brakes front vs rear axle

[schmism]

Was this just discussed? i think i remember seeing a thread, but couldnt find anything so ill ask.

Advantages/disadvantages about brakes on the front vs rear on a tandam axle.

is there a reason they seem to be on the rear when only one axle has them?

[Heywood Jannockitov]

My guess is that if the brakes are on the rear axle of a tandem axle trailer, you would get more effective braking, considering the tendency of a towing vehicle to nosedive if applying the brakes hard. A nosediving tow vehicle would lift at the rear, which in turn takes weight off the front trailer axle. If this was the braked axle on the trailer you would lose braking effectiveness. A bumper-pull would be more prone to this than a goose-neck, I suppose. All tandem trailers I have owned had brakes on both axles.

[dfkrug]

is there a reason they seem to be on the rear when only one axle has them?

I ordered my tandem trailer made from a manufacturer in Fresno and they
always put the brakes on the front axle or both. Never just the rear. I
assumed that was cuz the weight would shift forward during braking.

[schmism]

see i see logic for both,

when you weight a trailer (bumper or goosneck) its always weighted front heavy for tong weight... does that mean that the front axle always carries more weight? (i dont know) or less weight because the tow veihical carries some?

was looking at a new(ish) 18' car hauler and it was listed rear axle brakes.

18' Trailerman Trailer 2008 Model

[Renze]

Advantages/disadvantages about brakes on the front vs rear on a tandam axle.

In Holland we put ABS sensors on the front axle of a tandem because its most prone to brake slip.
Over here, the law counts a trailer with brakes on just 1 axle for a non braked trailer. IMHO, practically there is not much difference between 1 axle braked, or no trailer brakes... when comparing risk to cost, getting 2 axles braked when buying a new trailer, is a better investment than an average life insurance policy.

[Jimbrown]

I think they brake the rear axle because when the brakes are applied it will cause the trailer to tend to pull straight. Braking the front axle might cause the trailer to try and piviot around the front axle and turn left or right.

[JD4610]

On a tandem set with spring equalizers the front axle will tend to pivot upward while the rear axle will pivot downward when the brakes are applied when moving forward. This is due to braking torque being transmitted through the axles and springs to the spring mounting points, which causes the spring/axle assemblies to act like a swingarm.

One of my trailers is a tandem with electric brakes, and when manually applied with full force and with the trailer empty, the leading axle will actually lift several inches off of the ground.

So, if the brakes are only applied to the front axle, braking effectiveness will be decreased because the more braking force that is applied, the more lift and thus less traction the tires will have.

Jay

[john_bud]

In my book, 2 axles = 2 sets of brakes. No excuses.

jb