Brake Adjustment

[spadasak]

I have an '07 Montana Mountaineer 342PHT and have a question concerning the brakes. Are the brakes self adjusting or do they need to be adjusted periodically? If so, what is the procedure for jacking up the RV to properly adjust or change each wheel?

[skypilot]

Looking at the Dexter web site I only noticed one model of trailer brake that is self adjusting (and it is the largest one). So, I'd hazard a guess that your's are not self adjusting. I've only seen the dealer lift my trailer (under warranty so I let them do the work , they used a floor jack right under the place where the shackle contacted the axle. Used a piece of wood but out in the shape of the axle and spring (special made thing) to give them a good contact area and they did one wheel at a time.

[tcorbitt]

Excellent question. I have the same rig, an 06 and need to adjust the brakes. Our previous TT had auto adjusters, so I never learned how to do this myself. I am tempted to just give the dealer the $$ and not take any chances, however, I am quite handy and if it is not all that complicated, would much rather do them myself.

Help/advise from those out there who do this please.. Any special tools needed..etc.

Tim

[spadasak]

I have tried pulling the front set of wheels up on leveling blocks but this didn't get the real set off the ground at all. The linkage in the suspension picked up the slack. Although, now that I think about it that would probably put all the weight on one axle which would not be good.

[Montana Sky]

My coach does not have self adjusting brakes. I had the dealership adjust them before the trip to Goshen last fall. The before and after difference was very noticeable. This is something that I am going to have done every two years or so depending on the amount of travel each year.

[spadasak]

I guess I'll find out for sure, I have an appointment this Friday at the dealer to check it all out. I'll post an update then.

[sreigle]

As the others said, Montana brakes are not self-adjusting. None of the fifthwheels we've had ever had self-adjusting brakes although I'd like to see that changed.

During our fulltiming I used to take the FW to the dealer once per year, have him repack the wheel bearings, check the brakes, replace as necessary. Brake adjustment is a natural part of that process. After finding that none of that work was really necessary (in our case) yearly, I've gone to having this done every two years. This is just what works for me. I'd recommend it be done yearly until you know the needs of your rig.

[Dave e Victoria]

The Cambridge brakes are self adjusting. I had to replace the brakes after 12,000 miles because one was dragging. I backed it off several times but it kept creeping back to a drag. Not sure it is properly fixed yet.

Funny, when I took it in the service manager was adament that no trailer had self adjustere. Needless to say, he had to apologize.

[spadasak]

I did end up taking my 342PHT into the dealer and he insisted that the brakes were self adjusting and didn't need to check. They did the inspection on the RV and sent me on my way. I am not satisfied that he is correct, so I think I will jack up the RV and check myself. Once the Noreaster is passed that is.

[wileecoyote985]

spadasak

My rig is a couple years older than yours so thing may have changed, but my Dexter manual gave some fair advice on how to adjust the brakes.

Here's their site if you don't have your manual handy. Brake adjustment is down the page a ways: http://dexteraxle.com/i/u/1080235/f/...-06_72_res.pdf

One thing I would suggest is that you might want to take the rig out for a short run if it's been sitting a while. I found that the little rust build up on the drums after it sits for several months, made getting the slight drag you're looking for, when they're properly adjusted, somewhat difficult to obtain.