For years, this UFP-style surge brake actuator has been the gold standard for boat trailers. Its weld-on, low-profile design looks sleek on your trailer. Manual lockout pin and fill cap sold separately. Made in the USA.
Features:
Specs:
Tech Tip: If you really just need to replace the inner member of your old actuator and you're confident that you can salvage the outer casing, you can purchase DX99FR instead.
If you're replacing your old actuator, you're probably looking at this one and thinking, yeah, that looks like mine alright, but doesn't UFP make these? The short answer is that Dexter bought out Unique Functional Parts (UFP) in 2013, changed the name, but kept the awesome design. Rest assured, this is the real deal and not some kind of knockoff.
Elelctric reverse lockouts can be summarized in one word: convenient. If you're looking for an actuator that lets you "set it and forget it", this one from Dexter could be a great option for you.
The solenoid on this electric lockout ties into the reverse light circuit on your 5-pin, 6-pin, or 7-pole connector so that your disc brakes won't engage when your reverse lights come on. This can make backing up a boat trailer so much easier than using a manual lockout because everything is automatic.
Trigger latches on traditional couplers can be kind of a pain to work with sometimes.
For starters, you have to hold the latch up as you lower the coupler onto the hitch ball. Not to mention that the latch can stick out like a sore thumb, so it may get bent or broken by your tailgate or your bumper as you go to hitch up. That's more than just an inconvenience; when your coupler is out of commission, your trailer's not going anywhere with you.
The coupler on this UFP-style actuator negates all of that. Just slide the button on top with your thumb while you lift up the latch handle. Then, place the coupler over the center of your hitch ball and lower your trailer with your tongue jack.
When you can close the latch without forcing it, you'll hear a click. This sound tells you that the ball is seated firmly inside. Then, just re-insert the tethered safety pin, hook up your safety chains and your breakaway cable, and you'll be ready to tow.
When you slow to a stop as you're towing, momentum pushes your trailer toward the rear of your vehicle. When this happens, the surge brake actuator compresses the master cylinder inside, which forces it to push hydraulic fluid out to your brake lines, ultimately engaging your trailer brakes. When you start moving again, the actuator will telescope back out, stopping the flow of fluid back to the brakes and allowing your trailer's wheels to start rolling again.
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hi everybody, Andy here with etrailer.com. Let's take a look at this Dexter surge brake actuator with electric lockout. Now this UFP-style surge brake actuator has been the gold standard really for boat trailers for years. And this is going to be a weld-on actuator, and it has a low-profile design that's gonna look sleek on your trailer. This is designed to fit onto your 2 inch hitch ball, and it has a 7,500 pound weight capacity. And this is going to fit your 3 inch by 3 inch or 3 inch by 4 inch straight tongue on your trailer.
So this actuator, as you probably know, will synchronize your trailer brakes with your tow vehicle brakes. This hydraulic actuator will activate your trailer brakes when the tow vehicle slows or stops. As you probably know, when you apply the brakes in your tow vehicle, deceleration occurs and the momentum will push your trailer towards the rear of your vehicle. So with this surge brake system, this actuator is then triggered as your trailer moves forward while the tow vehicle slows down. The inner portion is going to telescope back, which applies the force to the master cylinder in the back.
And so that's going to then in turn supply the necessary hydraulic pressure to engage your trailer's disc brakes. So as I mentioned, this does feature a low-profile coupler latch, which is going to ensure an easy secure connection. You know, some brake actuators do have a very tall latch, and when you go to hook up, that could be damaged from something coming over the top of the trailer and hitting it and bending it or breaking it. This one, this latch, it's all internal so there's nothing sticking up. And this is an over-the-center latch mechanism, which will only engage when the actuator is fully seated on a 2 inch in diameter hitch ball.
Let me go ahead and give you a brief demonstration of that. Let me go ahead and get my 2 inch ball here. And then when you're ready to couple, you're just going to remove this pin right here. It's a safety pin. And then if you see right here, we have this knob that I'm just going to push over, and then that's going to allow me to lift this up, and then the 2 inch ball goes right there.
And then I'm gonna go ahead and close this. And then, as you can see, that ball is securely in place. I am gonna replace the pin. And so even if by some chance this latch would happen to pop up for whatever reason, that ball is gonna be securely in place still because of that pin. So then to remove it, it's gonna be very simple. Gonna go ahead and remove the pin. I'll bring this back up, and my ball just came right out of the coupler, just like that. So, very easy to couple and uncouple. I'm just gonna go ahead and replace our pin, and we're gonna be good to go. Now this does have, as you probably notice, a breakaway cable. And so you're gonna take this hook and you're going to hook this onto the tow vehicle. So by some chance this becomes uncoupled from your 2 inch ball, this cable will pull and actuate the brake cylinder to apply the brake, so it'll prevent a runaway situation. So as you can see, this cable will pull, and then it will be able to activate the master cylinder, which you really can't see, it's internal there, and then it'll apply the brakes, and then your trailer will come to a stop and it won't continue rolling down the road or something like that, possibly causing a lot of serious harm. This also features an electric reverse lockout solenoid. So you're gonna be able to back up without actuating your trailer brakes. The electric reverse lockout on this actuator is automatically activated when you shift your tow vehicle into reverse. And you can see the solenoid wires tucked in there. And so this is going to wire into your trailer connector, which then connects to your tow vehicle so that it can detect when you're in reverse. So when your vehicle goes in reverse, the solenoid's going to ensure that the hydraulic actuator does not activate your trailer brakes, thus allowing you to back up your vehicle. Now to use this electric solenoid, you must have either a 5, 6, or a 7-way trailer connector. So that's a 5-way flat, a 6-way round, or a 7-way trailer connector. And then a manual lockout pin is sold separately, but that will let you manually lock the brakes if you tow with a truck that only has a 4-way. So if you only have a 4-way and you need to manually lock out your brakes, this is the pin that you're gonna need on your screen. I am including the item number for that. You can just take that number and pop it in the search field of our website and that will take you to that pin and you can add that to your order. Again, that's only if you have a 4-way flat. Now the master cylinder, again, as I mentioned, which is on the inside of this, it is constructed of aluminum rather than plastic or steel. So that's gonna give you increased strength and corrosion resistance. Now this does not have a fill cap here on top. It does have a plug. Let me see if I can kind of tilt this so you can see. So you do have a plug there, but then also you can put a cap in here to prevent fluid contamination. So that cap, as I mentioned, is sold separately. So if you want to pick that up, I'm also including our item number for that cap there on your screen. Now let me go ahead and retrieve my tape measure here and give you some measurements. I'm just going to measure the outside of our actuator. So measuring end to end, as you can see, it's about 19 inches long. And then the height, about 4-3/16 inches tall. This is certified by the SAE for safe, reliable operation. And I think that's gonna wrap up our look today. I do hope that our time together has been helpful for you. Again, my name is Andy. Thank you for joining me.
Average Customer Rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars (238 Customer Reviews)
For years, this UFP-style surge brake actuator has been the gold standard for boat trailers. Its weld-on, low-profile design looks sleek on your trailer. Manual lockout pin and fill cap sold separately. Made in the USA.
Delivery was very fast. Quality seems very good. Installation was super easy since my Shorelander swing tongue trailer has this standard hole pattern. I love how it looks and the extra foot of distance I get between the boat and my tow vehicle (so less chance of needing to get my feet wet or crawl through the SUV).
Initially receiving The actuator it was missing the cap that covered the rubber plug to the hydraulic reservoir and the manual lockout key, but after contacting etrailer , they quickly sent out the parts. The hitch was easy to install, and it works as it should.
Pros.
Works great really noticed the difference right away.
Ed W. with etrailer was great to work with helped determine which one to get.
It was a fairly simple install.
Con.
The reverse lockout was further away than my original, just a little, so my brake line was too short.
Auto parts places didn't have a flex that fit the thread. I was doing this on a Sunday so I had to drive across town to a trailer guy who was open for a flex line.
I would give it 4.7 stars if I could would of gave a 5 star had they included a short flex line with the kit.
It's about a 2 hour job with everything you need I spent an extra 2+hours getting a part.
All in all been using for a year and I am completely satisfied.
Finished drum to disc brake conversion on my 1993 year model Bass Cat trailer. Installation went smoothly and the UFP-A60 Actuator replaced the obsolete Atwood Actuator. Shortened the outer member a bit and added a 1" flat bar to the bottom for welding of 4" channel trailer frame.
Perfect fit for my boat trailer. Only complaint is the surge brake backup plug is not attached by a stainless steel cable. It’s just loose so I have to keep track of it so I can use it when backing up a grade.
I installed this brake actuator on a 3500 lb boat trailer with drum brakes, is working great so far. Needed to replace the existing broken hitch on my trailer and this was a suitable replacement to get the brakes working again.
Fit my Karavan trailer well. Though, the top to mounting bolt holes were perfect, the lower holes did not align with the existing holes in the trailer. Had to drill both these through with a 1/2" bit. Then, mounted perfectly. Also, the brake line and blue/white wires hooked right up.
The actuator is an exact match for the one I have. As per your video, I will be able to replace the inner workings and hook up the existing brake line and wiring. The quality is excellent and the price was amazing. Very quick shipping,I live in Canada. I ordered it on Monday and it was in my driveway this morning on Friday. Very pleased doing business with etrailer. Thank you
It’s a great looking product. I will need to find the fitting to connect the electric lockout solenoid…
Talked to an "expert"...expert recommended this actuator, based on my 3"×5" trailer tubing. Your "experts" need to learn to ask more questions, as i was puzzled as to how to install it...in showing pictures to your ONLINE experts, he suggested a very slightly different product, strangely with the same midel # but different bolt pattern. I am very frustrated with etrailer
Works great, no issues during installation or usage after 1 year.
Have not use the Actuator yet. However it came in a oversize box. No packing material to protect it. It was damaged when I opened the box. Scratches and damage cable
We are a trailer repair company. We purchase the actuators for our customers. But we have had a lot of experience dealing with Dexter/UFP products. We try to only buy the best products available for our customers. That is why we buy Dexter/UFP products on a regular basis.
Updating my old surge brake coupler, I really like this Dexter DX7.5L A-60 Brake Actuator w Electric Lockout - Bolt On - Disc - 2" Ball - Zinc - 7.5K fits 3”x4”trailer tongue, it was easy to install, I did have to drill new holes, I just wish the manufacturer would have included the bolts and the information on how much to torque the bolts to, it’s about “2 drop from my old coupler. etrailer was super fast with shipping !
Exactly what I needed. Didn't require the outer housing, the insider mechanism slid in nicely as a replacement on my trailer. The etrailer videos for installation and bleeding were very helpful.
I only used the surge brake, that was an easy replacement in my trailer.
By far the best service in the industry! Everything fits as it should.
Shipping was quick and it was packaged nicely. Exact fit for my 2013 single axel Karavan trailer.
Exactly what I needed. Fit perfectly and easy to install.
Just what I wanted. I am building a custom trailer for my vintage boat. I have used these actuators in past projects. etrailer has great pricing and fast delivery every time.
Perfect replacement. Installed without any problems.
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