Troubleshooting Weak Trailer Brakes After Brake Shoe Replacement and Adjustment  

Question:

Expert Reply:

I would check a couple things. First I would make sure the brake assemblies are grounding properly. A weak ground will cause weak brakes, and even though you have 12 volts at the assemblies that doesn't mean they are grounding properly.

Next thing I would do is try adjusting the brakes again, this time tighten them till you can't turn the assemblies by hand and then back it off 10 clicks. It could be that your assemblies just aren't quite tight enough. Typically new brakes need to be adjusted again after 200 miles.

Since you said the drums are grooved I would make sure that the magnets themselves haven't gotten damaged by using them in a possibly worn out hub, and then finally it might be time to replace the hubs if the grooving is too bad.

In order to pick out the correct hub assembly for a trailer you are going to need know a few key pieces of information. The first thing you will need to know is the bolt pattern of your hubs. This is so you get a hub that is compatible with your wheels. I attached an FAQ article on determining bolt pattern for you to check out.

Next thing you will need to know is what spindle you have on your trailer. In order to do that you can either get the inner and outer bearing numbers from a hub or use a dial caliper to get exact measurements of the spindle. The measurements needed are the parts of the spindle where the bearings ride.

If you get back to me with that information I will help you pick out the right hub assemblies. Or, you can follow the link I attached that will take you to the page that has all of our replacement hubs.

You would want to first select the bolt pattern that you have, next select the inner bearing you have, followed by selecting your outer bearing, and then all the correct hubs will be listed.

expert reply by: Jameson C

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