Post by wahoo on Jun 4, 2024 18:28:34 GMT -5
I bought an older Escalade because I was largely happy with the previous one and became unhappy with the build quality on newer RVs. In a now four year journey to improve the ride quality and eliminate as much road trauma to the unit as possible...within something resembling a budget, we settled on the Roadmaster Comfort Ride system with improvements to the pinbox and hitch.
After 6k miles in April, the Morryde equalizers had failed. Morryde is an excellent company and replaced the units with their updated product after a phone call and a few photos. The 2 year old 7k springs had flattened. Even with some fine 2 inch lifting blocks, the fifth wheel was still nose high...enough so that the ladder would drag going over quick elevation changes. The answers appeared to be 1) the Morryde IS, quoted at $8500 with a late October date 2) moving to torsion axles which required a lot of fabrication and are not inexpensive at over $2k each or 3) the Roadmaster slipper spring system with a much milder fab, a lifetime warranty on springs and shocks...and a delivered price of $1900ish from etrailer.
First, the old 2 inch box and hangers were removed:
We decided that a 6 inch box of formed steel on the sides and channel on each end would provide the lift necessary as well as the rigidity needed to support the frame. The fabricator did a nice job on the welds.
After prime and paint, the Roadmaster system went on without protest other than they shipped the system minus two of the shock absorbers.
I added two of the Morryde crossmembers back to the front and rear hangers. The center slipper hanger is robust and doesn't need more support.
So the Escalade rode pretty well on the short drive home last week. The trailer rides level now and I won't be dragging my ladder any more! Gained 2 inches overall to sit at 13' 3". After five days of jacking around, Roadmaster agreed to ship the 2 shocks they omitted from my order...UPS shows they will deliver sometime next week:( Etrailer was great to work with.
It is too soon to know how the trailer and its contents will react on the those long days across less than perfect road surfaces. I can say that the Trailer Saver hitch combined with the Morryde rubber pinbox have eliminated a lot of the movement inside the truck. Never thought I would give up the B&W hitch but this TrailerSaver is the real deal. They are a little pricey but I found a good one in Marketplace for 50% of retail.
I have a Fifth Airborne pinbox and some sweet lifting blocks available for anyone who wants them. I hope to have everything together for a performance report in a couple of weeks...
After 6k miles in April, the Morryde equalizers had failed. Morryde is an excellent company and replaced the units with their updated product after a phone call and a few photos. The 2 year old 7k springs had flattened. Even with some fine 2 inch lifting blocks, the fifth wheel was still nose high...enough so that the ladder would drag going over quick elevation changes. The answers appeared to be 1) the Morryde IS, quoted at $8500 with a late October date 2) moving to torsion axles which required a lot of fabrication and are not inexpensive at over $2k each or 3) the Roadmaster slipper spring system with a much milder fab, a lifetime warranty on springs and shocks...and a delivered price of $1900ish from etrailer.
First, the old 2 inch box and hangers were removed:
We decided that a 6 inch box of formed steel on the sides and channel on each end would provide the lift necessary as well as the rigidity needed to support the frame. The fabricator did a nice job on the welds.
After prime and paint, the Roadmaster system went on without protest other than they shipped the system minus two of the shock absorbers.
I added two of the Morryde crossmembers back to the front and rear hangers. The center slipper hanger is robust and doesn't need more support.
So the Escalade rode pretty well on the short drive home last week. The trailer rides level now and I won't be dragging my ladder any more! Gained 2 inches overall to sit at 13' 3". After five days of jacking around, Roadmaster agreed to ship the 2 shocks they omitted from my order...UPS shows they will deliver sometime next week:( Etrailer was great to work with.
It is too soon to know how the trailer and its contents will react on the those long days across less than perfect road surfaces. I can say that the Trailer Saver hitch combined with the Morryde rubber pinbox have eliminated a lot of the movement inside the truck. Never thought I would give up the B&W hitch but this TrailerSaver is the real deal. They are a little pricey but I found a good one in Marketplace for 50% of retail.
I have a Fifth Airborne pinbox and some sweet lifting blocks available for anyone who wants them. I hope to have everything together for a performance report in a couple of weeks...
