jdrver.... I also have broken one of my cam arms. Sheared it off right in front of the large adjusting nut. I have the round spring bars which are painted black and have noticed that there is black paint on the side of each cam arm where the spring bars have been touching them. I suspect in my case, that the spring bar put huge side pressure on the cam arm and something had to give. You are the first person I've heard of who also has broken a cam arm. When I contacted Reese, they said that my set up was wrong and that I was at fault. I really couldn't disagree with them and purchased a new arm.
The biggest grip I have with mine is the noise that it makes in sharp turns. I just can't seem to find out why this is happening. The noise is a very loud POP, almost like I hit a rock or something and can be felt throughout the truck and trailer. The noise has both Sweetie and I paranoid to the point that we cringe everytime we go into a tight turn like at gas stations or the rv park.
If you find out what caused your arm to break, PLEASE, PLEASE, let me know. I'm just about to the point of dumping this one and taking the plunge for a Hensley.
thanks
Ron
Ron & Sandie
'08 Safari Simba SBD35 CAT C7
Toad: 2011 GMC Terrain SLT2
Tow Bar: Sterling AT
Toad Brakes: Unified U.S. Gear
TPMS: Pressure Pro
Member of: GS, FMCA, Safari Intl, CAT
Ron, I'm waiting for someone to reply on your posting too. I've got the same popping noise with my set-up. I mean it's really loud, a real attention getter when going through a campground or gas station. I've looked at the cams closely and wonder if their might be a little flat spot where the arms ride and when I turn the thing pops when coming off this flat spot. I don't know but it sure sounds like something is stressed and about ready to give.
The popping and crunching noises are normal at sharp turns. Friction that controls the sway is generated as the the bar slides(??) on the inclined surfaces of the bar and the round cam. It is incorrect to grease this area as the decrease in noise also is a decrease in friction that makes the anti-sway work. Something one has to live with.
The popping and crunching noises are normal at sharp turns. Friction that controls the sway is generated as the the bar slides(??) on the inclined surfaces of the bar and the round cam. It is incorrect to grease this area as the decrease in noise also is a decrease in friction that makes the anti-sway work. Something one has to live with.
If you can post some of your setup conditions we may be able to help figure this out. But we need more data to be able to find a common tie in the failures.
The popping going around turns, as was said when the spring bar rides up on the cam there is high friction. The pop I believe is when the friction breaks free and the spring bar may bounce a small amount as well creating the pop.
Both the Reese instructions and Reese Tech support says on 1200# and up tongue loads you can use Vaseline on the cams. But only Vaseline as it is not a great lube but yet offers some help. Since I have a 1200# tongue I use it as the cams wear like crazy without it. Since I started using it the noise has lessened and the wear slowed down. If you are under 1200#, well you have to run it dry.
Ron, Now onto your broken cam arm. You gave a little more data. I posted on the bottom of page 1 of this post about the trunnion lug hitting the frame. Have you checked this on yours?
Can you do a FULL turn up to the point of jack knife and NOT hit the frame with the trunnion lug or spring bar pushing hard into the cam arm? If you have not checked this, it may be suspect. After seeing this on mine, I would suspect this is a possible cause as it creates a large side load.
You also mentioned that the spring bar has a rub mark on the side where it is hitting the cam arm yoke. The angle of your TT frame bridle may be slightly less than the normal one. Meaning the cam surface is now no longer parallel to the spring bar cam. I know on mine I too had this rub mark when I went to 1200# bars. Once I noticed it I was able to install an extra washer behind the mounting bracket that goes to the frame at the rear mounting bolt. This kicked the cam out about 1/8" and now I no longer have the rub.
I now have 1200# bars which are thicker. When I had 800# bars there was lot's of clearance. I had to shim adjust the cam bar mounting bracket when I went to 1200# and chain link adjust to get rid of the cast trunnion head hitting the frame. Since I have a square corner channel iron frame, Reese says in their instructions you need to put 1/2" flat washers between the frame and the cam mounting bracket so the mounting bracket can go dead flush to the bottom of the frame. Basically the washer provides room for the formed radius of the cam arm bracket.
I hope this helps and hope others will post more data so we can help figure this out. I to want to learn from why your system failed so I can make sure I do not have the problem.
Thanks
John
John & Cindy
2005 Ford F350 Super Duty, 4x4; 6.8L V10 with 4.10
CC, SB, Lariat & FX4 package
21,000 GCWR, 11,000 GVWR
Ford Tow Command
1,700# Reese HP hitch & HP Dual Cam
2 1/2" Towbeast Receiver
2004 Sunline Solaris T310SR
(I wish we were camping!)
The welded ball mounts had failures. Thats the reason REESE went back to the cast ball mount. The noises started for me when I switched to the HP & new style bars in 03. I'd had the original DCs from when the system came out in the early 70s & they had occasional,less, operational noise. I satisfied my curiosity about the loud bang. I reasoned that the BAR end had taken a "set" on the CAM as a result of the pressure exerted at the contact point between them. My HP& BAR interface is not complete, more contact at edge than even across the face of them. REESE says that the CAM will wear eventually to become total contact. Obvousily a more concentrated amount of pressure was being dealt with as the "contact patch" was less area.I'm using 1200lb bars w/ about 950 lb hitch weight to transfer about 300 lb to the TV FA. I stopped in a straight line before an approach that had banged before & raised the back end of each bar by jacking it up off the CAM with my floor jack. I rubbed some WD40 on the contacts & released the bars. As I made the planned turn immediately there was a much lessend,more even sound/noise.I have since decided to accept it as "normal".One thing I question though on jbarca,s set up ,wouldn't a taller hitch ball have been a cure for the bind up? REESE had, in there older instructions, three locations/types of couplers that changed the clearance between the top/front of of the spring bars/ball mount & the bottom of the TT frame. In effect the coupler nose located even with the frame top decreased the clearance,the middle mount increased it & a bottom mount more. There are also "TALL BALLS" available that can be used to change the distance, A std ball is 3in from the seat & the top of the ball. A 4in is also available.I just acquired a PULLRITE & I had to use a 4in rise ball to level the TT .Also to get the rear of the bars down from the TT frame bottom one more inch when WD adjusted.The ball mount is fixed,no tilt provision. Stay with it,your problem can be solved.
Thanks John, for your most helpful comments. However, I think that CHRMAN might have hit on my problem's solution with the recommendation of a taller hitch ball. I think with that, it would raise my hitch (and frame) so that the spring bars would then be lower than the side of the cam arm where the bars are currently rubbing during sharp turns, eliminating the side pressure on the cam arms that what I think caused the cam arm to break. I think also that when spring bar is forced up against the cam arm, that the bar might even be hanging on the side of the cam arm to the point that when I straighten back out, the bar slips off of the cam arm causing the spring bar saddle to slam back down on the cam; hence the extremely loud popping noise. Cheap fix if this is the problem. I'll go see if I can find on at the local RV, hardware, U-Haul stores.
John, my bars are the 1000# bars that are actually from my original Husky weight distribution set that I converted to the Reese DC HP unit so I don't have the trunnion type.
Just as a note of info, when I broke my cam arm, I purchased a used set of Reese DC (old type with stirrups) and while the popping noise was greatly reduced, it was still there.
I've also noticed that my cams and saddles on my HP unit are really scuffed (worn) where there is evidently a LOT of friction going on. I'm thinking I'll also try so Vaseline the next time we go out on a short trip and see if that helps any.
A couple of other things I discovered & solved.My frame is a 2X6 box. My WD bars & HP / DC were showing contact. The bracket bolts to frame were not keeping the HP bracket in place when under load. The bolt holes were tuliped(sp) outward and the bracket was fretting the frame & paint showing the movement. So I leveled them & bolted it to the bottom of the frame also, with the holes provided. No more obvious movement after that.The swing bracket was moving so I bolted it & tacked a nut on the inside of frame for the load/clamp bolt to seat into. I think the wear starting on the cam outer edge is because of flex in the bracket/frame & the chain pulling from the outside on the HP bar.Wear was more even on the previous system as they used an inverted U hanger for equal side to side support.If I was starting over I would connect the cam brackets with a 1x2 box tube side to side of the A frame to stop flex in either direction. Also at the swing up brackets. The "problem" is not REESE,my TT frame can't withstand the side loads of the 1200LB bars/mounting system & aggressive weight equalizing adjustments. But it's mandatory to have the proper distribution of the weight. I have no complaint of the REESE not working as designed. I believe the noise will abate as the wear pattern on the cam becomes complete. I'm going to reinforce by cross bracing the frame where the PULLRITE forces are transferred to the frame at the chain brackets as a precaution,even using 1000lb bars.
The failures I have had is the arm broke right at the adjusting nut, The other one was at the bottom of the head assembley. The cam arm I have on the trailer right is the replacement I got from reese. It has stress cracks in between the treads on the arm. As far as clearence everything is the way it is supposed to be according to the instructions and the Reese service center that I went to while we were traveling. I still feel that there is more to this than what Reese is letting on. I do not have any pics of the failures.
lanerdo you have trunnion or a round drop out bars with flat ends ? Are your bars rectangular,flat, tapered & stamped with an inverted V or do you have the REESE Dual Cam bar ends bolted & clamped on type?
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o you have trunnion or a round drop out bars with flat ends ? Are your bars rectangular,flat, tapered & stamped with an inverted V or do you have the REESE Dual Cam bar ends bolted & clamped on type?
