Shackle check - Montana Owners Club

twindman · 07-16-2009, 05:34 AM

I tried to look for wear one time, but can't get a very good look. Do you have to take off bolts or something to check them?
I may be on borrowed time, as I have around 40,000 miles on the unit. The dealer said they were okay last fall, but wonder.....
Thanks.

HamRad · 07-16-2009, 06:04 AM

Twindman,

You may need to take the nut off the bolt to get a good look. You can tell if they are wearing if you are a very experienced mechanic. You need a good light and you need to get at just the right angle to see the wear. It is best to just take off a nut so you can see easily and clearly.

For the most part the units that have failed have done so between the 10K to 20K miles or there abouts. I changed mine at about 20K. I did not have any bolts worn completely through but a couple of them were very close. Replace with the heavy duty greaseable units.

They will give you much more security.

Good luck.

HamRad

**Carl n Susan** · 07-16-2009, 09:15 AM

Take the nuts off and take a look. It doesn't take much time and you can clearly see if there is any wear at all. It only took 15 minutes (once we got all the right sized wrenches) to check all of them recently when we were camping. If you are at home, with a level pad and a creeper, you should be able to reduce the time.

sreigle · 07-16-2009, 09:21 AM

Most have had to remove at least the nut to see if there is wear. If the wear is severe enough, you may see it without removing anything, like I did. See picture below. Ours was visible only from the back side, laying on my back under the rig.

Chip · 07-16-2009, 10:10 AM

Do they all wear at about the same extent. In other words can you just check one on each side to get an idea on the rate of wear?

Chip

Art-n-Marge · 07-16-2009, 11:15 AM

Nope, they don't all wear the same. It is recommended to check each one because it depends what your trailer has been put through, where it's driven, how much severe turning, how often a trailer is left on a turn versus if the trailer is straightened back out, age of the rig, size and weight of the rig, miles on the rig, etc. The weight of the rig and even how the weight is distributed can affect the wear at each shackle.

When I had my shackles replaced, like Sreigel's picture shows, I could see the round hole beyond the washer, nut and bolt on several and not all the shackles. Some were worse than others. This was my indication that the holes were "out of round" and getting stretched. Sometimes, the hole gets so out of round it can open and break (I have seen those but not on my rig - that looks scary).

You will have to get under the rig's axles to get a look at both sides of each shackles. Like others have suggested, you might need to remove one or more nuts to get a good luck, but for me, it you don't see any of the hole at the nut, then you should be okay. Another indicator is if the nut or corresponding bolt head does NOT sit flush against its shackle, then there is a problem.

Art-n-Marge · 07-16-2009, 11:24 AM

Another thing to note. You don't mention the model of rig in your recent post, but if you have 40,000 miles on your rig and don't see any wear, that might suggest you drive pretty straight most times and use pull-throughs a lot or rarely leave your trailer in a turned position. Good job.

In my first couple of years of ownership on my behemoth, I was taking short trips and backing up all the time and not always on completely level areas. That may have caused some of my early wear and tear. I have learned about bad things through bad usage. If I had joined the MOC 3 years ago, my shackles and tires may have lasted longer. A trailer suspension is much more sensitive than I would have thought, but that's just the nature of 5ers.

sreigle · 07-16-2009, 03:20 PM

Chip, I don't know the answer to your question. All I know is that seeing one worn one was enough to make me get them all replaced. When I saw the one in the picture I posted above, that was the only one of ours showing wear without removing the nuts. So I guess the answer to your question is "no" from what I've seen.

Texas Firefighter · 07-16-2009, 09:10 PM

I sure do learn more and more on this site everyday. Question: Where did you guys buy the Heavy Duty Greaseable Shackles at? Thanks, John Daniels

sreigle · 07-17-2009, 09:43 AM

John, you can buy direct from Dexter. Or an RV dealer should be able to order them. Others have found them online but I don't know where. Hopefully someone will point that out. I had mine installed by MO Trailers in Goshen, IN when I had the axles replaced. They got them directly from Dexter.

Chip · 07-17-2009, 10:18 AM

Steve

Thanks for the reply.

When did you last check your shackles and at what mileage interval was it?

It looks like yours was the bolt attached to the spring. I can see now that one has way more wear on it than the bottom one. That is also the ones I checked last spring with no wear.

I have the kit on hand so all I need to do is check it often enough so I can schedule the repair at my convenience.

Thanks,

Chip

mail2us · 07-17-2009, 11:06 AM

Mor/Ryde sells the wet bolt kits too.

HamRad · 07-17-2009, 12:34 PM

Texas Firefighter,

If your city has a general trailer dealer or manufacturer then that is also a good place to purchase the HD stuff. We had the old shackles off and took them into the trailer store and they said they had the exact replacement OR they had the HD stuff. We took the HD and have been very happy and secure since then.

HamRad

twindman · 07-17-2009, 03:55 PM

Just curious, but how do you replace the shackles. Wouldn't you have to jack up the trailer at the frame?
Thanks.

richfaa · 07-17-2009, 04:12 PM

40K miles..holey moley. You are on borrowed time. When you can see the wear from the outside it is to late. We changed ours out at about 10K miles because of the reports on this forum and the holes were NOT round.

HamRad · 07-17-2009, 05:59 PM

Twindman,

Yes. You do have to jack up the trailer. You hook up your TV to the trailer (if you can). You block the wheels that will stay on the ground. Then a couple of jacks and a bunch of wood blocks to place under the frame.

H. John Kohl has posted a complete set of pictures showing just how to do the procedure. Try a search to find them. They would help make it much easier.

Good luck.

HamRad

H. John Kohl · 07-18-2009, 04:24 AM

Link HAMRAD mentioned

bwney · 07-21-2009, 04:08 AM

Great information. I've noticed Dexter and Mor-Ryde discussed. My owners manual says my axles are Al-Ko. I can see a spring hangar between the two tires. The rear of the front spring and the front of the rear spring are mounted to it. Clearly, one of the bolts is starting to wear.

My best bet may be to go to Al-Ko repair center. Or, is there a better option?

**Carl n Susan** · 07-21-2009, 04:55 PM

bwney: I see you have a 2006 Montana. I believe Montana quit using Al-Ko axles in early 2005. Regardless, the still continued to ship the Al-Ko and Dexter manuals with all trailers. You might want crawl under and eyeball the axles. I bet you will find "Dexter" on them.

Even if you have Al-Ko axles, as does WorkerB, you will find that the Dexter shackles are interchangeable and, some say, better made.

blarkman · 07-21-2009, 05:21 PM

Yes I am just now am in the process of finishing up replacing the shackles on my 06,3000rk which we bought in 07. The shackle plate are worn oblong, the bushing are worn through and the bolts are worn enough that they turn in the shackles and a couple of them you could push out with your finger plus haveing real grooves in some of the bolts. Yes I did take it to Alaska and have about 10,000 miles on the rig
bob

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