Shock replacement

[dmadam]

I just had my wheel bearings repacked and brakes checked etc. I also took a look at the shocks. Just checked two and they were bad so assume the others are too. However the dealer gave me a price of $900. just for the labor. this seems little high to me. Any one have some experience with this?

Thanks
David

[wingfoot321]

Originally Posted by dmadam

I just had my wheel bearings repacked and brakes checked etc. I also took a look at the shocks. Just checked two and they were bad so assume the others are too. However the dealer gave me a price of $900. just for the labor. this seems little high to me. Any one have some experience with this?

Thanks
David

I just priced shocks at the airstream store at lansing. They were $38 each. That is high by my standards for a very simple shock. Your $900 is a ridiculous price. You have to jack unit up, remove tires to get to them, there will be some difficulty breaking the nuts and rubber bushings loose. Still a small job.

I wrote down the pertinent info: Gabriel shock, T40301SA, 610816.

Does anyone know how to cross reference these numbers in a auto parts house?

I plan to hit my local O'Reilly store etc.

[LLB21]

Hard to believe how someone could charge such a ridiculous amount. The shocks are about $38.00 each. They are available only from an Airstream dealer.

Labor couldn't be more than about one to two hours to do all four shocks including taking the tires off and on. I would find someone else to do the job. Lots of Brand X RV repair shops are afraid of Airstreams. They are afraid they will get into something they are not familiar with.

[53flyingcloud]

Originally Posted by dmadam

I just had my wheel bearings repacked and brakes checked etc. I also took a look at the shocks. Just checked two and they were bad so assume the others are too. However the dealer gave me a price of $900. just for the labor. this seems little high to me. Any one have some experience with this?
Thanks
David

David,
Perhaps this is his way of telling you, he doesn't want the job~
ciao
53FC

[Sneakinup]

If you supply the plane ticket for me to Vegas, I'll do it for $500 spending money!

If you are handy, it is not that difficult to do at all. Even if you dropped the axles to get the shocks on, it wouldn't take all that long.

What did they charge you to repack the wheel bearings?

[Tarheel]

I have two numbers for you the first is for the older AS and I think it is the one you need Monroe 33033. It fits a 1/2" stud top and bottom.
The next number is NAPA 555003 it fits a 5/8" stud at the top and a 1/2" stud at the bottom. We had to look through every shock in the book to find these two. The travel is correct as well as the bushing size. I bought the 33033 for mine but the bushings were the wrong size and trust me on this you can't put a 5/8" stud in a 1/2" hole.
You will have to use a prybar of somesort to pull the mounting arm away from the body just enough to allow the shock to be removed. This is "Standard Operating Procedure" for these shocks and hurts nothing. They are mild steel and bend easily. You can put them back in place or not depending on how you feel about it when you finish.
But do replace those worn shocks, I almost lost my rig on a straight level piece of interstate going about 50 mph. The potable water tank was only 1/2 filled and the water began to slosh from side to side. The 3 axel unit was almost out of control.
Hope this helps

[Action]

David,

With the wheels removed to do the bearing pack, shocks could have been put on for very little effort. May be an extra 10 min per shock. Assuming 6 for a triple axle that adds up to 60 minutes total. If the $900 was for labor only,......hmmmmmm. Seems like there is some misunderstanding or I don;t understand the job.

I have replaced all 4 shocks on my vintage unit. And every vehicle I have ever had. Besides my Lincolns, shock replacement has been very easy. And even the Lincolns haven't been too bad. My '66 Overlander was easy.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Action

[dmadam]

Thanks Guys for the info. They estimated 1 1/2 hours for each shock. Think I'll just slide under and figure it out. The bearing repack was $139. per axle.

Sneakinup-how bout a ticket and a couple hours at the penny slots and spit the winnings, not the losses. At least you might have fun in Sin City!

David

[Inland RV Center, In]

A "major" brake should be done every year or 10,000 miles, which ever is first.

A flat rate for a major brake for a 34 foot trailer is 3.5 hours. Replacing shocks at that time is flat rated at .2 to .3 hours, depending if the shock brackets must be bent or, if the shock bolts are rusted in place.

Contrary to opinion, axles do not have to be dropped in order to replace shocks.

Simply bend the brackets. It is also not necessary to straighten the brackets when done. Just leave them alone. It won't hurt a thing.

$900.00 for that job, means they don't want to do it, they lost big at the tables, or, they want to buy Hawaii, at your expense.

For the benefit of others, please post that companies name, so that others may not be exposed to that kind of ripoff.

Andy

[upallnight]

I've just changed the shocks on my 30' Sovereign. I used NAPA 94005 which are gas charged. I feel the gas charged are best because they provide a constant downward thrust on the torsion arm of the axle. The NAPA catalog says they come with T1 mounts on the top and bottom which is 5/8" stud mounting. When I opened the first box I found they come with 5/8" top and 1/2" bottom. I simply drilled the rubber bushing on the bottom mount to 5/8" on my drill press. The whole job including modifying the lower mount on each shock took about 5 hours. The cost of the shocks was $25.00 each.

[dmadam]

Thanks Andy, I went to them because Airstream gave me their name saying they have done work for them. I sent you an email before I went there asking if you knew anyone up here but you were in Hawii at the time.

The name of the place was Wheelers RV and the service writer was Nathan and the mechanic was Duke. By the way, did I get ripped off at $139. per axle for the bearing repack?

Thanks
David

[Inland RV Center, In]

David.

$278.00 for two axles divided by 2.5 hours (the flat rate time) is a $111.20 labor rate. I think that is very excessive.

Did they replace the grease seals? If not, I would raise holy devil with them.

Reference gas shocks.

Gas shocks are "NOT" recommended by Airstream. If they were better than the horizontal shocks, they would have used them in production.

The point of it is, each shock can carry and absorb just so much of a "shock" or "G" force. The greater the weight of the vehicle, the greater the duty must be of the shock.

Therefore, since gas can go through an "oriface" easier than a liquid, they will not do an "equal" job as the horizontal Airstream shocks, rendering gas shocks not acceptable for use on an Airstream trailer, that has Henschen axles.

It's still amazing, where a choice is made to down grade something Airstream has used for years, sometimes for price, not even talking about the same performance, let alone better. Gas shocks have zero performance history on an Airstream trailer.

And then there is the issue of problems down the road, that are ignored, but usually, Airstream will get blamed for it.

A shock is not just a shock. There are different kinds for different reasons and useages.

It is wise not confuse or ignore the issue.

Gas shocks do not belong on any Airstream or Argosy trailers, period, that are equipped with Henschen axles.

For the leaf spring trailer owners, your on your own.

Andy

[markdoane]

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

David.

. . . . Gas shocks do not belong on any Airstream or Argosy trailers, period.

Andy

Would you make an exception for old leaf spring axles with vertically mounted shocks, or should I return them to the dealer?

[Inland RV Center, In]

Don.

My comments were directed to those owners that have Henschen axles only.

Sorry for the confusion. I will edit my original post.

Andy

[Safari Tim]

I'm thinking of replacing my shocks.

What is the proper way to jack up and support the trailer during the work?

[Inland RV Center, In]

Tim.

Place a bottle jack on the "axle mounting plate," between the two wheels.

Remove the tire and wheel. That will give you access to the shocks.

If your running gear is balanced, be sure to reinstall the tire and wheel in the same exact position that it was in to start with.

Do one side at a time.

Andy

[upallnight]

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

David.

$278.00 for two axles divided by 2.5 hours (the flat rate time) is a $111.20 labor rate. I think that is very excessive.

Did they replace the grease seals? If not, I would raise holy devil with them.

Reference gas shocks.

Gas shocks are "NOT" recommended by Airstream. If they were better than the horizontal shocks, they would have used them in production.

The point of it is, each shock can carry and absorb just so much of a "shock" or "G" force. The greater the weight of the vehicle, the greater the duty must be of the shock.

Therefore, since gas can go through an "oriface" easier than a liquid, they will not do an "equal" job as the horizontal Airstream shocks, rendering gas shocks not acceptable for use on an Airstream trailer, that has Henschen axles.

It's still amazing, where a choice is made to down grade something Airstream has used for years, sometimes for price, not even talking about the same performance, let alone better. Gas shocks have zero performance history on an Airstream trailer.

And then there is the issue of problems down the road, that are ignored, but usually, Airstream will get blamed for it.

A shock is not just a shock. There are different kinds for different reasons and useages.

It is wise not confuse or ignore the issue.

Gas shocks do not belong on any Airstream or Argosy trailers, period, that are equipped with Henschen axles.

For the leaf spring trailer owners, your on your own.

Andy

Andy

I feel I must defend my position on the use of gas shocks. The shock's I used were originally intended for a vehicle that weighed in at 4900-lbs. Dry weight on my 1963 International Sovereign was 4500 lbs. But as shocks are not designed as load bearing components of the suspension system I seem to be missing your point. A gas shock uses orifices much the same as hydraulic shocks only in my opinion gas shocks respond much quicker than their hydraulic counterparts and are just as capable of handling the shock or G loads. As my Airstream does not have horizontal mounted shocks I don’t see the reasoning in your stating that I’m downgrading my shocks. I feel that I have upgraded them. Do you feel because I paid less for gas shocks than the hydraulic’s you sell that I have downgraded? Do you have a shock in stock that has 5/8" mounts top and bottom? This does not seem to be a normal configuration but it does seem to be a stock Airstream installation. As far as performance history goes gas shocks have a very credible performance history in the vehicle market, and I would assume that a vehicle gets a lot more wear and tear and mileage than your run of the mill Airstream. And as far as Henschen axles go, I will be replacing mine with sprung axles, but that is a topic for another thread.

[Inland RV Center, In]

Leonard.

Airstream shocks have a 5/8 id grommet at both ends.

Each Airstream owner is free to re-engineer their trailer any way they want to.

Unfortunately, the second owner is usually the person that suffers, because of that engineering.

We stay loaded with re-engineered work that owners bring to us from all over the country, as well as Canada, to un-engineer and put back the way Airstream built it or reasonably close to it.

We at this time, out of 24 trailers here, 9 of them fit that category, to one degree or another.

That is not to say that all of the modifications didn't hold up, but more often than not, they don't.

Airstream spends millions in their designs. It's difficult to understand why someone may chose to modify the suspension system, when Airstream has a track record of time and performance.

We are not being critical of anyones choice of what or how.

We strive very hard, to maintain Airstream standards or better, as well as helping the new comer avoid problems, that could occur by following someones scheme of repairs that could result in damage or injury to the trailer or themselves.

It is to that end that we disagree with with your choice of gas shocks, and replacing the Henschen axles with leaf spring supported axles. And it's your choice.

But, lets not confuse the new comers.

Andy

[74Argosy24MH]

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

We are not being critical of anyones choice of what or how.

So what is wrong with gas shocks? Has AS tested gas shocks? What were the results? I see a big explanation but no answer.

John

[uwe]

My experience with gas shocks on vehicles has proven a few points that i woul dnot want on my Airstream.
First, all the gas shocks that I have ever installed had substantial pre-load. All of them proveided a substantially stiffer ride than applicable oil-only shocks. And, in every instance it changed the ride of the vehicle. Usually for the better in a truck or car, but if I parallel MY findings with what I believe my trailer should ride like, then I would have to say no to gas shocks. Simply too much pre-load, and too stiff of a ride. I doubt the shock bracketry was designed to handle that much stress. We're replacing axles to get a comfy, plush and soft ride, protecting the Airstream stucture from too much shock and vibration, so I think the shock absorber's job should be that of damping control only, definitley not ride altering.
This is just my opinion, based on experiences with gas shocks on trucks and cars.