E-Z Flex Suspension Kit for Double Eye Springs

In January of 2019, while we were on our way to a campground in Yuma, Arizona, we had a breakdown by the roadside.  At the time we traveled with a 2016 Jayco 24RKS and it happed right after we left a gas station and had pulled back onto the Interstate 8 from the on-ramp. You can read about it (here). That was a shock and expensive lesson to us.

We now own a 2020 Imagine 2600RB by Grand Design that has not yet had the opportunity to do any extensive travel. However, while we are still at home dreaming of taking this new travel trailer to distant horizons, we are outfitting it with little upgrades and Benno’s latest job is what I am posting about today.

 

We have not forgotten the incident at Gila Bend on Interstate 8 where we sat with broken springs for more than 12 hours unable to move until roadside repairs were done on the spot. So maybe call it preventative maintenance or an upgrade, Benno did some work on the suspension of our present trailer. It’s not a big deal, but he replaced all leaf spring shoulder shackle bolts with new bolts, which incorporate grease nipples. They are now called wet bolts. By doing this, it was also a good time to update the bolt plastic bushings. He removed them and exchanged them for bronze bushings instead. 

 

In the spring of 2019, during our return trip from out west, we had visited the Jayco Plant Service Center in Indiana and told them of our problem with the broken springs. Jayco sent us to the frame and axle supplier Lippert, who’s Service Center was close by. They inspected the axles and it was decided that they would fit new axles, springs and associated parts free of charge to us. Lippert indicated that the metal supplier had delivered at one time wrong axle tubing. He had shipped soft tubing, which caused them a big problem. While working on our trailer, the boys at Lippert gave us instead of the 3000 lbs. axles, the 4400 lbs. axles, bigger springs, larger brakes and heavy-duty shackle links, wet shoulder shackle bolts and bronze bushings. Of course we were extremely happy with this kind of upgrade.

 

Our new Grand Design Imagine 2600RB came already with the 4400 lbs. axles, but the shackle links, bolts and bushings were of the standard type that is supplied by the trailer manufacturer.  Benno decided to update the suspension himself with heavy-duty shackle links, wet shoulder shackle bolts, bronze bushings and even the fancy E-Z Flex Equalizer between both axles.  He had watched the service crew at the Lippert Service Center and thought he could do the exchange here at home.  The suspension kit was purchased through Amazon.

 

Perhaps future rides through some of the bumpy Interstates will not cause any more cracked mirrors or fallen objects as they did in our previous trailer. We are looking forward to be testing it out.

 

In the meantime I am delighted to see spring flowers emerging and the Periwinkle is starting to bloom.

                                              Happy Easter everyone!