ATF: Bighorn - Suspension upgrade?

bradforx

Member
I have a 2007 BH 3055RL and at that time they didn't have shocks. I have had a couple of spring failure incidents that have me thinking about a suspension upgrade to 7000 lb axles with shocks and the newer brakes. I would like to know if this is possible with the frame I have without having to be engineered. Thank you.
Brad
 
K

karykatz

Guest
bradforx,

All of this can be changed with some minor frame modifications. You will have to have the Shock mounts added and the spring spacing may need changed.

I hope this helps.
 

DougS

Doug S
bradforx,
I am by far not an expert on suspension, but while I was having axle work done at different locations, I was told the shocks really did not do much on an RV, especially at the angle they are on. I would do more research about shocks on RV's before I invested in them. With that said, my model has them on the unit.
 

TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
bradforx,

We upgraded from Lippert 6K to Dexter 7K axles/brakes/springs, and upgraded to a beefier version of the EquaFlex Trail-air suspension. The repair shop did have some issues finding the correct axle dimensions, but overall we are very happy with the end result. We upgraded because our springs were flattening, one axle was possibly bent, and the suspension "was not quite right" in the words of the repair shop. We do not know for sure what caused all this (could be a number of reasons), but I consider our use of the trailer, "normal use". After the upgrade, the peace of mind is priceless!

E
 

lwmcguir

Well-known member
There was a post earlier today wanting to sell 7K axles and large brakes. 2k-4k light weight springs such as on your coach are all 26 inches eye to eye so they are interchangable.
 

cookie

Administrator
Staff member
HERE is a link to the axles and suspension that Lwmcguir is talking about.
You may have to use some parts of your existing setup. The problem may come into play with the Equiflex from Lippert. I think your 07 has Dexter parts. A little measuring will tell.

Peace
Dave
 

Speedy

Well-known member
Bradforx, are you trying to prevent spring failure in the future or dampen the jarring the trailer is taking traveling down the road? Shocks or dampers are designed to control the rate of travel of the springs; they are not designed as extra support for the springs. I would first investigate why the springs failed prior to installing shocks because if the springs are failing because of poor quality springs, mounts, design or overloading adding shocks will do nothing to resolve those possible problems.

Think of it this way, I know you have seen an older car going down the road with one tire bouncing as the car drives down the road. That's what rubber tires do when they are suppended from the car on springs with bad/failed shocks. No dampening, just lots of boing. The car is still held above the road by the spring but as the tire hits cracks and bumps in the road it starts it bouncing which will not stop until the brakes are applied shifting weight to that tire (front). Because the tires are not being forced/dampened down against the road, grip/traction is lowered and stopping distances are increased without locking the brakes. Trailer shocks will mostly remove the bounce of the trailer and not the tires/axles.
 

bradforx

Member
My thought is that if the tires are bouncing that means the springs are getting quite a workout in addition to the tires.It seems shocks are designed to dampen the spring return so that should make it easier on everything. The last spring failure I had was due to twin potholes in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. It seems that the locals even had names for them. I don't know if fatigue had played a major part or not. I was thinking heavier springs would have helped since the trucks kept rolling through. Thanks for your reply. Brad
Bradforx, are you trying to prevent spring failure in the future or dampen the jarring the trailer is taking traveling down the road? Shocks or dampers are designed to control the rate of travel of the springs; they are not designed as extra support for the springs. I would first investigate why the springs failed prior to installing shocks because if the springs are failing because of poor quality springs, mounts, design or overloading adding shocks will do nothing to resolve those possible problems.

Think of it this way, I know you have seen an older car going down the road with one tire bouncing as the car drives down the road. That's what rubber tires do when they are suppended from the car on springs with bad/failed shocks. No dampening, just lots of boing. The car is still held above the road by the spring but as the tire hits cracks and bumps in the road it starts it bouncing which will not stop until the brakes are applied shifting weight to that tire (front). Because the tires are not being forced/dampened down against the road, grip/traction is lowered and stopping distances are increased without locking the brakes. Trailer shocks will mostly remove the bounce of the trailer and not the tires/axles.
 

MTPockets

Well-known member
Just took delivery of the 2012 3055RL. Shocks are now standard with 6000 lb axles, but I asked for the Dexter 7000 lb. axles and 'G' rated tires. My gut told me to do it, but think I made a wise choice in pushing for the axle upgrade. Thanks to Heartland for doing it too.
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
Just took delivery of the 2012 3055RL. Shocks are now standard with 6000 lb axles, but I asked for the Dexter 7000 lb. axles and 'G' rated tires. My gut told me to do it, but think I made a wise choice in pushing for the axle upgrade. Thanks to Heartland for doing it too.
I agree, suspension upgrades are always a safe investment. What "G" rated tire did the upgrade include?
 

wdk450

Well-known member
I have a 2007 BH 3055RL and at that time they didn't have shocks. I have had a couple of spring failure incidents that have me thinking about a suspension upgrade to 7000 lb axles with shocks and the newer brakes. I would like to know if this is possible with the frame I have without having to be engineered. Thank you.
Brad

Brad:
Your rig (as well as mine) are from a manufacturing era (2006 - 2010?) when there were a LOT of reported incidents of springs flattening out and springs breaking. A school of thought blames this on the springs being made in China, with inferior metals that were sneaked in around quality control inspectors, along with a lot of graft and go cheap cost cutting in the stuff China produced. I have read recently that Lippert now uses a U.S. spring vendor, and we just don't seem to see as many spring failure reports here as we once did. I think China has cleaned up its act, too.
I was leaving for a long trip in the summer of 2009 (?), and my local RV repairer found 3 flat springs just before I left. When I was settled in Oregon, I got 4 new springs which were locally fabricated by a spring vendor in Eugene, Oregon. I have had no spring problems since.
The suggested suspension upgrades to take some of the shock off of the springs wouldn't hurt. too.
 

caissiel

Senior Member
We also changed the springs on our 7K axles due to flatening of the springs. My observation was that the spring plates were to light and the top plate bend when torking the u-bolts on the top of axle spring arrangement. Most trailer application have spring under axles setup but ours are on top. So the over the spring arrangement have springs with a flat center so they will be strapped properly on the axle. My plates were bending and applying pressure, and with load, the U-Bolts loosened and left the springs floating and breaking a center bolt when the trailer was just a few months old.

But after replacing all the springs I realised that the flats were bending down due to the weight but no longer pulled down by the heavier plates and 9/16" U-Bolts. The plates are now flat and the springs are tight. With under the spring setup the plates and U-Bolts help the springs by torking the U-Bolts. On my truck there is a 1/2" overload plate that also helps in keeping the load off the springs. I saw no damage in the spring application so I keeped the old ones for spare that I carry at least 2 spares all the time.

In addition I relocated the shocks to 60 deg from the horizontal like trailer shocks should be and it helped in stabilizing the unit when parked. The flat angle to me did not make any sence, but I found that the brackets are installed right for under the axle spring application.

In addition I balanced the tires to prevent spring and hardware wear. After 12K of use I checked all my bushings this summer and every one looks like new, so I feel that shocks and tire balance will go a long way in protecting the axle hardware.

I did have all kinds of suspension and tire problems with the previous trailer, untill I installed lighter springs without the short center ply and balanced LT tires. The original shocks were well installed and lasted 15 years and over 80K.
 

GOTTOYS

Well-known member
I'm looking at the Mor-Ryde independent suspension set-up. Was quoted $2,100 installed if I use my stock brakes. This would be for the 7,000# axles. They can raise my trailer so it will be level when towing, includes a five year warranty and they have normal adjustments and can be aligned much like any other suspension. I can install wet bolts this year, springs next year, upgrade my axles next year, replace the equalizers when they wear out and on and on or change it all now and be done with it. My thoughts are it will be less expensive in the long run and much more reliable..Any thoughts?...Don
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
Don, I had the Mor-ryde installed 2 years ago after the Heartland Nat'l Rally. I couldn't be happier. I don't stress over spring failures or anything else associated with leaf spring suspensions. Not too long after the install, I had heard TXBobcat has some issues and he was told it was related to lubing the pivot axles. The instructions state they needed to be lubed periodically but there was no mention of having the weight off of the suspension. Since I read that thread, I have lubed mine when I do bearing and brake maintenance. I also lube once in between so about every 6 months.
Other than that, alignment has been good and I feel it was a justified expense.
 

GOTTOYS

Well-known member
Thanks Ray, I won't be able to get there until next Spring, but the more I think about it the more sense it makes...Nothing is more fun than braking down somewhere with suspension problems...Don
 
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