Tow Dolly Woe

[eieioh]

I wonder why all of the shops I have contacted will not service tow dollies. I have a unit with surge brakes. So, it seems service for them should be the same as any automotive brake.

The shops I have contacted tell me flat out they either do not work on trailers or dollies or tell they charge $600/axle.

What is so difficult about this?

[Pete_k]

mkirsch wrote:
The whole "It's illegal" discussion is irrelevant here, because this is for a car dolly, not a commercial trailer, and not in BC.

If the OP is dragged down a boat dock by his car, something is very very wrong.

Used to get dragged down the ramp 3 or 4 times per day. But then again with a Yacht. Plus we always stopped when the boat hit the water. This was with a class 8 single axle semi also.

[ferndaleflyer]

Oh MY!!!!! I did have an airplane crash in my yard once but since I moved my original site location 20 years earlier it missed the house. Sh-t happens in real life.....you could avoid that meteor by just staying home, but wait, it might hit your house. Silly meteor!!!!

Hope OP finds someone to help him out. Its a real pain to need something done and find no one to do it.

[mkirsch]

Grit dog wrote:

ferndaleflyer wrote:
At that price get rid of it and buy a new dolly WITHOUT brakes. I have used this set up for 20+ years and have yet to have the first problem.

But you generally appear to be more mechanically inclined and savvy than most. And the OP could "need" them surge brakes, whereas you don't behind an air-braked pusher. (And you likely don't get wrapped around the spokes with much of the weight cop and towing fears that seem to proliferate this forum)

But it does raise the question that the OP mentioned. $600 to "service" the dolly (1 axle). What does that include? Did he get a quote to replace the actuator, new brakes and bearings? Or was that $600 plus parts and more labor to replace the actuator if needed? Big difference.

Why is it that someone always posts some extreme example and then basically says "well it "could" happen, somehow, somewhere, sometime..."

OP doesn't "need" brakes. ferndaleflyer says so.

I'd ask why is it that someone always posts that nothing bad will ever-ever happen, and you don't need to worry about silly things like worst case scenarios?

My luck the second I become complacent a meteor will plop down in the middle of the road in front of me and I won't be able to stop because my tow dolly's surge brakes were shot and not working. But I didn't need them because nothing bad was ever-ever going to happen right?

[JoeChiOhki]

Honestly, if you strike out finding a shop, look up the backing plate size and weight rating of the existing surge brakes and get an electric brake kit for it. Since its not a boat trailer, submergence is not an issue and you'll be able to live dial the braking impact the electrics trigger while testing it with a live load.

Electric conversion kits used to be fairly inexpensive since it was mostly just a swap of the hydraulic cylinder for the electromagnet piece designed to take its place and running of some new wire to your trailer plug if you are already wired up for electric trailer brakes on your vehicle.

[ferndaleflyer]

Grit you forgot to mention to take advice from those that have done it not those that heard or read about it. Mechanically inclined, maybe, but those Utube instructions sure make me feel like it sometimes. And I have the nerve to jump right in, LOL.

And the fact that the current toad on my dolly is a Smart car may help the no brakes deal. Carry on

[Grit_dog]

ferndaleflyer wrote:
At that price get rid of it and buy a new dolly WITHOUT brakes. I have used this set up for 20+ years and have yet to have the first problem.

But you generally appear to be more mechanically inclined and savvy than most. And the OP could "need" them surge brakes, whereas you don't behind an air-braked pusher. (And you likely don't get wrapped around the spokes with much of the weight cop and towing fears that seem to proliferate this forum)

But it does raise the question that the OP mentioned. $600 to "service" the dolly (1 axle). What does that include? Did he get a quote to replace the actuator, new brakes and bearings? Or was that $600 plus parts and more labor to replace the actuator if needed? Big difference.

[Grit_dog]

Kayteg1 wrote:

mkirsch wrote:


If the OP is dragged down a boat dock by his car, something is very very wrong.

But don't ignore human ingenuity. Just las week on youtbe I run into video of a boat, who I would estimate at least 15,000 lb, with about 12' width towed by F150.
The best point was going via 11' wide tool gates.

Why is it that someone always posts some extreme example and then basically says "well it "could" happen, somehow, somewhere, sometime..."

Is it like an innate need to refute EVERYTHING? (I call it the "arging that the sky isnt blue", rv.net syndrome)

[ferndaleflyer]

Backing up a dolly with a car on it is next to impossible.

Only used a trailer with surge brakes and if it had a way to lock the brakes out I never new it. I do know I could not back it up the driveway because the brakes were engaged.

[Kayteg1]

Any smart design of surge brake will have locking pin, or pad for backing up.

[NamMedevac_70]

I have read on RV forums one cannot backup a tow dolly in a straight line. True or not true and that Uhaul trailers with surge brakes cannot be backed up an incline or hill?????

[ferndaleflyer]

At that price get rid of it and buy a new dolly WITHOUT brakes. I have used this set up for 20+ years and have yet to have the first problem.

[Kayteg1]

mkirsch wrote:


If the OP is dragged down a boat dock by his car, something is very very wrong.

But don't ignore human ingenuity. Just las week on youtbe I run into video of a boat, who I would estimate at least 15,000 lb, with about 12' width towed by F150.
The best point was going via 11' wide tool gates.

[mkirsch]

The whole "It's illegal" discussion is irrelevant here, because this is for a car dolly, not a commercial trailer, and not in BC.

If the OP is dragged down a boat dock by his car, something is very very wrong.

[Kayteg1]

JIMNLIN wrote:


However lots of non commercial trailers with surge brakes on the road. I watched a guy on a really steep boat ramp get drug backwards. The rig didn't stop till the heavy boat was mostly floating..

When electric brakes might stop it at the situation, I doubt electric coils would like to be submerged on long run.
I have seen electric over hydraulic brake system on boat trailer, but that was aftermarket conversion. For some reasons manufacturers don't do it.
I just bought new tow dolly with surge brakes and even before I was able to use it, I've got "recall" notice.
Lower caliper bolts require torqueing. I have several wrench sets, but none of traditional wrenches would fit between bolt and frame. I had to make 12-point turns with open wrench, what gave me limited torque.
Having very small space, the design is very packed, so I don't blame shops don't want to work of them for liability reasons.