I am going to Boston in a week or so for a family visit. I am building an engine for my cousin's boat up there and was thinking of towing it back home with me for the install to save him at least one trip. I have never towed anything with surge brakes before, just normal electric brakes. Surge brakes are the ones that use a master cylinder that is applied as the weight of the trailer pushes on the tow vehicle. I am a little leary of that long of a tow with my 2 dr Tahoe, but even more so not knowing the characteristics of those types of brakes. The ride down 95 from Boston to Maryland is bad enough with no trailer :clonk: Any comments appreciated.

I had those brakes on a 10 foot tent Starcraft trailer. Never had a problem. Went to Canada twice and all along the west coast. We pulled it with a old Chevy truck and they worked well.

Black,
This is a bit larger trailer. Boat is a 25' Formula. Total wgt of boat and trailer is probably over 5000 lbs.

Black,
This is a bit larger trailer. Boat is a 25' Formula. Total wgt of boat and trailer is probably over 5000 lbs.

My first car trailer (back in the 70's) had surge brakes. I disconnected them when the trailer & car (Datsun 510--this probably weighed less than the boat) got airborne when I went over some railroad tracks at about 50mph from the brakes locking & unlocking. Dang near jerked the hitch off of the tow car. :eek: I can't recommend them at all.

BillL

We've got a 20' Welcraft center console and a 28' Parker that we tow with our Excursion. Both have the surge brakes. Even with the Parker, which weighs 7000+ lbs, the rig actually stops faster pulling the trailer than without. The trick is anticipating a little bit, as there is a slight delay until the trailer pushes forward on the master cylinder.

Andy

From what I have heard, surge brakes are no longer legal in some jurisdictions. You might want to check yours.

I don't like them, but I like not having trailer brakes even less. The trailer that I used to go to CB had them. They are annoying in that they are slow to react. They come on slow and release slow. Sometimes when accelerating away from a stop, I was fighting the trailer brakes for a few seconds.

I don't like them, but I like not having trailer brakes even less. The trailer that I used to go to CB had them. They are annoying in that they are slow to react. They come on slow and release slow. Sometimes when accelerating away from a stop, I was fighting the trailer brakes for a few seconds.

It took us FOREVER to convince the Boss Man that we needed trailer brakes on the 4000 lb Welcraft (what the hell did he care, he never drove it. He just thought Chevy and Ford made ****ty brakes). Wasn't until I pointed out several states that require brakes on trailers over 1000 lbs that we finally got them.

Had the brakes go out on the 7000 lb Parker trailer halfway from Memphis to Tampa. Talk about white knuckles. Good thing I was driving the Largest, Most Powerful Sport Utility Vehicle in the Known Universe (Excursion with the V-10).

Bill, I tow a 18' lund , about 3500lb behind my 5th wheel, behind my 2500 gmc. Yep a train. My boat trailer has the surge brakes and they work fine. I have tried driving with them disconnected for testing purposes and they do help. Like others have said, not instantaneous but they work. Normal driving conditions, they are no problem at all. There is a lever on the side of the unit that disconnects the brake ( for backing up hills ) just make sure its engaged and drive away

I've been trailering my classic cars on such a trailer for about 14 years now. Since I've never used the electric variety I can't really give a comparison. Been everywhere from Missouri to Tennessee to New England with it and never had a problem.

My understanding is that certain States and Provinces will not allow surge brakes for commercial use. However, not a problem for personal or recreational use to the best of my knowledge. Make sure you check the brake fluid in the coupler and you have the proper "emergency brake chain/line" for brake engagement should the trailer come unhooked.

Bill, What is the two rating of your Tahoe?

I have actually towed open car trailers with both electric brakes and surge brakes, and I actually prefer the surge brakes a little better. I've never towed a boat and that may be a different deal. I recently towed my latest buy, a very heavy and long 65 Pontiac Catalina Convertible on a 300 trip. It towed great with my Yukon Denali. Mostly interstate at speeds usually around 70-75 mph, except through the mountains. No problems with the braking in the mountians and curves. And it is a heavy trailer, 22' steel bed. Like others have posted, you have to get used to it.

Bill - Hook the trailer up behind your rig and go for a decent test drive somewhere that you can make a few starts and stops and get the feel for the surge brakes. You'll do fine after that. The only time I've seen problems like jurkyness over RR tracks or bad slow response or release is when the trailer brakes had sat for long periods of time and/or the master cyl was in poor repair. Don't be one of these guys I see all the time driving like they are in a race car on the hwy doing 80 with a trailer in tow or being the first vehicle across the intersection when the light turns green and it will be just another uneventful trip...

UHaul has been using them for years. Sometimes they are a pain backing up hill but they are a lot better than a loaded trailer with no brakes. I wouldn't hesitate using them at all.



(just my .02)

Thanks for the replies guys. I have towed plenty before, just always with electric brakes. I will let you know how it works out if we end up doing it.

Bill, tow a 12,500 pound commercial chipper that has surge brakes..they work very well, but do not have the grabby feeling that electric brakes have. Just take a little getting use to.

ALbert

FWIW, we used to tow my Father-in-law's 24' Sea Ray and surge brakes with a Fo*d Exploder with no problems..

Scott

Hey Bill:

I might be a day late but I've been towing ski boats around for years and surge brakes have been one of the best additions made to boat trailers. The boat I have now is about 3500# w/trailer. The brakes work perfectly!

The only differnce I have ever noticed between electric and surge is that you can manually apply the electric through the controller for fun...or possibly in an emergency if your tow yehicle brakes fail. Kinda like the backup brakes we have on the Learjet! :-)

I have surge brakes on my boat trailer. No problem backing up, the wheel cylinders only have one piston!

The trailer does pull hard, though, and I'm now wondering if it's the brakes that are the problem. I have the same "jerkyness" that has been described in other posts above.

Yeah, they beat no brakes at all!!!