Brakes

I have anew 2011 Big Country. Trailer brakes will not lock up when moveing at 5 or 10 mph. will slow down only. power from truck ok. power to traler brakes ok. brake adjustment ok. checked by 2 diffrent RV Technitions?????? I even hooked it up to a differnt truck. thanks. jbthepickle.

On the bigger and heavier rigs, you will not get wheel lock up unless your on ice, gravel or a wet road. And depending on your tires, you may not get it then. Also, todays brake controllers will not send full voltage to the brakes at that low of speed. The inertia sensor inside has to have a pretty good swing to send full voltage.

jb, when you say "lock up" I don't think you mean that literally, do you? A lot depends on 2 things, brake controller adjustment and brake shoe adjustment. First, insure your brakes are properly adjusted on all four wheels. Next adjust your controller according to the instructions. Our Bighorns doesn't "lock up" either but I can certainly feel a very noticeable pull when I manually apply the brakes with the controller.

Part of the adjustment procedure for my brake controller is to turn up the voltage until the trailer wheels will lock up on dry pavement at 25 mph and then back off the adjustment. If your trailer brakes are working properly, they should have the ability to lock up the wheels at low speed regardless of the size of the rig.

I have a 2005 Ford F350 with a ford factory brake controller. When I manully apply full power on the brake controller lever I can not slide tires in gravel. noteven with a differnt truck. when going 40 mph I can barely feel the brakes pulling me back, when useing brake cntroller manuley. This is my 3rd 5th wheel. I have never had this happen unless the brakes were out of addjustment. they are not out of addjustment?????? Ive had them checked 2 times.

Clearly a serious safety issue. You should camp on your dealers doorstep until its fixed. I'd make them pull the breakaway switch and then show me 12V measured at each wheel. I would not trust the tech's word.

I would agree, Bob. I know with mine if I exceed the "sweet spot" on the controller setting, I get seriously jerked by the trailer by just tapping the brake pedal or the controller switch. And that spot is nowhere near the maximum setting.

Sounds to me like you have a poor ground. That will keep you brakes from getting the amperage they need to lock up at slow speeds or work on the road.

I have a 2009 BC and when I had grease issues on the magnets the wheels would lock at any speed.
The magnets can lock them and maybe the voltage is not getting to them.

After I hook up I do a "tug-test" to ensure the pin is properly secured and the brakes on the Landmark hold very well.

jbthepickle said:

I have anew 2011 Big Country. Trailer brakes will not lock up when moveing at 5 or 10 mph. will slow down only. power from truck ok. power to traler brakes ok. brake adjustment ok. checked by 2 diffrent RV Technitions?????? I even hooked it up to a differnt truck. thanks. jbthepickle.

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I picked up a 2011 BH in late August. I could not come close to locking brakes either as we gently slowed with controller paddles squeezed tight. In fact we could over power the brakes on full with the truck. They thought maybe the truck controller was at fault, so we got the dealers truck they transport RV's with and still the RV brakes just dragged somewhat but never near hard braking and no way would ever skid on dirt. All my other RV's could really come on hard and would skid on dirt.

The Lippert Factory was called. Lippert next day sent out one of the their techs who often travels to the problem, a very competent man named Jerry. He got in my truck, 5th hooked up and we went for a slow ride, tried to seat them by dragging brakes off and on for 1/4 mile. They got hot but never were anything near adequate. He agreed this was totally not satisfactory. He tightened the shoes down after finding they had not been adjusted at the factory or assembly line, however it made no difference.

He had two new complete brake backings (backing/magnets/shoes/springs) in the AxleTec brand (the brand he uses on his own rig by choice) and replaced each side of one axle. Off for another ride... and wow what a difference, threw us forward toward the dash. Squeeze the controller paddles and lots of skidding. Next day he had me come to Lippert factory shop and he did the other axle. Now they really work! Will put you on your nose in a parking lot. I still test them now and smile as it takes hold. It was not grease, wiring, wire crimps or grounds, he checked that before replacement. Evidently there are faulty magnets, and also some magnet manufactures products vary in strength and size. We had all 4 brakes determined inadequate, not just an axle or single unit.

Thanks to him, on the way home to Alaska I had a panic stop (bull moose running across the front of us in Canada) and heard the RV tire squeal as we narrowly missed that moose. Without great brakes it would have been different outcome.

You can tell if you have AxleTec by the vinyl quarter size AXLE TEC decal on the brake backing plate you can view from underneath the RV looking toward the tire on the top half of the backing plate.
A photo of the Axle Tec tag if registered in forums //heartlandowners.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=11149
I have pulled other 5th's and Travel Trailers, one thing is a must is good brakes. After that moose incident, my next set is also going to be Axle Tec even if they are a bit more costly. I was pleased with the service and all covered under warranty.

Incidentally Jerry recommended the wet bolt kit with larger shackles for the Alaska Highway use, he drives up here himself to do repairs for everything from frame alignment to broken overhang and bent springs.

From: jbthepickle. I now have good brakes. Lippert sent 4 new Brake Backing Plates. it took some time but finely got it fixed.

jbthepickle said:

From: jbthepickle. I now have good brakes. Lippert sent 4 new Brake Backing Plates. it took some time but finally got it fixed.

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jb, thanks for the update. It's good to hear things were taken care of.

KL7j said:

I picked up a 2011 BH in late August. I could not come close to locking brakes either as we gently slowed with controller paddles squeezed tight. In fact we could over power the brakes on full with the truck. They thought maybe the truck controller was at fault, so we got the dealers truck they transport RV's with and still the RV brakes just dragged somewhat but never near hard braking and no way would ever skid on dirt. All my other RV's could really come on hard and would skid on dirt.

The Lippert Factory was called. Lippert next day sent out one of the their techs who often travels to the problem, a very competent man named Jerry. He got in my truck, 5th hooked up and we went for a slow ride, tried to seat them by dragging brakes off and on for 1/4 mile. They got hot but never were anything near adequate. He agreed this was totally not satisfactory. He tightened the shoes down after finding they had not been adjusted at the factory or assembly line, however it made no difference.

He had two new complete brake backings (backing/magnets/shoes/springs) in the AxleTec brand (the brand he uses on his own rig by choice) and replaced each side of one axle. Off for another ride... and wow what a difference, threw us forward toward the dash. Squeeze the controller paddles and lots of skidding. Next day he had me come to Lippert factory shop and he did the other axle. Now they really work! Will put you on your nose in a parking lot. I still test them now and smile as it takes hold. It was not grease, wiring, wire crimps or grounds, he checked that before replacement. Evidently there are faulty magnets, and also some magnet manufactures products vary in strength and size. We had all 4 brakes determined inadequate, not just an axle or single unit.

Thanks to him, on the way home to Alaska I had a panic stop (bull moose running across the front of us in Canada) and heard the RV tire squeal as we narrowly missed that moose. Without great brakes it would have been different outcome.

You can tell if you have AxleTec by the vinyl quarter size AXLE TEC decal on the brake backing plate you can view from underneath the RV looking toward the tire on the top half of the backing plate.
A photo of the Axle Tec tag if registered in forums //heartlandowners.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=11149
I have pulled other 5th's and Travel Trailers, one thing is a must is good brakes. After that moose incident, my next set is also going to be Axle Tec even if they are a bit more costly. I was pleased with the service and all covered under warranty.

Incidentally Jerry recommended the wet bolt kit with larger shackles for the Alaska Highway use, he drives up here himself to do repairs for everything from frame alignment to broken overhang and bent springs.

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This sounds like the same exact problem I am having on my new Bighorn Right now. It's in the dealers service dept. When I dropped off my SOB I could hold the rig back W/manual lever on box and lock and skid wheels easily manually.
W/the Bighorn I can not hold it back and feel very little resistance with the brakes dialed ALL THE WAY up! I hope the dealer can fix it, or I'm going to send him this post.
This worries me because the wife and I have to be out of our house in 3 days to begin fulltiming for the next year. We have commited to rent the house beginning 2/5/11.

jbthepickle said:

I have a 2005 Ford F350 with a ford factory brake controller. When I manully apply full power on the brake controller lever I can not slide tires in gravel. noteven with a differnt truck. when going 40 mph I can barely feel the brakes pulling me back, when useing brake cntroller manuley. This is my 3rd 5th wheel. I have never had this happen unless the brakes were out of addjustment. they are not out of addjustment?????? Ive had them checked 2 times.

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What is the brake type? Electrical? Electrical over hydraulic? Air?

Have you checked the electrical, especially the ground? Could be the brake magnets if everything else checks out OK. You can check and see how many amps you are sending to the brakes when the lever is all the way over. You should be able to lock the brakes at or before the maximum gain is applied.

TANDT said:

This sounds like the same exact problem I am having on my new Bighorn Right now. It's in the dealers service dept. When I dropped off my SOB I could hold the rig back W/manual lever on box and lock and skid wheels easily manually.
W/the Bighorn I can not hold it back and feel very little resistance with the brakes dialed ALL THE WAY up! I hope the dealer can fix it, or I'm going to send him this post.
This worries me because the wife and I have to be out of our house in 3 days to begin fulltiming for the next year. We have commited to rent the house beginning 2/5/11.

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Update on mine: Got it back today. Service department said the brakes were really backed off when it was built. They adjusted them and they seem to be fine at the moment. If there is any change, I will update.

Keep in mind for whatever reason most dealers I have seen do not adjust the brakes as part of the make ready. I guess most transport drivers don't care if they are adjusted or not and apparently the factory does not adjust them either. So it is buyer be aware to check you trailer brakes before leaving after your purchase.

jmgratz said:

Keep in mind for whatever reason most dealers I have seen do not adjust the brakes as part of the make ready. I guess most transport drivers don't care if they are adjusted or not and apparently the factory does not adjust them either. So it is buyer be aware to check you trailer brakes before leaving after your purchase.

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I found this to be the case on ours as well. Dont make a bit of sense to me. They should be adjusted before ever hitting the road.

I have a 2011 Sundance, and am having the same brake problem discussed herein.

When I dropped of my old Rockwood 5th wheel trade-in and picked up the new camper last summer I noticed that the camper braking was significantly less effective than the old camper. My tow vehicle at that time was a Dodge 3500 with an aftermarket brake controller. I jacked up the gain to maximum and went on my way, but was not happy with the braking capability.

In October we pulled the new camper to Texas behind a new Ford F350 with the built-in brake controller, and noticed that the trailer brakes were not very effective. When we got settled in Texas I checked the brake adjustment and found that it took 40 to 45 clicks to get the shoes to contact the drums! It was as if the brakes were never adjusted at the factory or on the pre-delivery inspection at the dealer. However, this adjustment did little to improve the braking, but I did notice that one of the brake drums was getting warmer than the others and backed the brake off a bit. I was also able to verify that in excess of 12v was being supplied to the brake circuit when the brake controller was manually operated at full gain. We left the camper in Oklahoma and returned to Minnesota.

When I told the dealer about the problem they suggested that it must be the brake controller. The Ford dealer checked out the brake controller (5th not attached) and his computer said there was a trailer fault.

We are now on a winter trip in Texas. Yesterday we stopped at Franklin's Big Country RV in Abilene to have the brakes checked out. They jacked up the wheels, spun the tires, pushed on the brake pedal, and declared that the problem was with the pickup brake controller because it would not stop the spinning wheel. I asked if they had applied the brake controller manually and the foreman said no. I suggested that the brake controller may have an accelerometer in the circuit, and that the pickup has to actually be decelerating before pushing on that brake pedal would provide voltage to the camper brakes. Therefore, pressing the brake pedal while the pickup is parked may not apply braking voltage to the camper. He said, Oh.

They then used the manual control to apply the brakes and they stopped the spinning wheel, and declared that the brakes were working fine. As if the amount of braking capability required to stop a spinning wheel is adequate to slow a 6 ton camper. They checked out the adjustment on the brakes and found that one we loose (the one I had loosened because it was getting hot). They adjusted that one and declared the problem was with the pickup controller. Their parking lot is gravel, and as we were leaving I tried sliding the camper tires by manually applying the controller. The trailer tires would not even slide on the gravel at maximum gain.

If you are ever having a problem with your camper in the Abilene area, don't bother to stop at Franklin's Big Country RV for service. These guys may know how to replace a piece of trim on your cabinet, but they don't know crap about braking systems.

I also mentioned to them that the wheel was getting hot, so they checked out bearing adjustment by rotating the wheel and declared that the adjustment was fine. I have a non-contact IR thermometer and it showed that the hot wheel was 50 degrees warmer than the other three (at one check, about 85 degrees F for three of them and 135 degrees for the hot one). There has to be some reason that the wheel is getting hot, so today I will remove the wheel and check out the bearings. At the same time I will make sure there is no grease or oil on the magnet or disk.

When we finally get this rig back to Minnesota, if we make it without incident, I will have the dealer I bought it from check out the system, but my guess is that they will also declare that the camper brakes are working fine, and that the problem is with the brake controller.

How do we push this issue with Heartland? This is a serious safety concern, which likely is the result of faulty OEM braking systems or installation at the factory. Maybe we should start filing complaints with the NTSB, or whoever oversees the safety of recreational vehicles.