www.iFourWinns.com

When I towed the boat from Kansas City to Table Rock for the July 4th weekend, the brakes worked great all the way down. Several days later after pulling the boat out, I quickly discovered that my trailer brakes were nearly non-functional. I found the master cylinder was nearly empty and brake fluid was all over the safety cables, etc. I didn't have time during that trip to investigate and was able to get the boat into storage.

On the next trip, I filled up the master cylinder but didn't have time to bleed, etc. The brakes worked virtually as well as normal even without bleeding, but I had to top off the MC a couple of times during the week. At the end of the week I took the boat to the shop for winter maintenance and had them look into the fluid leak since they're a lot better equipped to do it than I am now that the boat is 3.5 hours from home.

One thing they found:



They weren't sure if that was the source of the leak and after looking at it closely I'm not either. That tiny crack at the very end of the fitting is probably more suspect than the broken rubber jacket. In any case, I had them replace the whole actuator and install my spare new lockout solenoid. They had NAPA make up a new brake hose and I had them make it 8" longer than the original, which was always too short to swing the tongue more than about 60-70 degrees. (I've always known that and never "forced" it any farther for the sake of the hose, but it's possible that a shop has tried to swing it too far sometime over the years, breaking the jacket.)

Anyway, don't forget you've got a rubber hose in there.

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Mike
2005 Four Winns 230/240
VP 5.7GXi/DP
1998 F-150 XLT
Boat Pic

My FW trailer doesn't have this issue. I can swing the tongue until it hits the side of the trailer without problems. My problem is when I swing the tongue back into position it likes to crimp the wires and the brake line. So I guess in some ways, to much slack can be a problem too.

Thanks for the heads up Mike. I should check my brake fluid level anyway.

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Current Boats:
2012 FW H260, 8.2 B3X (DTS) "Ctrl-Alt-Delete"
Previous Boats:
1984 Century 5000, Merc 260 Alpha 1
2012 Yamaha VXR

Kansas City, MO

Thanks for the tip.

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2008 210SS 6.2L DTS Bravo 1 Now featuring MercMonitor w/SmartTow

Excellent tip. I wish I could swing my tongue. Previous owner never used that feature and the pin is rusted in. I tried like a mother to get it loose, but no dice. I would love to squeeze my boat in the garage during inclement weather, but I can't figure out how to un-rust the pin.

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Seth




2005 210 Horizon
5.0L GXi
"Don't Think Twice"

schoolsOut, any auto shop with an oxy/acetylene torch can get that out in no time.

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07 Azure AZ200,
Previous boat,
95 278 Vista,
And a lot of others.

Ontario, Canada

There's a plastic wear cover between the tongue and the fixed side of the trailer that could be damaged by heat, although I don't know how important it really is. But I'm 100% certain there's a way to get that pin out. I would spray some solvent (Liquid Wrench or maybe kerosene) around the pin every day for awhile, and give it a few whacks from the bottom with a 2 lb. sledge every couple of days. I bet it'll come free after a few tries.

But that's another good tip. I grease my pin every year or two, and each time I do it seems like it should have been done sooner. They seem to dry out even if they aren't removed very often. By the way, those pins are cheap and can be found at any Tractor Supply store or lots of other places - so don't worry about beating it up.

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Mike
2005 Four Winns 230/240
VP 5.7GXi/DP
1998 F-150 XLT
Boat Pic

What Mike said, plus try lifting your tongue just a little. Mine would not come out each time if I did not relieve that weight.

Good catch on the hose BTW. I do check mine frequently as I swing the tongue every time it goes out.

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Walt B
"Debt-Charged"
Black '07 H210SS
6.2L Bravo One turning a 21P HIFive
Wakeboard Tower with Perfect Pass Stargazer version
Missouri River; Kansas City, Mo.

My dad has a torch at his garage, but I was hesitant to use it. I tried the penetrating oil, sledge, lifting the tongue, jacking it up under the pin. Nothing worked. Sucker is really rusted in. I will go at it again for a few days and see what happens. I my just have to torch it. I would have to disconnect the brake line and pull the trailer wiring back through the frame so that I don't melt either of them. Then re-bleed the brakes. Seems like kind of a pain, but I would like to swing it.

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Seth




2005 210 Horizon
5.0L GXi
"Don't Think Twice"

It's easy. Have a helper with a spray bottle with cold water keep everything else cold. Heat just the pin till it's cherry red and twist it out with vise grips.

_________________
07 Azure AZ200,
Previous boat,
95 278 Vista,
And a lot of others.

Ontario, Canada