surge system?

 

[Knightgang]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

Depends on the laws of your state... In GA, the requirement for brakes is over 5K. That F-150 can pull if safely, just watch your stopping distance... 4400 is not a great deal of weight...

What is the brake requirement for your state?
What is wrong with the system, could be an easy fix...

 

[noizmaker]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

Yes you need brakes with your set up.No you cant convert to electric short of replacing everything exept the drums, and maybe even them if they dont have the slip ring for the magnet to grip on. What is wrong with the surge system?

Owner stated he disconnected the trailer but failed to disconnect surge break system from tow vehicle. Something was torn off and never fixed. Boat and Trailer are 100 miles from home for now. I have a pic of the trailer tongue not sure if the damage is there or somewhere else. Maybe the cable from trailer to tow vehicle was snapped and they bled the brake lines to get the trailer to move....

http://s939.photobucket.com/albums/ad237/noizmaker2pb/

 

[noizmaker]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

Depends on the laws of your state... In GA, the requirement for brakes is over 5K. That F-150 can pull if safely, just watch your stopping distance... 4400 is not a great deal of weight...

What is the brake requirement for your state?
What is wrong with the system, could be an easy fix...

4400 plus trailer weight? 25 footer Tandem, 1200lbs? So, i'm thinking boat and trailer are under 6000lbs. Do you still think the F-150 can pull safely?
I'm not sure what the requirements are for Missouri. I'll do some research on that.

thanks everyone...

 

[boat1010]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

I am still not sure what is wrong with the brakes. Are they on all the time? Or just not work? As far as changing over to electric. I did that with my last boat and never did like them. The surge brakes just seemed for me to work better. And you can replace the whole surge coupler and just tie it into the hydraulics and be a done deal. But you most definitely need brakes. It is easy to say just watch your distance, but when someone pulls in front of you and you figure out you can't stop it just a little too late. You can usually anticipate your moves but can very seldom anticipate the other guys.

 

[noizmaker]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

I am still not sure what is wrong with the brakes. Are they on all the time? Or just not work? As far as changing over to electric. I did that with my last boat and never did like them. The surge brakes just seemed for me to work better. And you can replace the whole surge coupler and just tie it into the hydraulics and be a done deal. But you most definitely need brakes. It is easy to say just watch your distance, but when someone pulls in front of you and you figure out you can't stop it just a little too late. You can usually anticipate your moves but can very seldom anticipate the other guys.

Not on, just don't work. I suspect they bled the breaks when they broke them and this allowed them to move again. Thanks, sorry for confusion.

 

[BaileysBoat]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

The break away cable has done what it's supposed to do and locked up the trailer brakes.

The proper procedure is to reset the safety cable;

http://www.tiedown.com/aactuator.html

http://www.tiedown.com/pdf/c100.pdf

And then bleed the brakes.

 

[noizmaker]

Re: Tandem 25 ft B&M Haul Rite surge breaks not working

Thanks BaileysBoat. I'll take a look at the break away cable and inspect the rest of the system. Your links were very helpful.



1988 Crestliner Nordic Crusader 245, 350 Merc Alpha 1

Pic of master cylinder/hitch