Are the upgrades worth it

[GetGone]

Hopefully I'm posting this in the right section. So we have a 2023 3793RD that we purchased brand new. We are living/traveling full-time in it. It came standard with 7000 pound axles and drum brakes. Is it worth the money to upgrade to an 8000 pound axle and hydraulic disc brakes? Thanks for the input.

[Foldbak]

Yes on disk brakes! Night and day stopping power and last much longer. Yes on 8K axles as this will allow you to carry more weight. You can add disk brakes without changing the axles and vice a versa. If money is no issue then I'd do both. You might even consider independent suspension.

[GetGone]

Originally Posted by Foldbak

Yes on disk brakes! Night and day stopping power and last much longer. Yes on 8K axles as this will allow you to carry more weight. You can add disk brakes without changing the axles and vice a versa. If money is no issue then I'd do both. You might even consider independent suspension.

Thanks for you input.

[Rotnjonny]

Late addition…. I have a 2022 3791RD, which is basically the same unit. Definitely a yes on the disc brakes. I have the electric over hydraulic disc brakes on mine and love them. I spent too many years with units that had the electric drum brakes and didnt want to go back to that. I have mixed feelings on the 8,000 lb axles. If money were no object, heck yeah. But I can tell you that we are full time traveling east to west across the country. We have over 20,000 miles on the unit. I am carrying everything I want and need. I scale my rig regularly. My 5’er axles have never scaled more than 13,400. Yes, I would love to have the 8,000 lb axles. If / when I need to replace them, definitely. But to pull off the 7k axles at this time? Not for me.

Just my opinion - safe travels

[Robokatz]

Originally Posted by GetGone

Hopefully I'm posting this in the right section. So we have a 2023 3793RD that we purchased brand new. We are living/traveling full-time in it. It came standard with 7000 pound axles and drum brakes. Is it worth the money to upgrade to an 8000 pound axle and hydraulic disc brakes? Thanks for the input.

I have a 2022 with disc brakes and would never do without, worth every penny. As for 7K swap to 8K, I have talked with several knowledgeable suspension folks as I also considered that and all said 7K was fine based on GVWR of about 16K. In fact, I am upgrading to full IS next May and even Morryde recommended staying with 7K version instead of going to 8K. Keep in mind that about 20-25 percent of your weight is on the truck, so your 7K axels only holding up more like 12K-13K of weight. Also, going to 8K will NOT change your GVWR, you will still be bound by factory weight limit.

Bottom line is absolutely do the brake upgrade, and maybe consider going full IS at the same time?

[bshgto]

If you're traveling more than the average Joe. Putting on disk brakes is a must. With the left lane tailgaters in the right lane trying to get around everyone and doing stupid things in front of you, they are necessary today. Just consider it an expense of camping full time to justify the cost. Unless you're overloading your camper 8000 lb axles are not necessary just replace the springs to 8000 lbs. The springs on the 7000 lb axles are what wear out from being loaded to or near their maximum and they flatten out or break. You hear about springs flatting or breaking on here all the time but never hear about an axle breaking from too much stress. The springs on my 7000 lb axle have flattened out twice from me loading to the max and traveling on rough highways. (North East) So I put on 8000 lb springs and they have remained arched like new. A whole lot cheaper and easy to put on yourself.

[Robokatz]

I can’t seem to find anything official, but pretty sure the springs on a 2022 are 8K springs, just the axels are 7K.

[Rondo]

Our Monte is a 2013 unit. We switched over to the disc brakes several years ago. It is definitely the best decision we have made on the unit. The stopping distance is the biggest difference. The day they put the disc brakes on we went for a drive to test the unit after installation. I was in the drivers seat and we were going down a main drag in the town and a young lady come to the intersection and didn't stop at all and pulled out in front of us. I hit the brake peddle and locked both the trailer and the truck brakes up missing her by about two foot and she kept on going. The installer in the passenger seat looked at me and smiled then said "What do you think?" I looked back at him smiled and said " I think I made a good choice on installing them!" We continued down the road and returned to the campground and totally satisfied with our decision of the disc brakes.

[Lee-CI]

All it takes is for disc brakes keeping you out of a bad jam ONE time and they have paid for themselves several fold. The other benefits are less maintenance and peace of mind. As for springs, I'll defer to other's input. I know our MHC came with 6K thick wall axles, but 3500 lb spring packs for 7K per axle.

[BiggarView]

if you load close to its GVWR then you might want to consider the 8K. it will ride better. Otherwise the 7k will serve you well. This applies more to full timers who are carrying a full compliment of gear, clothing etc as opposed to part timers or vacationers who are more likely travelling much lighter.

We full time in our rig and upgraded to 8k with IS and we are close to GVWR. Fiver rides well. YMMV as they say.

[Todd & Mary]

We did that in January. 8K axles for peace of mind and disc brakes are an amazing improvement. And it gives you larger wheel bearings and easier servicing. Stops a lot shorter than the drum brakes ever did.

[kyjoe1]

The springs on my 2023 3781RL are 8000lbs. The axles on these are a Dexter Gladiator axles that has a 50% thicker axle tube on it. The only thing I would think you could gain from 8000lb axles would be larger drum brakes but you are wanting disc which would definitely render that gain mute. Also, increasing the axle size to 8000lb will not give you more carrying capacity. That is limited to the manufacturer's sticker on the side of the rig.

[GetGone]

Thanks for everyone's thoughts on my question.

[drjjj]

I knew I wanted disc brakes for our 2007 3400RL several years ago. I go to Southwest Wheel here in San Antonio and when they priced out just the disc brake upgrade on the OEM axles vs upgrading the axles with the disc brakes the cost difference was only a few hundred dollars. Besides the great added security of the disc brakes I know the trailer rides smoother.

[Randy E]

Very short answer is ‘Yes’. It’s worth every penny. After several ‘almost’ crash landings due to under skilled drivers stopping in the passing lane., I decided something had to change. I pulled the trigger. 8k IS and hydraulic disc brakes. I didn’t make it back to I-90 after leaving Moryde plant, and I knew it was the best thing I have ever done on this 3791RD.
I weighed on a cat scale before and after installation. Trailer axle weight went up from #11,820 to #12,660. I now gross at exactly #26000.
It rides so nice it’s hard to believe they are still building spring ride with drum brakes. My old factory set of axles were nothing but trouble. Broken wet bolts. Broken spring clamps that hold the stack together. Broken wiring inside the drum brake ….twice.
Non stop maintance. I think this heavy trailer was just running too close to max weight to be safe. Now I feel bullet proof. I can stop unbelievably quick now. If you can afford to do it all, I would do it all. Rides great. Sets level now. And never feels unsafe like before.

[Kfinnert]

I agree with all of the above post! We have a 2008 Montana 3665, which is about 40' from bow to stern!

In October we moved from the Dexter 7k axles and drum brakes to the IS 8k axles, with disc brakes. HUGE difference in hauling. We have a better foundation under the 5th wheel, and the big difference is that MORryde aligned the axles on the trailer. This week finished a 1k+ trip through the southwest and the tire heat never went above 90 degrees. Pressure is always good, but I worry about tire heat!

The only downside is that you will add 800 to 1000lbs of weight to the trailer with the IS, disc brakes. (NOTE - I had extra steel added to the frame to raise the trailer to level with the hitch; and that will account for some of my additional weight!)

If you can afford it, do it!

Cheers

[77cruiser]

I guess I wished my Morryde experience was as positive as you folks.

[Cbrez]

I had disc brakes installed two days ago. Test drive blew my mind. Braking performance improvement is phenomenal. Nothing everyone else hasn’t said. But why I am replying is because coincidentally during the installation, the installer received a voicemail from a customer from last year calling to thank him for saving his truck and RV. He had narrowly avoided an accident that would have certainly ended catastrophically with the former drum brakes. Listening to the voicemail was chilling. Not surprisingly it made the installer’s day.

[Garybricker]

Where to get disc brakes and 8000# Axles changed close to TX and about how much

[Mikendebbie]

Gary - I recently watched a YouTube video where a Montana owner put DeeMax disc brakes on his rig. Great video, unfortunately he did not mention cost. I did a little research and found that Southwest Wheel reps DeeMax (DeeMax is headquartered in Aledo by the way). Southwest has a shop in Oak Cliff on Westmoreland - not too far from you. I called the San Antonio shop to see if they could give me a ballpark cost for an install. Unfortunately the guy I needed was out. I suggest you call them at the Oak Cliff location and see if they will quote you over the phone. I know nothing about various disc brake makers that might work for our rigs. The DeeMax system looked great to me. I will take a wild guess that it would cost $3k - $4k.

Edit: the YouTube channel for the video I watched is Jonesin 2 Go.