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There was a poster above you, who stated he would go to electric brakes rather than hydraulic because of 'stated reasons' or something to that effect.

It sounds like you have done all the things necessary for a 'marine' electric brake solution, which certainly was not cheap in parts/labour. You also already had the cost of the controller covered.

However, you've enjoyed 7 seasons of use from the fruits of well-done labor - well done.

If you convert from surge to electric brakes you usually have to replace the drums and hardware (the surfaces for the acutators are different) so you really run up the bill. A much better/cheaper alternative would be a surge disk brake conversion kit.

Surge brakes are inherently closed loop, in that the braking force is determined by the difference in speeds of the towing and towed vehicle. Ive never had to adjust my 'braking force' on either drums or discs on any of my boats, so Im not sure what this 'benefit' refers to, honestly. The last electric brake trailer I had was a Coleman about the same weight as a Mac, IIRC. They worked flawlessly for the 3 years I towed that unit.

BTW - Ive emailed BOATUS that they should update their 2010 article to reflect the 2007 Federal decision on this issue.

I was lucky with the drums, I was able to reuse them. The rest of the system was trashed and I had to replace everything anyway. The benefit of being able to adjust the brakes comes in when you have a car hauler or other trailer that is empty, you can change the rate of engagement. (controller uses PWM to very current) I suppose that isn't as much a concern with a boat trailer. A boat trailer(specially a Mac) without a boat on it isn't extremely heavy.

I can't reiterate how IMPORTANT the preventative maintenance is on any brake system regardless of the type of brakes you have.
They can all fail when you need them the most(heaven forbid when the little kid on the bike rides out in front of you). Machines are destined to fail from the beginning. You have to mitigate the risk.

John

I bet you didn't expect so many responses to your initial question did you Cuscus! This seems to be a topic of some debate

Well, I'm comfortable with my hydraulic system, works real good! I use my boat in saltwater. When I rebuilt my trailer, I used stainless steel disc brakes, and stainless steel brake lines, and I rinse real good after each use. In fact all the parts to the trailer are either galvanized or stainless steel, and I used LED lights, and the wire connections are soldered, should last a long time. Not too bad for a 22 year old trailer.

Yes Doug, didn't expect so much debate. There are pros and cons to each system. It just boils down to personal preference, experiences, cost factors and what you haveon hand. Like the saying goes, " there is more than one way to skin a cat".

Just ordered a Venture 8225 dual axle with brakes on both. One reason is that its the law in NC and the second is we do a great deal of long distance and mountain travel with ours, and 4 brakes are always better than two. The dealer wanted an extra $250.00 to put brakes on the second axle so I figured it was $250 well spent.

streuber wrote:.... The dealer wanted an extra $250.00 to put brakes on the second axle so I figured it was $250 well spent.

Smart move ,

Sum

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