The Saga of corroded brake wires on older trailers

[jd1923]

38 minutes ago, Chris Scarff said:

My old shocks that "someone" at Oliver said were "good" just two summers ago, must have exaggerated or never seen a good working shock before.  All four shocks would not open on their own and had to be pulled apart. 

Go figure! Visual inspection of shocks will only show leaks. You need to remove them to test them.

42 minutes ago, Chris Scarff said:

I finally got a creeper, a set of ratcheting wrenches, and an off-road hydraulic roller jack which reaches 29 inches in height.

Good for you Chris! I've never found a creeper that works for me. Been scooting and rolling my body on the concrete garage floors for decades! I did not have ratcheting wrenches most of my life, but 3 years ago I found this awesome set on a good sale. Nice jack! 😎

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-144-Position-Flex-Head-Ratcheting-Combination-Wrench-Set-Metric-15-Piece-48-22-9513/313671329#see-more-details

[Wayfinder]

The weather finally cooperated with me today and I fixed a few things on the camper.  The last thing fixed was the replacement of the front axle brake wire.  

Do you think this could have been a problem with my trailer brakes?  🤣

No test drive yet, but I suspect we will no longer have issues with intermittent brakes on the trailer.

[Mike and Carol]

2 hours ago, Wayfinder said:

The weather finally cooperated with me today and I fixed a few things on the camper.  The last thing fixed was the replacement of the front axle brake wire.  

Do you think this could have been a problem with my trailer brakes?  🤣

No test drive yet, but I suspect we will no longer have issues with intermittent brakes on the trailer.

Yes!  It was certainly the problem with our brakes for over a year until we figured it out.  I know of others who also had the same issue.

[Geronimo John]

On 3/1/2026 at 1:36 PM, Wayfinder said:

Do you think this could have been a problem with my trailer brakes? 

Only if you needed them to work..... 🙂

 

[SNY SD UP]

Yes Chris, 

that was my issue, running thru the axle tubes, the insulation appeared to be melted to the point of having the bare wire exposed (see previous pics) so when they then started shorting out, they gave the Ram the error code. 

It started on the way back from AK, in Whitehorse, and after listening to a dealership TT service tech say 99% of your issue would be in the 7-pin... i replaced my 7-pin. 
I was extremely frustrated when that did not resolve the issue, because i completely sacrificed a perfectly good moisture sealed OTT 7-pin connector. 
Later in Whitehorse i found a small independent RV repair shop/person who brought out an example of what i would eventually find was my issue.  which was abraded insulation and bare wires enough so that bouncing around inside the axle tube, it would create an intermittent short.
My other issue (see previous Pics) the wire used appeared to be 'Brown lamp cord", not anything with substantial insulation around it, like fabric wrap then all that covered in rubber sheath. Oh Well... 

I have been told that most trailer manufactures run the wires thru the axle tubes when available, whether true or not IDK.
I have no problem running mine on the outside at the 9-oclock rear position on the axle.

i do not know if he is still in business up in Whitehorse, but i will give him a SHOUTOUT... the business was called "Fireweed" it was an RV repair place.  He was a one-person shop with about a 4–5-week backlog, even for something as simple as my issue.

enuf,

 

B~Out