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Electric brakes with a tractor?
Ken, there are several ways to do it.
As Art stated you can use the 'direct approach' of just using power from the brake light circuit if your machine is so equipped. The problem with this is there is no adjustment, it is either full on or nothing.
Our machines are equipped with electric brake controllers just like you would put in a pickup truck. The newer style ones use a motion-sensing technology that automatically applies the trailer brakes when it senses the trailer slowing down, they don't work very well at slow speeds though because there is little momentum involved. They do have a manual over-ride to allow you to use them manually however, this is usually what we do.
You could probably rig up a little reostat to accomplish the same thing as the brake pedal moves down it would start to give the brakes an ever increasing amount of power.
Maybe even just a flip switch as a sort of 'emergency brake' system would suffice.
Best of luck.
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Electric brakes with a tractor?
I would suggest however Ken that you carefully check the circuit, if it is not capable of the current load produced by the electric brakes it might prove more exciting than you would care for.
Half way down a hill is a BAD place to discover that there is no brakes on the load behind you because the fuse blew ort the switch melted.
Since you are running a HST unit anyways you might want to install some other foot switch, like the old style high/low beam switches, which could activate the brakes with the left foot independantly of the tractors drive system. This way you could 'throw out the anchor' by using the trailers brakes while accelerating or holding speed with the tractor. We have to do this on occasion with loaded dump trailers that start to get a little to eager heading downhill behind you.
Best of luck.
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Electric brakes with a tractor?
Ken, surge brakes are a stand-alone hydraulic system.
The coupler (hitch) has some room for fore & aft motion designed into it, and a hydraulic master cylinder and reservoir in the rear. When the tow vehicle stops the trailer wants to keep going, this causes the coupler to compress this applies force to the master cylinder which in turn pressurises the wheel cylinders applying the brakes.
As Chief noted it is a very simple, rugged system. It is also completely 'automatic' since it works stricly by the difference in speed caused between trailer and towing vehicle. There is a lot less maintenance as a rule as compared to electric brakes.
As Plots noted, I think you're a little off in your estimation of weight, but not as much as he figured. Your machine is probably about 3k. lbs. plus another 1k. lbs. for the FEL, maybe 1.5k. lbs with your grapple in place.
My 'Bota is a similar size and it weighs a smidge under 6k. lbs. including cab and a 1k. lbs. box blade hanging off the back. I know, because the nice people in our Highways Dept. weighed on the side of the road for me recently,  , luckily it was a 'free' weighing session.
Best of luck.
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Electric brakes with a tractor?
Ken, if you have a standard trailer axle beam in that thing it is remarkably easy to do the change-over.
The axle will have an industry standard sized spindle, all hubs, idler, electric or hydraulic brake style will slip on it. The coupler is standard also, probably a 3" wide tongue, the coupler also just bolts on. The hardest parts of the whole operation is running the brake lines and bleeding the system.
On the other hand, why make a bunch of work (and costs) for yourself, put a switch to a relay to 12v. to the brakes. As Art mentioned, I doubt you'll even need them. It is good insurance to have them operable though.
Best of luck.
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