Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL

[Paul & Nan]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

OK . . . I'm askin'!

Cause we lost wheel, rim, etc, and our TMS gave nothing. Called the manufacturer, they said, TMS only tells when air is low, not missing. Love your pic., nice lake in the background.

 

[danemayer]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

Next time you unhitch, pull away and see whether the TPMS alarm goes off. TST 507 does not trigger the alarm immediately.

 

[wdk450]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

I know that my TireTrakker alarms when the sensor battery gets low and it indicates "Loss of Sensor Signal".

 

[Ornofrk]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

I want to thank everyone for their replies to my original post. The information was very helpful. My RV was repaired last week in NC with a new axle assembly that came from Lippert. It included the brakes, bearings, hubs and a new set of springs and cost me $514.72 for the parts (the labor was another $280)! The mechanic pulled the wheels on the other axle and said that those bearings were OK and appeared to have plenty of grease packed in them. I had packed all the bearings on all wheels at the same time, with the same amount of grease shot through the zerks. It was his guess that the cotter pin in the spindle nut broke because he found a broken cotter pin in the mangled spindle nut remaining on the axle. He said this probably caused the spindle nut to work loose causing the wheel to wobble and eventually grind the spindle down until the wheel flew off! Just a guess, but makes sense. However, I am going to manually repack the bearings from now on and not depend on the zerk fittings.

I have ordered a new wheel to replace the missing one. I now want to replace all four tires since they are 4+ years old and I have to buy one anyway to replace the one that was lost. Does anyone have any recommendations for tires to replace the LT235/85R16G tires that Hartland put on the rig? Are ST (trailer tires) better then LT? If ST tires are better for the 5th wheel, why does Hartland put LT tires on? I have read articles that say ST tires are better for a trailer.

 

[cookie]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

You have a pretty heavy trailer in the 3670. If you are going to stay with the same size wheel I recommend the Goodyear G614.
If you plan on spending twice the amount, you will want to go with the 17.5 wheel/tire combo.

Peace
Dave

 

[danemayer]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

The Goodyear G614 load range G tires are tested and certified to meet the requirements of an LT tire, but they are designed and are positioned by Goodyear marketing to be used in trailer applications. I'm pretty sure they have a stronger sidewall construction than other ST or LT tires because they have steel running from bead-to-bead.

The Goodyear G114 load range H tires are similar but support about 1,000 lbs more weight per tire, using a 17.5" wheel.

Goodyear positions both tires as trailer tires, the G614 for regional trucking and the G114 for long-haul.

 

[TeJay]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

We owned three TT's and finally moved back to a MH. It was always my procedure to bring the new TT home, remove the china bearings, pack the new TOYO bearings with synthetic grease, (Amsoil) correctly adjust the wheel bearing clearance to .003 and forget about it for 2-3 years. NEVER, NEVER use the zerk grease fitting. Once that grease is packed into the wheel bearing it does not need to be cycled by way of a grease gun. It's perfectly fine staying in the hub for 2-4 years. That what we always did on vehicles that had front wheel bearings back in the 80's and 90's. Never had a problem.
The manufacturer wants you to re-pack every 12 months so they can avoid problems. They are trying to prevent those over greased axles with blown seals to cost them some $$$$$. It's always the bottom line to them. Heck with the consumer and all the $$$$ they have to spend (paying or doing re-packs every year) to compensate for their lack of care/concern.
This is JMHO. This just happens to be my area of expertise and it demonstrates to me that they are not doing as I was taught and did for 35 years to provide a long life or service for those wheel bearings on travel trailers.

TeJay

 

[Edd and Janet]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

are you guys ever lucky....blessed. The powers that be should give this a lot of attention and find out what caused this before someone gets killed or seriously hurt.

 

[TeJay]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

Many/most are still missing the point but I'm not sure much can be done. Why is the owner of a new TT expected to spend a bunch of $$$$$$ to upgrade axles, tires, rims, suspension or leaf springs so they can SAFELY carry the weight that the unit was designed for in the first place. Those are some of the concerns we experienced with our three TT's. Actually I was amazed that the first unit we bought had no shocks, no self-adjusting brakes, and very limited suspension with no grease-able wet bolts for the spring shackles. The second TT we got was rated for 7,000 but it had 2- 3,000 lb axles. That's only 1,000 lbs over the max. Yes I know the tongue weight is transferred to the TV so that only leaves it maybe 500 lbs over the max. That on the edge of destruction.

We took that first unit to FL (2,400 total miles) it rode OK. When we got back I installed shocks and wet bolts. Four of the shackle bushings were already worn through. To me that was just an awful approach to building a unit that you will take down our highway's. They expect me to pack the bearings every year, adjust the drum brakes every year, don't ever fill your fresh water tanks more than 1/2 full because it might fall out. Don't ever hit a curb because it will bend the axle and your tires will wear out. I'm also expected to buy a $600 hitch with sway control because they do nothing to control the sway, like shock absorbers, anti-sway bars etc. Three units told me that all and I mean all units are built on the edge of destruction. They place unreasonable maintenance expectation on the owner so they can shift the responsibility to you so they have an out when bad things occur.

On the water tanks, one responder said that all units have loose tanks straps so when they bulge/sag down the straps can then support the sagging tank.

TeJay

 

[caissiel]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

On wednesday I spend the morning looking for shocks for my unit with 7k axle with a broken shock. In 5 miles there are at least 20 trailer dealers here and none had shocks and looked at me funny.
2 dealers with acres of horse, utility, work and cargo trailers of all sizes never had shocks and wet bolts in stock. Did find lots of standard parts that are used on all the trailers they sell. So to me RV manufacturers are no different.

With experience in RVing I did found that trailer tires are always out of balance and cause all the wear and tear on the standard support structure.
My unit was looked at when new 5 years ago and all wheels balanced.
The wear was minimum when I replaced the white nylon bushings after 30k miles.
I was very surprised at the minimum wear to the bushings, specially on the loaded 7k axles.
So in a while I will again check wear as I usually check the middle equalizer bushings first as they might wear faster due to double the load.
The shocks, I ended buying 4 at auto parts store and to me for the same price they are the best Monroe Gas Track unit that will not break like the last 4 did.
Shocks do prevent wear but most users think of them as smooth ride purpose use only.

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[wdk450]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

Laurent:
Lippert makes a heavy duty gas shock add-on kit. Here is the Camping World listing, but you can aslo get it through Lippert's online catalog: http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/shock-kit-for-3-inch-axle-tube/62535
While doing the websearch for this, I noticed a listing for Monroe brand trailer shocks: http://www.monroeheavyduty.com/products/kits/trailer-retrofit-kits Most any major auto parts store should be able to order this for you.

On wednesday I spend the morning looking for shocks for my unit with 7k axle with a broken shock. In 5 miles there are at least 20 trailer dealers here and none had shocks and looked at me funny.
2 dealers with acres of horse, utility, work and cargo trailers of all sizes never had shocks and wet bolts in stock. Did find lots of standard parts that are used on all the trailers they sell. So to me RV manufacturers are no different.

With experience in RVing I did found that trailer tires are always out of balance and cause all the wear and tear on the standard support structure.
My unit was looked at when new 5 years ago and all wheels balanced.
The wear was minimum when I replaced the white nylon bushings after 30k miles.
I was very surprised at the minimum wear to the bushings, specially on the loaded 7k axles.
So in a while I will again check wear as I usually check the middle equalizer bushings first as they might wear faster due to double the load.
The shocks, I ended buying 4 at auto parts store and to me for the same price they are the best Monroe Gas Track unit that will not break like the last 4 did.
Shocks do prevent wear but most users think of them as smooth ride purpose use only.

Sent from my LG-LS720 using Tapatalk

 

[caissiel]

Our shocks and what CW sells are not the same. Beside CW never stocked them only available on the internet.
I used a shock used on the 80's chysler models front shocks for heavy rear wheel drive cars.
I think the shock no. is 5829 with 135 end kits.
The new shocks fit much better and no longer will rub on the tires. I also relocated the top anchor points when we first bought the unit as the shocks were bend at the axle stud and eventually the pin broke. The other 3 while I straighten the lower stud a leak created allowed the oil to leak out under pressure. I never noticed as it only leak out will traveling and oil was never noticed when parked.

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[Jim.Allison]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

For answeres to this problem search HiSpec Wheels.

 

[JanAndBill]

Re: Wheel Broke Off on Big Horn 3670RL (and we survived)!

I have a habit of stopping every couple hours, and doing a walk around. Kick the tires, lay hands on the hubs, etc. Lets me head off some potential problems, and works the kinks out of the body. One thing about repacking bearings that should be mentioned, is the preload on the bearings. To much or to little can and will cause bearing failure.