Tension (Torsion) Axles

[Larry M]

So I have a 2014 Forest River Flagstaff that runs of two tension axles. I noticed one side of the box being lower than the other side and now they both seem to be the same height. I crawled under to examine what may be going on there and that's when I found out that I have tension axles. I'm wondering if these can be adjusted or at this time (5 years old) they are just worn out. Anyone have any experience with these type axles?

[rsdata]

properly called torsion or Torflex axles... from Dexter

been around for a number of years now with no specific problems... they flex according to load and terrain...

[fonzie]

You most likely have "torsion axles"....here's a link


https://www.dexteraxle.com/products/torsion-axles

[Larry M]

Well I'm pretty sure that there should be a slight angle in the arms that connect the tire to the axle and mine have no angle in them. Another words, I believe they are bottomed out.

[SilhouettePenny]

Angled arms indicate a level of drop or rise expressed in inches, for instance 4" drop or 2" rise depending on the application. There should be an axle tag or label near the center facing the rear of the axle. This will help you determine what you have and how much angle is appropriate for your trailer.

[youroo]

Larry M,I see you bought this New in 2014. Have you noticed the "Lean" before or is this something new? It is very rare for a "Torsion Axle to Fail" ,the ones that do Fail are normally caused by "Salt Erosion" Salt Water boat trailers or Michigan Winters"! These conditions Eat away the Tube where the reflex blocks are within! Youroo!!

[5picker]

To add to what youroo mentioned, the only other torsion axle failure I've seen was from hitting a huge pot hole at highway speeds.

[rsdata]

LarryM...

My trailer is also a 2014... if I had to guess at mileage I would guess about 10,000 miles total.

My axles seem perfectly fine. My GVWR is about 4800# and when I use the trailer I am pretty close to that number loaded for travel.

Do you have any specific problem that you notice while traveling?

[Larry M]

yes I think originally the one axle must have been damaged from a hard hit on a pot hole or something. Now the other side has failed due to me driving it around with one damaged side. The good part is that it is level again. The bad part is that it is riding basically with no cushion from road bumps. I better get these axles replaced asap.

[BarabooBob]

Check the label to determine what the drop or rise is with your axles. Those axles should last at least 10 years. The most common cause for replacing the axles is that the rubber inserts get hard and no longer flex.
If you have tandem axles and all four movable "arms" are the same, I would guess that the axles are ok. It would be very rare for all four spindles to fail the same way.
If you have a single axle, the probability that both ends would end up looking the same after they were both damaged, that would also be rare.
I have extensive experience with Torqflex axles because I have owned a Love Bug (similar to Scamp) camper for 15 years and had to replace the axle due to the rubber hardening.

[The ugly duckling]

I just replaced the two torsion axles on my 2006 Forest River Flagstaff. They were AL-KO axles and were replaced with Dexter axles. The spec's for my axles were 0 degress drop and 3000 lb rating. I upgraded to 3500 lb axles.



When the axles were installed on the trailer the torsion arm was horizontal to the frame. When the tires were added and trailer weight was back back down on it's axles, the torsion arms had about a 10 degree rise.



After a test drive the trailer pulls great and there is less transfer of shock to the truck. according to the Dexter spec's with this setup there should be about a 3-4 inch travel range before any possibility of bottoming out.


Hope this information helps!

[Larry M]

I do have the tandem axles and all 4 are the same now. Used to be the trailer leaned to one side for over a year and now all is level/flat