Need stronger brakes, what can I do?

[jonsstihl]

thanks for the explanation of the friction strength I was assuming the friction we were talking about was the friction of the brake shoes on the drum but it makes sense now that I know the friction from the magnet causes it to act on a lever which then applies force to the brake shoes.

 

[4570Man]

thanks for the explanation of the friction strength I was assuming the friction we were talking about was the friction of the brake shoes on the drum but it makes sense now that I know the friction from the magnet causes it to act on a lever which then applies force to the brake shoes.

I had a trailer that wouldn’t stop and that was the problem. The magnet drag area was worn with groves in it. The pad drag area was pretty good. I guess it worked fine when the drums and the magnets matched but the previous owner had put new brake assemblies on it. The magnet was only touching on 2 small places and didn’t have enough friction to work. I surfaced the magnet drag area on the drums and they worked fine. If it was a lighter trailer I’d recommend new drums but 10k axel brakes are expensive. Like $200 each for just the drums.

 

[CoyPatton]

Mikester diggin it - Who are you asking? I am the OP and only haul 10,500 pounds.

Thanks,
Blane

When I read your initial comment I understood 10,500 lbs was the weight of your tractor.
I have no ideal where you got that number, but I can 100% assure you that you are hauling a lot more than that.
Why? You have nit factored in the weight of the trailer for one.
Also it would not surprise me if there are additional weighted items you have overlooked.
Weights from a manual are typically delivered weights. That varies by mfg, but fuel is never included it that weight. Other items would not be included also. You might want to go to a scale sometime while loaded to get an accurate weight you are hauling.

If your brakes are locking up empty on pavement, it would appear they are working very well.

 

[BWSwede]

I am the OP and for some reason I missed notification that there were new posts to the thread.

Very interesting posts, definitely things for me to watch out for in the future regarding wear items.

I have not checked voltage at the magnets yet but the controller is telling me it is putting out 12 (or was it 13?). I am not sure how much of that makes it back to the magnets.

CoyPatton: I got the weight of the tractor by driving it (it is street legal) to the scales near my house. The weight can vary several hundred pounds each time depending on the implements I have attached.

The following are my axle weights on one particular trip:
Truck empty - front 4000 pounds, rear 2700 pounds
Truck and trailer - front 3350, rear 5250, trailer 10,660.

These tell me the weight of the tractor and trailer was 12,560 pounds on that trip.

Someone commented that since I can lock the trailer wheels on dry pavement my brakes must be good. The only time I can lock my wheels on asphalt is when the trailer is not loaded. With a load I can't even come close to locking of the wheels.


Thank you all for your input, I really appreciate it.

Blane

 

[ovrszd]

Yeah, my GN trailer has very good brakes. But it won't slide the tires with a load on.

 

[CoyPatton]

The point that your brakes do not lock up with a 10,000+ lbs load in it is not surprising. Realize that you are now stopping 10,000+ more lbs.
One more thing to check would be ‘glazing’ of both your drums and your brake linings in addition to the wiring and the brake magnets.
A larger gauge wire for your brakes may be needed to reduce voltage drop. Also check your ground connection for your brakes. It may be worth running a second heavier gauge wire for a ground wire from the trailer wiring connection to the brakes.
It is not a complicated system, but dies have lots of components that can fail to function at optimal levels. If 2 or more combine, it can be difficult to located all the issues.

 

[Renze]

Trucks or truck tractors having three or more axles and manufactured before July 25, 1980, are not required to have brakes on the front wheels.

Then you better not drive them without trailer i. e. No 5th wheel load...

 

[LouNY]

Then you better not drive them without trailer i. e. No 5th wheel load... ��

They were driven bob tailed when needed or empty in the case of straight trucks,
of course since that was 1980 which is now 40 years ago not many of those trucks are still in active service.

 

[Peter 315]

They were driven bob tailed when needed or empty in the case of straight trucks,
of course since that was 1980 which is now 40 years ago not many of those trucks are still in active service.

They called it a west coast front end , Remember the abs brakes back then the trucks would not stop...

 

[LouNY]

They called it a west coast front end , Remember the abs brakes back then the trucks would not stop...

Oh they would stop just fine,
as long as you were headed up hill.