Trailer Brakes and Trouble

Having some trouble with my new-to-me trailer. It's a 2008 Trailmaster tandem axle with brakes on all four hubs. It's got the five flat hook up, that hooks into my '15 RAM 1500. The brakes are constantly locking up on one side when put it in reverse. If I pull forward a bit, they usually let loose an allow me to back it up - but sometimes I gotta drive forward a several feet (not always possible). Regardless, it would appear they're malfunctioning, intermittently, and I don't want to be on a longer trip and have something catastrophic happen.


This AM a friend helped me trouble shoot the coupler, brake lines, calipers, etc. We THINK we're getting power to the actuator, but there's no fluid being pushed to the wheels. We pulled all the hardware up front and cleaned all the tubes, joints, elbows, etc as best we could (it was rusty in there as this particular trailer hadn't been used in at least 2 years - probably more like 3 or 4) only to not have the reservoir go down at all while pumping the brakes - there was no bleeding to be had.


The trailer itself is in pretty good shape (some fender damage, half life on tires or less, couple calipers look pretty worn, it needs a new winch and strap probably, couple bunks are in solid shape but others need to be replaced, wiring is all spliced together here and there, etc etc). It's not perfect by any means, but for the short distances I tow, it's probably okay for those (only in town, and without brakes at this point). We do put 500 miles on round trip, 2x per summer, too - so those trips are in question for sure). I'm thinking if I need to put all new brake lines, a new actuator, fix a couple of other things, replace tires in a couple years, etc, that maybe I should just get a new trailer all together. I COULD limp along on this one for the rest of the summer/fall, and wait until winter to have it fixed. This is not something I can tackle on my own...and I definitely want it down professionally.


The boat that sits on it is a great boat. Got a great deal on it because it needed some significant work. That work turned out better than we had hoped, and we really like the boat a lot. It looks and runs like it's brand new. Would it be stupid to order a new trailer so we had a perfectly working trailer, and peace of mind? Or should I keep cobbling this thing together? How much am I looking at for replacing much of the braking system? Wiring?


Anyone else been down this road and regretted making either of the above decision (stay old/buy new)? Would love to read what anyone thinks. Thanks!!

I had a trailer in similar shape with the ufp system on it. I was deciding between running a 5/8” bolt through the actuator to keep it from clunking and just removing the calipers and capping the lines or replacing the entire system. I just replaced the whole thing, actuator and both calipers over the weekend. It was just under 400 bucks. If the trailer is sound you would be much better off to spend a weekend wiring and getting the brake system up to speed rather than spending 4-6k on a new trailer. A new trailer would be great don’t get me wrong but you could do hubs, bunks, wires, and even paint all for under 1000 and you would be many times that amount to get a new trailer.

Nice boat and a crappy trailer. If the brakes lock on one side, the other side isn't working. Wiring is pretty cheap. Since you spent big money on the boat, it's time to rewire the trailer and check out the brakes. Why jeopardize a nice boat?

That is kind of what I was thinking too. I just dropped it off with my boat and trailer guy and will have him look things over. I am having him run some numbers for electric brakes too just because I figure it can't hurt to know what something like that would cost. I feel like the electric ones would be far more reliable than the surge brakes. Seems like a lot of people have trouble with their surge brakes, and backing up with them and so on. Maybe not. But I have had some trouble now and feel like I need to get this sucker dial been once and for all.

Back up solenoid went out. Think I'm just gonna fix it.

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Originally Posted by Derwood-Guy

Back up solenoid went out. Think I'm just gonna fix it.

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Make darn sure you're right before you get to work on the solenoid, it is pretty labor intensive as well as bleeding the system.

He seemed pretty certain that was it. Part comes in tomorrow and he said he'll bleed the lines too.

I just dont wanna be doing this again next year

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Originally Posted by Derwood-Guy

That is kind of what I was thinking too. I just dropped it off with my boat and trailer guy and will have him look things over. I am having him run some numbers for electric brakes too just because I figure it can't hurt to know what something like that would cost. I feel like the electric ones would be far more reliable than the surge brakes. Seems like a lot of people have trouble with their surge brakes, and backing up with them and so on. Maybe not. But I have had some trouble now and feel like I need to get this sucker dial been once and for all.

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You can’t do electric brakes unless you convert to drums. Or buy a $600 hydraulic actuator. And you’ll still have your frozen caliper.

Surge brakes are perfect on a boat trailer.

That's what I'm hearing... he just called and said he finally got all the air bled out. Maybe they were never working right in the first place, and I'll really like em :)

I got the selenoid fixed and the brakes bled (by the trailer guy). Towed great and everything. However.... now I'm noticing fluid dripping on the floor from under the coupler.

It may have been easier (but more expensive) to have gone ahead and replaced the whole actuator. Could have been residual from the changeout but it is important to find it and clean it out as it will take every bit of paint off and draw enough moisture to rust quickly on/inside the tongue. Check the obvious places first, ie every connection the mechanic touched. He should have leaked checked the system but I would check the connections between the master cylinder and solenoid and the solenoid and line. If any of these are leaking the mechanic should redo these clean up the damage and rebleed for free. If it’s the seals on the master cylinder like mine was you will need a new master cylinder assembly, a new damper, and new damper bushings. I only recommend that over the whole new actuator because you have already purchased the new solenoid.

I should add that the easiest way to check for leaks is to wipe everything down dry, jack the brake wheels off the ground, actuate the brake plunger with a screwdriver until it locks then spin the wheels and take mental note of how difficult they are to turn. Go do something else for 20 minutes and see if the wheels are now easier to turn. If so you definitely have a leak then go back and see what parts in the actuator are newly wet with fluid.

Towed it a couple hundred miles today. Worked great (for awhile). Stopped for gas and checked for heat on the rims, etc. Cool as could be :) ran a few more miles and wife decided we should stop at the store for a couple things. She went in and I hopped out to remove the cover etc and noticed grease all over the rims... I approached to look closer and the rubber piece that fits over the zero literally shot 10 feet off the bearing buddy. I think the brakes didnt lef loose after my last stop (for whatever reason). Clean em JP, made sure to put it in reverse to release the brakes, and they ran cool the rest of the way (about 30 more miles).

The grease was literally bubbling or cooking from the heat. I gotta figure this thing out...I dont enjoy the stress that goes with trailering mechanically unsound trailer

I had a similar experience after the first trouble I had with my brakes. I attempted to bleed the brakes but ended up pushing a bunch of dirt particles from corrosion from the master cylinder to the calipers and they ended up seizing. I tried to free the piston but once I got inside the chrome plating was coming off so I bought new calipers and a new actuator. I blew out the lines completely with compressed air before connected any new parts. Everything works well since.