Do any of y'all have a brake controller installed on your truck? How does it effect your boat trailer when towing? I'm asking because I just had one installed on my truck.

Typical bass boat trailers do not have any electric brakes and cannot use an electric controller, as they have simple surge brakes. No electric controller is needed, just have a signal from wire from a vehicle backup light circuit to trip and activate the surge brake's solenoid which will defeat the surge brakes momentarily whenever you are backing.

The EZ loader trailers under a Skeeter Boat have an electric brake release/relief valve. It releases the brakes and over rides the surge brake valve when the truck is in reverse but only if there is power to the valve.

I know this because I have a four pin flat plug receptacle on my truck but a five pin plug on the trailer. When I try to back up going up-hill or on a rough surface the trailer brakes engage and the only way to get them to release is to take the five pin trailer plug out, then plug it in upside down into the four pin truck receptacle, turn on the lights to send power to the trailer brakes so they will release, then you can back up.

So in order to get a five pin receptacle installed with the appropriate reverse relay in the truck fuse panel was to have a brake controller installed. I was just wondering if anyone else has one on their truck and if it made a difference in braking on the trailer itself.

Thanks for the input.
John

Pretty sure my Ranger Trail has electric disk breaks.

No, because they are surge brakes not electronic. Your brake controller does nothing to your surge brakes.

P.S. I could be wrong, but i have never seen electronic brakes on a boat trailer.

Unplug your electric plug from your truck and try to back up, you'll see what I mean!!!

I know. Now go out there and set your brake controller on 1 and stop and then set it on 10 and stop and see what happens. I pull a heavy equipment trailer very often and a ZX225 every weekend. If you have electronic brakes when you set it to 10, you will hit your head on the windshield.

I'm pretty sure, in reverse, you're just fighting the surge brake. It compounds itself as you push. It's especially bad going up hill. If you back up down hill or on a flat surface, it can be ok. The 5th pin on a five flat wiring harness just disables the surge brake when the reverse lights are on. Without that fifth wire working, you're putting pressure on the brake slightly, which activates the disc brakes on the trailer a bit. Then, that braking adds more pressure to the surge brake system and it applies more brake pressure and then it all basically just compounds till it locks up.

I don't believe there's any circuit board in that brake system though that's affected by a computer program or brain up front. But, that's just my experience. I do know that there's also a pin hole in most trailers that you can put your coupler pin into that will also bypass or turn off the surge brake system while in reverse if your trailer lighting is not working correctly. It's a hole that's about 1-2 inches away from where you put the safety pin when you normally tow.

I agree with everything you said. But when I turn on the lights, with the trailer five pin plug turned upside down plugged into the truck's four pin receptacle you hear the brakes release. If you don't turn the lights on to get power to the trailer they don't release. So something electrical is back there keeping the brakes locked until it gets power.

Now you have me wondering if I even need the brake controller or just have somebody wire a five pin receptacle into the truck so the back up lights activate the release on the trailer.

I went to the Ford Dealer in Tomball, they are the ones who told me I need the brake controller. This is getting confusing!

Chris,
I'm not sure I understand whether I even need the brake controller or not. I just wanted the dealership to wire a five pin receptacle in so I wouldn't have to keep turning the stupid plug over everytime I want to back up. Now I'm getting frustrated again!
John

I have a 5 pin flat wired into my truck. That will fix your back up problem.

...and you don't have a brake controller right? I'm getting my money back on this brake controller!!!

Correct

Thanks, I'm getting the Service Manager involved tomorrow!

Its easy to wire yourself. The fifth wire is your reverse lights. Without power from your reverse lights it doesn't release. Electronic brakes are a whole nother ball game.