Hi Everyone. Well, after 15 years the RV-Dreams Community Forum is coming to an end. Since it began in August 2005, we've had 58 Million page views, 124,000 posts, and we've spent about $15,000 to keep this valuable resource for RVers free and open. But since we are now off the road and have settled down for the next chapter of our lives, we are taking the Forum down effective June 30, 2021. It has been a tough decision, but it is now time.
We want to thank all of our members for their participation and input over the years, and we want to especially thank those that have acted as Moderators for us during our amazing journey living and traveling in our RV and growing the RV-Dreams Family. We will be forever proud to have been founders of this Forum and to have been supported by such a wonderful community. Thank you all!!
We have a 2002 2500HD Chevy gasser (496) that will be our towing vehicle. We have decided that a 30-32' travel trailer meets our needs, and keeps the weight reasonable, at around 10k loaded. The truck only has about 30,000 on the clock at the moment, but I plan to do a lot of preventive stuff before we leave. One of those items is a complete brake job, replacing anything remotely suspect.
What are you folks running for brake pads? I have seen everything from the el-cheapos, for $14.99 a wheel, to $100+ for "carbon metallic". I am keeping my fingers crossed that the OEM rotors last through our planned one year journey around the country. We are estimating 15-20k of driving. The Chinese rotors and drums I have been swapping out on my other rigs work OK, but I am not trusting them with heavy weight towing, in those applications.
Your thoughts, and better yet, real world experiences on this are appreciated.
I was a hydraulic controller fan until I tried a ramp up electronic controller. I find that it works just as well as the hydraulic controllers I've had.
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"Small House, Big Yard "
"May the FOREST be with you" Alfa See-Ya 5'er and 2007 Kodiak C4500 Monroe
More pricey than stock but I ran PowerSlot Rotors and EBC Green Stuff pads. On the front we would get 30k miles or so, on the back about 60k. Very good performance with them. It took about a day to get everything seated properly and to quit squealing, but when you mash the pedal you stop.
If and when you do replace the pads, DO NOT try and go cheap-o and not replace the rotors. Replacing just the pads usually ends up with a brake pulsing issue because the new pads do not properly set themselves with the old rotors.
With 30K I am sure your rotors will be fine to turn. They will be better quality than most of the junk out there. NAPA Severe Duty pads, factory OE, or Hawk SD pads all are good choice. I would go with Hawk. Ceramics are NOT for pickups!
Thanks for the advice, folks. I'll be putting OEM or better pads on it, for sure. I will see how the rotors look when the time comes. a SLIGHT turn of a couple thousandths would be fine, but I don't want to thin them more than that. If I need new rotors, I'll check NAPA (Never Any Parts Available), for OEM quality replacements. It's getting insanely hard to find stuff not made in China. Our local Costco carries Snap-On tools now. Made in China :( Never thought I'd see that day.
Regards, Kyle
