Ford 450 modification for road sway - Page 5

qnghiem · 06-24-2021, 09:41 AM

Do you mean hellwig helper spring? I think it came with greyhawk jride. Here is the sumospring part. I didn't add the spacer.

don_kleinschnitz · 06-24-2021, 09:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by qnghiem

Do you mean Hellwig helper spring? I think it came with greyhawk jride. Here is the sumospring part. I didn't add the spacer.

Yes, the helper springs, my Jayride + came with the springs.
Thanks for the help, likely this is my next upgrade..

Whoa, they are 1/2 the price of the Timbrens!!! I owe ya!

BTW the front sumos and Helwig sway bar made a big difference for me.

don_kleinschnitz · 06-24-2021, 09:52 AM

Did you have any installation problems?
This customer review from amazon suggests a fit problem?
https://amzn.to/3wVurMb

"This product - the rear set was an entirely different matter. Frame mount flanges were too wide to slide into the frame rail channel section exposed after the removal of the factory bump stops. I don't know if there is anything unique to my vehicle but the listing claims a direct bolt-up fit. Definitely not the case. I checked fit and proceeded to grind material away on the spring mount vertical flange sections to get them down to a width to fit (at least 1/8"). I also added a larger radius to the end that mated up to the frame rail inner radius to get the spring mounting surface parallel to the axle line. Not fun - as I was doing this on my back, rather than on a lift. I did not want to grind too much material away so I repeatedly checked the fit and removed the brackets after the removal of some material - I suspect at least 7 or 8 times on the first side. Based on what I learned from the first side (passenger) the driver side went faster. I may update the review once I have some driving time under my belt."

qnghiem · 06-24-2021, 09:52 AM

I also did front sumospring, roadmaster sway bar and stablizer. We went roadtrip 2 weeks ago from sacramento to Destin, FL in 3 days. just a smooth ride but the road is really bad on I-10.

qnghiem · 06-24-2021, 10:02 AM

Regarding the rear sumospring installation, I used 4 tons floor jack plus 2 of 4x4 wood to raise the rear of rv high enough then you have big gap to install the rear sumospring. The trackbar installation is not that bad with 2 ppl. I will take pictures this weekend if you want.

qnghiem · 06-24-2021, 11:13 AM

I used this Doc for reference to install the trackbar which is better than the installation doc come with it.

Johnynorthland · 06-24-2021, 06:10 PM

I went and spent the money on the air bags. I would, and will do it again in my next rig!

expoman55 · 06-26-2021, 07:08 AM

Hello, We also have the Greyhawk Presige.. Unless something has changed( ours is 2016) I believe you already have the Helwig bars installed from the factory. perhaps just a steering stabilizer will help. I replaced the crap Michelin tires at 3500 miles and put cooper tires on and much of my road problems went away from a handling perspective.. much better tires and surely changed the feel of the coach overall. We have had 'A's in the past and this is our first C and Love it .. ! All the best

Jim_in_WA · 06-26-2021, 07:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rodpod

I installed the black ones they have the highest load carrying capacity. They go on very easy. Take the old frame bumps off and just screw the new Sumo's in. Piece of pie.

Installed mine before DW took a long trip. I could only screw the drivers side in. No access to attach nylock. You?

Finchr1 · 06-26-2021, 08:39 AM

The stabilizer helps a lot as does an alignment and proper tire inflation. The track bar and sway bars I bought are literally twice as thick, heavy, and solid as what came on it . I assume this is good.
I'm thinking of Sumo helper springs after reading about them here. I'm completely new to this.
I will say that after the sway and track bars were in and the steering tightened it is a new beast and now I don't need to point and pray as one person put it.
This is a great site.
By the way, I used my Dawg surge protector and it has already saved me once

qnghiem · 06-27-2021, 08:27 PM

Here is pix of track bar.

NYCANCamper · 07-03-2021, 02:42 PM

I installed the Roadmaster steering stabilizing on my 2021 30z last weekend. I test drove it and it made a huge improvement, calming down the steering. Then I thought, I should add some blue Loctite to the bolts holding the side bracket. Brilliant.

So today, I removed the three bolts and added a drop of Loctite and reinstalled. However, the upper bolt of the three, came out stiffly and went back in stiffly. Once I had the bolt seated and removed the socket it was clear it's cross-threaded. Laying under the RV I couldn't see the bolt was going in at an angle and since it came out and went back in with the same effort, I couldn't tell.

Not sure what to do. Leave the bolt as-is, it's snugged up and not stripped, however cross-threaded. Or try to remove the bolt (it has blue Loctite) and reinstall? Any advice is appreciated.

craigav · 07-03-2021, 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYCANCamper

I installed the Roadmaster steering stabilizing on my 2021 30z last weekend. I test drove it and it made a huge improvement, calming down the steering. Then I thought, I should add some blue Loctite to the bolts holding the side bracket. Brilliant.

So today, I removed the three bolts and added a drop of Loctite and reinstalled. However, the upper bolt of the three, came out stiffly and went back in stiffly. Once I had the bolt seated and removed the socket it was clear it's cross-threaded. Laying under the RV I couldn't see the bolt was going in at an angle and since it came out and went back in with the same effort, I couldn't tell.

Not sure what to do. Leave the bolt as-is, it's snugged up and not stripped, however cross-threaded. Or try to remove the bolt (it has blue Loctite) and reinstall? Any advice is appreciated.

A picture could help, I would replace the bolt if it is simply and nut and bolt, on the other hand if the bolt isn't under a lot of stress and not a bolt and nut combo, I would likely leave it as is. If it is located in a high potential for stress area, then I would replace the bolt and if needed tap the hole with a tap and perhaps move up to the next size bolt. Not sure though on yours, but again a picture could help with what I would suggest. ~CA

NYCANCamper · 07-03-2021, 03:04 PM

It's the upper bolt, and the nut is welded to the frame. The picture is rotated unfortunately, but you can see a slight angle on the gold colored bolt.

NYCANCamper · 07-04-2021, 07:29 AM

Here's a better shot of the bracket and you can see the upper bolt is at a slight angle. It's frustrating, I don't think I ever cross-threaded a bolt before and this tweaks my OCD. The factory bolts weren't overly tight and didn't have a lock washer, so I guess I'll leave it as-is and just keep an eye on it.

craigav · 07-04-2021, 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NYCANCamper

Here's a better shot of the bracket and you can see the upper bolt is at a slight angle. It's frustrating, I don't think I ever cross-threaded a bolt before and this tweaks my OCD. The factory bolts weren't overly tight and didn't have a lock washer, so I guess I'll leave it as-is and just keep an eye on it.

I would leave it as is, as well and keep an eye on it, if it doesn't back out then it could last forever.

I may would consider straight line marking it with a toothpick and a bit of paint or nail polish just to easily see if it ever was to loosen any, and if it doesn't do that early on then I wouldn't worry with it and just check it every now and then as I suspect changing out the nut would be a big hassle, same as with re-tapping it. If it did loosen up I would first try tapping it the same size then if needed the next size larger. ~CA

NYCANCamper · 07-04-2021, 08:55 AM

I agree. I'll check it several times a year, and with the Loctite I applied, it probably won't loosen. I appreciate the input. Thank you.

2naEagle · 07-19-2021, 05:32 PM

Add me to the list. Took the Greyhawk to Safe T Plus in Georgia. I now have the front sway bar, steering stabilizer, and track bar. I already had the Sumosprings front and back. It makes all the difference in the world. If you want the best handling on a class c this is it.

Wisconfun · 08-09-2021, 06:27 AM

@Camper Bob, I'm taking my 2019 Greyhawk 30X in for the +5.5 Caster alignment this morning, but want to better understand the Hellwig Helper Spring adjustment. Any link to install instructions or a YouTube video you'd recommend? TIA

Camper_bob · 08-09-2021, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wisconfun

@Camper Bob, I'm taking my 2019 Greyhawk 30X in for the +5.5 Caster alignment this morning, but want to better understand the Hellwig Helper Spring adjustment. Any link to install instructions or a YouTube video you'd recommend? TIA

It's been FOREVER since I looked up those instructions. When I looked, the "maximum" adjustment was to put the bottom of the U-bolt saddle something like 1/2" above the Ford spring pack?

MANY others have contacted Hellwig directly, and their technicians state the "correct" adjustment to be 2".

Personally, I went right in between those.

I'm curious on your rig; what else have you done for handling? Will the caster adjustment be your first attempt?

If so, I'm curious how much affect just that one adjustment has. I've been trying to find people who have done one thing at a time so we can get a better idea of the "incremental" improvements for each item.

Personally, I did a bunch of stuff at once, so I have no idea how much each item helped by itself. I can say that the items I did indeed helped quite a lot.

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