Trailer Emergency Brake Incident

[Diamondpilot]

I also have used the smallest zip ties to take up the slack in my cable and many others. They are sacrificial and will break if the cable is stretched tight.

Chris

 

[David_Kb7uns]

The guys at the RV place showed me the lacing through the chain trick, it is a break away cable, so the only time it should come into play if the hitch ball and chains become disconnected from tow vehicle. If the chain is still hooked up I would not think you wanted the break away switch firing off. If the chain becomes disconnected then it is more like a wet noodle and then you have the cable pulling freely through the links.

I have never seen a case where the break away switch would activate with ball uncoupled but safety chains attached.

David Kb7uns

 

[homeputter]

Wow, talk about being hit over the head with a 2x4... guess I needed that. I will re-rout and tighten up the emergency cable. I am not convinced threading it through the safety chain is the best solution. If the trailer came off the ball I would want the brakes to be applied.

 

[swick1]

I think you should put it on a vertical stick above the tongue. This will keep it out of harms way. Lacing through the chains seems bad to me because if it hops off the ball it may get under your truck and pick up the rear end as you slow down. I guess either way is better than nothing. I haul my 1026r on a trailer with no brakes but my truck is big enough to handle it.

 

[JJZ 109]

As others have said, you really just need to set up the emergency cable so that it's not hanging low. I put a loop in mine, and hang it from the lock-pin that goes through the coupler latch.

On one of my trailers I just give the cable a turn or two around the vertically mounted jack.

 

[aczlan]

Wow, talk about being hit over the head with a 2x4... guess I needed that. I will re-rout and tighten up the emergency cable. I am not convinced threading it through the safety chain is the best solution. If the trailer came off the ball I would want the brakes to be applied.

Wrap the cable around something on the tow vehicle so that is is a couple of inches shorter than the chains then. That way the brakes will apply before the chain gets tight.

Aaron Z

 

[joshuabardwell]

Wow, talk about being hit over the head with a 2x4... guess I needed that. I will re-rout and tighten up the emergency cable. I am not convinced threading it through the safety chain is the best solution. If the trailer came off the ball I would want the brakes to be applied.

I have heard this sentiment expressed, but I have yet to be able to find a way to route the cable where it does not get pulled out around tight turns, but it would get pulled out if the trailer came off the ball.

 

[RobertN]

The cable for my flatbed trailer is long; I loop it thru the tryck hitch and back to take up some of that length

 

[David_Kb7uns]

Well if the safety chains are still connected, most likely your trailer wiring is still attached also so you have control of your brakes thus the break away switch is for when everything fails and trailer seperates from tow vehicle.

Another big problem I have seen is people placing the trailer brake control out of reach or in a location that you cannot drive and activate the brakes at the same time. In the Dodge Ram I have the controller attached to the dash above my right knee and can move the lever any time while driving.

I have found that sometimes it helps to put on the trailer brakes a little going down hills to keep the wandering and trailer push down and also for panic stops from drivers cutting you off, also there is a need to adjust for different conditions and trailer loads.

David Kb7uns

 

[GolfAddict]

Wow, talk about being hit over the head with a 2x4... guess I needed that.

It was innocent ignorance, and you certainly needed to be educated as to the danger of that. It was nice to see the civilized responses. Now, if you had responded insolently to the civil responses that were trying to help you see the error of doing what you were thinking, then yes, the 2x4 approach would have been called for...