It's important to check your TT, FW, HTT, etc., OEM leaf spring suspension shackles for wear as your towing miles add up. The OEM shackles aren't very robust and the mounting bolt clearance holes can become compromised potentially causing the suspension to fail. Most OEM leaf spring suspensions don't come with lube points, so basically you have metal-on-metal action taking place. Even the cheap plastic leaf spring bushings will wear and fall apart in time.
To the best of my knowledge many Jayco suspensions are compatible for the Dexter Axle Heavy Duty leaf spring suspension upgrade kits. The following two product kit lines are are the most common:
1) HD suspension wet bolt kits including EZ-Flex equalizer:
http://dexteraxle.com/e_z_flex_equalizers
2) HD suspension wet bolt kits including standard lubed equalizer:
http://dexteraxle.com/heavy_duty_suspension_kits
If you plan to use the equalizer's supplied by Dexter with any of the kits, compare the dimensions of your existing OEM equalizer to the new Dexter model (hole dimensions are critical). Contact Dexter directly if you have any questions prior to purchase.
Anyway, I'm focusing on the OEM shackles because they seem to be the suspension component that will show wear first. It should be noted that the OEM leaf springs use a plastic bushing, but the Dexter HD kits come with a bronze bushing for the leaf spring.
Here is an example of a worn OEM shackle:
Here is a comparison of the Dexter HD shackle w/wet bolts and a OEM shackle:
I did purchase the complete kit with the Dexter EZ-Flex equalizer, but found out "after-the-fact" that the OEM equalizer Jayco used on my particular TT was a "tall" equalizer (by 2"), so the EZ-Flex equalizer holes didn't match up. Refer to the following photo:
Had I installed the Dexter EZ-Flex equalizer I would have lost 1" of wheel well clearance. A 3" wheel well clearance is the required minimum, and I was already at 2 3/4" under loaded conditions. So I plan at a later date to extend my existing equalizer hanger bracket by 2" plus reinforce it, then install the EZ-Flex equalizer.
What I did do was install all the other Dexter HD components provided and added a wet bolt to my existing OEM equalizer. Here is my Dexter HD kit after installation (HD shackles/Wet bolts/Bronze bushings installed at other end of leaf springs as well):
Rather than explain in detail the process of my installation, I'll refer you to an excellent forum thread describing a typical installation should you decide to tackle it yourself:
http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fu...d/21609645.cfm
I highly recommend the base Dexter HD upgrade kit at a minimum, especially on the heavier TTs, FW's, and HTT's.
Bob