Issue with brake actuators on Nitro trailers?

[Mike Wagner]

Hi,



I got a call a few weeks ago from the BPS Tracker Boat Center where I purchased my 2012 Z7 saying that on some trailers, the brake actuators were not disengaging properly. Over the phone, they said they would have to jack up the boat to make sure the wheels spun correctly. When I took the boat there, they said all that needed to be done was to look at the serial number on the trailer. They said the number on my trailer was not in the recall range, so everything is fine.



I'm asking this because I have started to notice something. Usually when trailering the boat, everything seems very smooth. But sometimes after launching the boat and then pulling the empty trailer to go park, the motion seems very "jerky", almost like the wheels are not spinning freely.



This is my first trailer with brakes. Is it normal to experience this "jerky" feeling when pulling an empty trailer? Or does this sound like a potential problem with the actuator?



Thanks for the help.



Mike

 

[Wesley Bowker]

I got the same recall notice with my trailer and i havent took it in to get looked at but what yours sounds like is, as you are backing the boat in the water you are compressing the surge brake but the elec overide does not let the brakes on the trailer engage, when the boat is off the trailer your obviously losing all that weight, and you pull the vehicle forward the elec over ride turns off but the tounge of the trailer is still compressed without as much load on it, and it allows fluid to go to the brakes until you actually get the tounge pulled back out. On a Z7 you probably have a single axle trailer which is fairly light and not much resistance as your pulling away from the ramp. One way to check this is when you stop at the ramp to unlatch your boat look at the hitch the safety pin that locks the ball reciever closed, it should be able to be removed and reinserted in another hole thats in between the 2 sections of tounge. This manually disengages the brakes. Try that and see if your still jerky pulling away from the ramp

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

after launching the boat and then pulling the empty trailer to go park, the motion seems very "jerky", almost like the wheels are not spinning freely.

Wet brakes, heavy suspension now with zero weight on it causing excessive bounce is all normal. Now if your brakes lock up while trying to back up to retrieve your boat, then you "might" have an actuator sticking or a solenoid not kicking in. My old NITRO did it and I've seen a lot of others do it as well. Cure for me was to take my truck in and out of reverse a couple of times. Sometimes she was just stubborn about releasing the brakes backing up and cycling the solenoid normally worked. If it didn't, I just pulled forward and backed up s-l-o-w-l-y so as not to compress the tongue.

 

[Mike Wagner]

Thanks t-row and TOXIC. I appreciate the advice.



Mike