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Topic ClosedReplacement axle?
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mcarter View Drop Down
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Joined: 07 Apr 2016
Location: Greenbrier, TN
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Posts: 3419 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: Replacement axle?
    Posted: 02 Oct 2018 at 12:11pm
I do know people who have converted to disc brakes, however they had a hydraulic equipped trailer. Have seen this on several occasions with boat trailers. In every case they went with a conversion kit. Which are available at etrailer.com. As SH said the conversion to hydraulic is a show stopper to me, to me it adds a whole other system to your TT. The parts are readily available should you want to go that way.
Mike Carter
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Joined: 29 Nov 2015
Location: Wake Forest, NC
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Posts: 6288 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2018 at 8:31am
It looks to me as if the disc brake rotors and mechanism while not cheap are not the most expensive part, but the electric over hydraulic controller which costs $600 and up is.
StephenH
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Joined: 23 Jul 2018
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Posts: 5290 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2018 at 8:02am
mcarter, have you or do you know anyone who has made the disc conversion on an rPod or similar size trailer? What parts were used, what worked and what didn't, what was the end product like, etc? Thanks
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mcarter View Drop Down
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Joined: 07 Apr 2016
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Posts: 3419 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Oct 2018 at 7:43am
Agreed, plus I prefer electric over hydraulic. The current brakes are sophisticated compared to drums of the 50s and 60s, the fact they are self adjusting in forward motion is an improvement. My other thought is disc brakes don't alleviate seals and hub bearings, that will always be an issue.
Mike Carter
2015 178
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Joined: 29 Nov 2015
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Posts: 6288 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01 Oct 2018 at 8:02pm
That is why I will not convert yet. It is just too expensive at this time.
StephenH
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Posts: 5290 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01 Oct 2018 at 1:30pm
If there's not a lot of heat then the brakes on that side probably really aren't that tight. Could be the drum or shoes are a little warped. Do you have an IR thermometer? You can get them on Amazon for about $25. I think I bought this one

https://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Lasergrip-Thermometer-Temperature-Non-contact/dp/B00DMI62HM/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1538416741&sr=8-4&keywords=ir+thermometer+gun

May I suggest running down highway for awhile on flat ground with your trailer brakes disconnected (so no brake use so you will only have heat from the drag on both sides), then pull over and measure the drum temps on both sides. If they're really about the same then the tightness on the passenger side is not significant enough to be causing any real drag issues. Otherwise you'd get differential heat buildup.

Because I need to get on the road Thurs morning and my drums are scored so I needed new hubs anyway, I just bought complete brake and hub assemblies. That way I get new magnets and all the parts, bearings and seals greased and installed.  All I have to do is bolt on, connect and heat shrink the wires, install the hub, adjust the bearing play, perform the one time brake adjustment, done.  For the price and time involved it just doesn't seem worth it to me to go through a brake rebuild part by part.

I dislike drum brakes too. They retain heat and water and grease and hide damage and corrosion from view. Just a poor design all around. I had them fade completely out on my old VW bus in my early days, very scary, and those were new properly installed brakes. I'll never forget it. If you find disc brakes for our rPod axles at a reasonable price let us know. But I think you need to convert to an electric over hydraulic system so its really spendy. 
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Posts: 6288 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01 Oct 2018 at 12:21pm
The thing I noticed is that there is wear on the surface where the magnet slides.  The drum where the shoes slide and the shoes themselves looked okay. I was able to lift the lever and back it off. I have done so after each of the past few trips only to find it tight again when I check. There still has not been excessive heat as both sides feel to be about the same. If it were generating excessive heat, I would think I would feel it when I check the hubs.

The surface of the magnet is not smooth but has some groves along with the corresponding place on the drum where it slides. While it is not worn down to the armature windings, I can see where I will want to do a brake rebuild. If I do one side, I will do the other also. I really would not mind if I could find a way to convert to disk brakes that would be cost effective.
StephenH
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Posts: 5290 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01 Oct 2018 at 12:12pm
StephenH, I would assume that the residue in the passenger side drum is just brake dust from the shoes, that is sacrificial material and is supposed to be there. The greasy side wouldn't have as much because the grease is lubricating the drums and shoes. 

I'm puzzled why that side isn't self adjusting properly. Was there any unusual wear (gouges, missing shoe material) on the passenger side drum and shoes?  Were you able to push the little locking lever out of the way of the adjustment star and back off the brakes on that side? 
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Joined: 07 Apr 2016
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Posts: 3419 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01 Oct 2018 at 11:38am
SH,

Sounds like a great plan, know you will tell us outcome.
Mike Carter
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Joined: 29 Nov 2015
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Posts: 6288 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 30 Sep 2018 at 9:58pm
Originally posted by mcarter

SH,

You may have solved the brake and hub tightening issue. The brake adjuster could detect the slip caused by the greasy surfaces and continue to adjust to max to compensate. Heat could be minimum because brake is not tight against hub and is slipping versus locking. I know you said shoes were clean but I would replace shoes now that grease issue is fixed, once contaminated they will never function right again. As far as castle nut, tighten with large vice grips or crescent until races and bearings are set, then back off to snug. Lock it. Good luck. PS - still thinking about tire wear issue.
The problem is that the one that gets too tight is the door side which did not have the grease seal fail. Although I did find a lot of some kind of residue inside when I took that one apart. I also purchased a 1-1/2" socket so I could torque the castle nut to the 50 ft-lb specification before backing it off and making it finger tight and able to move slightly with the cotter pin holding it in place. I took it out for a  test drive and to see how it handles with the SumoSprings in the Frontier. So far, so good. However, I'm pretty sure the axle is bent as I still see the inside of the slide-side tire still has more bulge than the outside and it visually appears to be tilted in at the top. Front to back distances are okay as far as I can tell.

When we get to Kentucky and have a factory rep to ask, I will get a professional opinion about this. I will also have to tools to re-do the bearings and brakes if needed. The ones I bought for this job (seal puller, dead-blow mallet, bearing packer) all will be in my tools that travel with us.
StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

ouR escaPOD mods
Former RPod 179
Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS
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