Dumb ??? on trailer breaks

I hauled two tractor at a time home from show yesterday 3 miles from the show grounds and noticed I should have more trailer break then I did . I moved the controller slide bars for brake rate and soft stop to max load from my normal settings.The gooseneck has 2 7000 lbs axial I think they are Dexter brand. With helper at hand I slid panic bar on the controller and helper said that only one wheel locks up and can hear buzzing from the other 3.So I do not think it is a wirer problem.The trailer is about ten years old with maybe at best 5000 miles on it. I doubt the lineing is gone but who knows I drag the brakes some on the first trip of the year to clean the off the winter rust off. It is now by the shop with all 4 wheels off the ground. I will pull the wheels and make sure that when I greased the wheel bearing this spring that I did not pop a seal or something.My question is Do the brakes get adjusted just like a drum brake on a car or is their another way to do it. I have not looked so I do not know just what I may find when I get under it. If it does need new shoes is it better to get new shoes or the whole deal in the long run and just swap it out drum magnet and all. Thanks for any help.

The brakes DO adjust like auto brakes w/drums but are NOT Self Adjusting!!!
Most of the time, the magnets get rusted in the arm that holds them, preventing them from sliding out to contact the face of the drum or the arm itself rusts fast to the pivot.

I have found that, On my trailer (7,000) landscape type.
If I don't use it at least once a month the brakes don't work. What I have to do is pull it around empty and keep using the brakes, Sometimes 4 or 5 miles and they will start working. They act as if something is dirty or rusty and needs to be cleaned. When I rebuilt them 2 years ago everything got a lite coat of never seize and the ground is in the plug "Not just in the hitch".
I have 2 other trailers that can sit for 6 months and work fine every time.

When power is applied to the magnet they attach themselves to the face of the drum, the more power you apply the tighter the magnet holds. The rolling of the wheel moves the arm the magnet attaches to and expands the shoes out against the drum. When a trailer is not pulled very often the arm can rust or stick in the pivot point of the arm and cannot move to apply the brakes. I pull the wheels on all my trailers and inspected every thing and repack the wheel bearings every year. Sounds like this is what you need to do. With only 5000 miles I doubt if anything is worn out, just needs a good freeing up.

The brakes need adjusting. There should be a little plastic plug that is in the shape of a long oval (about 1/2" long and maybe 3/16" tall). If you take that out you will need a flat screwdriver (they make a special tool to fit in there that is much better), put that in there to turn the cogged disc. If you google "how electric brakes work" there are many pictures of the interior of the brake that will give you an idea of what you need to do.

The first line should be "The brakes MAY need adjusting", what the other guys are saying about making sure everything is loose is a good thing to look at too.

Mine were giving me trouble also. I couldn't adjust them right. Sometimes they would stick and the next time the barely held. I finally pulled the drums off and found the linings on a couple of them had come loose from the shoe and that was what was causing them to lock up. I put the whole back plate with the shoes and magnets in. It was cheaper than replacing just the shoes and then maybe the magnets were not up to snuff yet. I wish I would have gotten the self adjusting ones instead though. I didn't find out about them till after I had put these in.

Always problems with electric brakes. Worse if not use often. They stick, rust, etc.. Moisture gets between the shoe & pad, causing the pad to seperate from the shoe. Always problems. Pull the drums. If you're lucky, they just need freeing up.

Gentlemen, Thank you very much for the info on the electric brakes for trailers. I have a 5th wheel travel trailer I bought used. With the brake controller adjusted to the max, it will have a tug on the truck but won't lock the brakes as I was thinking it should. I'll be cleaning and repacking the bearings before I tow it home. Hopefully with this new knowledge I'll be able to get the brakes working as they should also.

Thanks folks that is what I thought. On my next day off I will pull all 4 drums with a wire brush air hose and never seize in hand and do some PM work.Then re adjust shoes and then give it a try . Thanks again.