Just finished raising my Laredo 29RL up 1 1/2" because I upgraded from 15" to 16" tires and needed additional clearance.
First, I could not find a kit that would work for 1 3/4" wide leaf springs, all I could find were for 2" wide leaf springs, and I guess I'm glad.
I ended up taking the unit to a truck repair place upon the recommendation of the local RV service manager. I was going to only raise an inch, but after talking with the person who was going to do the work, he recommended 1 1/2 inches.
They ended up having longer U-Bolts made, as they knew I wanted the unit back sooner rather than later, so another local fabricator made those.
I picked up the unit, and was pretty satisfied with what I saw:
I got it home, about a 20 or 25 mile ride, and the following weekend crawled underneath to install a new replacement rod for my slide mechanism, and here is what I noticed:
So, I took it back and just got home with it and here's the latest:
So, the caution is to make sure that all is secure, in my case, the blocks are welded as well as the bracing is welded- I think I'm going to be OK on this, at least I certainly hope so. We have a trip for this Saturday, about 450 miles. I should probably plan to stop after the 1st 25 miles or so, crawl under and check the torque on those U-Bolts, planning on 85 foot lbs. Maybe another check after another 50 miles.
Any comments are certainly welcome. I'm glad I don't have to do this again. But, in the end, I've got some really nice wheels and tires out of this effort, you shouldn't find us on the side of the road with RV damage due to a blow out.
Retired US Army
2000 Ford F250 SD 7.3 PSD, Firestone Ride-Rite™ air springs
2007 Keystone Laredo 29RL, Doran Pressure Pro and Metal Tire Valves, 16" Michelin XPS Ribs, Dirt Devil CV950 Central Vacuum, 2000W AllPower (Honda Clone), 4000/3500W Champion C46540
Looks good, that second one should work fine. I had my trailer raised at the factory and they did something similar. They welded the boxed tubing between the trailer frame and the leaf spring shackles.
I wonder if by welding it both to the spring and the axle will not allow any adjust for alignment? that's why I did not weld mine to the spring when I did the same thing to my old rig. don't really know how they adjust or if tier is any adjustment for alignment?
03 dodge 2500 srw sb cummins 4x4 air ride, intake, exhaust, gauages, smarty pullrite hitch
2006 caynion trail 30bhs 2 slides.
Wife, Mandy 2 girls Kayla and Abby new one in november(its a boy!) thay love thier bunks.
RichandMandy wrote: I wonder if by welding it both to the spring and the axle will not allow any adjust for alignment? that's why I did not weld mine to the spring when I did the same thing to my old rig. don't really know how they adjust or if tier is any adjustment for alignment?
This is not welded to the spring (as far as I am aware), the spring has a tab extending downward, and there is a corresponding hole in the top of the fabricated block. The only welds are the blocks to the axle perch and the braces to the block/perch. I don't think the braces are welded to the U-bolts, they just form a limit to the possible movement. These are my assumptions, they may very well be incorrect. I'll take a closer look next time I'm under there.
I was referring to the weld from the top of the block to the bottom of the spring and the weld from the bottom of the block to the top of the perch as can be seen in the second and third of your pic's It looks good and tight. when I did mine I did not weld to the spring becouse of the pin, I just wondered if alignment adj was hogging out that pin hole for front and back adj? I don't' know, being an auto tech for 13 years and doing alignments on cars,I know how little (out of adj) can cause tires to wear funny, but cars and our rigs are two different animals,
My Cougar is currently torn down undergoing the same, but with 2" blocks. I am doing this myself, but have a friend making me custom blocks that will simply bolt into place without welding. Any idea whether your U-bolts bent during a tight turn, or was that from standard street driving? I might have to address the same issue, but I have purchased Dorman U-bolts instead of custom bolts, and am going to rely on the centering pins of the blocks to keep them in place. Is that the only wheel that had issues? With all the rework they were willing to do, I'm thinking it wasn't simply a matter of loose nuts on the U-bolts..... What was the bill for the original work, and the additional charges for the rework... if you don't mind me asking. I heard estimates of $1200 and up.
I would recommend against welding the springs to the blocks. Spring steal and welding can result in breakage!
I do like the fix, but they could also of welded tabs on the axles to keep the u-bolts from sliding side to side. It shouldn't take much, impossibly as little as a bead of weld on either side of the u-bolt.
2005 29' Forest River Sierra FW
2004 2500HD Chevy Duramax/Allison
Espee wrote: Any idea whether your U-bolts bent during a tight turn, or was that from standard street driving?
It doesn't look like they are bent. just shifted from the twisting of the suspension when turning. Watch your tires and rims in turns, I have seen a couple of inches of twist between the front and back tire. If you look at the suspension, it is doing the same!
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new one in november(its a boy!) thay love thier bunks.
