Help for tired axles - Fiberglass RV
Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 12-27-2007, 07:01 AM   #1
Senior Member
 
Lyndon Laney's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1996 19 ft Scamp 19 ft 5th Wheel ('TOGETHERNEST' SLEEPS 8
Posts: 270
My second winter project was to beef up my tired old axel with adjustable spring loaded shocks. I first lowered my axel 1 inch to acomodate larger tires [215 r 14's]then added the shocks as follows
Attached Thumbnails
Finished_hi_sm.jpg  
Lyndon Laney is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 07:16 AM   #2
Senior Member
 
Kevin K's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1983 13 ft Scamp
Posts: 3,082
Registry
Lyndon Laney
Where did you buy the shocks? Is that a home made bracket? What about the top bracket, do you have a picture? Spring rating for the coil over shock? I thought about doing this on my 13' Scamp. Did you weld the bracket to the axle arm?
Kevin K is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 07:40 AM   #3
Senior Member
 
Lyndon Laney's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1996 19 ft Scamp 19 ft 5th Wheel ('TOGETHERNEST' SLEEPS 8
Posts: 270
Quote:
Lyndon Laney
Where did you buy the shocks? Is that a home made bracket? What about the top bracket, do you have a picture? Spring rating for the coil over shock? I thought about doing this on my 13' Scamp. Did you weld the bracket to the axle arm?
first I will apoligse as tuere were suposed to be 2 pictures
They are from JCWhitney the part # and price are on the picture the braket [I will try for a picture of] i fabricated from a 2x2 CRS 1/8 wall steel tubing. And the top needs no bracket as it is mearly a 1/2 x6 inch class 5 bolt through the frame from inside the trailer under the overhang with a spacer to line it up with the bottom mount. I welded the lower bracket to the flat surface of the axel arm. This could have been bolted on by drilling and tapping mount holes.
Attached Thumbnails
Bracket_sm.jpg   Finished_hi_sm.jpg  

Lyndon Laney is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 07:51 AM   #4
Senior Member
 
Lyndon Laney's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1996 19 ft Scamp 19 ft 5th Wheel ('TOGETHERNEST' SLEEPS 8
Posts: 270
More pictures
Attached Thumbnails
Shock_sm.jpg  
Lyndon Laney is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 08:22 AM   #5
Senior Member
 
Joe Z's Avatar
 
Trailer: 16 ft Casita Spirit Deluxe
Posts: 1,043
Nice job Lyndon..... Simple and very effective.
I will remember this is ever needed.
Joe
__________________
Joe and Linda
2013 Casita SD
Dodge Ram 4x4
Joe Z is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 12:18 PM   #6
Senior Member
 
Larry&Carrie's Avatar
 
Trailer: 13 ft Scamp 1983 and 1972 Compact Jr (project)
Posts: 554
Send a message via MSN to Larry&Carrie
Talking

I have been contemplating this fix for several hours after reading it....... At the expense of incurring wrath for asking, isn't this an attempt to beef up an overloaded axle? Or, are you experiencing severe sway? The latter would be a good reason to do this, but if it was the former, an axle upgrade would be the solution. Please don't fire any heat rounds at me, but I have been sitting here looking out and the snow with my mind whirling.. Larry
Larry&Carrie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 12:22 PM   #7
Senior Member
 
Brian B-P's Avatar
 
Trailer: Boler (B1700RGH) 1979
Posts: 5,002
The top mount method is essentially the same as used by Monroe with their trailer shock absorber retrofit kit, like I put on my Boler (see Shock Absorber Retrofit, Boler B1700RGH). The Dexter shock kit uses a welded-on bracket for the top mount, and a stud (rather than loop) shock end at the top. My Boler has a leaf-spring axle, so the bottom mount is unrelated to Lyndon's situation, but the top mount is the same situation.

My only concern with this top mounting method is that Monroe specifies it for the intermittent loading of shock damping, not to continuously carry load due to the coil spring.

The bottom mount bracket is nicely constructed.
That doesn't look like a typical Dexter Torflex "rubber torsion" suspension (which offers no similar face to which to attach a bracket); instead, it appears to be a big rectangular box... maybe solid bar. What axle is it, Lyndon; AL-KO?

There are a couple of holes in the face of the bracket which is welded to the suspension arm; are they to provide more weld length?
__________________
1979 Boler B1700RGH, pulled by 2004 Toyota Sienna LE 2WD
Information is good. Lack of information is not so good, but misinformation is much worse. Check facts, and apply common sense liberally.
STATUS: No longer active in forum.
Brian B-P is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 12:49 PM   #8
Senior Member
 
Brian B-P's Avatar
 
Trailer: Boler (B1700RGH) 1979
Posts: 5,002
I have been considering the reason for the coil spring, as well. I assume that the axle is not overloaded - that the axle's bearings, etc. are suitable for the load - because Lyndon has described this as "Help for tired axles", not undersized ones. For me, a concern would be that if the rubber rods (which serve as both springs and bushings) are degraded to the point that they no longer work adquately as springs, then they may not work very well as bushings, either, and alignment and control of the suspension arms may not longer be good.

In the end, I'm wondering about the ride height of the suspension, or the angle of the suspension arms. Is it sitting under load at the designed angle for the suspension (assisted because it is tired by the coil springs), or lower because the rubber is worn out, or higher because the coils are boosting it?

The mounting method would be equally valid if the desire were to mount simply dampers (shock absorbers), without the coil springs. Personally, I think added shocks - even with a new at and not at all "tired" suspension - is a great idea.
__________________
1979 Boler B1700RGH, pulled by 2004 Toyota Sienna LE 2WD
Information is good. Lack of information is not so good, but misinformation is much worse. Check facts, and apply common sense liberally.
STATUS: No longer active in forum.
Brian B-P is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-27-2007, 04:14 PM   #9
Senior Member
 
Lyndon Laney's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1996 19 ft Scamp 19 ft 5th Wheel ('TOGETHERNEST' SLEEPS 8
Posts: 270
Quote:
I have been contemplating this fix for several hours after reading it....... At the expense of incurring wrath for asking, isn't this an attempt to beef up an overloaded axle? Or, are you experiencing severe sway?
No sway problems just trying to get it back to the new leval as last season I noticed that the tires had rubbed on the wheel wells the trailer is a 95 and has traveled 80,000 miles And when not in use is always op on blocks.
Lyndon Laney is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-26-2008, 09:40 AM   #10
Junior Member
 
Tom and Colleen's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1973 Boler (Winnipeg factory
Posts: 15
This is bloody brilliant. A quick and inexpensive DIY 2-link suspension that makes use of what's already there. I love it!

As long as the torsion rubber isn't so far gone that the thing rattles around this ought to work really well.

I'd like to know more about the top mount for the shock -- I'm assuming a bolt runs through the frame (and is not simply welded to one side), right? I guess you could drill a hole through the frame then insert a nice piece of appropriately sized DOM tubing and weld around both ends. The top bolt would run through that.


I'll have a peak under tonight to figure out if my axle is cast or box tube. Shamefully, I don't know offhand.
Tom and Colleen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-27-2008, 08:00 AM   #11
Junior Member
 
Tom and Colleen's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1973 Boler (Winnipeg factory
Posts: 15
Dang. Ours is old. Cast type. So much for that idea...
Tom and Colleen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-27-2008, 08:15 AM   #12
Senior Member
 
Trailer: 84 16 ft Scamp
Posts: 725
Another benefit of this arrangement is the loading on the frame is not only spread out of a longer length, but changed from torsional to part torsional and part direct.

Most of these trailers are not real stout, frame-wise. As corrosion and "wear and tear" work over time, a mod such as this might just give quite a few more years of usefulness to the original frame.

Loren G. Hedahl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-27-2008, 11:16 AM   #13
Member
 
Trailer: 1973 16 ft Amerigo
Posts: 70
Send a message via Yahoo to sherry loving o
Post

Quote:
My second winter project was to beef up my tired old axel with adjustable spring loaded shocks. I first lowered my axel 1 inch to acomodate larger tires [215 r 14's]then added the shocks as follows

My father just put air shocks on my 1980 Scamp. I needed a new axle and my dad insist he was able to fix it.....well, he did. It works out great.
I'll be posting pic's sometime this week.
sherry loving o is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-29-2008, 05:06 AM   #14
Senior Member
 
Lyndon Laney's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1996 19 ft Scamp 19 ft 5th Wheel ('TOGETHERNEST' SLEEPS 8
Posts: 270
I have pulled it some 5000 miles now with no noticable tire wear[much farther than the original tires went] And they have taken most of the bounce from paved segmant roads out.and seems to ride smother . Nothing jarred loose inside as before
Lyndon Laney is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-04-2014, 08:11 PM   #15
Junior Member
 
Name: Tim
Trailer: 1983 scamp 13
Florida
Posts: 21
Which model did you enter to get the double eyed shock as pictured. Putting in multible VW's get me different mounts
firebike is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-08-2014, 05:32 AM   #16
Senior Member
 
Lyndon Laney's Avatar
 
Trailer: 1996 19 ft Scamp 19 ft 5th Wheel ('TOGETHERNEST' SLEEPS 8
Posts: 270
Quote:
Originally Posted by firebike View Post
Which model did you enter to get the double eyed shock as pictured. Putting in multible VW's get me different mounts
these were from a VW dune buggy catalog many years ago.
Lyndon Laney is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
al-ko axles Dan B Problem Solving | Owners Helping Owners 2 06-02-2008 10:44 PM
another tired tire question... jaye580 Problem Solving | Owners Helping Owners 6 06-22-2007 04:49 AM
Antenna - Tired of Looking Ron N Problem Solving | Owners Helping Owners 4 01-26-2006 08:29 PM

» Upcoming Events
No events scheduled in
the next 465 days.
» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:55 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.