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Old 04-09-2013, 09:01 PM   #1
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Tire Wear/Alignment

2011 Coachmen-

Have noticed inside rear axle tire wear to the point there is a noticeable diff. between front and rear. I talked to a local shop today and they said they could check the alignment.

Having read a ton of info on this forum it appears there is no real adjustment on the dexter axles other than bendining the axle tube. Just viewing the axle from the rear it definatly looks like the camber is off.

Weighed the trailer and have roughly 1000# left so not over weight...but i dont know what the previous owner did. Looking at the upcoming season I wanted to make sure eveyone is safe and there is no issues.

Any one have their Dexter axles aligned? Is it possilbe?
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:07 PM   #2
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:14 PM   #3
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It is possible to align the axles. I worked in a small shop that did trailer alignments. In your case I could see putting the bottle type jack on the vey bottom and pumping until it bent your axle the other way. The way we would do it is the jack would hang from chains and could be swung around for which ever way the axle needed to be bent. It was a set made specially for trailer axle alignment.
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:25 PM   #4
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Make sure the axle is mounted properly, the bow should be up yours looks down although its hard to tell just by this picture.
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:41 PM   #5
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Make sure the axle is mounted properly, the bow should be up yours looks down although its hard to tell just by this picture.
Bow is down.
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:44 PM   #6
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Bow is down.
If it doesn't have springs, I don't think it's mounted wrong and you may be able to have a shop bend it up. Are both tires on that axle wearing funny?
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:46 PM   #7
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If it doesn't have springs, I don't think it's mounted wrong and you may be able to have a shop bend it up. Are both tires on that axle wearing funny?
It has leaf springs...both tires are wearing on inside edge. Same axle.
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:53 PM   #8
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It has leaf springs...both tires are wearing on inside edge. Same axle.
Prime candidate for the shop, they can bend it!
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Old 04-09-2013, 09:57 PM   #9
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Sure looks like excess neg camber, I'd be asking Dexter and a alignment shop for advice. Also ask what could have caused it.
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Old 04-10-2013, 12:50 PM   #10
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Talked more with the truck shop..something they see often. In my case, don't know what the previous owner did but often If the TV is a jacked up truck the trailer is not level it can put more load on the rear.. Also overloading the entire thing can be an issue but typically both axles bend negative. They can also be installed upside down at the factory. Also said the frame fabricators pile frames on top of each other and the one carrying the load sometimes is the one that goes under our units. Scary!
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Old 04-10-2013, 01:11 PM   #11
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post up what the costs are with this treatment.

I had to have a spindle replaced on my car hauler, it uses Dexter torsien axles, 6K. Was around 250, for the weld on spindle. They said it was around 500 to replace the entire axle. That is less that what many people have posted for axle work on their TT.
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Old 04-10-2013, 01:47 PM   #12
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post up what the costs are with this treatment.

I had to have a spindle replaced on my car hauler, it uses Dexter torsien axles, 6K. Was around 250, for the weld on spindle. They said it was around 500 to replace the entire axle. That is less that what many people have posted for axle work on their TT.

Will Do-Was going to take it over and have them do it today but a round of spring storms are heading in....Should have feedback by Friday.
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Old 04-15-2013, 01:02 PM   #13
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Here is the good and the bad....Truck shop attempted to bend the axle but were not able to correct it enough to take out all the negative camber. So....New Axle is en-route and apparently its a pretty simple job. Shipping cost more than the axle itself bringing the total bill for a new axle, re pack wheel bearings, and mount and install 4 tires to just under $900.00.
Again a very expensive month to say the least.
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Old 04-15-2013, 07:07 PM   #14
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Quote:
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Here is the good and the bad....Truck shop attempted to bend the axle but were not able to correct it enough to take out all the negative camber. So....New Axle is en-route and apparently its a pretty simple job. Shipping cost more than the axle itself bringing the total bill for a new axle, re pack wheel bearings, and mount and install 4 tires to just under $900.00.
Again a very expensive month to say the least.
Bummer! But you knew it was bad, and now you're good to go.
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Old 04-15-2013, 07:26 PM   #15
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I would say you got off pretty cheap if, and it sounds so, you are also getting 4 new tires.
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