Wires pulled out of breakaway switch

[DRanger]

So, I looked and looked and looked and couldn't find anything wrong with the wires. What's more, the brakes work when hooked to the TV and at the point behind the fridge, the line from the bargman and the line from the switch become one and the same, so, logically the switch line should work too.

So this morning I lifted the wheels, turned them, and energized the switch line and the wheels immediately stopped.

Apparently there's no movement or clicking to be heard in my wheels when the brakes are energized while the wheels are not moving.

So, I think all is well. Nothing is wrong with my brakes, or, nothing will be wrong once I install a new breakaway switch.

The radio short was the problem (but I just didn't know it) and it took tearing out my breakaway switch wires to discover it!

[Bill]

Originally Posted by DRanger

Apparently there's no movement or clicking to be heard in my wheels when the brakes are energized while the wheels are not moving ... So, I think all is well. Nothing is wrong with my brakes, or, nothing will be wrong once I install a new breakaway switch.

That sounds right.

When you energize the brakes, what you are doing is energizing a magnet, which rides very close to a smooth steel surface (part of the hub/wheel assembly). When energized, the magnet closes the small gap. If the wheels are not rotating, you hear nothing because the gap is so small. But if the wheels are rotating, the next thing that happens is that the magnet drags over the surface as the wheel turns. The dragging of the magnet is audible.

Incidentally, if you apply the tow vehicle's brake pedal, you can sometimes hear "singing" at the TM brakes, even if the wheels are not turning. The pulsed voltage from the controller causes the magnet to vibrate a bit against the steel surface, and you can hear the vibration. Not always, and not from the breakaway switch, since it doesn't produce pulses. But when you can hear it, it is an easy indicator that power is getting to the brakes, even if the wheel is not turning.

Bill