ZeeLet50
Alden, New York
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I did not note were mine were but had no problem pumping in grease. You just don't want them at 11-1 or 5-7 as that would be the "loaded" area and may not let the grease travel.
2017 Grand Design Reflection 303RLS towed by a 2016 GMC 2500HD gas with Andersen hitch and B&W turnover ball mount.
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time2roll
Southern California
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Joined: 03/21/2005
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Bob Landry wrote:I received my EZ-Flex kit today and was looking at the wet bolt/shackle assembles that come pre-assembled. Just holding the shackle in the position that I think it's going to hang on my trailer, the grease hole is going to be between 4-5 o'clock instead of the horizontal plane that I have read it should be on. I'm wondering how critical this is and if I should press out the wet bolts and reposition them. File a chamfer or bevel relief around the hole and it should work fine.
2001 F150 SuperCrew
2006 Keystone Springdale 249FWBHLS
675w Solar pictures back up
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Jaxom
Eastpointe, MI
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Perhaps the hole will line up okay if you change the position you are holding them? i.e. left vs. right or front vs. rear. Just an idea.
Keep up the good work. We all appreciate it.
Jerry
2015 Jayco Seneca 36FK
2011 Jeep Wrangler Sport 2 door
2011 R & R 20' Aluminum Enclosed Car Hauler
2007 Montrose 16' Aluminum Flatbed ATV Trailer
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gr8daggett
Wisconsin
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This Saturday, with the help of my two Son-in-laws, we completed the Dexter Suspension Upgrade on my 2011 Outback 277RL. Now I should be set with the new Maxxis Tires and Dexter Suspension.
I want to thank everyone on this forum for all your info and support. Special thanks to Dan (TwoElkhounds)from Outbackers.com for his tips, advice and encouragement to replace the 4-Leaf springs with new 5-Leaf Springs.
All your experiences allowed me to plan, plan, plan, plan and prepare, making the actual upgrade work go quite smoothly with little effort. Replacing the springs at the same time allowed me to do the bushing replacement on the bench (yup… the new springs come with plastic bushings). This saves a lot of time and strain under the trailer. We started at about 9:00 AM and completed both sides by 2:30 PM (that includes a couple breaks and lunch).
The Basics:
• Soaked the nuts/bolts with penetrating oil each day for a week before we started.
• Assembled all the parts and tools on a cart beforehand.
• Loosened all nuts/bolts before jacking the trailer.
• We jacked the trailer one side at a time with bottle jacks.
• Supported the frame with jack stands.
• Used two floor jacks to support and maneuver the axles.
• Removed the spring u-bolts then the spring eye bolts and equalizer bolt. Then removed the whole suspension as an assembly.
• Basically reversed the process for the new parts. Assembled the springs and equalizer on the bench then set the whole thing on the trailer.
• Attached the springs to the axles with new u-bolts then the spring eye and equalizer bolts to the hangers. The ball joint tool to do to press in the bolts is a must. Used the floor jacks to adjust the axles to line up for the hanger bolts.
• Torqued everything down, added some grease and we are done.
• Second side went a little smoother.
• 10 mile test drive went very well.
Excellent and worthwhile upgrade. Just do your research. Too bad Keystone can’t spend $300 to put the good stuff on in the beginning.
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slow
Winnipeg, MB
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ZeeLet50 wrote:Did this install with a friend in about 5 hours on our '13 keystone Passport 23rb. Hardest part was jacking the unit up. We finally resolved to using an 8 ton bottle jack to get it off the ground and jackstands to secure. Harbor Freight tool was a godsend. All zerks clear from the outside and we are good to go. On inaugural trip, the unit felt smoother. Did not seem to jerk up and down over bumps. I have a short wheel base truck and any help with that is welcome.
Do you recall the kit number you used for your Passport 23RB?
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dieselenthusiast
Zuni Mountains, NM
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Great thread! I wonder what my axles will be on our new 2016 Arctic Fox 22G. Subscribing for future reference.
2016 Arctic Fox 22G/Cummins Onan Generator/160 Watt Solar Panel
2006 Dodge Cummins
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dodge guy
Bartlett IL
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Well I just finished my install yesterday. Went fairly easy. The only thing I found was that my bronze bushings were a hair to small. They just slid in the spring eye and had a bit of play. What I did was wrap a piece of tin flashing around it (1 wrap) and it made it nice and tight. I needed a hammer and one of the original bolts to press it in. After that everything was just a staright bolt in!
The trailer has always had a creek to it from the suspension, I'm sure this is why.
These bolts were supposed to have been pressed into the one shackle. As you can see they were loose and flexing, wearing into the shackle. All 4 shackles were like this!
![[image]](http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/gustafson/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsajbzjrrq.jpg)
![[image]](http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/gustafson/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsreonqikw.jpg)
This is the factory Equalizer. The plastic bushings are just as worn. I caught all this just in time. Nothing had yet worn into any metal, just the squeeking.
![[image]](http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/gustafson/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsvtptis9l.jpg)
![[image]](http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/gustafson/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsrdcyxtkf.jpg)
Here are the new shackles compared to the old ones. As you can see there is a bit of a difference!
![[image]](http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/gustafson/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsx2xcgyss.jpg)
And the new bushings!
![[image]](http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/gustafson/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsdueinjbk.jpg)
Everything was worn out. I have almost 12k miles on it so this is extremely worn to me. I've always felt that the trailer walked around behind my Excursion, no sway just not very stable! Now just from the short tow back to the storage lot it seemed much more stable. And the other nice thing isn't more creaky suspension! I don't have any after pics because I didn't take any and enough were posted already. I did all of it in approx. 4 hours.
* This post was
edited 06/01/15 10:57am by dodge guy *
Wife Kim
Son Brandon 17yrs
Daughter Marissa 16yrs
Dog Bailey
12 Forest River Georgetown 350TS Hellwig sway bars, BlueOx TrueCenter stabilizer
13 Ford Explorer Roadmaster Stowmaster 5000, VIP Tow>
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dodge guy
Bartlett IL
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Here is an update. No more squeaky suspension. I can now sneak into a campground at night and no one knows I'm coming! LOL
Towing, much more stable than it ever was! I have now eliminated any play in the suspension. Looking at the hardware I strongly believe the suspension always had a bit of side-side movement when towing.....even when it was new!
With my bikes on the back, I no longer can see them bounce slightly in the rear view camera. Even the trailer is barely felt going over expansion joints or dips in the road. The rubber Equalizers soak up any jarring from the highway.
This is a great mod if you tow a lot and/or long distances. Well worth the effort and price.
Get the complete kit with the wet bolts.
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amdriven2liv
Oregon
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Sounds great Dodge guy. I sure enjoyed mine when I installed it.
Thanks for the update.
2004 F350 6.0L 4x4 CC LB King Ranch, Scangauge II
2010 Mountaineer 324RLQ,
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brulaz
Ontario Canada
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Any ideas how long the bronze bushings will last with regular greasing?
My old plastic bushings were completely shot at 9000 miles when I replaced them. Probably should have changed them at 6000 miles.
What about the bronze?
2014 ORV Timber Ridge 240RKS,8500#,1250# tongue,44K miles
690W Rooftop + 340W Portable Solar,4 GC2s,215Ah@24V
2016 Ram 2500 4x4 RgCab CTD,2507# payload,10.8 mpgUS tow
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