Trailer rebuild, thoughts on bearing buddies

[mabbore]

Ok, so a side question here. I ended up rebuilding the trailer bearings. I also put totally new drum, brake assemblies, lines, and brake acutatior. (got everything from etrailer for less thatn $400 shipped (: )I towed the boat for the first time yesterday about 25 miles stop and go. I was blow away, the brakes helped soooo much, I could not tell there was even anything back there.

However, I was smelling some excessive brake smells. I am wondering if this is just the brake pads just braking in, or what. I replaced the 10" drum setup on 1 axle. Do I need brakes on both axles to tow my SunSport? any ideas from anyone

[Blackntan90]

I would think a Sunsport will need brakes on both axles, my Mariah has brakes on both axles and it is smaller (in freeboard, anyway) than a Sunsport. I have 4 10" drums, and the shoes are the same as the Chevy S-10 so that is nice and easy to find parts. I think with disc brakes, you only need them on 1 axle. This is probably because they are so efficient. And easier to service! Hope this helps!

[mabbore]

interesting, does anyone have a factory late 80s sunspot trailer? what is the drum configuration? 2 or 4

[mabbore]

anyone.... some of you must have an original sunsport trailer.

[wotan2525]

My 87 Saltare only has drums on 1 axle. It can get scary to try and stop it on the highway.

[mabbore]

yeah, I was just worried because my new brakes were smelling pretty bad. I was not sure if they were braking in, or burning up.

[cadunkle]

My 87 Saltare only has drums on 1 axle. It can get scary to try and stop it on the highway.

My Saltare wasn't scary but was not stopping as quickly as it should, with drums on both axles. Turns about to backing on 3 wheels and one had plenty of meat but totally covered in grease inside. Truck stopped it alright but at beignning of this season I noticed it didn't stop as quickly and when in a hurry to slow down the truck brakes would smell pretty noticeably. Redid the whole thing. New clinders, hardware, shoes, lines, etc... Also did all new wheel bearings though old weren't that bad. Stops on a dime now.

Cost more than I wanted to spend for a surprise expense but totally worth it for peace of mind. Another surprise expense was adding a reverse lockout solenoid to the master, as after new brakes trying to back up even the slightest incline would lcok the trailer brakes and truck just spun tires if pressing the issue. They work well! I do have bearing buddies, give 2-3 pumps a few times a season or before/after any long trip. I'll see next season if there is any seal failure or grease leakage inside the drums, but I try not to overdo it. With the old seals that were at least 5 years old, maybe original as they were made in USA which is hard to find now, only one had failed and was greasing the brakes.