Max Brake Controller????????????

[tlbuser]

No wonder you found yourself needing better trailer brakes.

Yea, I'm kind of a push the limits person. Setup to haul a tad heavy. The new engine was a freebie, the mods weren't We also added 4" pipes, an exhaust retarder, 19.5" wheels and 4 wheel discs while we had it apart. It's an all white truck now, want to add some cool graphics but can't decide on a pattern and kinda scared to just let my painter decide on his own

 

[Diamondpilot]

Ok, so we have beat'n the Max Brake thing to death. Anyway my neighbor who is a commercial mower asked me to come down after dinner a week ago and get his dads 1978 Chevy C60 Dump truck out of the muck and running. It has not ran since 2001. His dad passed away and he already has a F-750 dump truck but figured two is better than one.

I pulled it out of the weeds and we put a fresh battery in, some fresh gas, and a little tweak here and there and she started. We had no brakes for the drive home so today's project was to replace the master cylinder that was full of rust and also work on the Power Steering. The PS ended up being simple. The brakes is where we learned something. There was a "T" in the single brake line running from it and sure enough it ran though the fire wall and into the brake controller. It was all hard line with a flex coupler. This controller has to be 25 years old and uses brake pressure like the Max Brake but not nearly as sophisticated. I can not wait to see if it still works. There is no display, just a knob.

Chris

 

[Builder]

I had brake controllers like that in IH dump trucks from the early 70's.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I had brake controllers like that in IH dump trucks from the early 70's.

This controller may be that old. The truck is a 1978 Gas C60 Chevy. It runs really well. I drove it today and after putting on a new master cylinder and a few other little things its a pretty good truck. Everything works on it with the exception of 2 roof clearance lights and the heater blower mower which I will get fixed this week.

I need to weld up a hitch for it and check out he controller or put another one in it and it will be ready to work. We did haul 2 6 ton loads of gravel around the neighbors property with it and it did fine.

Chris

 

[mojoinco]

I have an 84 F250 with one. Simple. The only complaint I have is that you have to calibrate the curve for each load (love the Max Brake for that reason).

 

[Zephrant]

(old thread warning)

I'm looking at getting a MaxBrake for my little Subaru Legacy to haul a tent trailer. Anyone use one on a mid-sized sedan like that?

The MaxBrake is pretty spendy, are their any similar units that I should be considering that are cheaper?

 

[Diamondpilot]

(old thread warning)

I'm looking at getting a MaxBrake for my little Subaru Legacy to haul a tent trailer. Anyone use one on a mid-sized sedan like that?

The MaxBrake is pretty spendy, are their any similar units that I should be considering that are cheaper?

While it would be nice in a Subaru I personally think its overkill. Also, do they even make one for it? These are specif to each year make and model.

All I see a listing for is Ford, GM, Dodge, Toyota, and Nissan popular trucks.

Chris

 

[Zephrant]

Good point - I was assuming that if they made that many kinds, one of them would work for me. Other than some custom fitting for the brake line, I can't see what would be different on them.

Overkill, yeah, but I really like the idea of one that adjusts trailer brake power based on hydraulic brake pressure in the car. I burned up a set of discs on my parent's car years ago because I miss-adjusted the basic electric brake controller.

 

[Builder]

I say if that's the controller you want, go for it. The adjustability feature is nice to match the vehicle brakes.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I am sure it can be done. It will take some custom fittings and changing of the wiring harness. I would call them and see if they have done the R&D on it to give you a starting point.

Chris