Just went through a pretty rough stretch of the Alaska highway northbound between Destruction Bay and Beaver Creek, YT.Stopped for fuel, and found this:I'm lucky the axle didn't rip off! Apparently it's a common problem up here. I suggest to anyone with a decently heavy trailer with OEM suspension -- upgrade your spring shackles! Or for that matter, upgrade your suspension in general! All it takes is one pot hole to break something and potentially cause a fatal accident.Trailer specs:Total weight: 13,000 lbsWeight on axles: 11,500 lbsAxles: Tandem Dexter 7,000 lbMiles on trailer: ~ 20kLarger picture of the trailer (yes, it's a "tiny house"):Currently getting a new set of shackles installed in Beaver Creek, YT and have a Dexter EZ-Flex kit on order. Anyone have recommendations for a suspension shop in Fairbanks?

Glad you made it through without have a catastrophic accident.My maiden voyage with my new TT had us on a strip of I-78 in PA made me surmise it was really a section of road used by GM to test chassis and suspension integrity. I thought for sure something was going to come unhinged. I got home, checked the trailer thoroughly and was surprised not to find destruction in/on/under the trailer. It caused me to upgrade my initial quality rating one grade.These types of occurrences are one reason I resist loading trailer and truck to the maximum capacity.

This year my 2006 got all new shackles, equalizers, and wet bolts. Prevention is less expensive than a roadside break down.

The failure was many miles in the making, the bolt was loose in the shackle and actually kept elongating the hole till it wore thru. Yes, rough roads will aggravate the issue, but that failure would have happened eventually even on good roads. These things with their thin shackles, cheap nuts, plastic bushings etc., are plain junk and anyone who wants to do any kind of serious traveling needs to upgrade the parts.The comment about PA roads should be accompanied with a comment about PA having the highest fuel tax in the nation. Talk about a double whammy!

"Dexter EZ Flex".......No brainer for the moneyhttp://rvbprecision.com/rv-projects/dexter-e-z-flex-suspension-upgrade.html

See this thread that is stuck at the top of this forum.Barney

Check your leaf spring shackles! | Good Sam Community

BarabooBob
Explorer III
Jun 28, 2018
I replaced a worn out torque style axle with a Dexter torque-flex axle on a fiberglass trailer about 15 years ago. The rubber bushing still move when I jump in the trailer. That said, the shop where I bought the axle said that the life expectancy is 10 years for the rubber parts. There is a company that makes axles with replaceable bushings.
beemerphile1
Explorer
Jun 20, 2018
In reference to the rubber torsion suspension; the rubber deteriorates and they do wear out. Check the life of your particular unit, they do wear out.
westend
Explorer
Jun 19, 2018
I have the original torsion axles in my '71 Starcraft. With shock absorbers, also, it rides like a caboose back there.

Sprung axles are able to handle more severe roads and a sprung axle will absorb larger shock forces better. The torsion axles excel in a steady rate of deflection but that may result in added tire wear across some road surfaces. Sprung axles are typically used for higher weight trailers.

The shop hands in Fairbanks are going to love that big old tiny house. How high is that roof line? I'd bet anyone that works on it is going to be on the ground, outside.
Rbertalotto
Explorer
Jun 19, 2018
Nearly all horse trailers are now torsion axle. They give a much superior ride and this is much better for the horses legs. Set up properly there is zero issues as described above.
Lynnmor
Explorer
Jun 19, 2018
dodge guy wrote:

Except that the torsion suspension offers no suspension travel. And if you aren’t perfectly level you will overload one of the axles. I had those axles on my first trailer and the trailer hit every bump with a jolt.no thanks!

Yes there is some suspension travel on torsion axles, but you are correct about loading one axle more than the other because there is no equalizer. I have a large snowmobile trailer with torsion axles, often there is daylight under a tire on an uneven surface. The other thing it that the frame takes the load at a single point on uneven surfaces and at two points normally, a leaf spring trailer spreads the load over a longer distance. A torsion axle trailer needs to be dead level to better balance the load between two axles. I do believe there is a benefit with an equalizer which allows the tires to step over a bump. I'm not really defending the leaf spring arrangement because they are mostly cheap junk and we have to pick our poison.
dodge_guy
Explorer II
Jun 19, 2018
jamilbk wrote:
MitchF150 wrote:
What are leaf springs?

Yes, I know this does not add to the post, but I've owned this TT for 16 years now and would not want to have anything else than the torsion suspension..

Mitch

I'm with you 100% On my next trailer I'm getting this installed:

Except that the torsion suspension offers no suspension travel. And if you aren’t perfectly level you will overload one of the axles. I had those axles on my first trailer and the trailer hit every bump with a jolt.no thanks!
lenr
Explorer III
Jun 19, 2018
Since E-Z Flex has been mentioned in this shackle thread, I'll add a note. I installed Lippert Equa-Flex 5 years ago and hardly noticed a difference riding in the truck--I hope the trailer noticed a difference. Lippert advertises that their's is better than Dexter's (I doubt it.) Along with the MORryde wet bolt kit, we also had the MORryde SRE4000 rubberized equalizer installed. Again, wow, what a difference. From the rider in the truck perspective, it is hugely better.
jamilbk
Explorer
Jun 19, 2018
beemerphile1 wrote:
This year my 2006 got all new shackles, equalizers, and wet bolts. Prevention is less expensive than a roadside break down.

Couldn't be more true. The only repair shop up here in a hundred miles charged $125 CAD for the repair... for two shackles (that aren't even the same length as the original) and a bolt!

I just ordered the EZ-Flex for $300 shipped to Fairbanks and will probably get a new set of springs as well. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
jamilbk
Explorer
Jun 19, 2018
MitchF150 wrote:
What are leaf springs?

Yes, I know this does not add to the post, but I've owned this TT for 16 years now and would not want to have anything else than the torsion suspension..

Mitch

I'm with you 100% On my next trailer I'm getting this installed:
lenr
Explorer III
Jun 19, 2018
We just had the MORryde Wet Bolt kit installed. It may be the same as the Dexter wet bolt kit--looks the same. Wow does it look tough with the 1/2" thick shackle straps compared to thin straps. With the ability to grease I expect to go a long time before needing repair. And, those straps should be able to take our terrible roads here in Indiana.

My new slogan: "Tax cuts don't fix roads."