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Topic ClosedTrailer Brake Issue

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mcarter View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Trailer Brake Issue
    Posted: 06 Jun 2018 at 7:06pm
DavMar, there is no such thing. Guys like ChetC and me learned this from crawling under our pods and doing some work. Your 7 pin connector is standard and I have added the diagram to this forum (just lately). The OP is right, Pods are very similar, he's right on the colors and BTW there isn't too many wires going into the brake hubs. The brake controller signal comes from position 7 on your connector as you look at it with the alignment lug at 12 o'clock position. BTW that wire is blue. If there was a good wiring diagram we'd all have it, until then we teach ourselves and we learn. Personally I have taken the time to find out what each of the 7 pins does and where it goes. Why - because the wiring color changes as it goes aft on Pod in some cases. Bottom line is the wiring diagram I have, I made. AND it is a valuable tool and it was a great lesson to learn how my RV is wired.
Mike Carter
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ChetC View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Jun 2018 at 10:58pm
I’ll agree with mcarter on this. I was unable to find a wiring diagram for the rPod but I never really looked too hard as I know all electric brake systems are the same, just different colored wires. It’s extremely rare that the brake controller or socket connection fails but it’s also somewhat common that the connection at the hub does fail. I’ve fixed my brakes on this trailer twice in about 40,000 miles. My previous trailer, which was a tandem, I had to fix twice as well in about the same mileage. I am in the habit of occasionally locking up the trailer brakes in grassy areas or on wet pavement, using the controller, to verify both sides are functioning properly.
Former 2017 rPod 180 owner
Now in a 2019 Little Guy MAX
Full timer who logs more than 35,000 miles per year.
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mcarter View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Jun 2018 at 8:27am
Try this, there is some great info on here. Pods are wired to the 7 way RV standard, mine matches pin postion and wire color. There is also a representation of brake wiring and a trailer wiring image, but it doesn't match your Pod. Great reference I use.

https://www.etrailer.com/faq-wiring.aspx
Mike Carter
2015 178
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DavMar View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Jun 2018 at 4:09pm
Originally posted by mcarter

Try this, there is some great info on here. Pods are wired to the 7 way RV standard, mine matches pin postion and wire color. There is also a representation of brake wiring and a trailer wiring image, but it doesn't match your Pod. Great reference I use.

https://www.etrailer.com/faq-wiring.aspx


Thanks, that all I need, once I get my printer working right. I guess the next step for me is spending some time under the Pod with paper and pencil!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Jun 2018 at 7:14pm
DavMar, I like the little fused jumper I made with two 1/4" spade connectors. I can pick up 12V at the 11 position on trailer plug and use it to test different circuits, don't plug it into the ground at 5. I can light my lights and even send signal to brake controller and light my reverse lights I added. I added the faq wiring doc to my binder and it has my notes on it from different things I've looked at.
Mike Carter
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DavMar View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Jun 2018 at 9:07pm
Mike, great idea you have with making up a spade test jumper, simple and quick, I like! I also try to avoid jumping 12vdc straight to ground to avoid letting the magic out in a big poof of smoke! Embarrassed
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DavMar View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 Jun 2018 at 5:46pm

I downloaded and printed out information on how a 7 pin connector is wired into a trailer. Then with these drawings I slid under the Rpod to see how the trailer brakes are wired and its left me with more questions then answers. I hope some of you here who have more knowledge of trailer wiring them me can help?

First, I under stand that Forest River unfortunately didn’t follow the standard color code you’ll find on trailer schematics. That’s why instead of single blue and white wire going to the trailer brakes you see white, white/black, white/blue connected to what looks like green wires (to me at least) into the hubs.

Here is where I need the help, on the driver side wheel hub there are two wires, white and white/blue coming together and going into a green wire into the hub and the trailer brake. There are also two additional wires colored white and another white/black going into the other brake wire to the hub. Over on the passenger side wheel hub I have a white/black wire going into a green wire to the trailer brake and then a white wire going into the other green wire going into the wheel hub to the brake.

I’m perplexed with these two wires going into one and not just a single blue (positive) wire and a white (ground) wire as shown in most trailer schematics. Would I be correct in assuming that the white/black wires on each side and white wires that are also located on both sides to each electric brake are common and connected together, diver side white/black to passenger side white/black. Are all the white wires common and tied together as the ground? This doesn’t make sense to me because you wouldn’t tie what might be a positive wire such as the white/blue or white/black to a negative white wire? So are the white/blue and white wire that come together on the driver side positive and the white/black and white that also come together on the driver side the negative side going to the trailer brake? Is this same white/black on the driver side carried over to the passenger’s side white/black as its negative and the white wire on the passenger side going into the trailer brake the positive that on most schematics would be shown as a blue wire?

Maybe someone here has already solved this mystery of Rpod wiring or am I going to have to hook up the trailer connector to my TV and crawl around with a probe and my volt/ohm meter?

Help!!!

 

 

Dave & Marlene J with Zoey the
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2017 Rpod 180
2016 Toyota Tacoma SR5 4x4
Lexington, NC
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mcarter View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 Jun 2018 at 6:11pm
DavMar - go back and read ChetC's post. Take some time. Make your own notes, don't expect a wiring diagram until after you have made it.
Mike Carter
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 5:24pm
Okay, Okay, Okay!

Since I’m curious and wanted to figure out how the trailer brake wiring on my Pod is wired and I don’t have a secret decoder ring. I made up a jumper, got my magical Fluke meter out, along with a probe and a better flash light to see when under the Pod today.

If I’m right from the trailer seven-pin connector plug the (+) positive power for the Brake control runs on a White/Blue wire to one side of the electro brake magnet in the wheel hub on the driver’s side of the camper. Before going into the wheel hub this same wire splits, one wire going into the driver side electro brake magnet and the other Blue/White to the passenger side (+) electro brake magnet.  On the (-) negative ground side a White wire goes from the seven-pin connector to the driver side wheel hub where it connects to the other side of the electro magnet. It also goes into a connector before the wheel hub and splits with one wire running into the driver side (-) negative brake electro magnet and the other traveling over to the passenger side (-) negative electro magnet.

Now I think I have this correct and please do point it out if I’m wrong. What made it a bit confusing for me is that when you put the one lead of an ohm meter on an electro magnet lead and the other lead of the meter on the other magnet lead and it will read a short unless you have a precision ohm meter able to read very high resistance sensitivity. There for it showed, on the meter, an electrical short between the (+) positive side and the (-) negative side wiring because it’s connected to each other through the electro magnets. I could easily confirm the wiring if I wanted to cut one lead of the brake magnet off (positive Blue /White or the negative White wire) but I’m of the opinion its best not to unless somehow, I’m totally wrong on how the trailer brake are wired in our campers?

Dave & Marlene J with Zoey the
wonder dog.
2017 Rpod 180
2016 Toyota Tacoma SR5 4x4
Lexington, NC
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GlueGuy View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 6:40pm
Originally posted by DavMar

Now I think I have this correct and please do point it out if I’m wrong. What made it a bit confusing for me is that when you put the one lead of an ohm meter on an electro magnet lead and the other lead of the meter on the other magnet lead and it will read a short unless you have a precision ohm meter able to read very high resistance sensitivity.
Exactly right except for the words "very high resistance". It's actually the opposite of that and the correct words are "very low resistance".

Electromagnets are in essence just a coil wrapped around "the magnet". Because the coils are copper, there just isn't a lot of resistance there. It will take a pretty good meter to register much more than 0 ohms. It will be a tiny amount of ohms.More likely milli-ohms.
bp
2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River
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