leaf springs

[jody78]

i have a 2011 trailmaster 265bhs, its been used only 6 times since bought new in aug 2010. the leaf springs have failed on both axles. its never been overloaded or abused. anyone else have this same issue?

[RinconVTR]

Failed = Broke?

[jody78]

flattened out, on the verge of breaking

[RinconVTR]

All four springs look that way? How much hieght is lost?

That typically only happens because of an overload condition.

Have you weighed the trailer?

Also, consider WDH, some weight distributed from the hitch is placed on the trailer axles. You'll need to factor this in to find out if your overloading the springs, or if you have duds.

[jody78]

the outside part of the frame is rubbing the outside tread of the tire. all four are like this. im certain that the trailer is not overloaded. another trailmaster owner told me about this problem. i havent weighed the trailer myself, but the guy told me he had his weighed with everything he has to go camping with in there and he wasnt close to being overloaded. the axles are rated for 7000lbs. with about 10% for hitch weight. in actual fact its only been on the hitch for about 25hrs of towing, GVWR is under the 6400 mark and carrying capacity of 1444lbs. the numbers dont add up to me unless theres something im missing. i think they are duds and finally getting them replaced thru extended warranty

[RinconVTR]

Good to hear they are replacing the springs! Still, I stress having the the trailer weighed on a scale, then you know and have certifed facts! If for no other reason then to feel good about your rig!!!

[jody78]

getting the trailer is on my priority list for sure. didnt get any response fromgulf stream tho, not to happy about that. thank god for extended warranty

[jody78]

getting the trailer is on my priority list for sure. didnt get any response fromgulf stream tho, not to happy about that. thank god for extended warranty

[ibyers]

Hi Jody, you wouldn't happen to be from Calgary? I might have been the guy that told you about the leaf spring problem.

I "had" the same problem you are having. it turned out to not be a leaf spring issue but rather a design flaw (in my humble opinion). I had my leaf springs tested and they were fine. but changed them anyway. I also weighed my trailer (fully loaded ready to camp) and I was well under the GVW of the trailer (by almost 1000 lbs). My wdh is set up perfectly. I set it up at a scale along with a tape messure. (using these instructions http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/17730894.cfm

When I get to work tomorrow I will post the pics of my problem before and after, along with a e-mail I sent to gulfstream (with no reply). I did CC the dealership I bought the trailer from, in hopes that if any other trailmaster 265BHS owners having this issue, they would not get "refused" for warranty repairs like I did.

Everytime I see a trailmaster 265bhs I check to see if it has this issue. I have checked 4 at the storage lot and 2 at a campground and ALL have this issue.

[ibyers]

Here is the e-mail I sent to gulfstream and CC'ed the dealer

Hello

I am writing this e-mail to bring attention to a design/engineering flaw with the 2011 Trailmaster. I am not expecting any compensation, nor work to be performed, my motivation for writing this e-mail is strictly a safety concern that I want to bring to your attention.

I bought my trailer in the fall of 2010.

During the spring of 2011 I performed an inspection prior to a trip, I noticed some particular tire wear on the outside of the tires on the door side. Upon closer inspection the tires were bottoming out/ hitting the bottom of the trailer. This issue causes severe gouging on the outside of the tires, which will ultimately lead to tire failure. It is only the very outside of the tire that hits the edge of the frame under the membrane (indicated in some of the pictures via drawings).

I took it to Western RV to have it looked at. They indicated that the leaf springs appeared “flattened” and it appeared I had the trailer over weighted. I knew this was not the case as I had my trailer weighed fully loaded and was under the gvw by 1000 lbs. But being unable to prove this, and possibly being on the hook for the bill if gulfstream did not deem it to be a warranty issue, I decided to replace the leaf spring myself. At that time I thought it was just a defective leaf spring.

I contacted gulfstream via e-mail and corresponded with John Bruhn. He was very friendly and sent a replacement leaf spring at no charge.

This brings me to the recent events.

I took the trailer to a friend’s shop to assist me with the leaf spring replacements. As soon as he saw the situation he knew this was not a leaf spring, or an over weighted issue. This was a clearance issue. We decided to take a drive to the trailer storage lot where I keep my trailer, as I have seen 3 other Trailmasters stored here. Upon inspection of all 3, ALL had the exact same issue!!

When I spoke to the owner of one of the trailmasters and showed him the issue he was completely unaware. Unfortunately he does not have the resources that I have to get this fixed on his own, and will be taking it in for repair. I am concerned he will be told the same thing I was, that this is an overweight issue, warranty won’t cover it, and the leaf spring will just get replaced (THIS WILL NOT FIX THE PROBLEM)

In order to fix this issue the shop had to make small lift blocks to raise the trailer a small amount to resolve the clearance issue, yes I know this voids the warranty, but the warranty did nothing to fix this problem anyway.

I would be happy to discuss further and provide more pictures of the problem.

[ibyers]

These are the pics I had attached in the e-mail above

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16186_8175d6edfc426c6a56de9a5e667b95ad.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16186_358e3e2d1bb8c948462a7d017dd4e00d.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16186_5d781d9b44e10bd4ee911dedf6fdb5be.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16186_b156269de7542b410ee2464dfcbb0390.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16186_b7c8acff08f06d10bc9811570676b8c1.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16186_d87bed270ce7419fc2e2c9f871409188.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16186_99cadc72973e1d565114194961a50186.jpg

[ibyers]

Pics of the repair

Trailer jacked up and supported

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16188_16f2b9ac3c77bd8f30704e7c49097646.jpg

building the custom sized blocks out of high grade aluminum, this is what cost me the most.

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16188_1d84b1bf558bad1be85b5e2e7ecf899e.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16188_c68b6971dfa01830eb5e1c563e0d1127.jpg

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16188_1d3a52292be7cb0569f2483297356d32.jpg

The finished product

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16188_2e731d85b8ddafdc544d01353526c414.jpg

pic of the old sping and the new one

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16188_77311b387e5aa76c0a796568aa409213.jpg

all installed. The jack was used to hold the axle up while we removed the U bolts.

http://www.gsowners.com/attachments/photobucket/img_16188_2facba2ae3714c449d5d77e790bc9b5f.jpg

[jody78]

yeah this would be me that you spoke to in pine creek storage. im glad you showed up that day and told me about it. it took some argueing with the service dept and a few phone calls but the all the springs got replaced at standens via extended warranty. the following monday after our conversation i contacted westerns service and his response was " never heard of that before" i found that hard to believe. and no response from gulf stream, which is not surprising. i gotta bring it in tomorrow(08/13/12) and im gonna see what service has to say about this issue. i'll update their response

[marykays1]

ibyers,

Thank you ever so much for taking ALL the time to explain everything and to post your pics. We are not owners of this camper but were about to go and look at a 2011 to purchase and now I don't think I want to go.

I've actually had my heart set on a Nash 25C made by Northwood, which is a true four-season camper because we have kids and can only camp during January. But we thought we'd look for a used tt to save some money and also to possibly forego the four-season capabilities. Well, I don't think I want to buy one that already has problems. But the Nash is an extra $8 - 10K. Sometimes though, you get what you pay for.

So tell me, would you buy another one?

Truly appreciative,

Mary Kay

[fivehole35]

I hoping some one can help me out, Im looking at purchasing this trailer and the dealer says thet they have fixed this problem on this unit but they have no record of it. They say the axle has been changed is there a way to find out?

Attached is a picture of the axle sticker.

Thanks!