Hopkins Replacement Break-Away Switch, 7" Lead Wires
(132 reviews)
Price: $11.64
In Stock
Hopkins Replacement Break-Away Switch, 7" Lead Wires
Item # HM20010
Retail:$20.90
Our Price: $11.64
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In Stock
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- Reviews (132)
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- Videos (3)
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Hopkins Accessories and Parts - HM20010
- Trailer Breakaway Kit
- Switches
- Hopkins
Replacement Switch for Break Away Kits
- 7" lead wires
- Pin and cable included
NOTE: For replacement pin and cable, use HM20051.
20010 Hopkins Replacement Break-Away Switch, 7" Lead Wires
California residents: click here
Video of Hopkins Replacement Break-Away Switch, 7" Lead Wires
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Video Transcript for Hopkins Replacement Break-Away Switch Review
The Hopkins breakaway switch is a great replacement breakaway switch for your trailer. After a few years with the breakaway switch sitting out in the elements, depending on how it's stored, rust and corrosion can potentially occur fairly quickly if it is really exposed. And what will happen is if it is heavily corroded on the inside, when you pull the pin out, the contacts may not make good contact with another. They may not close all the way and touch and then it will not activate your brakes. So it is important that you test your breakaway switch before you go out. I usually just give it a pull and then just hop in the truck and throw it in gear without pressing the gas.
You should be able to usually roll a little bit forward or whatnot, maybe touch the gas a little bit if you're on some sort of an incline. And if it feels like your brakes are applied, then you know that you're good. You can insert your pin again and hit the road. But if you pull that pin, you hop in your truck, and it just pulls off, like you have no brakes, then you probably don't have a functioning breakaway switch or you could have an issue with your brakes. Obviously, if you got a brake controller, you can use that to verify if your brakes are working.
And if it works with the brake controller but not with the pin pulled, then you know that your switch here is no good and it needs to be replaced. Replacing your switch is easy, as it's only two wires, it just has a power wire and a brake output wire that goes to the electric brakes on your vehicle. And when the pin is pulled, it just jumps the contact between those two circuits together to send power directly from the battery back to the brakes. This switch comes in two different wiring length options. You can either get the 44 inch version, which is what we installed today, has 44-inch leads coming off the back, or you can get it in the 7 inch version which just has 7-inch wires coming out of the back.
So we'll begin our installation here by taking our switch. We've got two wires that we'll need to hook up and we'll need to mount it on the trailer with the tab there. To get this switch mounted up, we're gonna be using just a self-tapping screw. And then I did put a fender washer on it to increase the surface area, just to make sure that we've got good force on here. I also like that too 'cause it helps the switch, gives it kind of a chance to pivot a little bit better when it's in there.
So in case it's not perfectly straight, if you have a disconnect it can kind of pivot the switch to be straight with the vehicle and pull the pin out straight. So we're gonna mount it just on the bottom side of the trailer. We're gonna be putting it probably right here next to the switch box. That way it's close to the front. So that way our cable here will be long enough to be able to reach the vehicle and attach. So yeah, we're gonna put it in roughly that location there. And it's easier to just use the screw by itself to make the initial hole, and we can always zip it back out. So it is gonna take some pressure to get it to drill. There we go. And then we can just run it right back out, got our threads and everything made. We'll put our washer back on our bolt, line it up with our switch and then run it in there. That way you don't gotta hold a bunch of stuff together while you're trying to do this. And we've got our switch mounted and you can see it's got some pivot to it. So if it needs it, it can kind of transition to the best pull position for our vehicle there. So now we'll hook our wires up to our junction box here. I've already took the cover off the junction box. We have two wires here, a blue and a black. The black wire will go to power, so that way our switch has power going to it. And the blue wire will go to the electric brake, to the output that's gonna actually go to the brakes at the back. That way, if the pin gets pulled, it'll complete the circuit sending power from our battery down the black wire, through the switch, out the blue wire to our brakes at the back to activate 'em. So we're gonna push it through one of the grommets here on the side of our box. If you don't have a junction box and you don't wanna put one on, you'll just need to find your trailer brake wiring on your 7-way. It is typically the blue wire that's on your 7-way. And the black wire is typically the power from your 7-way. So for example, if you we're looking for trailer brake wires, you didn't have one of these boxes, here's our 7-way wiring. We hooked it into our box, but a lot of times that 7-way wiring, if you don't have a junction box, it'll just kind of go into the frame and my hole like this, or just run down the side of the frame back to your brakes and you can find the wiring there. So blue wires are gonna be brakes on ours. And again, that's usually the standard on most trailers is the blue wire. So we've got our blue here. This etrailer junction box simplifies things and gives you an easy way to hook a bunch of stuff up 'cause all of our 7-way wires have coloring on them and it matches up with the coloring on the end of the studs here. So it makes things just easy to make your connections. You can get this box here at etrailer and I do highly recommend it 'cause it protects all your connections from moisture and just really makes your trailer installation a lot neater and easier to work with, easier to add accessories and stuff like that in the future. So we're gonna take our wiring here. We're gonna trim it down. I usually recommend the 44 inch, people that have junction boxes just 'cause you don't know what kinda length you're gonna need to be able to go around, in, and then up. Sometimes it does exceed the 7 inch. If you're just hooking into like your 7-way here at the front and you're just gonna tap into it, then usually the 7-inch is good enough so you can mount the switch next to that. And then just reach right in here where you can splice into 'em. Both of these wires, we're gonna put ring terminals on. We've got our ring terminals connected. We just crimped it onto the wires. We can make our connections here on our breakaway, or in our box, or junction box here. So I'm just removing the nut for the blue stud here. And then oftentimes in these boxes you'll have a little washer on there. So just slide your little washer off. Then we'll hook up our circuits. Our blue is gonna go over here to this connection point. So we'll just slide that in place. We can then put our washer back on and then our nut. After we hooked up our blue wire we just hooked the black wire to the black post. Again, that's our battery positive. If you are doing this on your box, be careful when hooking it up to the black wire, because that is a live circuit that's hooked to the battery. One way you could make it safer is you could just disconnect the positive or negative side from your battery. I recommend usually the negative side, just disconnect the negative side of your battery. That'll remove power from your whole trailer once that negative side's disconnected and then this wire won't be live so you can make your connections without having to worry about any shorts. After we've got that connected up though, we're just gonna reinstall the cover on our box and then we'll test everything out. There's a couple of ways you can test it. We can verify the breakaway switch. You can do it right here on the junction box that you we're in, with your test light to see that it's getting output. And you can also verify that it's working by actually checking your brakes. That's the best way to do it. So you're verifying that your brakes are also working, but if you know your brake's working, you just need to check your switch, then you could do it with a test light. So we'll do it with a test light right here. And then we'll go back to the brake and show you that it works there as well. So I have a little breakout wire that I've got here to go inside the box to be able to check the brakes. So we're just gonna poke it in there and I'm gonna pull the pin and you can see that it's sending current back to my brakes right now. Put the pin back in and it stops. So what we're gonna do now is I've jacked up the trailer on the side. If I go back here and spin the wheel, you'll see that it's gonna rotate. I'm gonna pull the pin and it should have stopped the wheel from rotating. And then if I try to rotate it now, I'm unable to rotate it, the brakes are applied. When I put the pin back in, you should hear the brakes release. And we heard it release back there. We'll double-check to make sure that it did release and our brakes did release, so our breakaway switch is working properly. Our brakes are working. We're ready to get out and go on adventures again..
Customer Satisfaction Score:
100% were satisfied with this product
0% of customers were not satisfied
Customer Reviews
Hopkins Replacement Break-Away Switch, 7" Lead Wires - HM20010
Average Customer Rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars (132 Customer Reviews)
by: Frank11/15/2023
Identical replacement. Quality is the same as the original! Nice experience!
by: Linda 02/12/2024
Ordering was quick and easy and the product was just what we needed.
by: Thom05/21/2023
It was the identical replacement…awesome!
It turned out that it was the Key along with the cable that I had to replace and not the switch…so no wiring was necessary.
Thanks etrailer.com
by: Jesse 05/31/2023
Yes, i rec'd my order of break away switches. Thank you
by: Harry 11/30/2023
It’s always nice to have extra cords just in case. Where better to buy them then here.
by: Mike R09/22/2014
Seems to be reasonably well-made and is easy to install. When adding brakes to a trailer the constant recommendation is to use 10-gauge wire. Odd, then, to see smaller gauge wire on the brakes themselves and on this switch. Since it, at worst, only has to work once, I suppose it isn't a big deal, and it does make splicing those short little wires easier.
by: Christopher08/28/2018
I accidentally let my Breakaway unit go with a Jeep I sold. Therefore I needed a new one for my new Jeep which I tow behind my motorhome. Brake Buddy wanted close to $80 for a replacement Breakaway unit and this one cost me less than $10 and a little bit of wiring. Works great.
Sally C.
8/29/2019
Great
by: Robert09/08/2017
Great quality, much better price than I could get for an original switch and will serve the same purpose. This switch is to replace the one that was missing from a Brake Buddy that I bought used. Fast shipping and would recommend this product.
Robert
9/9/2018
Still working as good as original equipment. Great quality, would buy again
by: Bud M01/22/2016
I discovered etrailer.com scrolling for parts for trailers and am very pleased with the very prompt reply that my order is being filled and shipped in a day or two and it was, I received the order sooner than I expected and it is exactly just right to replace my broke Break-Away Switch, I have not installed the new Switch yet since the trailer is not in use at this time. THANK YOU etrailer.com
by: Jeff 01/08/2020
excellent replacement breakaway switch for my snowmobile trailer. accidentally pulled the original one out with the lawnmower, this on replaced it exactly. Thank you!
by: vern v07/19/2016
This product works excellent and is many times less expensive than the one you can purchase from the supplemental brake system manufacturers.
The service was excellent and I look forward to checking out other etrailer products.
by: Allen S07/27/2020
Great addition to my military surplus trailer. Substituted the Hydrastar for the old surge brakes, and works like a champ!
by: Ron02/23/2017
Emergency break-away brake switch.....
Lets hope we never have to use it!
Remember to make sure it works before every trip...
A little silicone keeps it working smooth and reliable.
by: Brad08/28/2019
Nice price for this needed item. I do wish that Hopkins would make them with a ring on the end. I always cut the cables and put a ring in them for use with the coiled breakaway cable I have. This is about the 4th vehicle I have installed one of these, always having to cut the cable. Cable is Item # FA80-01-2140 at eTrailer, by the way.
by: Nicholas 01/10/2022
Used this to replace an existing break-away switch on a horse trailer. Was basically a direct one-for-one replacement of the existing unit. Easy to put in, and worked fine once soldered and wrapped.
by: Christopher 12/09/2022
The part was the right one. Shipping was fast. I will buy etrailer for all my trailer needs
Thank You Shawnee E
by: Lee05/16/2017
Installed OK - haven't had breakaway occur so cant say that it does or doesn't work when the going gets tough.
Worked OK Manually.
by: Amy11/27/2017
Didn't want to spend $70 for one of these for my brake buddy. Crimped these onto the correct ends and it works perfectly.
by: Randy S.12/15/2010
7 point wiring plug & Safety brakeaway for e-brakeVery pleased with the turn around time and they sent exactly what I ordered. They are also very concerned about the end of the project in the fact it is working right. It really great when you find a caring company like etrailer.com over the internet. etrailer.com will go on my list of favorites.
Thanks again
Randy
by: Valerie 05/22/2021
Arrived in good time and installation was easy enough. The 7" lead wire for the brake was too short and I had to add wire to make it reach.
by: Allen02/13/2020
Wet similar to the failed switch on my KZ sportsman. Wires were not the same color, wiring diagram is for Hopkins system. It comes with. I instructions but easily found on line. Just wanted to confirm the blue wire was the same as original orange wire on my old switch.
by: Bill04/03/2015
Price is very good compared to Brake Buddy replacement. Delivery was good, as well. I have not installed or used product, yet.
by: Charles03/20/2015
I'm very pleased with this break away switch. Replaced my old broken one with this, and it appears to work as expected.
by: Jeremy06/29/2017
Easy install, used as replacement for one that the cable got cut off of
by: Cross James Jalbert08/06/2014
Product was delivered sooner then estimated and part was of good quality. I will order from this company in the future.
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See what our Experts say about this Hopkins Accessories and Parts
- Largest Available Breakaway Battery for Trailer I may have a solution for you, but the largest breakaway system battery we offer comes with a 10 amp hour battery # BRW87FR; the complete system is the Bright Way Push-to-Test Trailer Breakaway Kit with 2-Amp Charger and 10 Ah Battery - Top Load # 3802311. I'm not aware of a breakaway system that uses a battery that large and this would be the best solution we have available for this.
view full answer... - Does the Cable and Pin Come with the Replacement Trailer Break Away Switch # HM20010The pin and cable is included with the replacement switch # HM20010. I pulled one from the warehouse just to be sure. I also made a video showing the part and the cable and pin included.
view full answer... - Hopkins Trailer Breakaway Kit Recommendation for Gooseneck TrailerI'd recommend the Hopkins Engager, Side Load Breakaway kit, # 20099. The Engager has a push-to-test battery feature that lets you check your battery easily before each trip. It includes the 12-Volt rechargeable battery and has a lockable lid. I spoke to my contact at Hopkins and they do not offer any kits with part numbers 20100 or 20019. But, they do offer a # HM20010 and # HM20014, which are replacement switches but do not include the battery. If the breakaway system on your gooseneck...
view full answer... - Can Pulling Break Away Pin Damage Trailer BrakesBecause the trailer was stationary when this occurred, there's an excellent chance that nothing was damaged, but you can try some low-speed runs in a nearby empty parking lot. While coasting along at low speed (10-15mph) without using the vehicle's brakes, pull the manual brake switch on your brake controller with the gain turned all the way up. You should be able to feel the trailer brakes actuate and start to slow the vehicle. In the unlikely event that the magnets shorted out, you'd...
view full answer... - Replacing Break Away Switch Used with Brake Buddy Classic Flat Towing Braking SystemAccording to my contact at Hopkins Manufacturing, the # HM20010 break away switch you referenced would be a good choice to replace your damaged breakaway switch. Make sure that your connections to the existing wiring are protected from the elements using heat shrink tubing or electrical tape.
view full answer... - How to Replace Pin for Trailer Breakaway System Without Knowing Model of SwitchUnfortunately, we don't have a way to tell which breakaway system you have. However, the only part that the pin is specific to is the switch. So instead of getting a new pin you can get the replacement switch # HM20010 which isn't much more in cost.
view full answer... - Replacement Switch for Hopkins Breakaway Kit We have a replacement breakaway switch that uses two wires like with the Hopkins part # HM20010. For situations like yours where the pin needs to be replaced it's just easiest to go with an all new switch that comes with a plunger that fits it. Since the wiring and function is universal across systems but the plungers are really specific it's just the simplest solution to go with an all new switch.
view full answer... - Replacement Pin for an LBS48-16 ESCO Break Away SwitchWhile we do have numerous replacement break away system pins, all of which are similar, I cannot guarantee that any will fit your ESCO brand switch because they have not all been tested together. The difference in cost between a replacement pin and a new switch is minimal so I advise just replacing the switch with # HM20010.
view full answer... - Can Trailer Breakaway Pin Be Reinserted if PulledYes you can put the breakaway pin back into the switch of your breakaway setup. While they sometimes can end up damaged if they are pulled at an angle they are not considered to be one-time-use switches. In event yours is damaged you could replace the whole setup with the part # HM20010 as well.
view full answer... - Does a Vehicle Being Flat Towed Need a Breakaway SystemWhen flat towing a vehicle the supplemental braking system being used will have a specific breakaway switch that goes with it. Supplemental braking is required by law in most states so if you are not using one you will want to look into getting one. The breakaway switches will not work with vehicle brakes directly because they are hydraulic and the switches work with electric systems. If you have a braking system, let me know which one it is and I can explain how a breakaway system gets...
view full answer... - What To Do If The Pin On The Trailer Breakaway Switch Will Not Pull OutIf the Pin # HM20051 will not remove easily(approximately 20-30lbs of force) from the Breakaway Switch # HM20010 it will most likely need to be replaced. As the pin is made of plastic is most likely to break trying to remove from the housing. Even if you are able to get the pin out the retainer inside the switch is likely damaged and could cause the brakes to activate when the trailer is connected.
view full answer... - Trailer Batteries On a 2018 Winnebago Died and Now Won't Hold a ChargeMichael, there could be a chance that your breakaway system could still be activating your brakes even if the pin is pushed back in. The breakaway system works by allowing 2 pieces of metal to touch, completing the circuit between the breakaway battery and the trailer brakes. So, to reset it you'd just need to put the pin back in, but if there is an internal problem with the breakaway system, that could cause those metal pieces to keep the circuit completed even after the pin is put back....
view full answer... - Replacement Parts For Older Model Hopkins Engager Breakaway Kit The Hopkins Engager's box design and mounting brackets have changed over the years. There is a Side load Hopkins Engager available and a top load style. The Hopkins Engager part # 20400 is considered top load because you can see the lid from the top of the unit but the brackets do not allow you to install the box upright on the trailer's tongue like in your photo. The old style entire unit is no longer available but the replacement box part # HM20121 is available and can be installed...
view full answer...
- Replacement Breakaway Switch for a 1991 Dutchman Camper TrailerWe do not carry the Kool-RV products so any of replacement pins are not a for sure fit because they have not been tested together. What I recommend is to go ahead and replace the the whole switch since it is not very expensive. You could use # 420000 that you have referenced or another switch like # HM20010.
view full answer... - What are the Functions of the 3 Wires on Hopkins LED Breakaway Switch, # HM20059You are correct, the Hopkins LED Breakaway Switch, # HM20059, does have 3 wires. The white wire is the ground wire and should be attached to the trailer frame. The blue wire on the switch will connect to the electric brake wire coming from the trailer side connector. The black wire goes to the break away battery. This part is just a switch, if you need a new system, I recommend Engager Trailer BreakAway Kit with Charger and Tester, # 20099. I have included a link to the installation details...
view full answer... - Troubleshooting Melted Trailer Breakaway WiringMelted wires is typically due to a short. It's hard to say exactly what caused your short but you will need to check wiring of your breakaway setup, specifically where the wires connect to the battery, to see if you can find a short and fix as needed. If I had to guess it sounds like the wire that attaches between the switch and the battery has a short to the frame of your trailer and that is what melted it.
view full answer... - How to Release Trailer Brakes After Trailer Break Away Pin Pulls OutIf your break away switch looks like # HM20010 then you should just have to push the pin back in. This will break the circuit and release the trailer brakes. If this does not work then there is some other wiring issue going on. You will need to remove power from the system to get the brakes to release. You can do this by disconnecting the break away system battery (just remove the power wire from the positive battery terminal). After the brakes release you will want to determine the cause...
view full answer... - Troubleshooting Break-Away Switch Pin Pulling Out and Not Going Back InIt should not take an extreme amount of force to reinsert the pin into the switch. Make sure there isn't any debris inside of the switch that could be preventing it from fitting all the way. Most pins are "keyed", which just means that it'll only fit when in a certain orientation, it sounds like you have this covered already but try rotating it a bit as you push it in to make sure it is in the right position. The breakaway pins can sometimes be damaged if they are pulled at an angle. If...
view full answer...
- How to Install an Aftermarket Breakaway Switch on the Demco Stay-IN-PlayThe Hopkins Replacement Break-Away Switch part # HM20010 has a normally open circuit which means there will not be any current that passes through the breakaway switch while the pin is intact. Once the pin is pulled the circuit then becomes closed and power is able to pass through the switch and send power to the trailer brakes. It does not matter if you hook the blue wire on the switch to the blue wire on the Stay-IN-Play or the black wire on the switch to the blue wire on the Stay-IN-Play....
view full answer... - Will Camper Breakaway Battery Drain Main Trailer Battery if ConnectedThe only time there will be a draw on your breakaway battery is when the pin of the switch is pulled so with it just being connected to your main trailer battery there wouldn't be any drain on it.
view full answer... - Do You Carry the Pin for Engager BrakeAway Kits / Systems?We do carry replacement pins for the Engager Trailer Breakaway Systems. Item HM20010 has 7inches lead wires, and item number HM20014 has 44 inches lead wires. I will link you to both items below.
view full answer... - Will a Hopkins Breakaway Switch Work with a BrakeBuddy Braking SystemA breakaway switch is a very basic device so you can use switch # HM20010 with your braking system. But I recently learned that the BrakeBuddy switches use banana clips to connect to the BrakeBuddy itself. To use this switch you would need to obtain those clips from an electrical supply store. Likewise, the coiled cable, # RM-8603, can be used on any system that has a loop in the breakaway cable that it can attach to so it will work with # HM20010.
view full answer... - Easy Solution for Lost Trailer Breakaway Pin and CableSounds like you are looking for a breakaway switch pin. You can send me a picture of what you have but most likely the easiest solution is going to be to replace the switch with a new one like part # HM20010. Since the new switch will wire in just like you old one it would be able to replace what you have and would save you from trying to track down the exact tether or pin that you would need.
view full answer... - Does It Hurt a Trailer To Have the Breakaway Pin Pulled While SittingIf the breakaway pin was pulled and the brakes were active for multiple days on the trailer while sitting then there are a few things that could have been damaged, the magnets and or brake controller assuming the vehicle was attached during this time as well. I recommend you insert the pin back into the switch to make sure the brakes release and then do a few tests using the brake controller. If all works well then you are good to go. If the brakes don't release or do not re-engage then...
view full answer...
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Expert Research:
Adam R
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Video Edited:
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Installed by:
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Mike R.
9/16/2015
Seems to be fine - havent tested it but no obvious corrosion.