Late 70's Starcraft Islander 22 ft. Tandem Trailer Question

[MattOli]

Hey Everyone!

Firstly, forgive me if this topic has come up already; this is my first post here!

Anyways, my grandpa has a late 70's/early 80's Starcraft Islander (sorry, not 100% positive on the year) on a tandem axel trailer that's sat out at his house for several yeras now, after he passed away. Dad and I were thinking of getting it out, but not sure what kind of shape the trailer is in. Have a RWD Chevy 1500 to pull it with. Neither of us are quite familiar with surge brakes, so what all should I look for when we go to pull this guy? Especially after sitting outside in the winter/weather for quite some time. Pretty sure the Bearing Buddies on it are good, just don't want anything locking up on me when we go to pull it. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks guys!

 

[redneck joe]

welcome to the forum.


the bearing buddies may be good, but probably not the bearings behind them Replace those first thing. Have to leave the surge brake question up to someone else.

 

[Georgesalmon]

Jack up each wheel and spin it. If its smooth and quiet just put a couple of squirts of grease into the buddy's and good. For the surge brakes they work just like car brakes except the master cylinder is pushed by the trailer instead of your foot. If your going a short distance I would check them at home. There is a cable that hooks to your truck that puts the brakes on if you lose the trailer. The lever that its attached to can be pulled by hand to check the brakes. You might have to unbolt a metal spring clip to actuate it. That's also how you bleed them. You can check for full brake fluid also under a cap of some type they are all a bit different. Good luck.

 

[MattOli]

sweet thanks for the info guys! hopefully won't have to mess with them too much, but we'll see.

 

[GA_Boater]

Before you pump any grease into the BBs, look at the back side of the wheels for spattered grease. That's a sign the seals are leaking. It there is grease, you might as well replace the bearings, races and seals on all four hubs before moving it. How far will you be dragging it home?

 

[MattOli]

Not too far, GA_Boater, 8.5 miles according to google. probably be able to check all that once i get it home to the shop Thanks for the advice! probably wll go ahead and replace the bearings anyways, seeing as ill be pulling it a couple hours into MI to fish.

 

[kjsAZ]

There is a cable that hooks to your truck that puts the brakes on if you lose the trailer. The lever that its attached to can be pulled by hand to check the brakes. You might have to unbolt a metal spring clip to actuate it. That's also how you bleed them. You can check for full brake fluid also under a cap of some type they are all a bit different. Good luck.

Don't do that unless you know how to return it into normal operation. For most couplers this is an emergency brake only and needs some procedure to set it back when you pulled it. On most couplers you simply need a big screw driver to actuate the push pin. Some couplers even have a hole just for that.

 

[airshot]

As mentioned ....seeing how you are not traveling far, I would jack up wheels and see if they spin free, if so add some grease to get her home, then do a complete bearing and seal replacement in the comfort of your garage. If they don't spin free then tackle the job b4 hitting the road.