Do you have brakes on your 13' trailer?

[Brian B-P]

Hi: I just voted...NO!!! The Mfg. saw fit not to fit them...

Auto manufacturers saw fit to build cars without seatbelts (and then with only lap belts), without safety glass, without brakes on all four wheels, without redundant braking systems, without side impact protection structure, and without a lot of other things which we now take for granted. All were added only due to legal requirements, long after the technology was available. Now, many cars still do not have anti-locking brakes and other features which are almost universally recognized as valuable for safety.

The manufacturer of any product - including a car or a travel trailer - makes the best business decision possible, normally in compliance with at least the legal minimum requirements. While than means some safety features are included to make the product desirable in the market, it does not mean building the best product or even an adequate product, especially when judged by later standards. As consumers we must pay for the cost of building any product, and we are often unwilling to pay for features even though they would be beneficial to us.

If it were 1977, the lack of brakes would be more acceptable, but it's not 1977. Our cars get upgraded by being replaced, and since most are worn out within 15 years most on the road are reasonably "up to standard". Our trailers last much longer so are likely to lag behind; fortunately, in this aspect (brakes) they are practical to upgrade.

[Brian B-P]

...I am still using the original coupler and safety chains(with hooks) so should I replace them as well?

Do the chains and coupler meet current standards for design and performance? Probably yes. Are they limiting the safe performance of the vehicle? Probably not. As long as they are in good shape, I don't see a need to replace them, and don't see it as the same situation as the brakes.

The hooks on the chains may be a different matter, if their design does not meet current standards. If they are just open hooks of questionable strength, then I would replace them. The hooks on the end of my Boler's chains are a bizarre design which I assume is no longer made, but they latch securely and are in sound condition so I continue to use them.

[Jim Hovind]

The Buro 13' presently does not have brakes, our 25' Sunlite does have brakes.
We pulled the Burro last year to New Mexico/ Arizona and back for 16 days and went through 2 ice storms from the Twin Cities to Kansas City and the same on the way back.
Even in the ice no brakes behind the Surburban was no problem.

This year towing with a 4 cyl Senoma or the 54F100 I plan on adding brakes during the Beaten Burro Rehab, along with parellel leaf springs and a new axle.

[Alf S.]

Hi: I don't see many Vintage car owners retro fitting their autos with seatbelts,abs brakes, safety glass and other safety features we take for granted on modern autos! A lot of these safety features have been put in place by legislation to protect US the consumer from our own stupidity!!! Now excuse me while I go and stir the pot some more.
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Daniel V.]

I still like to believe that most of today's inventions, standards, and laws are the result of past mistakes (with assorted lawsuits) that we keep learning from. The fact that we didn't know better back then doesn't make it OK in my opinion to drive, for example, a vintage car or any car without seatbelts, now that both science and legislation in most locations agree on that subject. But I guess we can't really prove what is better and it does all boil down to the unbreakable law of physics, natural selection, and guardian angels.

[Brian B-P]

I don't see many Vintage car owners retro fitting their autos with seatbelts,abs brakes, safety glass and other safety features we take for granted on modern autos!

Perhaps it's just where I live, but I see exceptionally few truly vintage cars on the road, and some of those are operated under antique licenses which permit basically only parade use.

Many of the "old" cars we see on the road are "street rods" equipped with quite modern chassis components, and even retrofitted modern seatbelts and safety glass.

A lot of these safety features have been put in place by legislation to protect US the consumer from our own stupidity!

I'm not suggesting that anyone in this forum is "stupid", but I do think that sometimes we need to be protected from our own innocent ignorance. If something is required then we will have it, even if we didn't know that we should have it. Some government requirements may be inappropriate, but something as fundamental as having brakes seems reasonable to me.

I think that the legal requirements for trailer brakes would be more stringent than they currently are in most North American jurisdictions if recreational trailer towing were more common, and if such requirements were more enforceable. The really stringent requirements for motor vehicles are at the federal level and apply to new vehicles; it is difficult to set similar requirements for trailers at that level because it cannot be known what tow vehicle will be used.

[Roger H]

Alf, merely that someone made a decision at a factory or design facility about how to equip a vehicle doesn't make it a correct or good decision. My '87 Burro 17 had a 2000 lb Dexter #9 axle under it without brakes. The trailer weighed 2,200 lbs unladen. Now, according to Iowa law, trailers under 3,000 lbs don't need brakes, but was it a good design decision to put an axle under it that was too light for the weight of the trailer alone without cargo? It was probably more that they had it in stock rather than ordering and waiting for an axle of proper capacity. After all, who looks at the axle tags on a new trailer anyway?

I replaced it with a #10 Dexter rubbered for 3500 lbs with brakes. What a difference!

Cars have had seatbelts mandatory since 1966, BTW, so as Brian suggests, there aren't many cars on the roads any longer that didn't come with seatbelts as standard equipment. I personally don't like ABS brakes, but it won't be too many years that there will be very few cars without those and airbags on them as well.

Trailer brakes are a good choice.

Roger

[Roger H]

Hi: I love a "comfortable" discussion...and when the time comes to replace the 30 yr. old axle I may adjust my position "BUT" I am still using the original coupler and safety chains(with hooks)...that look like safety pins on steroids... so should I replace them as well???
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

Are the safety chains and hooks questionable? If so, then yes, you should replace them.

Roger

[Alf S.]

Hi: My motto is "Never drive faster than your guardian angel can fly"
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Doug & Anna-Marie P]

We replaced our axle in our boler a couple of years ago and had Reace put the brakes on too.
Glad we did because we know we are over our limit for our car (99 Chev Malibu) and "I" feel safer with the brakes when I am driving.
Our next vehicle will have a higher towing capacity, but still glad we have the brakes.

[Pete Dumbleton]

Regardless of how good the brakes on the tow vehicle may be, adding two more braked wheels on the trailer will make them better!

I added brakes to my 91S13, when I was pulling it with an '82 Dodge D150 and it made a lot of difference. I wouldn' t hesitate to do it again.

Here's a source for both electric and hydraulic brake parts:

http://shop.easternmarine.com/index.cfm?fu...;categoryID=309

For those who like the idea of hydraulic trailer brakes but what the control and convenience of electronic brake controls instead of the usual surge activator, here's a solution:

http://shop.easternmarine.com/index.cfm?fu...;categoryID=309

[Lance MacArthur]

Glad to see a discussion about trailer brakes. We have them on our 13' Boler, and am very glad for that. All it takes is a panic stop on a crowded freeway, and it will be apparent that the shorter stopping distance with trailer brakes is a very good thing. Also, in such a situation, the trailer brakes will prevent the trailer from jack-knifeing.

We try to use the back roads on most of our travels (about 30,000 miles in the past three years), but sometimes its unavoidable to travel through big cities. Its rather interesting to travel for miles and miles and see no cars, but as soon as you approach a city, traffic picks up. The more traffic, the more crazies. The more crazies, the more you need better control of your investment.

[Lizbeth]

Didn't have brakes on the Boler when I got it but replaced the axle with one with brakes. It was a good thing.

[Gerry]

My 80 Boler does not have brakes....after 6 years of delivering fire-wood with a trailer loaded with 4000 lb, W/No brakes, I feel safe enough with my driving style that I will not cause the accident.
It may be the other guy coming straight toward me that will get me, but not much I can do about that.
I have a Blazer with good brakes and a large tow PKG.
As far as rated for the 2000 lb loaded weight...I do not know.
Gerry the canoebuilder

[Benny K]

Hi Gerry, out of curiousity, what is the max trailer weight without brakes limit in the state of Maine? ...Benny

[james kent]

No we don't have brakes on our '84 boler. We used a Chrysler minivan in "94-"98 and a Safari van after that. We now use an extended cab Dodge Dakota with a V8 as our tug. I have never felt the need to add brakes with these vehicles and we have towed the trailer in most of our provinces We once had a crank-up that weighed half as much again, and it always felt as if we were being pushed by it, and it had serge brakes. If you drive with the peddle to the metal then you probably do require brakes.
Jim

[Brian B-P]

My 80 Boler does not have brakes....after 6 years of delivering fire-wood with a trailer loaded with 4000 lb, W/No brakes, I feel safe enough with my driving style that I will not cause the accident.
It may be the other guy coming straight toward me that will get me, but not much I can do about that.

When an animal crosses the road or another driver pulls out in front of you at an intersection, you may not be able to do anything about them, but you [b]can do something about your ability to brake, and avoid or minimize a collision. This has nothing to do with driving style.

[Brian B-P]

...what is the max trailer weight without brakes limit in the state of Maine?

According to Maine's Title 29-A: MOTOR VEHICLES, Chapter 17: EQUIPMENT:

Special mobile equipment or a truck, truck tractor, trailer or semitrailer must be equipped with adequate brakes acting on all wheels of all axles, except that the following need not meet this requirement:
A. A trailer or semitrailer not exceeding a gross weight of 3,000 pounds;
...

My comment on this, a very typical state trailer brake requirement, is that the fact that something is not illegal does not mean that it is either safe or prudent.

[james kent]

Hey Gerry
I think the guys out west are jellous. "Cause they don't even know what a load of firewood is.

[Brian B-P]

Hey, we're not jealous... we know a load of firewood is a pile of stuff burned by people who don't have natural gas service to every rural property, like we do out here! Now, if that was a reference to a lack of trees, I should point out that my property is almost entirely covered by them.

Around here, most people hauling firewood just pile it in the back of their full-size pickup trucks, but a trailer is good option, too.