Does Installing Brakes On Trailer without Them Affect Wheel and Tire Position

Question:

The manufacturer of the Scissors type boat trailer says that they do not add brakes to their scissors type trailers. They say it will not fit on the wheels due to tire clearance issues with the pontoons. How much wider would the tire stance be by adding electric brakes or Hydraulic brakes to the trailer? Does electrically actuated hydraulic brakes work like electric brakes to stop a fishtailing trailer while driving at a set speed with just a momentary push on the controller brake button?

asked by: Eric K

Helpful Expert Reply:

We generally recommend you stick with the trailer or vehicle manufacturers when it comes to questions like this, but adding trailer brakes does not change the position of the wheel relative to the axle. Hub/drums have the hub face dimension the exact same as the standard hubs. Maybe there's a difference clearance issue between maybe the frame and other components related to the brakes but the wheel/tire location would not change.

I attached a help article on adding brakes to a trailer for you to check out as well.

Also, using the manual override of a brake controller to apply the trailer brakes when a trailer is swaying does curb the sway whether it's electric brakes or electric over hydraulic.

expert reply by: Jameson C