Installing new Dexter brakes - Fiberglass RV
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Old 04-18-2011, 10:51 AM   #1
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Installing new Dexter brakes

While installing a new Dexter brake package discovered that the two wires coming off the new brake pakage are both green but neither of the wires coming off the Scamp which were attached to the old brakes are green - so how does one know which green wire from the new brakes needs to be connected to the two trailers brake wires that where orignally connected to the old brakes or does it matter?

Thanks for the help.
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Old 04-18-2011, 11:08 AM   #2
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One for ground, one for the 12v feed from the brake controller. Nice thing about magnetic brakes it that doesn't matter which one is which.

I randomly chose one wire on each side to be "ground" and put some electric tape on it to remind me in the future.
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Old 04-18-2011, 11:29 AM   #3
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The wires off of the brakes are color coded for the magnet strength in the assembly. As mentioned above the wires are universal. You need to hook up one each wire from the brakes all together (these will be connected to the blue wire at the trailer connection) the other wire will be the ground. THese wires are typically a larger size #12 but can be #14

there are wiring diagrams available on the web (just type in electric trailer brake wiring) and instruction videos on youtube
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Old 04-18-2011, 12:32 PM   #4
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Thanks guys for the help. I understand the wiring on the trailer side - that one (the blue one) is power and the other ground. I am also assuming by your answers that it does not matter to which of the two green wires coming out of the brakes either connects to providing both are connected. Is that correct?

What has me a bit confused is Mike's comment "You need to hook up one each wire from the brakes all together (these will be connected to the blue wire at the trailer connection)" Its the "all together" comment that has me confused. Does this mean I need to connect both the green wires coming from the brakes to only the blue wire on one of the sides? If thats the case what do you do with the ground wire on that side? or Im I just misreading? I know when I took off the old brakes the two wires were connected seperatly to the two wires coming out of the brakes - neither side was connected "all together".

Thanks
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Old 04-18-2011, 12:44 PM   #5
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To clarify, one wire from each brake is connected together to the other brake (for a single axle, connect one wire from the right brake to the left brake and then to the blue power to the TV and do the same for the ground wire) I was thinking more of a tandem trailer and wiring 4 brakes together
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Old 04-18-2011, 12:47 PM   #6
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You can look under the document center under scamp trailer wiring for an example of what I mean
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Old 04-18-2011, 01:59 PM   #7
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Thanks Mike for the clarification. The trailer came with brakes from the factory and I have the wiring diagram from the manual and its wired as shown and as the old brakes worked I'm pretty sure all is good.

It just throw me off that the two wires coming from the brakes where the same color and the Dexter instructions did not say if there was a difference between the two other than using one for power and other for ground.
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