why no electric brakes?

[BC_FJC]

I know I don't need to have brakes on my trailer but I have enjoyed having them. Get a good brake controller and you will never go back...

When I'm going over obsticals I like to apply the brake manualy and let the trailer slide down slowly under my control and on lose road conditions its nice to have the trailer help with the braking and stay inline with the truck even if you are braking around a corner.

Again I don't think they are required but they are a nice option when setup properly

 

[alia176]

It may be easier to simply purchase the proper width axle with built in Electric brake hardware.

I like that Jordan unit as well. Might have to put it in.

 

[gavman]

It may be easier to simply purchase the proper width axle with built in Electric brake hardware.

I like that Jordan unit as well. Might have to put it in.

Not if you own the m101, as the axle is already set up to bolt on electric brake hubs.
That's what i did.

 

[Brentbba]

In the Republik of Kalifornia, all trailers over 1000 lbs as I recall are required by law to have trailer brakes. It might be 1500 lbs, but pretty sure it's 1000 lbs.

You may want to look into your own state regs.

Better safe than sorry. Put trailer brakes on. As far as brake controllers go, lots of people on this board and elsewhere like their Prodigy brake controller.

For what it's worth, I tow a 3500 lb trailer for my scout troop, with trailer brakes and a Prodigy controller in the cruiser!

 

[Grim Reaper]

The problem is NOT electric brakes, its cr@ppy brake controllers. The vast majority of the stuff on the market is pretty much unusable on rough terrain. The purely inertial units from a few years back are terrible - when you go into a dip they lock the brakes, or when the grade changes the sensitivity goes out of whack. The built-in time delay makes emergency braking very dicey.

I have big 10 inch brakes on my little bitty trailer. Normally I'm only sending 1.2 amps back there, but sometimes when I really load it down I dial up the current.

I use a Jordan Ultima controller which is connected mechanically to the brake pedal via a flex cable. It is _fully_ proportional and foolproof. Touch the pedal lightly and all you get is a trickle of current to the trailer, and slam on the pedal and you get full emergency braking without any delay. It works on rough forest roads and steep trail descents equally well. It works equally well on a 500 pound utility trailer or a 7000 pound travel trailer.

I recently installed an "intelligent" Tekonsha P3 electronic controller on my RAV4 for street use and it actually works pretty well, but it wouldn't be as good a choice off road as the Jordan.

Those of you claiming that you don't need trailer brakes just haven't used the right setup yet. Once you try a Jordan you will never go back.

http://www.bestbrakecontroller.com/

John Davies
Spokane WA

Proactive controllers Mimic the brake application of the tow rig exactly with no delay:

Kelsey Hayes and Jordan Ultima.

Reactive is anything that uses time delays inertia sensors or anything to guess or measure vehicle change in momentum of the tow vehicle to make the decision about how much brakes to apply : all the other Junk.

I run a old style Kelsey on my Tow rig. Once set up it works great. The only bummer is the coarse power adjustment is a big resistor pack under the hood. My next controller will be the Jordan so that I don't have to tap into a brake line.

 

[lx450landcruiser]

Not if you own the m101, as the axle is already set up to bolt on electric brake hubs.
That's what i did.

where did you buy from? do you remeber excatly what you purchased?

thanks any info on this would be great

mike

 

[gavman]

where did you buy from? do you remeber excatly what you purchased?

thanks any info on this would be great

mike

Without looking i think they are Dexter brand and the wheel-bearings are standard for 3500# axles.
I got them from a trailer builder here in Richmond BC and he knew exactly what i needed so i didn't look too closely at them.
I will look at them tomorrow if needed and confirm the brand and part #'s if it's there

 

[lx450landcruiser]

any update?

 

[Degnol]

This pretty much says it all....... and I agree.

The problem is NOT electric brakes, its cr@ppy brake controllers. The vast majority of the stuff on the market is pretty much unusable on rough terrain. The purely inertial units from a few years back are terrible - when you go into a dip they lock the brakes, or when the grade changes the sensitivity goes out of whack. The built-in time delay makes emergency braking very dicey.

I have big 10 inch brakes on my little bitty trailer. Normally I'm only sending 1.2 amps back there, but sometimes when I really load it down I dial up the current.

I use a Jordan Ultima controller which is connected mechanically to the brake pedal via a flex cable. It is _fully_ proportional and foolproof. Touch the pedal lightly and all you get is a trickle of current to the trailer, and slam on the pedal and you get full emergency braking without any delay. It works on rough forest roads and steep trail descents equally well. It works equally well on a 500 pound utility trailer or a 7000 pound travel trailer.

I recently installed an "intelligent" Tekonsha P3 electronic controller on my RAV4 for street use and it actually works pretty well, but it wouldn't be as good a choice off road as the Jordan.

Those of you claiming that you don't need trailer brakes just haven't used the right setup yet. Once you try a Jordan you will never go back.

http://www.bestbrakecontroller.com/

John Davies
Spokane WA