Suspension damage, check periodically

Isn't the suspension system regulated by antbody? They are an accident waiting to happen. I have a 2006 Copper Canyon Sprinter 5th wheel(keystone product) with about 40,000 miles on it. I am in the process of replacing the shackle link plates, bolts, equalizers, etc. The bolt holes in the shackle link plates are worn to about twice their normal size. There's hardly any metal left around the bolt holes. You can't see how badly the bolt holes are worn with a visual inspection. The bolt head and large nut cover the holes. It's taken 3 orders and 5 weeks for the same shackle link kit to almost have enough parts to do the job. First kit was missing 7 parts, second kit wasn't even for my 5th wheel, third kit has parts in it that are not for my 5th wheel. I took some of the parts from the first kit and some parts from the third kit to cobble together the right parts. Now I find out that the leaf spring bushings are not part of the kit. Sold seperatly. Unbelievable! Now I can wait another 7 - 10 days for those to get here. Back to my original question. Seems to be a design flaw when parts wear that badly. Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to replace the axles and suspension system like I would like to do. Would probably aleviate my tire wear problems too.

While you are going through all the trouble to replace those junk shackles,bolts, and assorted parts, you might as well do it right and replace the whole assembly with a HD suspension and EZ-Flex upgrade kit.
Barney

camperkilgore wrote:

Rvpapa wrote:
When inspecting undercarriage taking the weight off is a good idea, but DO NOT try to remove bolts just to check. These bolts are a splined press fit to the shackle link to prevent rotating. They should not be removed /reinstalled in the same used link. The same applies to a new install. Do not allow the bolt to rotate when assembling. Ideally the bolt should be pressed in, and the bolt prevented from turning by holding the head with a wrench while tightening the nut.
Art.

Art, yes that is exactly right.

I discovered that the new shackle bolts that I just bought have those splines just below the head of the bolt, and I had to hammer them into the new shackles. The originals did not have those splines and so could be removed easily. At any rate, I think when I check them in the future I will make sure I pull the bolts and shackle together after removing the opposite shackle and nuts.

Thanks for the head's up.
Tom

Also, if you remove U-Bolts you must replace them as they stretch and should not be reused. Go to the Dexter website and you'll see all the heavy duty replacements for the light duty junk. They sell complete kits too.

Rvpapa wrote:
When inspecting undercarriage taking the weight off is a good idea, but DO NOT try to remove bolts just to check. These bolts are a splined press fit to the shackle link to prevent rotating. They should not be removed /reinstalled in the same used link. The same applies to a new install. Do not allow the bolt to rotate when assembling. Ideally the bolt should be pressed in, and the bolt prevented from turning by holding the head with a wrench while tightening the nut.
Art.

Art, yes that is exactly right.

I discovered that the new shackle bolts that I just bought have those splines just below the head of the bolt, and I had to hammer them into the new shackles. The originals did not have those splines and so could be removed easily. At any rate, I think when I check them in the future I will make sure I pull the bolts and shackle together after removing the opposite shackle and nuts.

Thanks for the head's up.
Tom

OE bushings and bolts…



Shackles, bolts and bushings were wore out in 3000 miles…



And the Chinese made Equalizer was cracked…

We have a 2006 Cougar 294RLS. We have about 20,000 miles on the RV. Bought it new. RV weighs in loaded at about 8200 pounds, that's with full water, ready to hit the road. It's never been over loaded.

Abnormal tire wear on the back axle caused us to have the suspension checked. We had a bent back axle.

We just has both axles upgraded from 4500 to 5200. New leaf springs, new shackles, new equalizers. All the moving parts have grease zerks. The new axles came complete with new brakes, hubs, drums, and bearings.

The old parts were shot, not as bad as the OP's photos, but not far behind. I should have replaced the suspension two years ago.

We just got back from a 3k mile trip down to Nevada, over to Utah, and back to Washington State. Trailer towed like a dream.

It was 2k for parts and labor, money well spent in my opinion.

Ron3rd wrote:
When you replace, go with heavy duty shackle links, equalizer, and "Wet Bolts" that you can grease. Replace the bushings in your leaf springs with bronze bushings (if you have the capability) and this will not happen again. Most leaf springs come with plastic bushings and you're are probably gone. The heavy duty parts are thicker and readily available from Dexter and others. Well worth it.

X2
My rig is an '07
I changed out the junk bushings and installed wet bolts 1st 6 mos. Bushings were already shot

I just give the wet bolts a shot of grease each yr.
No problems.
Wet bolts/bronze bushings should be standard!

When inspecting undercarriage taking the weight off is a good idea, but DO NOT try to remove bolts just to check. These bolts are a splined press fit to the shackle link to prevent rotating. They should not be removed /reinstalled in the same used link. The same applies to a new install. Do not allow the bolt to rotate when assembling. Ideally the bolt should be pressed in, and the bolt prevented from turning by holding the head with a wrench while tightening the nut.
Art.

Need to check each season. Wet bolts is the trick. One or two long trips can do this to original equipment.

When you replace, go with heavy duty shackle links, equalizer, and "Wet Bolts" that you can grease. Replace the bushings in your leaf springs with bronze bushings (if you have the capability) and this will not happen again. Most leaf springs come with plastic bushings and you're are probably gone. The heavy duty parts are thicker and readily available from Dexter and others. Well worth it.