Finally got my truck back to the point where I trust it again and the thought of trying to get a boat has come back into my mind. Truck is a 2000 F150 4.6 Supercab. Has all the tow package bells and whistles. My dad recently traded his truck for a new, bigger truck that came with a trailer brake controller so he is giving me the one from the traded truck (not sure of brand or anything else). I have the trailer brake wiring that came with the tow package, but I need the pigtail to hook it up. Where can I find this? Also, I examined the fuse boxes and noticed that I have all the required towing fuses and relays except for the back-up light relay (at least I think that's what it was). Don't have the manual in front of me, but I remember it was one of the half relays. Can anyone shed some light on what kind of relay that is and where I can pick one up at? Thanks in advance.

 

Should have checked the sticky first. It's the highlighted location on the right in the first picture of this thread: https://www.f150online.com/forums/to...locations.html

 

Well, after doing a little digging, it looks like I found what I was looking for. I think AutoZone (which I hate) has the relay and etrailer.com has the wiring harness.

 

Unless the boat trailer has electric brakes, you won't need a BC for just that.. Depending on the size of the boat, it might not have ANY brakes at all! Back in the 80's, we had a 18' Fiberform ski boat with a 305 V8 in it and that thing was heavy... No brakes on the Calkins trailer at all! Not even surge brakes! That thing had to weigh over #4000 too...

Anyway, you'll want the reverse relay if your boat trailer has surge brakes.. This is so you can backup without the trailer brakes engaging.. But, I always thought you were supposed to disconnect the connector from the truck before backing your boat in the water??

Anyway, it's been a long time since my 'boating' days, so I'm sure a lot has changed..

Good luck!

Mitch

 

I've towed a boat before and none have had trailer brakes either. I was just including that in the post. The post was really just about me getting the brake controller from my dad and wanting the wiring harness and also getting that relay. Btw, the local Walmart here also carries the trailer brake wiring harness. Just happen to walk past it and saw it on the shelf.

 

To clarify, you only need the reverse relay for surge brakes? If the trailer has no surge brake then the relay isn't needed? Am I reading that correctly? Like I said, the truck has all the other fuses and relays installed. I got the truck used back in 2004 and have never done any major towing with it, but I assume the previous owner did some since it has all the tow package goodies, just wondered why that relay was missing. Also, can you clarify what the heavy duty shocks are in the tow package? I replaced the original shocks several years ago because they seemed wore out. The truck basically felt like it was hopping on the leaf springs when you'd go over bumps, especially railroad tracks. I got the replacements at either AutoZone or Advance and they were the best ones they had. Shocks still seem to be working well, even after hauling almost 2000 lbs of hay in the bed several times. Was just wondering if there was anything special about the "heavy duty" shocks that were supposed to be included with the tow package.

 

The reverse relay simply sends power to the center pin which is the "Aux" power pin when you put the truck in reverse. This is if you have reverse lights on your trailer or it has surge brakes and is setup to lockout the brakes while backing up. (some travel trailers now have reverse lights on them to help light up the back when it's dark and you are trying to back it into your camp site)

If the trailer has no brakes at all, or reverse lights, you don't need the reverse relay, per se...

"HD" shocks have a bit firmer rebound and compression valving in them. That helps keep the bounce out of the suspension when loaded down. Running empty, it might ride firmer over the bumps. I've got a set of Premium gas-charged truck shock for vans, pickups, 4x4s, and RVs.

•Computer-tuned valving and high-pressure nitrogen gas-charged for a comfortable, responsive ride.
•Extra-large hydraulic reservoir and 1-3/8" bore combine to deliver exceptional performance on and off road.

Not sure if these are considered "HD" shocks or not, but I like 'em!

Mitch

 

I'm happy with the shocks on my truck. If you say you didn't specifically buy "HD" shocks for your truck and they are doing fine then I guess mine are alright as well. Ride is good and they have held up a lot longer than the stock shocks did. I won't worry about changing them until they actually need it. As far as that relay goes, I'll probably get one and put it in so I have it if I need it. Not so much for the brakes (hell, I may never even use the trailer brake), but for the reverse lights. It's good to let other people know you're backing up. I haven't towed a whole lot with this truck, but I have hauled in the bed a few times. Truck has never had any problems, other than a saggy rear end when it was loaded down in the bed right on the axle, but the engine and transmission always provided plenty of power. It's not like I plan on towing a yacht.

 

Also, I'll try to have a look under the truck today and see if anything on the shocks is still readable and maybe I can find out what exactly they are.

 

Mine are called "Mountain Ryder" and got them from Les Schwab Tires about 11 years ago.. I got them after I installed the Hellwig overload springs you see in my sig. Those are what really helped the sag I had when I put a load in the bed.. I've had it to stops before, but after the overloads, it's not been an issue anymore!

Mitch

 

If you bought top of the line shocks, they are most likely OEM HD quality or better.