lifting 5th wheel up to match truck

[09 arctic cat m8]

hey guys im sure this subject has been gone over a few times but, i want to lift my trailer up its a 23ft 5th wheel and i was wondering what you guys thought of trailer blocks to lift it up, found a place that i can get blocks from but is this a safe way of doing so, as apposed to flipping my axles as im not really wanting to do that, thanks

 

[Absledder]

In my opinion best ways to do it are either going leaf over axle or welding in new mounts for the leafs. depends how high you need to go? I'm not sure what you mean by blocks but if you mean lift blocks between the spring and axle I don't think that's a very good idea. How much lift do you need?

 

[09 arctic cat m8]

probably 6 inches im thinking and this is what im thinking anyhow some people use them im not sure just trying to get it up a little higher to match my truck,would bigger tires help< Trailer Blocks | Trailer-performance suspension and stability solutions.

 

[ABMax24]

probably 6 inches im thinking and this is what im thinking anyhow some people use them im not sure just trying to get it up a little higher to match my truck,would bigger tires help< Trailer Blocks | Trailer-performance suspension and stability solutions.

It would probably work, but like has already been said I would take and cut off the spring brackets and lower those down, particularly if you want to go 6 inches. Build a little frame out of C-Channel or Rectangular tube to drop the brackets down and weld it back in.

 

[09 arctic cat m8]

okay awesome thanks man will definitely look into this one way or another,

 

[ABMax24]

Here this is kinda what I was thinking, I would build it a little stronger though. T & T Welding - Contractors - 1525 Hamner Ave - Norco, CA - Reviews - Photos - Yelp

 

[OVERKILL 19]

Borrow someone's GoPro , mount it under your trailer so you can see the leaf mounts. Now back up and Jack knife that thing, watch how much your mounts flex now. Adding 6" blocks to the mix is going to compound that torq 10 fold.

6" blocks are a bad idea on a truck IMO let alone a trailer. Compare u-bolts mounts etc truck vs trailer! Build a rectangle box and mount it between your mints and frame. Safest way IMO.

 

[Keith Brown]

hey guys im sure this subject has been gone over a few times but, i want to lift my trailer up its a 23ft 5th wheel and i was wondering what you guys thought of trailer blocks to lift it up, found a place that i can get blocks from but is this a safe way of doing so, as apposed to flipping my axles as im not really wanting to do that, thanks

Bad idea on the blocks there is a whole lot of issues with them which Overkill stated above plus stability on the road. Bigger tires is a absolute no go unless you change the axle. Your current axles are designed to handle the forces of the designed tire size. In particular when you turn sharp on dry pavement you will eventually bent or break your axels with over sized tires. If you do reinstall the axle under the springs you will probably have to weld new blocks on your axles as most axles have been bent from the factory to square to the road at close to there rated capacity. The best way however is to follow Overkills advice and build a subframe that lowers the complete spring/axle assembly. If you are able to do the work your self I suggest you contact Overkill he had detailed description of how to build the sub frame properly. Other wise I would take it to a trailer shop. It will save you a lot of grief! Good luck.

 

[Absledder]

Those axle block wouldn't work anyways unless you flipped the axles. Overkills got it right. Those blocks would work for an inch but definitely not 6"


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[QMAO]

You can not actually flip the axles because of the design and operation of the brake shoes. 1 brake shoe is designed to grab the drum sooner than the other shoe and is longer. So instead of flipping the axle you will need to weld spring perches on top of the axle tube. These perches are available at Princess auto or any welding shop.

If you are wanting to add spacer blocks, put them between the frame and the spring hangers. Use one length of square or rectangle tube NOT CHANNEL. the length of the tube should be from in front of the front spring hanger, to behind the rear hanger,

If you do put spacers between the spring and axle, do not use more than 1 or 2".

 

[09 arctic cat m8]

thanks for all help guys gonna tackle something soon blocks were just something i seen but i like the other ideas any idea on how much it would cost me to weld this on thanks

 

[Snort]

The first step is to get the springs on top of the axles. As previously stated this is done by adding perches to the top of the tubes and not simply by flipping the axles. This will gain you the thickness of your spring pack as well as the diameter of the axle tube. I did this on my own trailer and then built a 2" block that went between the springs and the perches. Worked flawlessly for me for years. I don't see why that shouldn't work for you as well.

 

[Highfly]

I did the axle swap (moving them from the top of the spring pack to the bottom). Perfectly safe to do, I got almost 5" of lift out of it (depends on axle size and spring pack thickness.)
Go get yourself some axle perches and get everything bolted up tight, check tracking then weld perches to the axle. You can leave the old perches on. This is what I did so if I ever sold (Which I did) the new owner had an option of trailer height. Some new trailers are sold with double perches for this very reason.
DO NOT reuse "U" bolts. Get new ones. You will need to disconnect your brake wiring.
Be cautious on how you lift your trailer while doing the swap. I had my jack stands too far apart and the door would not open, frame sag. (And I had an older Okanagan with a real frame under it not these cheap POS units).

 

[09 arctic cat m8]

thanks fellas im definitely gonna give it a go any other tips

 

[alberta60]

I'll upload some pics later, On my 27' 5th wheel I did what has been suggested already. Used a Zip-disc to cut the welds and remove the spring mounts from the frame, Weld them to a piece of 2"x 6"x 0.188" (3/16") Rectangular tubing, then weld the tubing back on to the trailer frame, making sure the mounts are in exactly the same spot front-back and side-side. I tow it with an 07 F350 w/6" lift and 37" tires, pulls very nice but I coulda went 8" to make it sit a little more level. Planning on slightly taller trailer tires when mine wear out.

 

[52weekbreak]

I switched from an older dually to a 2012 Dodge this year and had the same issue. The difference between the front and rear of the 28 foot fifth wheel was about 9 inches so I was thinking I would need to build an entire subframe somewhere between 4 1/2 to 6 inches. I took the trailer out to the street in front of my house and when hooked up and loaded like I normally travel with it, the front end was only 5 inches higher than the back. Part of this likely had to do with doing the initial measurements being taken on gravel.

Put 2 inch solid blocks between the axle and the spring and had new longer U clamps built. Cost me less than $100 and the trailer pulls fine. I did have to buy another portable step as the bottom of the three steps I have were above the comfort level for my short little legs.

If I ever need to do springs on the front of the truck I would get them lowered about an inch and a half and take out the leveling block in the rear and take the blocks out.

Good luck and my main advice is to make sure you are loaded as you normally would be and on a flat and level surface when doing measurements.

 

[09 arctic cat m8]

hey wanted to shout out to all the fellas who helped me out i took on the task today and it turned out great, bit of head scratching on wiring back up the brake lines but all works well and im very happy with the outcome, thanks again