RW CAL had a Flex line failure from rubbing on the wheel or suspension.
If you have disc brakes check these lines running from the caliper to the frame for rubbing. This is a common problem.

Insurance: take a 6" piece of 1/2" heater hose and split it lengthwise. Wrap this around the part of the flex line you are concerned about, then wrap it with electrical tape to hold it in place. Take a zip tie if necessary and tie the line away from the area.

Thanks.
Good suggestion. I wish I had noticed the problem before it failed!

I retrieved my coach last Monday after 2 months in the shop waiting for the brake line repair. The service rep says they replaced the brake line, bled the system and checked for pressure. Today I tested the brakes since they did not seem to be as effective as they should. My truck is a 2013 Ram 3500 DRW with an integrated brake controller. When connected to the trailer, the Ram IBC causes the hydraulic pump to actuate and I can hear the disc brake calipers attempting to close. Braking action is near zero, however. I pulled the breakaway cable and the pump makes a lot of noise and all the calipers are working, but the wheels do not lock up and I can move the unit pretty easily. The hydraulic reservoir is full of brake fluid. What should I do now? The repair facility was 82 miles away

You must have a Carlisle/Cargo or Dexter Actuator. On both of these actuators, they activate at 1.5v. The problem is the test signal sent out by the controller is 1.25v. So, if either is off just a little the actuator tries to start but never generates pressure.

If this is a Carlisle/Cargo Actuator, there may be circuit board damage. Because the Carlisle uses such a small reservoir they heat up very easily and the heat can damage the circuit board.

Can you squeeze the manual over ride and get brakes? If so, The pump is working.
When you pull the break away, you should hear the pump run then, very quickly bog down as it builds pressure. The sound difference should occur in the 1st 1-2 seconds. Call me tomorrow and I will try to get you going. 405-626-7009 Ron

Ron:
If you are available, I'll call around noon EST.
Thanks!
Cal

Yes, I have a Cargo Hydrastar and an HBA-CAM adapter. These were supplied with the 38RL from the factory.
I have the Ram IBC setup with a gain of 10. When my wife steps on the brakes or moves the manual control in the truck, I hear the pump and the brakes make noise, but no braking. The break-away fires off the Hydrastar but it does not seem to be backing down as it builds pressure. Probably means it isn't building pressure!

When the brake line failed, I have a feeling that the Hydrator pump probably failed after trying to pump with no brake fluid. The tech who bled the lines said he checked the pressure (on the service paperwork), but I doubt if he checked it at 1000 psi.

Discussing your RAM IBC....

I know you mentioned that you now have hydraulic brakes, but read through...You may find some meaningful information here.

I too have the same truck and controller. I took the truck back to the dealership on several occasions complaining about the low voltage to the "electric" brakes. I was getting 6V tops when my significant other mashed the brakes and I held the voltage meter at the brakes. You could hear the calipers close in. But I could never get the full 12V EVER to lock the brakes up. The dealer each time would say it either works or it doesn't. There is no in between. In my mind, it doesn't work and needs to be changed. The dealer stated that it is a proportional controller system.

Here is one description from https://www.etrailer.com/faq-brakecontroller.aspx

• An electric trailer brake controller is a device that installs in the cab of your tow vehicle and activates your trailer's electric or electric-over-hydraulic brakes when you hit the brakes in your tow vehicle. Many models are available, and they differ from how they look to the number of brakes they can power. But all of them can be divided into 2 main groups: proportional or time delayed.

• A proportional brake controller senses how the tow vehicle is slowing or stopping and applies the trailer's brakes with the same intensity. So if you slam on the brakes in your tow vehicle, the controller will activate your trailer's brakes just as forcefully. With a proportional controller, you can adjust the initial braking power and aggressiveness based on your trailer's weight and your braking preferences.

• A time-delayed brake controller activates the trailer's brakes with a preset intensity (power output) and rate of application (sync), both of which are determined by you. With this type of controller, there is a delay between the time that you initially apply the brakes in your tow vehicle and the time that the controller reaches maximum power output to the trailer's brakes. However, this delay can be adjusted with the sync setting.

Since I know have had it checked by the dealership on more than one occasion, I thought I would investigate what they said. I connected a set of wires from the junction box behind the king pin to the cab of the truck. Then, I connected a voltage meter. I had the gain set at 9 (similar to yours). I then test as I drove down the road. Sure enough, the controller changed voltage as I depressed the brake. The harder the depression, the higher the voltage. So...What I concluded is that the 12" electric brakes are insufficient for the load. If you had a triple axle, it might be OK with the additional braking.

Since you changed to hydraulic, I am not for sure how this affects the total braking. I understand that disc brakes are supposed to be 50% better. But if you are still set at a gain of 9, and you indicate that you are still having trouble stopping the load, it makes me wonder.

Keep us posted. This is an interesting subject.

I also understand that the conversion is about $2000. I want to change, but I also want to make sure that the 2 grand is well spent.

Thanks, GipC! I have been following your posts for quite a while.
My discs were ordered with my 2015 38RL and were delivered with the coach. What bothers me now is that the breakaway switch won't lock the wheels. Makes a lot of noise at the pump and the brakes themselves, but little if any braking. I think the pump is not producing the 1600 psi it is supposed to. I may indeed have a problem with the Ram IBC, but it did work before my brake line blew and drained all the brake fluid. I think it damaged the pump. I'll let you know the results as my saga continues!

Thanks for the help Ron!

Maybe this will help as well...Note the labeling on the front of the switch:

If your brakes were working BEFORE, they should also be working after the repair. Otherwise, I would be inclined to agree that something is still not working.

• Is there still air in the line?
• Is your fluid level full?

• Did they put the right kind of fluid back in after the repair?

• Is the pump now defective?

Keep us posted.

Here is the ESCO Web Site: http://escotest.jimdo.com/technical-documentation/break-away-switch/

You must have a Carlisle/Cargo or Dexter Actuator. On both of these actuators, they activate at 1.5v. The problem is the test signal sent out by the controller is 1.25v. So, if either is off just a little the actuator tries to start but never generates pressure.

If this is a Carlisle/Cargo Actuator, there may be circuit board damage. Because the Carlisle uses such a small reservoir they heat up very easily and the heat can damage the circuit board.

Can you squeeze the manual over ride and get brakes? If so, The pump is working.
When you pull the break away, you should hear the pump run then, very quickly bog down as it builds pressure. The sound difference should occur in the 1st 1-2 seconds. Call me tomorrow and I will try to get you going. 405-626-7009 Ron

What Ron describes here is accurate. The IBC on the RAM sends the 1.25 V back to the brakes to make sure that the trailer is still connected. I found out recently that many can break (no pun intended) this signal by installing a small resistor in the junction box behind the King Pin.

Here is an article on some others who were having the same issue of low voltage at the brakes: http://www.turbodieselregister.com/threads/247337-2014-Ram-integrated-brake-controller-compatible-with-Dexter-disk-brakes/page2

I found other articles about the resistor at the J-Box, but so far, I have not needed it. The brakes may be dragging a bit. I have not confirmed. I had a hard enough time getting them to grab at all initially. After finding out that blown seals and grease were my main culprit, I changed everything out and everything seems to be good until I change to Disc.

Here is another interesting article on the Ram IBC: https://www.etrailer.com/question-67396.html

Thank for the information. Crossroads has asked me to take the coach to a local truck service company to check the brake hydraulic pressure. Since the break-away switch doesn't give me much braking, I think the problem is in the pump, but we will see today if they can confirm this. My 2013 Ram 3500 used to control these brakes.

Let me know if they check the pressure at the caliper or the actuator.

Just got back from a shop in Aberdeen, NC that has a shop for truck repairs. Rockwell Towing is really a can-do outfit with great guys. I wish they were an RV dealer!
Rockwell daignosed the problem as air in the brake lines. Apparently the Camping World in Garner, NC did not bleed the lines as they stated. Rockwell bled the lines and added a lot of fluid as they did. Now the brakes work great! My 2013 Ram 3500 can now apply proportional braking and life is good.
😛

Amazing! change a brake line and don't bleed the brakes!