Surge brakes not working

[Sookiesteve]

Hi folks Jackie and I are both new to this forum as we have recently bought a 26M from Gerry Berg in Vancouver. Today I was checking the hull and trailer after a two day trip to Friday harbor and noticed that both disc brakes were rusty and show no wear from the brake pads. The boat ramp that I used for this trip is 40 miles from home and the trip is hilly. So there would have been plenty of opportunity for the surge brakes to be activated. I was reading another thread about someone being unable to back up their new 26M because of the brakes activating, I have never had that problem. In April of this year when I first picked up the trailer I drove very carefully and when applying my vehicle brakes you could hear a thunk from the trailer as it surged forward. I did not hear the thunk on my last trip as well as no visible evidence that the brakes were applied. Has anyone experienced similar problems or have advise.

Cheers Jackie Blue

[craiglaforce]

I think unless they are stainless steel brakes or unless you do work on them frequently, they probably rust and freeze in one position.

Or, maybe there is a lockout toggle on them to enable you to back up. Some type of mechanical device which may have been left in the disable position the last time it was backed up?

I've never even noticed if the brakes on mine work or not, but it seems to tow fine. I've only immersed the trailer twice so far so maybe that has helped preserve things. On my last little planing daysailer, I used to launch in salt water frequently and the trailer aged very quickly, even with my best efforts to rinse it after each trip.

[Erik Hardtle]

You may have a fluid leak. Check the level, if it is low refill and check for leaks in the tubing.

To really check to see if they work, jack one side of the trailer up so the wheel turns freely... have another person spin the wheel, then use a large C-Clamp to press in the coupler to activate the brakes.. if the wheel stop the brakes are working. (I use this technique to adjust my galvanized drum brakes)

Good Luck

[jsserene]

The M comes standard with disk brakes. These brakes need a cut out switch to back up. Make sure that the switch is not stuck closed. Then check to make sure the inside of the master cylinder resevoir is not rusted. Next check and see if your calipers are stuck. They could be rusted and not move at all. If you never worked on a brake system before, I would advise you have a trailer shop look at them.

Jeff

[Steve 26 XScuze Me]

I had the same problem, after having the boat out for the weekend I went up to get the trailer and while pulling back down to the water to put the boat on it one of the wheels was not turning. After getting the weight of the boat on it it did turn. I took it to Les Schwab and the guy said the brakes hadn`t worked for a long time. I`ve had the boat for a year so they haven`t worked for at least that long.

The brakes are in good working order now........how does one do an effective job of rinsing off the brakes after being in salt water? I would like to dunk the wheels in fresh water after the salt water bath but that isn`t possible for me without traveling a long distance to do it.

BTW, 40 miles from Vancover (BC?); we must use the same boat ramp, I live in Anacortes, the gateway to the San Juan Islands and launch from Washington Park, is that where you go?

[kmclemore]

...how does one do an effective job of rinsing off the brakes after being in salt water? I would like to dunk the wheels in fresh water after the salt water bath but that isn`t possible for me without traveling a long distance to do it.

Well, flushing kits are available from a number of sources. Here is one source, and these are made in the good ol' USA, too!