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Anyone tow with their deuce?

alphadeltaromeo

Active member
1,901
3
38
Location
Alto, GA
You've done a great job with that trailer Ryan...I like the brake controller addition. Would you take a minute to explain how you connected that into the system?

Spicer...you must have some muscles...that tow bar looks super heavy!
 

rmgill

Active member
2,479
14
38
Location
Decatur, Ga
There's a 20 Amp military breaker on the firewall that I added to power the 24-12 volt converter thats on the firewall in the cab under the glove box. That has two sets of outputs. One to a 12volt receptacle with a cover that I added to a bracket next to all the switches on the dash AND another lead runs to a tekonsha brake controller (first to another 20 amp breaker on the firewall in the engine compartment). The brake controller needs a lead into it to signal when brakes are applied so it know's when to actuate the brake and by about how much due to the slack. So I added a second brake light switch which is powered by the same 12 volt lead from the.

YOU MUST ADD a second brake light switch. Putting 24 VOLTS into the Brake Controller will probably kill it. I added a second AIR type switch to the air pack. This system relies on power to work so if you have non functional electrics for some reason, don't expect trailer brakes.

The better inertia type controllers use an accelerometer and are more correctly sensitive to force needed for stopping. HAving it under the dash right next to your knee is handy as you can reach down and actuate the brakes manually with the lever under the controller.

The Brake Controller also needs a dedicated line of sufficient wire gauge TO AND FROM the brakes (Blue and White). I ran this through a separate connector as I was worried about soldered connections on the inter-vehicular cable not being able to handle up to 20 amps of load on the 14 gauge wires. I ran, iirc 10 gauge wire all the way back to the Additional plug which comes out next to the inter-vehicular socket.

Inside the large grey box is a set of terminals so I could easily connect the wiring for the Brake Drums, breakaway system and intervehicular cables to terminal blocks and keep them tidy. The terminals also provide for a very handy TEST Point to diagnose problems. The box has penetrations that are sealed with foam to prevent water ingress but still has a tiny breather hole in the low side to allow any condensation to drain out.

I might convert lead K/#37 to a 24 volt lead and add a small amperage 24-12 volt converter in the box so I can use the Deuce to tow military trailers that'll need 24 Volts on K/#37

Squirt Truck has a similar setup but he stuffed the brake controller and a voltage converter inside the electrical box and added an airswitch there with an Air line to the back of his truck. This allows him to put the trailer behind ANY truck but cannot quickly adjust the brake controller for the amount of weight. He also can't tell if there's a problem.

The Brake controller in the cab is handy as stated because you can manually apply the brakes (say on a long down hill run), see if everything is connected (it tests for resistance to the trailer brakes, and gives an error if it's too low) AND it also displays braking Voltage applied while stopping.

I decided that as complex as this is, it needed a proper schematic so I whipped one up.
 

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gilbert21/2ton

New member
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Location
Chandler/az
duce

i have pulled 24,000 pounds behind my duce and avridged 45 to 55 but on hiles i usaley had to down shift to 2 or 3. i was pulling my 18,000 pound dozer pluse my 6,000 pound trayler good thing for air brake trayler.
 

spicergear

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Location
Millerstown, PA
gimpyrobb said:
So now you have 3 deuces Tom? Beats a pair I guess. :)
Haha...yeah. I guess I have almost 5 now. Those three, then with Blue being almost one and a half truck by weight and the big dumb trailer being a little more than half.. :D
 

spicergear

New member
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Location
Millerstown, PA
Hey Ryan...you got it! Hooked it up today and snapped a couple of pics. It's ready to haul but still lacking front leg, a form of braking, wiring and I'm on a slow road to have it drive...but that may still happen someday. I made the tongue just a touch longer so it would track and back nicely and it does. It is on the heavy side though- :) Imagine that...
 

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