Setting Brake Gain ....

[piper guy]

I'm still a newbie at this but want to make sure I do it right. I have a 2012 F350 as a tow vehicle with a 36RL. What is the proper method to set the brake gain for the trailer ? Right now I have it set at 7 and the rig stops fine, but I'm presuming there is a right way to do it. Don't really want to do a search on the internet as you're never quite sure of the info you get. I'd much rather listen to opinions from those of you that tow regularly.

thanks in advance

 

[mhs4771]

Each RV and TV combination is slightly different, Electric Drums vs Disc, 250/2500 vs 250/3500, SRW vs DRWetc. I would look in you're Fords owner's manual under the towing section. Should give you a starting point, from there is mostly trial and error. You don't want the RV brakes to lock up when on wet pavement or loose gravel, but you want to apply enough force to help stop the whole setup when the light suddenly changes to Red on you.

 

[dave and ginny]

I have a 2012 F350 Dually pulling a 2012 RL with disk brakes. With the trailer loaded heavy (1/3 tank of fresh water) I have my controller set at 9. When the trailer is empty (which doesn't happen often) I turn it down to around 7.

My determining factor is that I want the trailer to respond when I apply the brakes as quick as possible without locking up the wheels. I have had a few emergencies where I was traveling at highway speeds (65-70) and had to stand on the brakes to bring the rig to a complete stop quickly. I really didn't think I was going to be able to stop in time and was considering the ditch. The rig stopped very quickly, in a straight line....very impressive....I did burn a few tires on that one.

 

[dave and ginny]

One more thing to consider......if the truck does most of the braking, you have a good chance of "Jack Knifing" the rig in an emergency stop. If the trailer does too much of the braking, your trailer brakes will warp, fade and you'll be in trouble when you need to stop.

Happy Trails

 

[piper guy]

Thanks all ! That was the response I was looking for and many thanks for the advice.

 

[Adamsvr]

I think every situation merits its own break gain. Ford sets its standard break gain at 6.5. Going over some of mountains in SD and WY can be tricky.Too much break gain slows you down going up, but really helps going down. Experiment with what's right for your Redwood and the terrain you are traversing. I normally just leave ours at the factory setting and keep my foot off the break when starting off.

 

[BradPAjax-REDW]

I agree with Dave and Adam. We have an F350 Dually and a 38 BR. When we went to Nova Scotia and back this summer I had the gain set at 6.5 or 7.0. I turned it up on the back roads in New Brunswick where the hills were as much as 13%. I also used the manual setting on my transmission to use the diesel brake as much as possible to control my speed when going down those grades.

 

[rcflame]

The instructions I have read for most of the controllers say to go to an empty parking lot or some place similar, go 10-20 miles an hour and apply the brakes. Adjust the gain until the brakes on the trailer are to the point of locking up, and than back off slightly. This should give you a starting point. You may have to do slight adjustments to meet your personal preference.

 

[5th_Time-REDW]

I think those instructions are for the electric drums. If you have disk brakes, I don't think you can "smoke the tires". Much less prone to brake fade though...

 

[Dan-THOR]

I think those instructions are for the electric drums. If you have disk brakes, I don't think you can "smoke the tires". Much less prone to brake fade though...

oh you can smoke the tires

I have done it a couple of times coming down themountainand some idiot pulls right out in front of you

Dan