Shocks on trailer

[jsallman1]

Thinking about putting after market shocks on my 35" travel trailer. Anyone here done this, any feedback? Looking at the JoyRider system or similar.

The main thing I am trying to do is stop the trailer from getting in a repeated bounce pattern on the concrete highways with lateral cuts in the north part of the country. My Ram 2500 handles it pretty well MOST of the time (much better than my old half ton) but you still can feel the trailer bouncing a little any time your on that type of concrete, and stuff inside is moving around. I29 in the SE part of South Dakota was a great example of when it got bad enough we had to slow down to about 50 to keep it in line. Get in the south on blacktop, its a smooth ride.

I installed Roadmaster active suspension on the old half ton, but I am not sure I really need to beef up the Ram 2500 (it has coil packs on the back) much with only 800-1200lbs tongue weight. I have read several reviews that shocks might help, its not a huge install or cost, but would love feedback from those who may have done it.

 

[jgerhard]

Hi JS,

I added dexter axle shocks to my 27 foot Americamp fifth wheel with Morryde which had dexter axles. It made a HUGE difference. The shocks stopped all sway and hop.

http://www.dexteraxle.com/inc/sdetail/1168/38983

- James

 

[jsallman1]

Hi JS,

I added dexter axle shocks to my 27 foot Americamp fifth wheel with Morryde which had dexter axles. It made a HUGE difference. The shocks stopped all sway and hop.

http://www.dexteraxle.com/inc/sdetail/1168/38983

- James

Any idea if when you added the shocks were over or underslung? I was surprised mine are underslung, I am a little concerned that the shocks would be pretty low to the road when travelling or if you lost rubber, it would likely drag on the road.

These are pictures of my axle

This is an example of the kit I am looking at on my trailer, notice how low to the road it is. I am not sure without really removing the trailer undercoating how you could get it higher. The trailer is quite high already, swapping the axle isn't really a realistic option I want to pursue.

 

[jsallman1]

Hi JS,

I added dexter axle shocks to my 27 foot Americamp fifth wheel with Morryde which had dexter axles. It made a HUGE difference. The shocks stopped all sway and hop.

http://www.dexteraxle.com/inc/sdetail/1168/38983

- James

Any idea if when you added the shocks were over or underslung? I was surprised mine are underslung, I am a little concerned that the shocks would be pretty low to the road when travelling or if you lost rubber, it would likely drag on the road.

These are pictures of my axle

This is an example of the kit I am looking at on my trailer, notice how low to the road it is. I am not sure without really removing the trailer undercoating how you could get it higher. The trailer is quite high already, swapping the axle isn't really a realistic option I want to pursue.

 

[jgerhard]

Here is a dexter kit with brackets.

http://www.dexteraxle.com/inc/pdetail?v=1&pid=1171

It mounts under the springs too, but it doesn't hang low.

- James

 

[Mustang65]

Here is a Joy Rider video to give you an idea as to what is involved.

Joy Rider video

Installation of the Dexter E-Z Flex Heavy Duty Rubber Suspension System
Video

Don

 

[nevermind]

Here is a Joy Rider video to give you an idea as to what is involved.

Joy Rider video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhejfHQHIZE

Don

Thanks for posting that video up. It shows what needs to be done but there is no way I would ever let those two near my equipment. One of the good parts was Peep #1 wailing away on the u-bolt top plate with a long screw driver and Peep #2 sticking his hand up in there. Best part was the footage of the the heavy steel plate flying away. A true miracle no one got a corner of that in the face. I love the angled install on the self tapping bolts. Double fail.

 

[pmetzkow]

I like the angled bolt install the best!


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[ctbailey]

I had a similar experience last summer while towing down I-684 in ?(687?) in New York State. The truck and trailer entered a sort of harmonic bounce hitting the transverse joints cut into the concrete road surface.

My solution was to reduce the number of links on the WDH chains. By essentially "softening" the connection, and reducing the strain in the spring bars, the truck rear axle was allowed to travel more. I went from (5) links to (6) links.

It wasn't a huge difference in front truck height, but the result was a bearable ride in the cab.

As soon as I was off that road I went back to my normal setup.


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[jsallman1]

Decided to go with the joyrider. I have only towed about 10 miles but it seemed smoother on the concrete interstate, taking off for Dallas tomorrow, will most definitely be able to tell if we made a difference and will post.

Only issues during install were that the u bolts weren't quite long enough to go thru the 3/8" plate AND the straps, the manufacturer said the straps weren't necessary with the 3/8 plates. They are MUCH thicker than what Jayco had on. Jayco also didn't use washers on the u bolt plates, so I still don't have washers. If I start to see any wear on the plate holes I may add those.

Its between 4 and 5" from the ground to the bottom mount. The bottom mount is pretty beefy, if it did hit I am sure it would just lift the trailer. If the height is a problem down the road, flipping the Axle would definitely give it more height (both on the shock AND the trailer), I would like to avoid that.

Total install time even after breaking drill bits and going to the store was about 6 hours. I did it in the storage lot with no AC power other than charging the drills battery from the truck when I could. Cordless impact is worth its weight in gold for this install.