Ray LeTourneau
Senior Member - Past Moderator
There have been a handful of Heartland owners switching to disk brakes but I don't know of any manufacturers other than maybe Doubletree, Teton and maybe a custom builder that has disks as standard issue. I believe if kept clean and properly adjusted, drum brakes are adequate. If fact, I was quite surprised how well my drum brakes worked after I kicked up the voltage on my prodigy to 9. I had been running around 6.5 cause I didn't know any better.
Niles
Well-known member
Drum brakes have been around for a long time and if kept in good working condition they have plenty of stopping power. We have upgraded to the disc brakes, more because of a spring issue and it was at the time the thing to do. I do like the disc brakes they grab faster, but that doesn't mean I didn't feel comfortable with the drums.
jmgratz
Original Owners Club Member
I never felt comfortable with the drums. #1 - No one could ever get them adjusted right, #2 - drive through standing water and they were wet, #3 - I couldn't service them myself. The disc brakes, #1 self adjust, #2 - dry quickly if wet #3 - I can service them myself from parts from the auto part store, not an RV speciality store #4 - The stop the RV much better.
2010augusta
Well-known member
I have no issues stopping the Augusta, it still has drums, but I am towing with the F-450 and I have the integrated brake controller set to 10.
as pointed out disk brakes work when they get hot - they are more resistant to brake fade, where you keep pushing and there ability to work goes down. Note however that semi trailers use drum brakes but are now anti-lock.
Now that my brakes are working correctly on my unit, my drum brakes worked fine on my trip through the Badlands, Beertooth highway and Yellowstone. I have an integrated controller on the F350 set on 4, and P3 on the Navigator (not used for towing this trailer anymore).
Now that my brakes are working correctly on my unit, my drum brakes worked fine on my trip through the Badlands, Beertooth highway and Yellowstone. I have an integrated controller on the F350 set on 4, and P3 on the Navigator (not used for towing this trailer anymore).
dieselengineer
Charter Member
disks all the way!
I agree, if drum brakes are in good working order, they work okay. However the drum brakes do not have the stopping power of the disk brakes. Before I changed from drum to disk, if you applied full brakes (just the trailer brakes) with the hand lever on the controller, you could feel the braking force however it was weak or so / so. With disks and I installed oversized brakeline also, if I apply full brakes with the manual (hand) lever the tires chirp and the seat belt gets a major load test. And I mean major load test! Once you have disks brakes you will not go back to drum brakes again.
I agree, if drum brakes are in good working order, they work okay. However the drum brakes do not have the stopping power of the disk brakes. Before I changed from drum to disk, if you applied full brakes (just the trailer brakes) with the hand lever on the controller, you could feel the braking force however it was weak or so / so. With disks and I installed oversized brakeline also, if I apply full brakes with the manual (hand) lever the tires chirp and the seat belt gets a major load test. And I mean major load test! Once you have disks brakes you will not go back to drum brakes again.
dieselengineer
Charter Member
Did all the fab work myself so only cost to me was the rotors and actuator. Check out southwest wheel. Camping this weekend, so I don't have the info at hand.
porthole
Retired
Disc brakes will not work when they get wet!
But they will dry out much faster then drum brakes, as the pads are exposed, and they are far more resistant to fade then drum brakes.
However, get them hot enough and they also will not work.
porthole
Retired
MorRyde?
I am going over tomorrow for DB's. Was there yesterday and picked up the owner's manuals to do a little research.
The electro-hydraulic actuator manual suggests using larger lines but during my tour at MorRyde all I saw was 3/16" brake lines.
What size did you get? 1/4? Did they charge extra for that?
jmgratz
Original Owners Club Member
Here is a test to see how good your trailer brakes are working. Find a safe place such as a large empty parking lot. While towing your RV get up to about 20-25 mph and then try to stop using your manual control on the brake controller. You should be able to stop rapidly without sliding the tires. I could never do that with electric trailer brakes but can with the disc brakes.
dieselengineer
Charter Member
Yes, 1/4 inch tubing from the actuator to each wheel as recommended by the manufacturer. The brake response is very quick.
dieselengineer
Charter Member
Another great added feature with disk brakes is the ability to see each wheel's rotor with just a walk-by. If all the rotors are shinny, then ALL the wheel's brakes are working. Also, all the wheels receive the same pressure, so the braking force is equal on all the wheels. With drum brakes, it is hard to tell if one wheel is out of adjustment and not doing the job.
