boat trailer brakes seized up...need help

[crghou]

I have a 03 natique on a standard trailer…I guess the upgraded one maybe? The brakes are seized up on it right now, and keep on giving me troubles. Is there anyway that you can disconnect the brakes on it? I don’t really need them b/c it makes the trip from the shed to the ramp and that is about a mile. Anyone know how to disconnect them?

[Batman]

RE: boat trailer brakes seized up...need help

Forward? Reverse? All the time?

[skiswm]

RE: boat trailer brakes seized up...need help

my trailer has a removeable tounge, with that you can undo the breaks with a quick disconnect. Have anything like that? Kind of sounds like someone maybe pulled your emergency brake release on accident.

[crghou]

RE: boat trailer brakes seized up...need help

nah the emergency break thing on the top is ok and down. I have a foldalbe tongue.

It does it anytime. Reverse mainly. sometimes forward. It is very annoying.

I can attach a pic of the boat and trailer if that will help

all i have

[DanielC]

RE: boat trailer brakes seized up...need help

Do you have drum or disc brakes on your trailer?

[crghou]

RE: boat trailer brakes seized up...need help

They are disk breaks.

[inboardsonly]

Did you check the reverse solenoid?

Have someone put the truck into reverse, (with the vehicle's parking brake on) and see if the solenoid clicks.

It has to work, or you will not be able to back up the trailer. Disc brakes
work as well in reverse as they do in forward.

It is the BLUE connection on your trailer wiring, and it is located after the actuator.

Bad ground? Could be you need a stronger spring in the actuator.

[crghou]

does it matter if the lights are plugged into the truck? I dont have a wire connector for my friends truck....I dont know why that should make a difference though b/c when you launch a boat with a tractor they dont hook up the lights.

[Edwin]

plug in the lights

[crghou]

ok....it does it to when they are plugged in. right now i just dont have a plug for my friends truck.

can you bypass the brakes all together? put something so the actuator wont kick in at all

[WakeSlayer]

it is likely your reverse lockout wire, I just fixed mine yesterday. The wire had rubbed on the wire guide for too long and cut through it. Took less than two minutes to fix it.

[MarkP]

Have you tried to lift the tires to see if it spins freely under no load?

[Rick]

i'm guessing the blue wire is not connected to the brake wire in your friends truck You could jumper it to the lights to deactivate it. In on the UFP tongues you can get a block or use a 3/4" nut in the track that the tongue runs in and out on and that will keep the brakes from engaging.

[EchoLodge]

breaks

I find it much easier to use the mechanical lock out... Always works!

[coloradonautique]

CRG,
First, If your brakes are dragging in forward as well as reverse then something is wrong. You could have a frozen caliper or jammed tongue. Jack up the trailer wheels verify they spin freely when the tongue is pulled forward. You can also touch the hub and see if it is hot after dragging the boat down to the lake. The forward direction should always move without restriction/drag.

If only reverse is a problem, then you have several choices:

1) You must use the backup solenoid with disc brakes. It can be energized from the vehicles backup lights or energized all the time (forward braking will not work in this case).

2) You could probably modify your tongue to behave like a mechanical brake lockout. You need to prevent the tongue from compressing when you brake the vehicle. You can use a washer scheme, space filler or drill a hole through both the tongue and frame and secure with a heavy duty bolt/rod.

3) You could bleed the systems hydraulic fluid in which case the brakes won't work either. This would keep the system stock, but might not be good for the internal actuator components and calipers. They will be dry and I would guess the fluid acts as a lubricant and anti-corrosion mechanism.

Here is a link to the actuator/tongue used on DHM trailers. I am guessing they are similar in design to other brands. It has a nice picture of the inner workings of the actuator.

http://www.ufpnet.com/PDF/A-60,%2075...aintenance.pdf

Cheers,

Lorin