What matters is the manufacturer of the axle — not the brand of the trailer. A trailer of brand X may have an axle made by AL-KO, Knott, BPW or Peitz. And identical dimensions do not mean an identical fit: an AL-KO axle takes AL-KO brake shoes, even if another manufacturer offers the same size.

Step 1: find the axle type plate. It is usually located in the middle of the axle tube and shows the manufacturer, axle type and permissible axle load — what to do with it depends on the manufacturer:

AL-KO: The wheel brake type is never printed directly on the type plate. Instead, note the ETI number (spare part identification number, usually starting with 811…) — it identifies the brake unambiguously. Alternatively, the brake type is embossed on the back plate; common AL-KO wheel brakes are 1635, 2050, 2051 and 2360 (the first two digits correspond to the drum diameter in cm, e.g. 2050 = 200 x 50). Red caps on the back plate indicate a brake with automatic adjustment.

Knott: Here the brake type is usually shown directly on the axle type plate and also embossed on the back plate, e.g. 16-1365, 20-2425/1 or 25-2025. Again, the number before the hyphen is the drum diameter in centimetres.

BPW: The brake type (e.g. S 2005-7 RASK = 200 x 50) is shown on the axle plate or on the back plate. In addition, the eight-digit BPW axle number (e.g. 46.25.358.000) contains a digit block encoding the wheel brake — 358, for example, stands for the S 2005-7 RASK.

Peitz (spare parts nowadays supplied via BPW): The axle type itself already tells you a lot. EB… = single braked axle (EBG = rubber suspension with square axle tube, EBD = torsion bar suspension with round axle tube); the number after it is the axle load in units of 100 kg (EBG 10 = 1000 kg). The additional letter indicates the wheel brake: N → S 234R (230 drum), U → R 234-76 or R 160-76, K → R 205-83 or R 160-83 (all with approx. 3–4.5 cm overrun travel). Peitz X axles (approx. 9 cm overrun travel) use the 20-2425/1 wheel brake and are compatible with current brake spare parts.

No type plate, or unreadable? Then proceed like this:

• Check the back plate: The manufacturer, part number and wheel brake type are often embossed on the rear side of the carrier plate behind the brake drum.
• Check the brake shoes: Removed shoes often carry the manufacturer name or a number — we have cross-reference numbers on file that often identify the article unambiguously.
• Measure: The inner diameter of the brake drum (e.g. 200 mm) and the lining width (e.g. 50 mm) give the usual designation 200 x 50. Please also send us photos: the complete brake, the back plate and a removed shoe.

To browse by manufacturer: brake pads and brake shoes. You will also find matching brake drums and brake cables in our shop.