Caliper mounting plate

[Fab1]

I'm thinking of fitting mechanical brakes to my un braked trailer as I have a towbar coming for my cerato which I'll be fitting when it arrives even though it's rated to tow my boat un braked for that extra peace of mind/safety.

Can someone confirm what thickness their caliper plates are on their trailer so I can make some up and weld them on to my axle.

  From memory they're 6mm or 10mm  if I'm not mistaken but have a feeling they're 6mm.

Thanks guys.

[New Signing]

Ive got electrics on my trailer mate and that is purely only for the fact that i have to have them. Every year i get them fixed for registration and sure as shite within the next two trips they're seized up again.

The main problem is that you dunk your trailer in the saltwater and then park it in the sun for the next 8 hours.

If you can avoid having brakes i certainly would. I assume what you are towing isnt overly large given you are towing it with a tuscon

[Fab1]

9 minutes ago, New Signing said:

Ive got electrics on my trailer mate and that is purely only for the fact that i have to have them. Every year i get them fixed for registration and sure as shite within the next two trips they're seized up again.

The main problem is that you dunk your trailer in the saltwater and then park it in the sun for the next 8 hours.

If you can avoid having brakes i certainly would. I assume what you are towing isnt overly large given you are towing it with a tuscon

Hi mate,I don't have that issue as I flush my trailer as Im driving to park the car with freshwater with a trailer flushing setup I made.

its on this forum in the workshop if you want to have a look and on youtube.

My boats only a small aluminium runabout  that I tow with our ute at the moment  no dramas and have recently bought a New Kia Cerato and for that extra braking capacity id prefer too put brakes on the trailer for that extra peace of mind/safety as I think the more safety things in place when towing with a smaller car and driving sensibly the better.

This is my Boat on the  trailer and ute and my cerato that I'm going to tow it with at times.

Cheers.

[New Signing]

I'm guessing your boat and trailer weight over 610kg so it'll have to be braked for insurance to cover you 

Worth checking your towball weight as well. Max rating of 75 and total braked towing capacity of 1100

[Fab1]

6 minutes ago, New Signing said:

I'm guessing your boat and trailer weight over 610kg so it'll have to be braked for insurance to cover you 

Worth checking your towball weight as well. Max rating of 75 and total braked towing capacity of 1100

She weighs 550kg fully loaded with gear and fuel ready to fish as per weigh bridge certificate.

when I set her up by moving the axle Fwd/Back she won't have any where near the 75kg on the ball.Can I ask if you maintain your calipers throughout the year as years ago I had a braked trailer on another boat and all I did was lube the caliper slides with rubber grease,remove the pads and hit the lot with fish oil every six months and don't recall ever having issues with seizing.

After launching id fill a watering can with tap water and flood the brakes/wheels.

 

[zmk1962]

I have electric hydraulic disc brakes on my twin bogey 2.6T rig.  I service them annually. I have had minimal issues inbetween. This is my procedure on each trip:

At boat ramp (takes 5min):

1) launch boat

2) park trailer

3) walk around trailer with WD40 can and spray caliper slides, discs and calipers (try not to hit the pads). Everything is pretty easy to reach with the boat off...max 5min job.

At home after trip:

1) wash down trailer, brakes and springs with copious fresh water. You don't want high pressure waterflow as it just forces the salt further in. You want lots of water that dissolves the salt away....the shower setting on your garden sprayer - not the jet. (Fab1 your portable set up would probably work great.)

2) hit the caliper slides, discs and calipers (again try not to hit the pads) with Silicon/Lanox/Inox spray lubricant. It's much harder to reach some spots now with the boat on the trailer ... but it's sure easier to do this lubrication job in my driveway then freeing up a red hot stuck disc brake along the side of a busy road....besides its justification for anther beverage as I complete my wash down  :-) .

Note: I also hit the leaf springs with the same lubricant spray (Silicon/Lanox/Inox). My trailer was built in 2001 and I am running original springs and discs with just minor surface rust present. A little maintenance goes a long way.

Fab1, I just went outside and measured - my caliper plates are 10mm thick welded onto square axle.

Cheers Zoran

Pictures below after sitting in driveway for 5mths (still waiting on hardtop and new screens to be fitted :-( .

 

[Fab1]

1 hour ago, zmk1962 said:

I have electric hydraulic disc brakes on my twin bogey 2.6T rig.  I service them annually. I have had minimal issues inbetween. This is my procedure on each trip:

At boat ramp (takes 5min):

1) launch boat

2) park trailer

3) walk around trailer with WD40 can and spray caliper slides, discs and calipers (try not to hit the pads). Everything is pretty easy to reach with the boat off...max 5min job.

At home after trip:

1) wash down trailer, brakes and springs with copious fresh water. You don't want high pressure waterflow as it just forces the salt further in. You want lots of water that dissolves the salt away....the shower setting on your garden sprayer - not the jet. (Fab1 your portable set up would probably work great.)

2) hit the caliper slides, discs and calipers (again try not to hit the pads) with Silicon/Lanox/Inox spray lubricant. It's much harder to reach some spots now with the boat on the trailer ... but it's sure easier to do this lubrication job in my driveway then freeing up a red hot stuck disc brake along the side of a busy road....besides its justification for anther beverage as I complete my wash down  :-) .

Note: I also hit the leaf springs with the same lubricant spray (Silicon/Lanox/Inox). My trailer was built in 2001 and I am running original springs and discs with just minor surface rust present. A little maintenance goes a long way.

Fab1, I just went outside and measured - my caliper plates are 10mm thick welded onto square axle.

Cheers Zoran

Pictures below after sitting in driveway for 5mths (still waiting on hardtop and new screens to be fitted :-( .

 

My hat goes off to you Zoran for taking the time and care to preserve the life of your brakes.(Not many guys do then wonder why things don't work as they should).

   Not sure if your aware but a 50:50 mix of linseed oil and turps works wonders on your entire trailer including brakes/springs.

That surface rust on your springs can be easily removed by spraying then with Vinegar in a spray bottle and spraying with galmet paint if you like once dry to preserve them  even longer.

my trailer is 5 Years old now and very good also.

I found a trailer website last night that sells weld on caliper brackets to suit my 39mm round axle with 90mm centres between bolt holes to suit my trailer for $8 Each. 

And the complete brake kit online for $380.

When I fit my Towbar I'll see how she tows without the brakes carefully off course and if i think it's unsafe for others on the road and myself I'll definitely put brakes on her or I might just do it anyway.

I'll probably put up a post on how I fit the Towbar and brakes if anyone's been looking at doing the same for whatever reason.

Thanks for taking the time to look and take the photos Zoran.

Cheers.

 

[zmk1962]

Your trailer is spotless !!!   Thanks for the tips re 50:50 mix of linseed oil and turps ... and Vinegar for cleaning. Will keep it in mind. 

Regarding your round axle - just check if its compliant to brake a round axle - I recall my trailer manufacturer telling me we had to go square axles on my trailer - but I'm not sure if it was because of the overall tonnage or because of the brakes.  But I can imagine caliper plates transfer all the braking torque onto the axle - and it would be easier to stop a square axle from twisting under the u-bolts than a round.

Cheers Zoran

[jeffb5.8]

Side Note:

i saw a guy with a watering can, pull up after launching his boat and he drowned each wheel and brakes before parking.

i thought that was a good idea.

Are the fish wash down tables using freshwater or Salt water?

[Fab1]

2 hours ago, zmk1962 said:

Your trailer is spotless !!!   Thanks for the tips re 50:50 mix of linseed oil and turps ... and Vinegar for cleaning. Will keep it in mind. 

Regarding your round axle - just check if its compliant to brake a round axle - I recall my trailer manufacturer telling me we had to go square axles on my trailer - but I'm not sure if it was because of the overall tonnage or because of the brakes.  But I can imagine caliper plates transfer all the braking torque onto the axle - and it would be easier to stop a square axle from twisting under the u-bolts than a round.

Cheers Zoran

Hi Zoran,Thanks mate as I try to look after what I have keeping my boat/trailer in good nick.My friends/family say that I have the shiniest tinny they've seen.As for your rig it needs heavier axles as the 39mm round axles are only rated to 750kg,even if you ran dual axles it would only be 1500kg where you can get square axles with 1500kg maximum load per axle.You'll find that's why the builder stipulated the Heavier axle/s be fitted.(To comply with the laws).

As for the axles twisting under the u/bolts,you'll find that even when braking hard on either a square or round axle that it is the tyres gripping the road transferring the stored up energy through the stub axles pressing up against the bearings in the 3 o'clock position putting force on the hub which is being slowed down by the tyre.

All that caliper mount does is keep the caliper in a fixed position in relation to the spinning rotor.

Without that mount the caliper would spin as a unit with the rotor and it wouldn't matter how hard you braked you wouldn't be stopping in a hurry.

Think about if you slam the brakes in in the car?Inertia wants to send your body forward yeah and all that stops that happening is the seatbelt.

The same with your you slam on the brakes and the axle wants to keep going forward at the speed the trailer was traveling but can't as the tyres are gripping the road through  the wheels and the axle can't shift forward to the 3 o'clock position because it's being restricted by th bearings,hub,tyres.

Even if you fully locked up the tyres would slid and the momentum of the trailer and axle would be pushing it along in a horizontal plane to the right.

I've probably confused everyone now but I wish I was as good as explaining this at fishing.

Cheers.

1 hour ago, jeffb5.8 said:

Side Note:

i saw a guy with a watering can, pull up after launching his boat and he drowned each wheel and brakes before parking.

i thought that was a good idea.

Are the fish wash down tables using freshwater or Salt water?

Watering can,garden sprayers etc work well and certainly beat leaving your trailer baste in the hot sun for a few hours.

Over the years I've seen cleaning tables that use both fresh and salt water but find them disgusting to use for filleting.

I can only imagine the bacteria on some of them.

The garden sprayer works well to apply the linseed and turps mix also.

cheers.

Edited November 12, 2016 by Fab1