Tandem Axle Trailers

jgbanshee · Sep 5, 2005

I am looking into buying a tandem axle trailer to haul my JD 4300 around. Some trailers that I have been interested in the seller has stated that the trailer has brakes but they dont work. This problem has come up on more than one trailer that i have called about. Why do so many trailer brakes not work? Is there a common problem with them? If so, what are the usual repairs?

Inspector507 · Sep 5, 2005

Lots of things like worn out linings, bad magnets if electric, bad connections on the wiring or even the wiring no longer hooked up.
If it's set up to have brakes, then in my opinion, getting them working would not be a big deal.

em14 · Sep 5, 2005

"Is there a common problem with them?"
I would say lack of maintenance could be the main problem ...
Leo

Bird · Sep 5, 2005

Like Inspector507 said, repairing electric brakes is, to me at least, a lot easier than working on hydraulic brakes, but if the wheels have been in water there may be corrosion, if it's really an old trailer, then magnets, linings, etc. may be worn out, but in my experience, the most common problem is wiring that has gotten broken or frayed, with insulation broken and shorted out. Pretty easy to fix.

Egon · Sep 5, 2005

Replaced the electric brakes on my trailer last year. Costs about $100cd/wheel for the complete assembly. Very simple to do cause I was able to do it. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Only problem I had was -5C and wind blowing as I have no shop.

Egon

wushaw · Sep 5, 2005

If the price is right for the trailer then fixin elec brakes is no problem but it would have to be known that you will be putting an unk amt of money to fix the brakes.
That price could range from 10 cents to a few hundred dollars.
One thing to remember on trailer tires is most will have good tread but will be weathered and could be a blow out waiting to happen.

andyrc130 · Sep 6, 2005

I just bought a tandem axle trailer a few weeks ago with no working brakes. The guy I bought it from didn't have a brake controller, so he just unplugged the brake wire and didn't use them - for 6 years! I pulled off the wheels and drums, and found that the electric brake assembly was so full of rust I just decided to replace the whole assembly. I bought a set of electric brakes at Tractor Supply for $89 bucks. There are cheaper prices on the internet, but once shipping is added in it's about the same. I decided not to wait around for shipping as I wanted to get started right away. The hardest part of the whole job was just getting the four rusted bolts off that held the old assemblies on. For some reason the bolt head is round and once it breaks loose is impossible to hold onto with any type of wrench. I ended up taking them off with an angle grinder. Anyways, I just did this project last weeknd so it's fresh in my mind if you have any questions. Everything works great now and I definitely think the money I saved buying used was worth the work of replacing the brakes, especially for the few times a year I will actually use the trailer.

skipmarcy · Sep 6, 2005

I bought my 1990 model, factory-built, 14k tandem trailer at an auction in Feb. of 2003 and immediately took it to the auto shop where I worked as a mechanic. It too, didn't have operational brakes. I took the 4 wheels off to service the bearings/seals and inspect the brakes and to my surprise, all 4 brake assemblies were the brand new, unused, original brakes!! Further inspection of the wiring harness revealed that the brakes had been improperly wired at the factory - no ground for the system!! I rewired the whole trailer, cleaned the rust off the brake drums, lubed the backing plates etc. and have had hundreds of miles of great service from this trailer and it's brakes. One simple wire in the wrong place - hope you can find a trailer with as simple a problem. By the way, I also invested in 4 new 8-ply trailer tires, even though the ones that came on it had fantastic tread on them - they also had dry rot and I didn't want a sidewall blowing out on me with 7,000 lbs. of equipment loaded. Good luck in your search for a good trailer !!

jgbanshee · Sep 6, 2005

Thanks for the responses. I figured that it wouldnt be that big of a deal to fix them. I guess I'll just consider about $100/wheel in repairs when offering a price. Thanks again everyone.