HOMEBREW FRONT-END ALIGNMENT: JACKLEG MECHANIC SUCCESS

From : martin

Q: fmb wrote i just finished a 9k+ trip to alaska and back hauling my 25 arctic fox 5th wheel with my 03 2500 ho 6sp. went as far north as coldfoot alaska diesel @ $3/gal. not one problem with the truck or fuel other than my upcomming cc bill. my question is about the alignment of the trailer axles on the fox. i did have two flats on it. it seems the rear axle has inner tire wear on one tire and outter wear on the other. seemed to be a cocked axle to me so underneath i crawled and measured the distance between the axles at the same point on both sides. the differance between the two measurements is 5/16. the trailer seems to track straight the wear on the front axles tires seem normal with 20k miles wear. it seems the springs are pinned to the axle mount so it wouldnt be as simple as loosening the axle from the springs and moving the axle along the spring. these are dexter axles with double eye leaf springs. now thinking about all the pivot points of the center hanger with the bracket shackle link and the spring i guess the axle distance floats depending on load. is that right is there any adjustment on this system next question is on the no-name shocks. one pissed its contents front left and with the hundreds of miles of dirt gravel and poor asphalt roads im suprised its only one. i want to replace them all. im looking for reccommendations for trailer shocks. fmb it kinda sound like the trialer is too heavy for the axles under it and the axle is flexing and bowing out some. as a rule of thump i like to see axles that are a good bit bigger than needed som even at max weight you are below the limit of the axles by 10 to 20%. this may seem like overkill to some but it can save you headaches when you load it heavy sometimes. -- posted using the http//www.autoforumz.com interface at authors request articles individually checked for conformance to usenet standards topic url http//www.autoforumz.com/dodge-alignment-ftopict125275.html visit topic url to contact author reg. reqd. report abuse http//www.autoforumz.com/eform.phpp=610092 .