swm1day Posted March 25, 2020 Report Share Posted March 25, 2020 Just sharing in case you have the 16,000 lb actuator on the Ameritrail: it has no manual lock out key. Worth noting before you get in a bind like I did. I learned the hard way last weekend. Bought a new truck and my brakes locked in reverse. No problem, I've had that happen before. But when I got out to investigate, I could not find anywhere on the actual coupler to manually lock it out so I could back into my storage spot. I was convinced that there had to be a way. Looked everywhere. The solution: you need to carry a big enough "wedge" and insert into the male/female gap to plug it up. I didn't know that so I struggled a bit as I chased down the problem. Just sharing in case you didn't know and want to be prepared. Here is my part: [yes, you can see the clip in the picture that they give to dealers, but not to owners] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imsnookyrd Posted March 25, 2020 Report Share Posted March 25, 2020 Just wondering, doesn't it have the solenoid that is activated by the back-up light lead from the light connector(center pin)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FINCHASER Posted March 25, 2020 Report Share Posted March 25, 2020 Is the clip you are referring to the pin that is on the shorter cable and is that the actual device used to lock it out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCFD rtrd. Posted March 25, 2020 Report Share Posted March 25, 2020 3 hours ago, imsnookyrd said: Just wondering, doesn't it have the solenoid that is activated by the back-up light lead from the light connector(center pin)? Exactly, any trailer capable of hauling a 26 ft. boat has to come with a reverse lock-out. Look for a solenoid looking device under the actuator with a blue wire. The wire should connect to the reverse or back-up lights on the vehicle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jh141 Posted March 25, 2020 Report Share Posted March 25, 2020 I believe what he is saying is first "Bought a new truck" so may not have been capable of actuating the reverse lock out solenoid. On the 16,000 lb actuator he has there is no easy way to manually stop the brake master cylinder from being actuated while backing up ( so the wedge). My trailer has a hole drilled in it so if you have a lock out solenoid failure you can pull the pin from the latch lock and put it in the hole to manually stop the brake master cylinder from being depressed. SWM1day, I would drill a hole right where the two parts on the couplet meet. In a pinch you use the pin to stop the brakes from actuating in reverse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swm1day Posted March 25, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2020 jh141: that's exactly what I was planning, but I found a few chisels in my tool box at home that I can wedge in there. FINCHASER: the "clip" is seen in the picture below, but only dealers have it I'm told. So, to all: the issue here is I was looking for a MANUAL way to override the brakes when backing up since something was wrong with my truck side 7 pin. I later discovered that the fuse in the truck was blown. That was my first time hooking up to boat in new truck. Lesson learned. Just sharing in case you need to be prepared. I guess my main point is that I was shocked that the actuator doesn't have an intuitive way to accomplish this- I note that the 7,500 lb actuators do. Those are the type that I'm used to. Just found that to be strange and wasn't really prepared in a pinch. But it's all good now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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