Rear inside tire wear. Bent axel?

Just running up and over a 4" curb in a parking lot can bend an axle. I had inside wear on my dual axle Jayco, and even though I had not exceeded my GAWR, one of the posts here recomended getting heavier 5000# axles rather than keeping the original 3500# axles, which I did, and sure enough, inside wear went away. Checking alignment is also a good idea.

There should be an upward arc in the axle. If it weakened and is straight ,you will wear the inside of the tires. Mine did that and had both axles replaced with 4400# vs old 3500#.

Thanks. Strange with the upward arc. I see this on the rear axle that is wearing but not the front which isn't wearing. Is the arc supposed to be only on the rear?

Here is what happened to my axle after many very very large chuckholes on I40 between California and Flagstaff Arizona about 8 years ago.

Notice the axle tube has collapsed.

Lippert did replace the axle under warranty.

Ouch. Glad to hear it was covered. I didn't notice anything like that but I'll have to have a better look at mine. If nothing is so obvious what else can I look for to know if the axle needs replacing? Am still wondering if the slight arc is normal.

Yes, a slight arch is normal.

Most of todays axels are garbage as noted by the picture above. Most are thin as a beer can and can bend under normal wear and tear.

Inside tire wear can be caused by quite a few things:
Bad tires.
Bad bearings or improperly set bearings.
Bent axel.
Bad spring hanger bushings.
Canted axel.
(The last one would cause the tire on one side to wear the inside and the other side of the trailer to wear the outside)

Good luck on the hunt. :)

Turtle n Peeps wrote:
Yes, a slight arch is normal.

Most of todays axels are garbage as noted by the picture above. Most are thin as a beer can and can bend under normal wear and tear.

Very true. After my axle was removed for replacement and the hub and all of the other items removed I was looking at the axle. I could not believe how light the axle was. as said made out of beer can thick steel.

After that I understood why they say do not jack up a trailer on the axles.

I bought a 2012 Jayco white hawk 26rks last year and the dealer had put new tires on it saying they needed relacement.After doing some research I found that it was one of the original models and was known to have a problem.Jayco and dexter replaced the axles for the original owners under warranty if needed.Dexter offered me a very good price on replacements how ever freight and importing costs and dollar exchange were more then the axles.I went to Standens in Calgary and they made a whole set of axles,hubs,springs,hangers for me for less money.I now have 3" axles tubes instead of 2 3/8" thin wall.Most of the problem was because of the "wide stance"spread of the wheels,which is a pretty feeble sales ploy at best.Any kind of sharp movement,tight cornering, with this feature is extremely hard on hardware and tires.

I would not just replace the axle but upgrade the entire suspension with higher rated springs, greaseable HD suspension, next higher rated axles, and disk brakes. Good luck.

I don't agree the cause is because axles are "garbage". It's because some TT manufacturers, like Keystone, load the axles and tires up to within pounds of their ratings. Then it doesn't take much of a thump from a pothole(s) to over-stress axles.

Take a look at the sticker on the axles to find the axle rating. Assuming they're 2-3/8" 3500 lb axles, you can upgrade to a larger tube 3" dia. and higher rating and can order them with 5 lugs so you don't have to replace the wheels. Tires should have at least 15 percent reserve load capacity, and the more you can get, the better. We have around 30 percent on ours. When you replace the tires, I'd go up one load range and you'd probably be going from LRC to LRD.

If ordering a pair of higher rating axles, you can get larger dia. 12" drums which is a good upgrade to have. We upgraded to 5,000 lb axles on our TT and originally was 3500 lbs and have larger 12" brakes. No issues after thousands of miles all over the place on all sorts of road conditions.

All axles have a camber, an upward arch. They flatten out a bit when the weight of the TT is settled on them but still should have a camber. If the axle(s) appear flat, it/they need replacing. Some shops can re-arch them but for the small amount they cost, it's better to replace them.

A major problem I see with frames and axles is the complete lack of regulations and a TT and/or manufacturer can basically do what they want and to L*pp*rt if they break, it's "oh well" and your fault.