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Comments
WOOOOHOOOO! congratulations!!! you're the man now!
I assume that's not home... let us know when she's home. when's the first outting?
Installing the brake controller will be determined by product, so follow the directions..
Using it goes like this: pull your LOADED trailer at about 25mph or so, on a safe stretch of road, then activate the emergency switch on the controller.. you'll want the dial tuned in such a way that the trailer brakes slow the trailer, and the truck a little.. this allows the loaded trailer to stop independently of the truck..
The distribution hitch is simple, too, but has to be right... The insert receiver will have pivot mounts for the leverage bars.. put the bars in the mounts after you back under the loaded trailer.. there will be clamps that mount on the trailers A frame, and are held in place with a clamping bolt.. the bottom usually has a hook for a chain link.. flip that shackle over, bite enough chain link on the leverage bar to be taught, then pry the shackle over and put the pin in to hold it.. this will all make more sense when you see the system... You'll want the weight leveraged toward the front of the truck, but not too much.. the rule of thumb is when you leverage the link with the lever on the shackle, you don't want to be really stressed... I've found if using the lever takes more than one arms strength without using my back, I've bitten too much.
The weight distribution hitch is pretty easy to use once you see how it hooks up, my wife handled one on an old horse trailer by herself for years. I might even still have the hitch and bars now that I think about it and have no use for them anymore. I'd have to dig a trench through the snow to try and find them in my shed though.
You do need straps for the rear of the boat! Tire chocks are handy on the incline. For ever needing to change a tire look at this link: http://www.amazon.com/Trailer-Tandem-Tire-Changing-Ramp/dp/B000I4JPZE
Works like a charm with a loaded trailer.
PC BYC, Holland, MI
If the truck has a seven pin trailer connection stock, I'd almost promise it has the ready harness under the dash.
Dave
2002 Captiva 212, 5.0 220 hp, Alpha 1, 1.62 gears
Moon Township, PA - boating in the Ohio River
Make your own "tire change thing" for a couple of bucks from a piece of 2X6. The link below is one example. Personally I cut my boards with an angle so there is more of a "slope" to pul up on and I put a piece on the back as a "stop" although it is entirely unnecessary. Of course I also went overboard and sanded and painted mine, but really, just take a 2X6, cut it into 3 pieces each a little shorter than the other, nail them together and voila!
http://www.wakeworld.com/news/feature/simple-jack.html
Dave
2002 Captiva 212, 5.0 220 hp, Alpha 1, 1.62 gears
Moon Township, PA - boating in the Ohio River
That said, it's not impossible to do a SS disc brake upgrade in a driveway if you have to replace the electric drums anyway. A hydraulic disc upgrade is mostly a bolt-on upgrade that will last the life of the trailer even in saltwater with a casual washdown when you rinse the trailer.
It'll certainly take some penetrating oil and probably some serious heat and percussive tools(IE hammers and blood) to get all the old junk off/apart but the Kodiak SS 4 disc set I put on my trailer was a really simple install compared to the endless maintenance I found with electric drum brakes down here. Nothing beats the feel of the trailer brakes controling that 10,000lb rig/boat at a predictable pace, especially when some nut cuts you off and it's pucker time.
Best of luck with your brakes and trip. Mike
PS those bearing buddys will come off by tapping around the side of the cap in a circular motion, slowly working it off in tiny increments. I use a quality pair of rubber/surgical type disposable gloves and an old shop towel laid out under the hub to catch any fumbled parts. Don't cheap out on the grease, buy good stuff. If a hub is loosing grease or warmer than about 130* there's a problem and you're on borrowed time. I check my hubs and tires with a $30 infra red heat gun (and a touch test) like an OCD nut to avoid a roadside rebuild at all costs. Any indication of an issue is call for investigation in a safe spot/parking lot.
interestingly, after a 35-45 minute trip, some of my hubs are warm/hot to the touch, some are not.
Ras has a rather big load at 10,000 lbs+/- and a very long pull so I'd always err on the side of avoiding a remote roadside hub/breakdown disaster at all costs. The consequences are just too severe to play russian roulette with other highway travelers or the expense of towing the whole rig and ending up at a goober mechanic shop who has you trapped and broke down. Self sufficiency if at all possible is my long pull rule. I'm kinda like Ralphies dad in the Christmas story when it comes to changing a roadside tire.
Mike
That'd be way off topic but yeah, funny movie.
When Ras gets this boat home itll time to wrap this thread anyway. Been a real drama. 6pgs and counting. A great effort by a good group of boaters.
Dream 'Inn III -- 2008 400 Express
Yeah it's a beast sitting up on the trailer. I can imagine that it's a bit intimidating sitting in your driveway. Well now you know the truck can pull it fine and it's time to replace those hubs/lugs/brakes so you feel total confidence in hauling it to the ramp on a spontaneous spring weekend. Aside from the endless canvas thread it's the longest and most interesting thread I've seen on the forum in a long time.
Now get it in the water and start those BUs (boat unit$$) flowing.
PS. Check in with the CFCC (FACEBOOK PG LINK) (WEBSITE LINK) up in Orlando. They're a very active but casual trailer boat/cruising club that'd be a nice support group in your area. One of their members just bought the restaurant at Boat Tree Marina in Sanford by the I-4 bridge on the St Johns. A nice stop in itself. here's a pic. All that's missing is you and your crew.... but that won't be long now.