Argosy 20ft MH Chassis / frame

JerryT94 · 04-13-2003, 05:47 PM

Are all the earilier Argosy/Airstream MH built on the same chassis? Is it a P30?

Could the 19.5 axles be retofitted to a 20ft?

Does the 20ft have the same gross axle
ratings as the 24ft and 28ft?

Would a 20ft have larger carrying/towing capasity?

Thanks

74Argosy24MH · 04-13-2003, 06:06 PM

The chassis are P30. Per the 1974 Argosy manual the GVW for a 20 ft. is 10,500 lbs., 24 ft. is 12,300 or 12,500 lbs. No listing in my manual for 26 ft. or longer.

The 19.5 axles should fit, but most will have disc brakes and that means the proportioning valve and master cylinder must also be changed. I considered doing this but decided it wasn't worth the time and labor. The drum brakes are good on these and they aren't that heavy. GVW would not change because it is also dependent on the springs and frame.

It seems to me that the 24 ft. would have better towing and hauling capacity, I don't think the extra 4 ft. weighs an additional 2000 lbs.

John

thenewkid64 · 04-13-2003, 06:46 PM

John,

I think the additional 4 ft being 2K seems like a lot of weight, but I bet the bigger the MH the bigger the tanks. I know mine are fairly large. I have not tested actual holding capacities, I need to do that with the old bucket test. But that was the way they did it in the trailers.

BTW my 76 has rear axle has drum brakes not disk, I think the disk all around started in 77/78.

74Argosy24MH · 04-14-2003, 07:17 AM

Both holding tanks hold 2 gallons more on the 24 ft. than 20 ft., the fresh water tank holds 17 gallons more, where does it go? At that time more of the chassis were upfitted as work trucks and delivery vans than motorhomes, that probably determined the GVW.

John

JerryT94 · 04-14-2003, 10:39 AM

John,

Are you saying that the springs / suspension could be upgraded to tow a heavier load?

I guess the rear axle would be fairly simple, the front would need to be entirely rebuilt?

Thanks

Jerry

74Argosy24MH · 04-14-2003, 11:33 AM

Jerry

You would also need to reinforce or change frame rails to raise the GVW along with the spring/axle changes. I am not sure why you were considering changing the axle, I wanted the disc brakes, but decided it was not really worth the time and labor. If you are after a bigger GVW I would go for a bigger MH, the extra weight would also make towing easier.

John