Anyone have experience troubleshooting trailer surge brakes? Specifically drums?

I went to grab the trailer to go haul the boat today and the driver side wheel on the rear axle wouldn’t turn. This axle was replaced last summer around this time so the parts are borderline brand new.

I couldn’t get it spinning until I blew PB blaster into ever hold I could find in the rear of the drum assembly and let it sit for like 20 minutes. That got things spinning but with a noticeable rub when driving.

I drove it to Home Depot (10 miles) and found the drum to be hot. Drove it home, still hot.

Doused it with more PB blaster and plan to let it sit overnight to hopefully loosen things up.

I couldn’t get the drum assembly off after removing the wheel, so I figured the pad was seized to the drum. Hadn’t tried disassembling after I got things spinning, so I might try that tomorrow.

I hate this trailer... a lot.

They’re a PIA
from the back side there may be an adjustment hole for the pads, you can close up the pads to help get the drum off... me thinks

They’re a PIA
from the back side there may be an adjustment hole for the pads, you can close up the pads to help get the drum off... me thinks

If you’re talking about the adjuster that has the Star nut that you can turn... that is seized :/

I soaked the whole drum in PB blaster last night. Gonna take her for a spin tonight and see what kind of heat it generates.

Did I mention I hate this trailer?
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Don't hate the trailer,hate the brakes
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I took my brakes off. But only do 12 miles a year.....

Don't hate the trailer,hate the brakes
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Fair enough, I hate the brakes...

That being said, I’m in the market for a new trailer which has new brakes attached :D
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If I have an integrated brake/hub assembly, can I remove the brakes from the kit so I can at least use the trailer?
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Drum brakes and salt water are a bad combination... consider swapping them out for stainless disc.. they stop better and are a lot less trouble.. I fought with mine ( drum brakes) every year for 20 years.. it's been 3 years since I swapped them out and I've yet to have problem 1... easy to hose off at the end of the day.. as long as you grease the caliper pins each fall before you store the trailer they are pretty dependable.. I bought the "cheap" tie down engineering kit and have no regrets..

I have no brakes on my trailer that work. That is because I disconnected that #^&#^&#^&#^&.
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Drum brakes and salt water are a bad combination... consider swapping them out for stainless disc.. they stop better and are a lot less trouble.. I fought with mine ( drum brakes) every year for 20 years.. it's been 3 years since I swapped them out and I've yet to have problem 1... easy to hose off at the end of the day.. as long as you grease the caliper pins each fall before you store the trailer they are pretty dependable.. I bought the "cheap" tie down engineering kit and have no regrets..

Got a link? My hubs and drums are integrated, so I’m not sure if I’ll need new axles, but I’m open to anything at this point to get the trailer ready in 5 days.
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Got a link? My hubs and drums are integrated, so I’m not sure if I’ll need new axles, but I’m open to anything at this point to get the trailer ready in 5 days.
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https://www.easternmarine.com/trailer-disc-brakes/... I've bought a lot of stuff from these guy's and have never been disappointed.. browse the different models.. or give them a call .. they have pretty good tech support...the disc brakes can be bought with the hubs integrated or solo ..

I've only needed brakes once in 40 years of trailering... that includes trips to the mountain lakes each spring and an occasional trip to lake Ontario... last fall bringing the boat home for the season a car drifted into my lane forcing me into the adjacent lane ...only to realize the entire lane I just entered was not moving and 3 cars had run into each other...I'm convinced that had I not had working trailer brakes my boat and trailer would have ended up along side me in a twisted pile of rubbish... instead the trailer and my 3/4 ton pick up all stayed aligned and I missed colliding with the cars by about 3'.. I'm now a big believer in trailer brakes.

I have no brakes on my trailer that work. That is because I disconnected that #^&#^&#^&#^&.
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The problem I have with this right now is that I don’t know if I can disconnect them the way they’re seized... the brakes are supposed to be disengaged right now and the drum is warming up just from driving.

If I could get the drum assembly off I’d be able to maybe just clear out the corroded brake mechanism, but I can’t even do that...
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Nothing makes me cringe more than dipping moving mechanical parts made out of steel into salt water and expecting them to work again and again.
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Nothing makes me cringe more than dipping moving mechanical parts made out of steel into salt water and expecting them to work again and again.
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Agreed, I guess my only real solution is get an aluminum trailer with SS calipers?

That being said, it’s strange to me that I used it all last season, had no issues, parked it in a field over the winter with the boat on it, used it once this spring to launch the boat, and it seized sitting in the driveway... weird...

I’m looking at the SS parts but I’m worried about mounting that stuff on a galvanized trailer.
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drive to a freshwater boat ramp and back it in, start the motor
Then drive home and spray the brakes with wd40

drive to a freshwater boat ramp and back it in, start the motor
Then drive home and spray the brakes with wd40

I got it spinning last night. But still with lots of friction.

I watched a couple videos of the brake upgrade job and other than some $$ to get the kit, it looks pretty darn straight forward.

I think I’m gonna try the brute force method again tonight and see if I can get into the brake housing. Assuming I can, I’m going to clear it out for this trip up to the cape (the other axle still has working brakes) and maybe just order the kits to be delivered out there.

I wish I had posted about this last year... the project doesn’t look hard to do at all!
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I got it spinning last night. But still with lots of friction.

I watched a couple videos of the brake upgrade job and other than some $$ to get the kit, it looks pretty darn straight forward.

I think I’m gonna try the brute force method again tonight and see if I can get into the brake housing. Assuming I can, I’m going to clear it out for this trip up to the cape (the other axle still has working brakes) and maybe just order the kits to be delivered out there.

I wish I had posted about this last year... the project doesn’t look hard to do at all!
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The pond rinse is for after you do your brakes
If you have a wash down pump you can do the whole thing
Probably won’t go over well on a busy ramp though
A hose, saltaway and wd40 work too
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Agreed, I guess my only real solution is get an aluminum trailer with SS calipers?

That being said, it’s strange to me that I used it all last season, had no issues, parked it in a field over the winter with the boat on it, used it once this spring to launch the boat, and it seized sitting in the driveway... weird...

I’m looking at the SS parts but I’m worried about mounting that stuff on a galvanized trailer.
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My trailer is a 1977 shoreline galvanized... no issues with the SS parts..although it's a lot more rugged than most trailers I see today..
the install is pretty easy... you will have to change the coupeler to a disc brake compatible one.. if you cant get the drums off and are going to trash everything anyway... you can remove the brake line from the wheel cylinder, unbolt it.. then compress the springs on ( I've grabbed the head of the pin with a pair of dikes) the retaining pins from the back and cut them with linesman's pliars.. with the castle nut removed you should be able to remove the mess and deal with it on your own terms.

My trailer is a 1977 shoreline galvanized... no issues with the SS parts..although it's a lot more rugged than most trailers I see today..
the install is pretty easy... you will have to change the coupeler to a disc brake compatible one.. if you cant get the drums off and are going to trash everything anyway... you can remove the brake line from the wheel cylinder, unbolt it.. then compress the springs on ( I've grabbed the head of the pin with a pair of dikes) the retaining pins from the back and cut them with linesman's pliars.. with the castle nut removed you should be able to remove the mess and deal with it on your own terms.

I’m in the process of seeing if I can get the “cheap” stainless kit for the back axle by the weekend. Thanks for pointing me that way
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Got the drum off and pulled out all the innards of the braking mechanism. Then put everything back together and we’ll see how things go.

Edit: it looks like the drum and disc brakes use different actuators, so it’s not as simple as swapping the brake itself. For that reason I chose to have the one axle just non functional.

I’ll worry about the brake upgrade at a later date (when I have more time)
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Got the drum off and pulled out all the innards of the braking mechanism. Then put everything back together and we’ll see how things go.

Edit: it looks like the drum and disc brakes use different actuators, so it’s not as simple as swapping the brake itself. For that reason I chose to have the one axle just non functional.

I’ll worry about the brake upgrade at a later date (when I have more time)
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yes you have to use different actuators.. you also need to wire a reverse lock out ( or put the pin in when you back up) because disc brakes work as good in reverse as forward... as long as your coupler is bolted and not welded 9 mine was welded) its easy swap... sounds like you are headed in the right direction.. good luck!

Best way to fix boat trailer brakes is rip every bit of them out, buy a much bigger truck that has no problem stopping Truck, trailer & boat.
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Best way to fix boat trailer brakes is rip every bit of them out, buy a much bigger truck that has no problem stopping Truck, trailer & boat.
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Thats why I'm comfortable with the situation I have...

Its a 2500lb boat on a dual axle trailer. One of the axles still has functional brakes. And its being towed by an early 2000s tundra.

I'm fine in my opinion.

Had drum brakes lasted a cpl years, went to stainless disc, they lasted like 3 years. they all suck

Best way to fix boat trailer brakes is rip every bit of them out, buy a much bigger truck that has no problem stopping Truck, trailer & boat.
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This
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Boat trailer brak s are just like a brand new car.
After the 1st use they are greatly deprecated
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You can’t make this sh*t up...

My father and I share a truck. It’s what I use to tow the boat places when needed. This morning we swapped cars so I could grab the boat after work.

He drove it to me (10 miles or so with 8 miles being highway speed) without issue. I hop in and get back on the highway to continue my trip to work and the thing starts b#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&g like a wheel is about to fall off.

Long story short, it seems the damn caliper on the TRUCK is now seized, as the rim on the front driver side was extremely hot.

There is some very powerful force in the universe that doesn’t want this boat on the cape for this vacation...

The brakes will be fixed tomorrow and operation “go get the f$&king boat #3” will commence yet again.

I think it’s safe to say some kind of brakes will fail tomorrow as well....
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At moments like this my father used to say; if it floats, flies, or f!@#$, rent it!

At moments like this my father used to say; if it floats, flies, or f!@#$, rent it!

Amen
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At moments like this my father used to say; if it floats, flies, or f!@#$, rent it!

Profound logic!
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Sorry to hear about all your bad luck.

I ordered a kit online in I think 2004 and swamped out my drums for stainless steel disks on a tandem axle trailer in less than a day. I also bought/installed the reversing selenoid which I recommend. The selenoid went at some point and I could still back up with the surge brakes but not on an incline. Driving was waaaaaay easier with stainless steel disc brakes.

The only regret I had was that when I was tightening one of the bolts the wrench slipped and my thumb slammed down on the edge of the disc. Cut to the bone like butter. A tetanous shot, numbing injection, scrub with a stiff bristle brush and 7 stitches later and I was back finishing the job.