This actuator comes with a primed steel housing so it’s ready for welding onto a 50-degree A-frame trailer. Since the exterior isn’t painted yet, you can weld it without worrying about heat damage or cleanup afterward. Once it’s mounted, just paint it to match your trailer and it’s good to go. The heavy-duty steel construction gives it long-term strength for an 8,000 lb gross towing weight and 800 lb maximum tongue weight.
The composite master cylinder uses glass-reinforced nylon that resists rust and corrosion better than steel or aluminum. Inside, a large reservoir holds more brake fluid, which helps keep your system supplied on long trips and reduces the risk of running low. The automotive-style diaphragm cap seals out air and moisture so the fluid stays clean and the brakes stay responsive.
You can feel how smoothly this actuator works thanks to the acetal copolymer lining that lets it telescope in and out without friction. When your tow vehicle slows down, the surge design compresses the actuator to apply hydraulic pressure to the drum brakes automatically. It’s a simple mechanical setup that delivers steady braking power every time you need it.
The built-in 8" adjustable channel makes it easy to match your coupler height to your setup. It gives you three mounting positions for a variety of coupler types (sold separately), including ball, lunette ring, or clevis attachments. That means you can fine-tune your trailer height so it tows level and tracks straight behind you.
A breakaway feature is built right into the actuator for an added layer of protection on the road. If the trailer ever separates from the hitch, the breakaway mechanism activates automatically to apply the brakes and bring things to a stop. It’s one less thing to worry about when you’re hauling heavy loads or navigating steep grades.
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hello everybody this is Jeff with etrailer.com. Today we're gonna take a look at the Demco A-Frame Hydraulic Drum Brake Actuator, with the eight inch adjustable channel center position, with an 8,000 pound gross towing weight capacity. Now this actuator here is designed to fit a 50 degree, you see right here, A-frame trailer. And this hydraulic actuator will activate your trailer's brakes when the tow vehicle slows or stops. Basically what happens is when you apply the brakes in your tow vehicle deceleration occurs, and the momentum will push your trailer toward the rear of your vehicle. And with the surge brake system this actuator is then triggered as your trailer moves forward once your tow vehicle starts to slow down.
And when that happens this actuator will contract and apply force to the master cylinder which is located in the back here. And then this in turn supplies the necessary hydraulic pressure to engage your trailer's brakes. Now this actuator here uses on the inside an acetal copolymer lining that'll provide a nice, smooth operation as the actuator telescopes in and out. Up front you can see it has the adjustable channel offers three different mounting positions for your coupler. Now the coupler is not included, we do sell that separately on a website.
Just to give you a dimension on the channel itself the overall height of it; bottom to top is eight inches and the inside width on it is right at three inches wide. Now this is a heavy duty steel construction has a nice prime finish to it for better corrosion resistance. The very back here we mentioned the master cylinder, it is a composite master cylinder. It's very durable and efficient they use glass reinforced nylon construction that'll resist rust and corrosion, and it offers a very large reservoir which provides increased capacity for the brake fluid. You notice at the top here it does have an automotive styled diaphragm cap which will create a completely enclosed system, helps prevent contamination of the brake fluid.
It does include the breakaway cable with the hook and the latch, and this breakaway cable is required by law and the reason is it prevents a trailer runaway situation. So basically when you trailer hooks up to your tow vehicle what you'll do is take this hook with the latch on it and hook that also to the tow vehicle. So if that hook to the tow vehicle what would happen is if your trailer by chance would break loose from your tow vehicle it would pull on this cable, which would activate the lever and apply pressure in the master cylinder which would again, apply the brakes on your trailer. So this breakaway kit will prevent a trailer runaway situation. Now this is a well done installation.
As we mentioned before, you can see it's designed amount to a 50 degree A-Frame trailer, it is made in the USA and it is designed to work on trailers with the A-Frame and the hydraulic drum brakes, gross towing weight capacity on this is 8,000 pounds an actual tongue weight of 800 pounds. One last note I do wanna mention at the very back here because this actuator does not include a reverse lockout. It is recommended that you equip the trailer with either reverse lockout solenoid, which would screw into the back of the master cylinder here or to have free backing brakes on your trailer so that you could drive in reverse without the x-ray or triggering your trailer's brakes. But that should do it for the review on the Demco A-Frame Hydraulic Drum Brake Actuator with the eight inch adjustable channel in the center position at an 8,000 pound gross tongue weight capacity..
Customer Satisfaction Score:
92% were satisfied with this product
8% of customers were not satisfied
Ratings & Reviews
You did a great job and we received it very quickly. Thank you.
Great design. Easy to install. Very sturdy and excellent updated features
perfect! its exactly what i needed.
Perfect , the delivery was faster than expected. The product is real good quality.
Thanks for your great service.
Regards,
Marcel
Extremely happy with service and product. Thank You!
Good product for a reasonable price. Product availability and service was excellent.
Excellent product. Exact product as shown. Quality materials. Quick to ship and receive.
Super replacement and much cheaper than the bulldog style.
The people at E-trailer were very helpful and the product that came was exactly what i needed.
Needed this for a water trailer. Couldn’t find one locally. Ordered and received very quickly. Item was as pictured and looks like it should work great!
this hitch was by far beyound my expections they will get most of my business
Very happy with my purchase. It was a good price, easy to order and was received in short time. Thank you!
Very good product. I have been a fabricator for 42 years, and I will say this is very well made. etrailer.com is a great place!
Have not installed yet, but the product appears to be of high quality and heavy weight steel. Looks great.. would reccomend to anyone!
far superior to what it is replacing. well constructed, fast shipping.
Thanks again for supplies a quality product keep it up!
Really pleased on the outcome. I did have to paint where I had to weld. Would be nice to have the color to match the metal.
Amazing upgrade from magnetic brakes! Brittany was friendly, prompt, knowledgeable.
Very impressed! This will be perfect for my trailer rebuild.
Product has met my expectations. The customer service at etrailer is fantastic.
The product was just what I expected. The real story was that etrailer had a delay in shipping due to a manufacturer issue. Etrailer stayed in constant contact with me and made sure I was up to date on every stage of the order. AAA+ service...!!!
Thanks for your help in these trying times. I am restoring the surge brake operations to a 1985 Wells cargo enclosed trailer and performing all of the work myself. Not an easy task on a 36 year old trailer purchased new. I received this part and it is fantastic and arrived many days ahead of the projected delivery date. My prior orders also arrived early and the trailer brake parts and lines fit perfectly. Thank you for providing the service and knowledge to get me what I needed to restore an obsolete trailer. I can provide photos on completion. I may need to order new parts again in 36 years, I will be 94.
excellent!. I painted with the trailer color
Awesome unit, but did not come with installation or system bleed instructions.
The weld on installation matched the trailer tongue angle perfectly and is a very rugged build. I connected the hydraulic line to the original brake tubing, bled the brake fluid through the system using pressure with the break away lever and put the trailer back to work. The braking power is smooth and consistent. The only trouble is when I back the trailer up an incline. I would purchase the backing option lever so you don’t have the trouble backing the trailer putting on the brakes.
Yes i recieved the device , I'ts better than i expexted , very well built , Can definetely handle more weight than designed for, P/S I invented the device about 45 years ago. The device takes the shifting weight away from the hitch and tong of the trailer. The first device used a coil spring, The device i recieved uses a shock works the same as a coil spring.
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