Jump to content

Welcome to TheMalibuCrew!

As a guest, you are welcome to poke around and view the majority of the content that we have to offer, but in order to post, search, contact members, and get full use out of the website you will need to Register for an Account. It's free and it's easy, so don't hesitate to join the TheMalibuCrew Family today!

Trailer bearings


Jimmy Buffett

Recommended Posts

2001 Boatmate double axle trailer. Towed the boat 4 miles and the bearing buddies were oozing grease. Burning hot. Any idea what would cause that? Do I need to replace the bearings?

Link to comment

Brakes are giving me fits too. Would that overheat the bearings?

Yes,

The heat generated by the breaks is a lot more than the heat created by the bearings, especially if the breaks are dragging.

Link to comment

The first place I would look is the last chance emergency break. The small lanyard on the traliler, if it gets pulled it will put pressure in the system and not release until you reset the system. There is a tab on the bottom that will reset this, I don't have a picutre so hopefully someone else will chime in with one.

There is also a possibility of a broken spring in the master cylender assmebly. (just learned this from a recient post) the spring pushes against the actuator to give some pressure to release the breaks. From what I understand the breaks get real touchy when this springs breaks, it may also keep them from releasing completely while coasting or going downhill.

Link to comment

I removed the brake fluid so the brakes wouldn't engage and the trailer pulled much better. They must have been dragging pretty bad. I don't need the brakes anyway, so I decided to just take them off altogether. Too much trouble.

Now I'd like to replace the actuator with a straight coupler. Anybody done that have suggestions?

Thanks.

Link to comment

I removed the brake fluid so the brakes wouldn't engage and the trailer pulled much better. They must have been dragging pretty bad. I don't need the brakes anyway, so I decided to just take them off altogether. Too much trouble.

Now I'd like to replace the actuator with a straight coupler. Anybody done that have suggestions?

Thanks.

I went through this same thing last year with my rig...exactly the same as yours. What you need to do is replace the master cylinder and the "shock absorber" in the actuator. Change these out, flush and bleed the system and you are good to go.

If you want to lock out the brakes, you could just weld the inner to the outer on the actuator or fashion a solid rod to replace the shock absorber.

Link to comment

I removed the brake fluid so the brakes wouldn't engage and the trailer pulled much better. They must have been dragging pretty bad. I don't need the brakes anyway, so I decided to just take them off altogether. Too much trouble.

Now I'd like to replace the actuator with a straight coupler. Anybody done that have suggestions?

Thanks.

I would suggest you check your state laws regarding trailer brakes, chances are you're required to have them and removing them all together could cause problems if you ever have an accident.

Link to comment

Trailers weighing 2 tons require brakes in NC. Boat is 2900 lbs dry. It's close.

I would think it is based on the capacity listed on the trailer plate, which I'm sure is way over 4000#.

Link to comment

Quick fix brake lockout. Install the lockout tool using a large enough/strong enough bar magnet to hold it in place and not move under vibration etc. Once you're able, fix the system as Lt Dan stated above. The bar magnet/lockout tool does the job but leaves it in an unaltered state that dosen't have to be repaired should the law bust you for altering/defeating your (legally required) braking system.

Link to comment
  • 10 months later...

Well, I bit the bullet and got the brakes fixed. When I towed to the lake in May to start the season (without brakes) the boat pushed my Denali around too much for my comfort level, so I put the boat on the lift and took the trailer in. The actuator reservoir had rust all in it, calipers done, pads worn. Replaced all the brake lines with rubber lines, new actuator, new calipers, packed bearings. Tows like new.

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...