Does a break away switch have to lock up tires

[Grinder]

I have herd too many conflicting stories about this. " Cops make you pull the pin and drive ahead and if the tires move on your trailer you get a fine." After hearing this I have been trying to set up my brakes and with an empty 24' snow bird enclosed sled trailer I can't get them to lock even when hooked up to truck they will still turn. I can feel that they are applied. When idling in drive I can pull the controller lever over and the truck will come to a stop but still no lock up and the trailer will hold the Dodge. What is the law. Do they have to "lock up" or "be applied to stop trailer".

 

[medler]

Not sure what the stipulations are to do with wheel lockup. I would think it shouldn't lock up but apply a good current to each wheel

I found out the hard way that mine works. I was out camping and musta stepped on the cable and went to sleep that night. Woke up in the am and the batteries were completely dead

There was booze involved so I am blaming it on that lol

 

[maxwell]

good question also interested in the answer. i know mine dont lock up. i suppose it all depends on the size/quality and strength of your breakaway battery and how much current it can get there when the switch is pulled.

 

[bigz64]

i had a quick inspection preformed on my truck and trailer, one ton with a 30' gooseneck... the BC weigh scale guy said to pull the break away and put the truck into drive with no pressure applied to the throttle let it roll forward and the trailer is supposed to stop the entire rig and that was a pass in his eyes. he did give me a ch!t for permits haha. that was at the sparwood scale through the crowsnest pass

my truck is commercially licensed so i have to stop at the scales...

 

[Grinder]

Brand new break away system with added 12 marine battery hooked in line for interior lighting and accessories.

 

[magnet]

Yes they do have to lock up the tires. Regardless of current applied. As long as you have enough to activate the magnet the brakes should lock. If they don't they need to be adjusted like the old drum brakes on your truck or car.
Apply brakes while backing up a couple times and then try. Also should be a small rubber plug at the bottom of the backing plate you can remove and adjust with a small flat blade screwdriver If that doesn't help you may have to remove the hub and inspect the adjusters they may be seized or the linings maybe worn out.

 

[JDen]

It would depend on how heavy the trailer is I'd imagine. I would expect a 1000 lb trailer to lock up, but I've never seen a 10,000lb trailer skid, not sure it's even possible, they'd have to be some huge-azz brakes to do that.

 

[magnet]

Our tri axle 10k axle trailers lock up when loaded

Lots of maintenance and have to keep everything working good but they do lock up. Electric brakes are the biggest pita ever to keep working properly. Expensive as well

 

[Grinder]

I bought 4 new rockwell 3500 pound assemblies from PA and installed. When I adjust them to lock up when power on and move free when off with a little rub as I was told, driving cooks them hot hot. I then had them set up at wholesale trailer and it just seemed to cook them again and still no lock up.

 

[arff]

As said before the brake adjustment and system inside the wheel need to be in good condition. Also wire connections,emergency battery will need to be checked. Too much resistance in wiring and connection will cause them not to lock.

i was told when we purchased our enclosed trailer they should lock with the pin pulled.
When hooked up the control can adjust braking strength 2 ways. Pressing the pedal and the manual slide. Some controls also have a level adjustment during installation and a adjuster for braking strength.

 

[magnet]

I bought 4 new rockwell 3500 pound assemblies from PA and installed. When I adjust them to lock up when power on and move free when off with a little rub as I was told, driving cooks them hot hot. I then had them set up at wholesale trailer and it just seemed to cook them again and still no lock up.

Possibly 3500 axles but not 3500 brakes? They should lock no problem especially with an empty unit. 3500 is still only a 15" single tire our 10s are dual 16"
If pin pulled in the shop with one of our tracked hydrovacs on it the tires skid and if I manually slide the handle on our controller to apply them they will lock up.
Check your bat voltage? Are all four getting power and ground? Wires not corroded? Surface that the magnets apply to clean and free of rust?

 

[174mcx]

I had a crew stopped at the whitecourt scale for this exact thing, " they have to skid the tires" he said it was a tandem single wheel trailer around 5000kg's. I checked current, good 13v, set them all up till they touched thought i could just go and turn them down at the casino so they never got hot, still nothing. So I went to town and bought 4 new assemblies and installed them right in the parking lot, no different and they where still set up to much.

The Dot officer said " good enough thanks for the effort have a nice day"

 

[moyiesledhead]

I checked current, good 13v,

You can have voltage without having current, especially with a digital multi-meter. Those things are notorious for reading voltage through a high resistance connection. I once read 230 volts on a parking lot lighting system that didn't work. The wire was broken clean off inside the underground conduit, but I didn't know that. Meter was reading voltage through the water in the conduit. Once I pitched the digital meter and started trouble shooting with a light bulb I found the problem pretty quick. Not even enough current getting through at full voltage to light a 15 watt bulb.

 

[magnet]

Agree with moyie voltage means nothing need amps as well.
Check your voltage at the wheels when the plug is pulled. Should drop a couple volts but not much. I'm betting it will go to near zero.

 

[maierch]

. Those things are notorious for reading voltage through a high resistance connection.

That's exactly how the voltmeter function in a digital multimeter works.

As mentioned reading the open circuit voltage won't really tell you a lot. If you can read the voltage across the magnetic actuators. Low Voltage across the actuator tells you its either a weak battery or a faulty actuator. From there you can hook up your multimeter inline on the positive side of the wiring and check the current. Low current tells you to check the battery and wiring to the brakes. High current should point to faulty actuators.

Of course to perform these tests you will need to know the typical voltages and currents for the specific setup you are using.

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[Grinder]

So being that I'm not an electrician is there someone or some place that you can recommend so I can get this fixed. The assemblies are a complete unit drum back plate and internals new. Wiring is not my best suit.

 

[maierch]

So being that I'm not an electrician is there someone or some place that you can recommend so I can get this fixed. The assemblies are a complete unit drum back plate and internals new. Wiring is not my best suit.

I've had some work done on my sled trailer a couple months ago from Canadian Leisure (i think is their name) off Glenmore in between Ogden and Barlow. Right across from the dairy Queen. I was happy with their work and they got me in right away.

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[maierch]

But then again you're not in Calgary so that may not help! I confused this thread with the other thread asking for RV shops in Calgary.

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[Grinder]

Thanks but Edmonton area

 

[Caper11]

When yah pull the breakaway switch, the brakes are supposed to lock. It tells yah the condition of the braking system.


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