FW leveling

[Archie]

Just purchased my first FW 27.5RLS- pulling it with a 2016 Chev. 2500 HD 6.5'
bed. Wondering how level must the FW be when attached to the truck ?

[Flapper]

Moderately. Refrigerators (if you run yours while towing) like to be kept as level as you can. More important is the clearance to the sides/tailgate. Especially if your 5th is nose up, it has reduced tailgate clearance, and you can get some pretty nasty hits going over big bumps....
Many hitches are height adjustable, but if that won't get you close, then you have to look at lift kits and/or flipping the axles to raise the 5th some more.

[Archie]

The FW is about 1" high. I have between 5 1/2 " and 6" clearanece above rails of truck

[17 Oaks]

Originally Posted by Archie

The FW is about 1" high. I have between 5 1/2 " and 6" clearanece above rails of truck

I would not go below the clearance factor you currently have.

As for flipping axles: 1) Contract the mfg and find out if they have that or a similar model that uses flipped axles, if not then don't do it! When you start altering the suspension parameters on any vehicle the results are rarely good unless you know what you are doing and you use components designed for that function.

[schiguy]

Agreed with 17 Oaks. 6" is about the clearance you want to maintain between the bed rail and the bottom of the FW nose.

[jal0710]

I would suggest that, if your nose is only 1" high, don't sweat it. Our nose is a little high but we have not had problems with our fridge or FW since we bought it in 2012. 1" won't hurt anything and will allow you to keep your distance between the FW and the railing where it is.

[ddiego]

About to take possession of new 2016 Eagle 26.5 HT FW. We are high on nose and service center guy says he can lower king pin to max. and it will be close but not level. Our 16" Maxx tires part of problem maybe but we will see. He says axles not adjustable but read somewhere that they had 3" adjustment? Any comments? Other ways to resolve?

[17 Oaks]

Originally Posted by ddiego

About to take possession of new 2016 Eagle 26.5 HT FW. We are high on nose and service center guy says he can lower king pin to max. and it will be close but not level. Our 16" Maxx tires part of problem maybe but we will see. He says axles not adjustable but read somewhere that they had 3" adjustment? Any comments? Other ways to resolve?

First question is how high? Shorter rigs tend to ride a bit higher. You can mitigate by going to a taller tire, but that won't solve the problem. Don't go beyond mfg recommendations.

All that said the bottom line is the space between the highest point on the truck (top of bed rail) and the bottom of the nose of your 5th. I would not go below 5" of space or you could have unwanted interference.

At that point you are as level as you can get.

As axle adjustments of up to 3 inches, I am not familiar with this and would be VERY cautious on any gimmick that offers that. Altering the suspension on any vehicle can lead to catastrophic events. Alter the suspension and you alter CoG and other critical performance factors, go outside the design envelope and it can lead to disaster.

[sailor]

I have been told (by a source with good credentials) that the trailer should be within 1 inch of level front to back. If it isn't you are transferring weight from one trailer axle to the other with the potential of overloading an axle or tires. I was surprised to learn that trailer weight is not necessarily distributed evenly between the four wheels. My trailer has a difference of 550 pounds between the heaviest and lightest loads on the wheels.

[17 Oaks]

Originally Posted by sailor

I have been told (by a source with good credentials) that the trailer should be within 1 inch of level front to back. If it isn't you are transferring weight from one trailer axle to the other with the potential of overloading an axle or tires. I was surprised to learn that trailer weight is not necessarily distributed evenly between the four wheels. My trailer has a difference of 550 pounds between the heaviest and lightest loads on the wheels.

While I don't disagree with that there is a point to which you go that you do not go beyond.

You have lowered the 5th in the truck all you can and raised your 5th has high as you can by putting on some taller tires and you are now at the 5 " of bed rail of clearance there is not much left...either lower the truck or raise the 5th.

Now the first thing on many minds is EZ, I will just do an axle flip and problem solved...perhaps, BUT grasshopper you have now raised the CoG of your 5th and its already a barn door on wheels subject to side winds.

There is the possibility that when your rig was built that it was engineered to allow an axle flip without serious change in CoG, call the factory and find out before you do anything like that.

Having said that, ANYONE here every driven I 10 around the Ca-AZ border heading W to LA???? I have MANY times and the if you ignore the "High Winds" signs there is a good chance you will find your 5th laying on its side. We have the combo of high CoG and low weight to side surface as opposed to trucks hauling freight.

You can only get it so level and the shorter the 5th the more the problem is magnified. As for it being within 1 " of level, well that is optimum and if its not then as posted you will increase the weight on the rear axle set, thus more maintenance.

In most cases and even with my shorter 5th my rig is near level and well inside the envelope of performance I am comfortable with.