Troubleshooting Dexter Electric Brakes Overheating on Rear Axle of Tandem Axle Trailer

Question:

Help me figure out how to get them properly adjusted and then stay that way. Presently I adjusted them all tandem axle trailer to very slight lining/drum drag. After a few hundred miles the rear axle hubs will be very unpleasantly HOT to the touch. The trailer is towing level, is not overloaded, and the bearings are okay. Castle nut has proper tightness. I will literally have to jack up the trailer, remove the combo hub/brake drum, adjust the starwheel cannot access it from back because of axle configuration, repack the wheel bearings and replace all. After 300-500 miles, I have to repeat process. Once I tried just driving a bit slower as I sought an emergency pull off and after 50 miles the hubs were cool to the touch again. They are getting hot enough drums/bearings that they are becoming discolored so this is not just that I had laid on the brakes a lot and then immediately checked them to find them very hot. It was after 100 miles at 70 mph with only minimal highway braking I pull over on shoulder to check hub temps every 100 miles now. The front hubs are remaining cool to the touch. ALL brakes lock up when the trailer is jacked up and brakes are applied. Thanks for any help you can give me. Dexter has been less than helpful.

asked by: Gregory J

Expert Reply:

It sounds like you have already done a lot of troubleshooting and your brakes are adjusted properly each time. You certainly shouldn't have to be adjusting brakes like the # 23-26-27 every 300-500 miles. The first thing I would check is the wiring for your rear brake assemblies. Make sure the power and ground wires have a good connection.

The other thing I think this could be is the axle/spindles. It is possible you have a bent spindle or axle which could result in suspension issues and overheating. This would also make sense since you are only experiencing this problem on the rear axle brake assemblies and not on your other brakes. I would check the tread on the rear tires to see if you notice anything abnormal.

expert reply by: Robin H