Axle $$$ Price Is The Topic

[uwe]

Murray and I have purchased and installed several axis axles for friends last year. Most of them were of inferior quality, when compared to Dexter or Henschen.
The fit was very poor, and the overall quality on them was questionable. We gave very exact measurements, and shock bracket locations, and none of them were as ordered. The ride height varied on 2 identical installs.
We were only happy with the results on one of the 4 trailers.
From now on, it's "friends don't let friends use axis axles!"
They're cheap. All the way. The saying "you get what you pay for" applies here as well.
I believe that if one wants an excellent value, go with Dexter. A 100% reliable product for a fair price.
Henschen is also a very good product, but at a much higher price. You do get a factory fit for this higher price on some applications, though.

[Anon]

5,000 miles on my new axle and no trouble as of yet. The two on my brother-in-law's trailer have about 2,500 miles on them now. No trouble.
Fit and finish can be seen on the thread "The Minuet is at the Axle Doctor".
Loaded it up and pulled it everywhere I went for work last season. I travel a lot for work. It is nice to camp instead of staying in hotels and flying in cramped coach class of a jet.
The weather here has been extremely mild and I was under the trailer last week. Nothing is loose or worn funny.
The brackets are a perfect match to the original ones.
To each his own but I have an excellent product at a great price.

[uwe]

Originally Posted by pattersontoo

5,000 miles on my new axle and no trouble as of yet. The two on my brother-in-law's trailer have about 2,500 miles on them now. No trouble.
Fit and finish can be seen on the thread "The Minuet is at the Axle Doctor".
Loaded it up and pulled it everywhere I went for work last season. I travel a lot for work. It is nice to camp instead of staying in hotels and flying in cramped coach class of a jet.
The weather here has been extremely mild and I was under the trailer last week. Nothing is loose or worn funny.
The brackets are a perfect match to the original ones.
To each his own but I have an excellent product at a great price.

If I had someone do one axle, and did not have to go through the measuring, drawing, shipping, and then receiving a mediocre ( at best) product, I would feel the same way.
But - I did go through above steps, and then through shipping, installation hassles and finally problems with axle mounts and shock mounts on 4 out of 5 trailer that we did with Axis products. Hence, my somewhat strong, but educated opinion.
I regretted the entire time not having used Dexter's axle. The extra work on all but one set of axles was the same, even more on some of the installations.
I installed all three of the discussed brands - Henschen ( 3 sets) Dexter ( 3 trailers) and Axis ( 5 trailers).
I do not believe that the axis product is unsafe, as some have claimd on the forums. I do believe, however, that there are far better options.

[Anon]

Well, all I know comes from 24 years of restoring and maintaining these trailers.
Several other forums members have gotten axles from Axis, Dexter and Henschen. All of these manufacturers have had some horror stories.
I paid right around 300 bucks for my axle, complete with stainless steel mounting hardware.
My brother-in-law spent a little more than I did. He also had them use the stainless steel hardware and E-coating.
I like the E-coating due to the fact that it beats any "well-built" axle that is hand painted after it is completely built.
Mine was E-coated before it was assembled.
Just like Dexter, Henschen and Al-Ko, Axis supplies axles to several trailer manufacturers. One being a major tractor trailer manufacturer and another being a major farm implement manufacturer. These people use torsion axles with weight ratings that are in excess of 12,000 pounds. I am sure that all of the axle manufacturers supply to some of the same types of industries.
I have used Dexter and Henschen in the past. I never had a problem with either of them.
I have restored several trailers. I do not do this for a living. It is a hobby that my father figured I would be good at because I was no good at restoring cars. It has been my only hobby for the last 24 years.
Seeing as how I am not "flipping" a trailer when I am done, I investigate what I am replacing if I am not familiar with the item or the project. I plan on using what I restore, (or it is for a family member/friend), so I am not inclined to use inferior products or methods to cut costs. I do like to keep my money as "my money". I am not a "cheap skate". I investigate and pick what I feel is the best product or solution based upon quality and price. I still have a family to feed and house so I like to research first.

[uwe]

Originally Posted by pattersontoo

I paid right around 300 bucks for my axle, complete with stainless steel mounting hardware.

We paid substantially more. Plus truck freight to California, way over $ 100.00 for each axle. For us, these axles were not a bargain, by any means.

[Anon]

Well, being within driving distance helped.
Like I said, everyone has to weigh the options.
All I did was offer what I have had for experience with the 24 years of exposure I have had with long-term results of several types of components for these trailers.
It is good to have a varying opinion on here.
My proof of success with this axle has been clearly documented here.
Several others have posted similar results.
I love Dexter axles. They make some of the best products on the market.
If I cannot find a 6.7 Metre Minuet I will have this one as long as I can. I am not about to put junk on what I plan on keeping. Then again, I will not pay too much for something that I feel is of the same, or similar, quality.
They cannot make a "cheap" axle that could fail under use. So.... that being the case, it cannot be something that can just fall apart.
If you have had a problem with a vendor I would post pictures of the problems to let people know. Just the same with touting the quality of a vendor's product or service.
I, myself, would really like to see what was wrong with the Axis product so I know if there is something I am not seeing. Any help like that would be welcomed my myself and other forums members as well.

[uwe]

Lou,
I did not take any pictures of the problem axles, and as I said, it was not a matter of them being unsafe or unsuitable, but the overall build quality, and attention to measurements by Axis themselves was a letdown to me.
I did not think at the time to make problems for Axis, nor do I want to do this now. I merely want to bring tha point across that their quality and overall customer service/buying/installing experience does NOT measure up to what I have experienced with Dexter or Henschen.
I have already listed someof the issues we had with Axis products, as in brackets being wrong...reversed entirely with the long side pointing the wrong way. Bolt hole patterns off by 1/2 of a hole - makes it very difficult to mount the axle. The only way is to drill all new holes. Brackets being welded only on one side, as opposed to all the way around like the competitors do. Shock mounts being welded to the torsion arms in the precise location where the axle mounting bolt goes on the bracket opposite the torsion arm, making it impossible to insert a bolt or nut due to clearance problems. Also, very sloppy and uneven welds where the spindle is attached to the torsion arm. In one case, the torsion arm was 1/2 in off from the other one, meaning that the arms did not have the same down angle. ( It eventually did not make a difference in the way the trailer sat, though.)
Anyways, we had noisy brakes, one drum sounded like something was dragging inside. Had to take everything apart and re-assemble, and adjust the brakes. Other times, a simple adjustment took care of the noise.
Maybe we just had a run of bad luck, but I just can't agree to the statement that all axles are the same, and one might as well pick the cheapest ones. In my experience, this was a big mistake. However, someone near their factory could take back a product if it was not satisfactory, and get it taken care of. In our case, we had a huge shipping bill, so returns were out of the question. It was more cost effective for us to help our friends solve the issues, and learn from our experience.
You obviously had much better results with Axis. Good for you!

[herrgirdner]

On the subject of leaf springs: (A War Story)
In 1966, I bought a Kenskill 19 foot single axle trailer. This was a stick built California trailer which I towed with a Dodge 4-door 3/4 ton pickup.
The first few trips made just about convinced me that I had to get rid of it. It hopped all over the road, and when the drive was over, the drawers were in the floor, dishes too. I mentioned this to the dealer, and his response was; "They all do that. The roads are too rough. Slow down."
I also talked to a friend who was a hot-rodder. His advice:
Put some shocks on that beast. He suggested the shock absorber brand and size, welded them on the proper spot.
This made a hell of a difference, and settled this baby down. Same roads as before, and when we pulled into park, nothing on the floor. Dishes in the right place, etc. I pulled this unit until we were transferred to Germany, 3 years later.
end of war story.

So, if you do put leaf springs on, my advice is the same as the old hot rodder.
Shocks, man, Shocks.
regards

[uwe]

Originally Posted by steelbird312

I ordered two #11 axles with a #3700lb rating so as to receive the 12 inch brakes/drums. I also ordered the 22.5 degree down on the start angle. The trailer sits up nice and pretty now. Pulls great. The main thing I am trying to tell you is that you can order anything you want in load ratings. I think you can even order #3600 in the #11 axle, still getting the 12" brakes.

I actually ordered the #10 axle, but with the #12 spindle, and a 3000lb load rating. This made the 12in drums possible. No mods were required to the cut-outs in the axle mounting plate.
I think that 3700lbs per axle on a 70's Overlander is too much. I had 3500lb axles shipped to me by accident by Henschen, and it made my TradeWind bounce like it had bad axles. Changing them to 3000lb axles made a huge, and I mean HUGE difference. The trailer rode like it was on clouds....

[steelbird312]

Uwe,
The trailer we put the 3700's on is 28' long, I'm almost positive it said Overlander on it. Anyway, I welded the shock mounts on, and we used C rated tires and it pulled like a dream. Course, we didn't try it off-road!

[Anon]

Originally Posted by uwe

Maybe we just had a run of bad luck, but I just can't agree to the statement that all axles are the same, and one might as well pick the cheapest ones. In my experience, this was a big mistake.
You obviously had much better results with Axis. Good for you!

I did not state that I picked the cheapest one. I had merely stated that I do educated research and pick what I want for the value.
Value=quality+price+ease of use. At least in my eyes.
I had wonderful satisfaction from ALL of the mentioned axle manufacturers.

PS Now that was good info that you provided. If you are going to site quality issues then you should state what was wrong for all of our benefit. Thanks and I am going to use your experiences to watch my axles.
Perception is reality and everyone perceives things in their own way. This is why I believe we have reached the level of understanding that we now share.

[axleman]

Originally Posted by davidh

The funny thing about my axles are I have the Henschen invoice but they came with a Dexter manual whats up with that I do not know.

F.Y.I.

Henschen does NOT manufacture the brakes or hubs - Dexter does and so do others. Henschen uses "others" components to build axles and has for quite some time. Dexter is the largest axle supplier in the United States.

Regards,
Henry

[davidh]

axleman Thats good to know, thats more than likely why I got a dexter manual, Henshen was using Dexter brake components on the axles that were purchased for my trailer.

[Action]

Originally Posted by steelbird312

Uwe,
The trailer we put the 3700's on is 28' long, I'm almost positive it said Overlander on it.

It was likely an Ambassador. Overlanders for pre '69 were 26' and post '69 were 27'.

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[emo59]

Ok. This is all very helpful. Can anyone help me with if I should consider going from a single axle to a tandem. I understand about the wells and have someone who can work that out. It is a 59 Overlander and back then, only one axle. Will two axles help with a better tow or do I need to concentrate on quality of axle- single?

[markdoane]

We had this discussion a short while ago. Here is the thread for reference. http://www.airforums.com/forum...les-20770.html?

I know there will be additional comments.

[Action]

Originally Posted by emo59

Ok. This is all very helpful. Can anyone help me with if I should consider going from a single axle to a tandem. I understand about the wells and have someone who can work that out. It is a 59 Overlander and back then, only one axle. Will two axles help with a better tow or do I need to concentrate on quality of axle- single?

Depends on total weoght towed including things that may be placed in it when towing.

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[trevisgardne]

Originally Posted by stagecoachbill

I took my 62 Globe Trotter to Axis Products in Elkart IN . They took off the old axle and built a new one to match the old, and installed itl I drove away $442 later and have been very happy that I didn't have to do it myself.

I have a 73 31' Sov-I'd like to do the same thing. Did you replace the brakes as well? Did you pre-order? How long did the replacement take? Did you talk to a salesman?