This is the first repair/maintenance/upgrade that Bill decided to 100% let someone else do. After significant research, comparing options, thought, and discussion, we decided to use Performance Trailer Braking when our axles, leaf springs, and brakes were worn out. As most, if not all of you know, Bill does all our maintenance and repairs and has even done a lot of upgrades on our rig and vehicles. He simply does not trust anyone to work on his stuff, so this was a major thing for us.

So, how did we come to this momentous decision? Let me tell you, for me it was easy, for Bill – not so much. He doesn’t trust people working on his things; he likes to do things for himself, and only pays to have someone else do something when he doesn’t have the necessary expensive tool that is needed, a welder for example. Other things he just researches until he feels comfortable doing – and then he does it. We originally met the owners of Performance Trailer Braking back in May 2018 when we attended and had a booth next to them at a Heartland Owners Rally. He was impressed with them and held on to their card. Yes, he was thinking about this way back then! He read their reviews when researching options and was impressed with them as well.

Other Options Considered

So, what other options were there? The ever-popular MORryde IS is always talked about as the upgrade everybody loves. Bill looked into it and we even got a quote, which was $7,499. Reviews are excellent for this option as well, but Bill was unimpressed as there is a lack of information (data) that showed definitively how much better it was than the standard Dexter suspension we had. They said there would be less bounce, but there was no evidence to back that up, nothing showing how much less bounce. Bill thought there should be data showing a reduction of G forces the frame encountered. The only metric their literature talked about was suspension travel differences. They represent, the more travel you have in the suspension the better the ride. Well, our one-ton dually has plenty of suspension travel compared to our CRV, but our CRV rides like a dream compared to our truck. Another issue with MORryde was you have to go to them, inconveniently located in IN (we had no plans to go that way for the foreseeable future.) If there was ever an issue, you would have to go back to them. Also, the rubber springs they use will eventually wear out and need to be replaced. They develop cracks in the rubber, when they become bad enough the springs need to be replaced at $700 each for a total of $2800. His research showed the springs last around 7 to 10 years.

Another option he seriously considered was TorFlex axles from Dexter, which are the type used in Airstream and horse trailers. He reached out to them, looking for information on pricing as well as evidence on how much better they were. He was quoted $2,400 for axles only; disk brakes would have to added separately and the price would be similar (if not exactly) the same as below. He wanted more than their words, but as was with MORryde, he was disappointed by the lack of research they could offer on their product. He did feel the price was more in line with what he was willing to spend for the probable better ride, but they were terribly behind on orders and if we wanted someone to do it, we would have to go to a specialized facility that can install and align the axles. We never got far enough into it to find a place, or get a quote to have it done.

What Was Replaced?

Starting with what we had in place, our RV (a 2014 Heartland Landmark, which we’ve owned since it was new) had about 52,000 miles on it. I might add that the miles have not been the easiest, as we have been overweight for most of our time on the road, which is hard on the equipment. That’s quite a lot of miles for original parts, even without being overweight. It came with 7K axles and drum brakes. Bill replaced the original tires and rims, back in January 2017. It came with 16″ rims and Goodyear “G” rated tires and we upgraded to 17 1/2″ rims with Goodyear “H” rated tires. At that time, the RV had 29,000 miles on it. The company we used is sadly no longer in business, but they delivered the tires already mounted and balanced on the rims to our campground and Bill put them on. Bill has done all the routine maintenance to the suspension, keeping a close eye on everything, which is outlined in detail in this post.

The Parts!

So, what did we get? We now have Dexter 8K axles, leaf springs, and Kodiak disc brakes. The total cost for these items was $3,545.00 ($2,185 for Brake Kit, $60 for the Ford Controller Adapter, $620 for the axles, $478 for the leaf springs, $152 for Dexter U Bolts w/Nuts for the leaf springs, and $50 for Tie Plate Dual Shock Mount) plus $312 for Dexter EZFlex Equalizers and heavy-duty shackles with wet bolts, (see link below) which Bill purchased separately. The cost of labor for the install, including wet bolt installs and a new breakaway (ours was apparently not working properly) was $1,468.00. Our grand total was $5,325.00.

The parts arrived in a couple of shipments. The first few boxes contained the disc brake rotors, calipers, wheel bearings, mounting brackets, brake lines, and hydraulic pump.

Next the bare 8,000 pound axles arrived via FedEx freight and was delivered right to our campsite. The only thing missing was the leaf springs that on back order from Dexter. They finally arrived and all the equipment was on hand to begin the installation.

The Install!

John & Barbara showed up right on time for the install, and immediately set to work. They were a great team, the fact that they had done this literally hundreds of times before showed. It gave Bill and I both great confidence that we were getting a quality job done.

The first thing John did was place plenty of old, thick cardboard boxes over the gravel where he would be working. I actually saved a bunch of cardboard sheet from a bunch of solar boxes for them to use but they came well prepared. Since we were having our axles also replaced (not just getting disc brakes), he put a large jack under each leaf spring under the axle.

Next he removed all of the wheels with a very powerful cordless impact gun. I might have to get me one of those!

While John was busy with the axles, Barb was busy getting the rotors prepared by packing all the wheel bearings and installing the grease seals.

Next, John removed the bolts holding the brake assembly to the axle. If you were not getting your axles replaced that would be all you would have to take off before installing the disc brake components, since we were getting new 8K axles he had more components to remove.

A few more bolts and everything was removed. Time to carry over the new axles.

Now it’s just a matter of putting on the new components in the same way they were removed.

The leaf springs were attached to the axles using the heavy duty brackets that included holes for mounting our shocks. I elected not to put the old shocks back on as they were pretty worn out. I will replace/upgrade them in the near future once I evaluate my options. The new Dexter EZFlex equalizer and new Dexter heavy duty shackles we also put on at this point. The old equalizer and shackles were in decent condition and could have been reused but I elected to get new ones.

Barb placed the pump over the propane tanks out of the way of any storage area and out of the weather (even though it can be installed outside directly on the frame).

She ran the electrical wires from my battery area where she tied into an uninterruptable power source (DOT requirement). Because my truck is a 2011 it does not have an electric over hydraulic setting so they also installed an adapter in the pin box area to make it work correctly. They pulled those wires along with connecting to my breakaway switch in the overhead bunk area so no wires are visible from the outside. Nice and clean.

Here you can see John mounting one of the brake lines. The heavy duty brackets were installed on the axles so the calipers could be mounted to them. You can also see my nice shiny new shackles and equalizer. Notice the silver color of the bracket. The brackets and rotors are covered with a super anti-corrosive called Dacromet. This will help with rust issues quite a bit.

The rotor is installed on the spindle and the caliper in mounted to the bracket. Notice the nice, clear screw on grease cap. Much better than the old steel cap I had on the old axles as you can see the grease. It also have a removable rubber center cap to grease the EZ Lube axles.

Now the tires need to be put back on and the job is almost done!

John filled the system with brake fluid and bleed the system of air. Pretty much the same way you would do a car except you don’t have to pump the brake pedal. Just turn the pump on and pump the fluid until there are no more air bubbles.

Bill’s Final Thoughts on the Install

Are we happy? YOU BETCHA!

I elected not to do a road test because we really didn’t want to break camp and we would be moving soon anyway. We learned we both would be at BethPage Camp Resort (us for a solar install, John & Barb for a Grand Design rally) so I knew I could address any issues with them there.

Went moving day came I was super excited to test the new brakes. Wow what a difference! I used the manual pinch control in the truck to test the brakes and locked up all 4 wheels during a test pulling out of the campground on thier gravel roads (never been able to do that before!). I also did the same thing out on the road several time to seat the brake pads in. Each time I was impressed by the stopping power of just the trailer brakes stopping the trailer and the truck at the same time very quickly. The tires were actually chirping on the dry pavement on setting 7.5 on my controller. Very impressed with how well they work.

I pulled over several times on the way to do my safety inspection and to retorque my wheel lug nuts. The hubs and brake surfaces were all pretty much the same temperature telling me all the brakes are working properly. The overall temperatures I was reading was less than I would typically see with my old axles and brakes. I suspect it is due to the fact most trailer drum brakes drag slightly when properly adjusted and that the load-carrying bearing on the 8K axles are much larger and do not heat up as much.

Both Kelly and I are very happy with the results as well as the whole experience dealing with Performance Trailer Braking. They are professional and provide excellent service and value. We wholeheartedly recommend them to anyone needing any suspension or brake upgrades.

If you decide, after reading this post, to do an upgrade on your RV, please let them you heard about them from us! You get a $50 discount and we get a $50 referral fee. Thanks!

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