Trailer Brake caliper help...
 

So we took our boat out today and as we we're backing down the ramp we noticed a noise so we looked under the boat trailer where it came from and our brake caliper is hanging on the bottom of the disc swinging and hitting the axle as the trailer moves. Two weeks ago we lost a bolt on the caliper and it locked the brakes up but we got a replacement and put threadlocker on it but it seemed to have just come off.. and as we backed the trailer down the ramp, the breaks locked and I guess it broke the other bolt clean off, causing the caliper to hang.. So... how should I go about removing this bolt. It is broken inside the thread, it is completely flush with the piece it is mounted into.. I will get pictures up tomorrow in the daytime.. Also our dealer replaced the whole axle two years ago under warranty and gave us a 2 year warranty for the new one. When they put the new one on they did not use thread-locker on any of the brake caliper bolts, Isn't that something that should have been done? Also what could have caused a bolt to come out during transportation? Thanks for any help..

-Adam

caliper bolts should have locktite on the threads. you'll have to drill out the broken bolt and use a easy out.
then I would se what's going on with that axle, sounds like something is bent, warped rotor etc cause stress on that axle.

I've never put locktite on caliper bolts. Just tightened the pee pee out of them and never had one fail.

You can get a left handed twist drill bit. It may not even need to drill the hole completely before it backs the bolt out. If it does then follow up with an easy out.

Jeff,
Most caliper bolts torque around 75 ft lbs. If you're going more than this you're stretching the bolts and risk breaking them after they heat up.
Stick with the locktite and new bolts when servicing

It depends if the failure was a caliper bolt or a caliper carrier bolt. Neither should use Lock-Tite. Most caliper carriers are around 140 to 150 ft/lbs while the caliper bolts can be much less. I would assume they were not torqued properly and/or brake cleaner or grease was sprayed on the threads (or bolt hole) before the bolt was put in causing them to come loose. You can drill out the old bolt and use a tap/die set to re-thread the hole. It may take forever to drill out the bolt depending on the size so you may need a shop with proper tools to get that broken bolt out. What a mess. Should be a pretty easy fix though.

How new is it? May be best to get a new caliper, and get the old one off any way possible.