Best Electric Over Hydraulic Actuator for Trailer With Drum Brakes and 9,000 lb Axles

Question:

I’ve seen many different posts all with different answers from you guys and was wondering what is the best all around brake actuator regardless of price, is it hydrastar, dexter or Titan also what is the difference between the hydra star xl and just the hydrastar, there is such a size difference and I was thinking maybe one holds more fluid. The website only states that the xl comes with a special type of brake controller. If you were buying one for a trailer with electric/hydraulic drum brakes with 9,000 lb axles what would you choose

asked by: Robbie

Expert Reply:

The best electric-over-hydraulic brake actuator for you, on a trailer with electric over hydraulic drum brakes and 9,000 lb axles, is the HydraStar Electric Over Hydraulic Actuator for Drum Brakes # HBA-12. We have found this to be the most reliable EOH actuator and it is designed to work with trailers with drum brakes that are 8,000 lbs or larger.

The difference between this and the (discontinued) Hydrastar XL Electric-Hydraulic Brake Actuator HBAC10-CLR is the fact that this unit comes with a brake controller, but that is just one of the differences. This unit is more for commercial applications and though it is larger that can make it a bit more difficult to mount onto your trailer. The Hydrastar XL also needs a 17 amp hour deep cycle battery mounted on the trailer for power. Finally, it has 1,000 psi of output pressure while the HydraStar # HBA-12 has 1,200 psi, which is why it's better for larger trailers like yours.

I have added a link to a video review of this actuator for you to check out as well.

expert reply by: Kyle S