Brake Stutter

DuckDogTitus · Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 12:11 pm Post subject: Brake Stutter

I am getting an occasional stutter in the trailer brakes on my EZ loader trailer when I stop. Its not always, just occasional. what would cause that? Air in the lines? fluid is topped and brakes are in otherwise good shape, just had the trailer serviced this spring... looking for some troubleshooting suggestions.

Beer

potter water · Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 1:07 pm Post subject:

Surge brakes or electric?

Stutter usually means pitted or rusty rotors, grease on the pads or rotor. Sounds like you got a bad brake service job. Could also mean that you have one of the four wheels or a pair that are skipping along the ground during braking if you have a tandem axle trailer. That would be caused by pretty sever imbalance of the load on the axles front to back.

Good luck

DuckDogTitus · Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 1:10 pm Post subject:

journey on · Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 1:50 pm Post subject:

When I get pump on the brakes, the rotors/disks are warped. Mine got that way from getting really hot. Your may differ, as they say.

Could also be the way the surge brakes interact with the load, sort of an oscillation. Trailer slows down, the surge brakes release the trailer speeds up, but the brakes on, etc.

Just WAGs, since I'm 1000 miles away.

Boris

Robert H. Wilkinson · Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 9:44 pm Post subject:

Like Boris said rotors can warp if they get heated up especially if you dunk them in a cold lake before they cool down.

If they are drum brakes another thing to check would be the hardware - weak springs can cause problems especially if the drums are also worn beyond spec. As a rule of thumb if the paint is no longer visible or if they are rusted - replace them.

Air in the line will diminish the braking but I don't know if it would cause your problem. Brake fluid should be replaced and all the old fluid bleed out every X# of years anyway - so you could try that.

Regards, Rob

colbysmith · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 10:25 am Post subject:

Not sure what you mean by stutter. Is it a noise or vibration, or kind of a jerking on your tow vehicle? It could possibly be one brake catching before the others, locking up, or a "sweet spot" with your coupler that is causing the brakes to apply then release. (Not enuf pressure to completely apply the trailer brakes, but enough to continually activate and release the piston.) Does it just do it during a hard stop, or a very gentle stop? Anything recently changed with your trailer hitch? One other thought comes to mind, a possible internal leak within the hydraulic coupler system. (Think sort of how your car with anti lock brakes acts when you try to lock it up on a slick road. Is the "stutter" anything like that?) Colby

DuckDogTitus · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 10:29 am Post subject:

colbysmith · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 11:07 am Post subject:

I would suggest adjusting the little "star screw" on each brake and see if that helps. (With all at pretty much the same adjustment.) If you recently had the brakes serviced and that meant new shoes, they are probably getting seated and in need of adjustment.) Smile

I don't think the bearing buddies would affect it, but I never liked them because I always had the grease pressurized out of the seal onto the brakes. (Could have been operator error in loading too much grease in them, or cheap wheel seals! Sad

Colby

DuckDogTitus · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 11:11 am Post subject:

yeah I am definitely going to tinker with the adjustment. I meant to last night but got stuck bucking hay (330 bales, fun fun). they inspected the brakes and found them in good shape so didn't actually end up replacing the pads. I'll get to the bottom of this though and post a conclusion on the thread in case it comes again later for someone else.

colbysmith · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 11:22 am Post subject:

Pads, or shoes? Smile

Pads are on Disc brakes, and I would then wonder about warpage. Shoes go with drums, and usually don't involve warpage... Semantics does make a difference here. Smile

And yes I hate the grammer police too! Mr. Green

Will-C · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 11:42 am Post subject: Brake Stutter

Maybe it's tow vehicle. Tranny jumping gears or sumpin.
D.D.

digger · Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 8:27 pm Post subject:

Make sure that the tongue actuator is sliding freely. I would out some gear lube on the sliding surfaces. When you are braking lightly, the tongue may be hanging up some. When you got the boat, the brake lines had been thoroughly bled, and it had new actuator on the tongue, and the slave cylinders on the brakes were new. However, backing into salt water corrodes the backing plates, brake shoes, and slave cylinders. You may need new wheel cylinder parts if you have not been rinsing the brakes through the flushing devices. Surprising how fast they get bad.

DuckDogTitus · Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2014 8:40 pm Post subject:

DuckDogTitus · Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2014 11:10 pm Post subject:

Today the trailer got new bearings, new seals, brake adjustment and bled again just in case. it appears to be towing fantastic again. just a few miles so far but we have a long trip coming up in a week or two so that will be the good test.

I think we've narrowed down the culprit to just needing brake adjustment, but the bearings were looking due so its good to get it all done at once.

colbysmith · Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2014 11:38 pm Post subject:

Doesn't take much adjustment to bring in back into whack! Smile

I kind of thought that might be what it was. But when you mentioned towing with a different vehicle with a different height on the hitch, that might have caused it too. Colby