Posted 2016-02-23 10:21 AM (#166187) Subject: Break away cable slack
Member
Posts: 34 Location: Montello, WI
Ok, I've seen plenty of posts on how and where to attach the break away cable to activate the brakes, but nothing on how much slack there should be.
Obviously, there needs to be enough slack to allow turning, etc. without activating the trailer brakes, but should the brakes be activated before the trailer hits the end of the safety chains or just after they break?
Having had a trailer that didn't have brakes come unhooked, it seems to me that I would have been better off it had brakes and they would have activated before the chains break. That way the chains could be kept tight keeping the trailer straight until the brakes had enough time to stop everything.
Posted 2016-02-23 3:09 PM (#166190 - in reply to #166187) Subject: RE: Break away cable slack
Expert
Posts: 5870 Location: western PA
Most set ups that I've seen, including ours, has the cables activating the switch after the chains break. If they are activated before the chains break, it will put MORE stress on the chains, and may CAUSE them to break. Once they do so, the driver looses all directional control of the trailer. I would rather be able to steer the trailer, than having it go anywhere it wants, whilst the breaks are locked and the nose is not directed.
Posted 2016-02-27 2:42 AM (#166234 - in reply to #166187) Subject: RE: Break away cable slack
Expert
Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
Ford Motor Company at their Arizona Proving Ground(APG) did duribilty testing on Ford light trucks. Part of the test included trailer towing at max GVW.All of the breakaway cables were longer than the crossed safety chains and not attached to any portion of the hitch.
Posted 2016-02-27 7:52 AM (#166238 - in reply to #166234) Subject: RE: Break away cable slack
Elite Veteran
Posts: 720
Many moons ago I was reading the NHTSA regs on safety and such, and it specifically stated that the break a way system shall not be connected in any way to the hitch or receiver. Pretty hard to do if you look at most towing vehicles.
Posted 2016-02-27 1:07 PM (#166239 - in reply to #166187) Subject: RE: Break away cable slack
Expert
Posts: 1989 Location: South Central OK
I've got a snap that attaches my break-away cable to the truck but in my hitch box I have a little place to snap it that's welded into the box. It really should attach to the frame of the tow vehicle if possible. Even a few loops of wire through the frame and then have a snap attached to the break away cable would work. My dad weaves the cable through the chains and back onto to itself and it drives me crazy, he has to do it my way when my truck/trailer/animals are involved. On his rig I use a small zip tie to attach it to the chain hooks directly, easy to snip off when unhooking.
Break away cable slack
