sealg wrote:

I hoped this topic would bring out some out-of-the-box thinking.

It seems to have done that. After reading the posts so far, the following occur to me.

The nosayers point to the need to frequently adjust the controller. If it is properly adjusted, why does it neeed adjusting? I suspect that only a few people would have the expertise to do realtime adjustments any way and would likely screw things up.

They also point to the need to manally control the brakes in an emergency. Not sure what kind of emergency you are referring to. When was that last time you heard of a TV brake failure, while towing, and in a situation where the trailer could make much difference. I have never heard of an instance.

Many of the braking system for a towed car (behind a motorhome) are controlled solely by a controller in the towed vehicle. They work fine

Thanks for the Tekonsha suggestion from TMMull! That looks like a nice solution.

So.. I think:
The Tekonsha solution looks interesting.

The Brakes could be powered by the trailer battery so I can loan it to friends, use it on alternater TVs, etc. and the TV would not need to have +12v run back to the trailer.

I would not have to depend on the expertise of the user to properly adjust the brakes.


I like the surge brake idea. Its pretty pricey, but still maybe feasible.

-curt