Dexter leaf spring issues

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by Comanchecreek

My recommendation is regular inspection. I know it's a pain to crawl under the trailer, but it can save you a giant tow bill, and a huge hassle while on the road. Familiarize yourself with how things look when in good shape. Note in your mind the position and shape of the spring mounts and look at all of the welds. Look for signs of cracking, and rust on those welds. Notice the spring shackle bolts, do you see any portion of the hole they go through at the top of the bolt. Do you see any missing nuts. Are there any signs of anything hitting the frame. Be sure to also look for rubber damage (if equipped) an your equalizers. Look for cracked, or sagging leaves in each spring pack. Sometimes the leaves will not be aligned with each other. They will usually crack behind or in front of where the u bolts hold them to the axle, although I have seen them break in almost any location. It's also a good time to inspect your tires and notice any uneven wear, or tread separation, or severe weathering you may not have noticed. Not everything can be prevented, or noticed, but you will find how "trained" your "untrained eye" can become when you look at things on a regular basis. While it doesn't guarantee freedom from problems, it improves your odds of catching them before they become a disaster.

There are many suspension upgrades that can also improve your odds. Some have been mentioned above. Others are MorRyde wet bolts and shackle kits, CRE3100 and 4100 equalizers, and X Factor cross braces. Again, while no guarantee, these all eliminate some problems that can cause issues on the road. You can always throw a ton of money at the problem, but the first step is to get under there and look.

Regular inspection is the ONLY way to prevent most suspension issues.

Checking for unusual tire wear will show early signs of impending problems. Looking for shiny spots on metal that shouldn't be there as well as rust lines that might indicate cracks forming. A common indicator on leaf spring suspensions is a crater forming around bolts/nuts at pivot points that shows they're moving in ways they shouldn't.

Crawling underneath semi-annually is far better than having to do it on a trip when something breaks. With those inspections you get to pick the place, time, and weather.

During a trip, not so much.

[NJBreeze]

Originally Posted by Comanchecreek

There are definitely lateral forces on the spring mounts. That is what keeps your axles in the proper position relative to the trailer. That's why the OP's axle shifted 45 degrees when the bolt broke. With a conventional spring setup, the equalizer center mount and the front and rear spring mounts share the load of the lateral forces on the axles. When you eliminate the center equalizer you shift the full lateral load to the front and rear mounts. I'm not saying this is not a good system with improved ride. I just worry that without reinforcing of the spring mounts, they could be torn loose by the forces. We all know how much effort the manufacturers put into making things strong. I know of several trailers that have had spring mounts severely bent or torn off, including my Montana. The cool part of that setup is the shocks. That probably accounts for 75 percent of the improvement all by itself.

The equalizer hasn't been replaced. In fact it has been upgraded. If you ever saw how an equalizer works they push and pull on the springs. Every equalizer upgrade with rubber are trying to cushion that stress. The sliding springs relieve that and in fact by isolating the springs they are subject to less strain. Why move a part of the suspension that isn't being moved by the road itself??

There is no significant lateral load until your turning and the reason the axles move is because they are still attached to the other side. They move to a place which is suitable for when they turn e.g. the inner side of the axle is tracing a line shorter that the outer side. The reason the springs mounts break or round out the end mounts is because that is where the stress is the greatest.

[Dragonmaster]

Wow. Amazing rate of failure in this thread. My 2014 Dutchmen that has been pulled all over Alberta, Montana, Idaho, Washington, and British Columbia never had an issue. Albeit I do regularly inspect and keep up on maintenance. As a precaution last year I replaced my springs, shackles, bolts and triangle equalizer after 6 years on the road, but it wasn’t necessary.

[herbike]

We had a shackle break last year on our 2016 Shockwave. My wife noticed it when we were parking the trailer at home.
I ended up replacing all the bolts, bushings, shackles and rockers. This is supposed to be two 6000# axles under a trailer that will gross at 12000# on a regular basis.
I would guess it has 30,000 miles on it. All Lippert Ind components, under built for the job.
I just replaced the same on a trailer I built in 1996, much less wear with more miles. Just over built, two 5000# Dexter axles on a trailer that seldom sees over 6 to 8K# gross.

[Bobcat304]

I had a 2012 36’ Solitude 5th wheel. It had Dexter springs and axels under it. When it wasn’t quite 2yrs old I noticed the springs had been going up and hitting the frame. I called Dexter and they told me that sometimes their springs wear out in a year and told me to take it to a spring shop and have it checked. Not only were they worn out but but all the bushings were egg shaped and the swivel between the wheels was completely worn out. They replaced all that plus all 4 drums and brake shoes because the seals were not working and getting grease on the brake shoes.

[Odyknuck]

Most trailer axles on TTs come with cheap 1/4" thick shackle plates, rockers, and dry bolts with plastic bushings. They ware out fairly quick and need changed quicker than you would think. My 2017 5er shackles were shot when I bought it used in 2020. This unit had very little use on it as it spent most of it's time in a camp ground. I replaced all the parts with Moryride CRE-3000 rockers, 1/2" thick shackle plates and wet bolts. Much better setup. I also added gusset plates to the spring hangers for much need support.