DTSFab.com (Desert, Trail and Sand)
Machinery, Trailers, Toyhaulers and Motorhomes => Trailers, Toyhaulers and Motorhomes => Topic started by: fastcorvairs on October 28, 2013, 05:21:21 AM
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Well I got the toy hauler jacked up and on stands to put the new shoes on, and low and behold what did I find. First thing was both hubs on the front axle were not sounding good when I spun them. Pulled them off and both had one bearing that was toast. Come to find out that when I had that axle replaced back in 2009 because of a bent spindle the alignment people must have thought that the spindle nuts were head nuts and had them tightened down way to much. While I was working on the new bearings I found a ton of slop in the suspension. So glad that I decided to go with a set of Dexter's E-Z Flex spring hangers. These things are the cats meow. Here are a few pictures That I took over the last week. I don't think this trailer would have made one more trip to Yuma or Idaho.
Here is the old and new of it. All the axle gear on this trailer is just six years old. Better check you trailers guys if you have a sprung trailer.
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Looks like your gettin some of my luck Rollin around with stuff like that. Wonder if spindle wasn't freezing up some and wearing that tire? I'd say you caught just in time.
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Looks like 99% of all trailer equalizers/spring systems. The setup that almost all trailers use is just about as big a POS as there has ever been. Most trailers get pulled one trip and then parked tho. Unlike what we do.
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Looks like your gettin some of my luck Rollin around with stuff like that. Wonder if spindle wasn't freezing up some and wearing that tire? I'd say you caught just in time.
Actually the side that the tire with the flat spots came off of the driver side of the trailer. The bearing on that spindle was the better of the two. It was the curb side spindle that had the bad bearing. I did not take a picture of the rollers in that bearing they were all chewed up like the back of the race and the D washer was. If I were to call this problem I would say that the worn and elongated rockers were letting the axle jump and shake like a bad shock on a car.
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do you balance the trailer tire/wheel?
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scary isn't it!!!!! i don't see any shocks on the axles in those pics? does make a diff....imo and i know those dexters are waaaaay beefier!!!!!!!!!!!
6 years old and worn through the nylon bushings and slotting the holes in the rest already!! makes you scared to drive next to a camper on the road don't it!! mine were already shot with 12 trips on them!!
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Service centers scare me too. I took my trailer to Rocky Mountain RV in Albuquerque for some warranty issues after I bought it. I bought it out of State.
While I was there I told them that I had lost a hub cap and if it was going to cost much more than $20-$30 to skip it since I can find them online cheaper. When I went to pick it up I had a bill for $125 to repack my bearings. I ask why they repacked my bearings since it is a new trailer... and because it had easy lube axles. "Well, your hub cap fell off and got dust in the bearings." nono nono nono
I raised hell and refused to pay the bill. After arguing with me for 10 minutes the service manager finally dropped the bill after I told him to shove every "award" plaque they had on their wall up his ass and informed him that my melt down was about to be heard by every customer on their lot.
At first I wasn't sure if their tech was really stupid enough to believe that a cosmetic hub cap was there to protect the hub bearings even though there is a dust cap to even keep dirt off the grease zerk or if they just thought I was stupid enough to believe it and run up my bill. I wish I would have checked. The next season I pulled the hub caps to grease my axles. I pulled the little dust cap off to find grease everywhere where he had packed it onto the spindle nut and the grease zerk missing completely. He really was that stupid!
From that point forward I decided that I would do all maintenance and repairs on my trailer myself. I'm scared to death when I pass anything on the road that says Rocky Mountain RV on it.
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do you balance the trailer tire/wheel?
Always.
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scary isn't it!!!!! i don't see any shocks on the axles in those pics? does make a diff....imo and i know those dexters are waaaaay beefier!!!!!!!!!!!
6 years old and worn through the nylon bushings and slotting the holes in the rest already!! makes you scared to drive next to a camper on the road don't it!! mine were already shot with 12 trips on them!!
Real scary. Just what I told my wife. Next time I'm passing a trailer with spring axle's on it I'll be sure to speed it up to get around them. Seeing what mine looked like with just six years on them. I am researching the shocks and also bump stops.
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Mod's need to move this to toy haulers trailer forum. I can't finger it out.
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Mod's need to move this to toy haulers trailer forum. I can't finger it out.
Thanks Fabr.
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No problem!
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Well that's 2 EZ Flex customers from DTS now.. After seeing this, I'm am going to be #3!
Where are your guys buying from? I got to start shopping.
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I may have to crawl under my trailer. It's new with only 3 trips but that = 6000 miles. Some of the roads get pretty damn ruff. Last trip nice road with a ramp onto a bridge. Truck and trailer left the ground. Airborn! Had to change pants next fuel stop.
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And possibly remove some seat foam?
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Man, you guys are scaring Me. I really don't want to go crawl under My trailer, but I might have to before heading down for the 1000. Nothing like finding a problem 200 miles south of the border........
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http://www.dexteraxle.com/shock_kit (http://www.dexteraxle.com/shock_kit)
http://dexteraxle.com/e_z_flex_equalizers (http://dexteraxle.com/e_z_flex_equalizers)
this is where I bought mine
http://www.nickstruckparts.com/k71-652-00.html (http://www.nickstruckparts.com/k71-652-00.html)
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I posted this on my post but still interesting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6hXCegZNxE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6hXCegZNxE)
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I may have to crawl under my trailer. It's new with only 3 trips but that = 6000 miles. Some of the roads get pretty damn ruff. Last trip nice road with a ramp onto a bridge. Truck and trailer left the ground. Airborn! Had to change pants next fuel stop.
Carl
You don't have springs on your trailer. You have torsional axles. Whole different ball game. DS and I have springs and that is the problem. Be a long time coming before you have a problem.
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and check out lipperts version and watch the leaf spring hangers that are welded to the frame... see how much they move!! lippert btw bought dexter.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp5iRVPwYZg (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp5iRVPwYZg)
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fast here are the pics of the plates I used in the Monroe kit for my shock mounts on the axle. the kit also came with upper mounts to but I had to mod those. they are 1/4" thick as well
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Carl
You don't have springs on your trailer. You have torsional axles. Whole different ball game. DS and I have springs and that is the problem. Be a long time coming before you have a problem.
not necessarily. Torsion rubbers have a finite life also,especially if overloaded even a little.Overloading an axle or tire is easy to do since the torsion axles have no equalizing effect like spring axles do. It is critical that the pin height be spot on.
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Carl
You don't have springs on your trailer. You have torsional axles. Whole different ball game. DS and I have springs and that is the problem. Be a long time coming before you have a problem.
Nope, I'm leaf sprung.
That little toyhauler I had, it had shocks on it. Maybe a little less bouncy than current trailer.
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Nope, I'm leaf sprung.
That little toyhauler I had, it had shocks on it. Maybe a little less bouncy than current trailer.
That trailer of yours sets really low to the ground for being leaf sprung. They must have the brackets tucked up under it pretty far. You'll have to jack it up by the frame and let the axles and wheels dangle to see how lose things are. Better yet just get a kit and put it on. Got your buggy running good now so start on the trailer.
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fast here are the pics of the plates I used in the Monroe kit for my shock mounts on the axle. the kit also came with upper mounts to but I had to mod those. they are 1/4" thick as well
Plates on my trailer are double that and still bending down from me hauling down on the nuts. The big problem with a triple axle is the springs want to shift from side to side. That is what took out a new tire in 2010 on mine. Twins don't have as much trouble with it. I am having new plats cut out of .5 boiler plate with a tab on the side that will mount the shock.
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The kit pretty dang cheap. When turning a triple theres some serious drag on axle, front one from what I've read is worst. 4 axle stuff should prob only go in straight line.
Mental note; dont put camera under trailer, you dont want to see what really happens. But not surprising when you see how they are built. When you see how they are put together, its amazing the roof and walls stay on at 80+ mph.
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The kit pretty dang cheap. When turning a triple theres some serious drag on axle, front one from what I've read is worst. 4 axle stuff should prob only go in straight line.
Mental note; dont put camera under trailer, you dont want to see what really happens. But not surprising when you see how they are built. When you see how they are put together, its amazing the roof and walls stay on at 80+ mph.
rofl rofl yep and they require mods to to it more than once rofl
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My trailer runs on 7k, 3" drop axles. If I have problems with them I will likely go to straight Axles. My trailer is built like a brick s#(t house. 2" for sides and roof, with cross bracing. But it is heavy. I need to service my flat bed bad, ds can attest to that. Should do the enclosed as well.
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My trailer runs on 7k, 3" drop axles. If I have problems with them I will likely go to straight Axles. My trailer is built like a brick s#(t house. 2" for sides and roof, with cross bracing. But it is heavy. I need to service my flat bed bad, ds can attest to that. Should do the enclosed as well.
your drop axles are slipper springs and judging from the way they were built you won't have the issues the others do for quite sometime and yes you need to service you flat bed but i would wait til the snow flies rofl rofl it will make it more fun making tunnels to get to it rofl rofl
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http://www.venturetrailers.com/pdfs/Tire%20Wear%20Chart.pdf (http://www.venturetrailers.com/pdfs/Tire%20Wear%20Chart.pdf)