Broken Spring Hanger!

**Cate&Rob** · 10-08-2018, 04:18 PM

Originally Posted by MidwestCamper

Pat,
This looks great!
Jim

x2 Pat ! This is looking “right”.

Rob

**Gyro Gearloose** · 10-08-2018, 06:10 PM

Thanks guys!!!!!

But not knowing what is under the coroplast may change the whole picture.

Pat

**MidwestCamper** · 10-09-2018, 03:17 AM

Originally Posted by patwardell

Cool setup but the axle is welded solid to the swing arms on both sides so any articulation side to side would result in flexing the axle tube.

Also needs a Panhard Bar (ha ha ha ha ha).

I was thinking the same on this one especially since those mounting brackets are very tall. But there was mention of cross bracing that was added that depending on the design could stabilize those brackets.

**Gyro Gearloose** · 10-09-2018, 11:42 AM

Have you guys seen this document from Dexter (Application Manual)? Page 12 shows spring hanger welding recommendations.

Dexter Axle Application Manual

Pat

**Canyonlight** · 10-09-2018, 12:12 PM

Pat - thanks for sharing this and all of the other work you have comitted to this item as well as other topics. We are blessed to have a number of talented engineers on the forum.

I have not done welding since my high school/college/early 20s. The undercutting welding item on page 12 caught my attention. I do not know if this is an issue with some/all of our LCI frames/spring hanger mounts but I am going to pay more attention and take a look at mine. I do not recall you, Rob, or anyone else bringing this up so it is probably not a concern. In fact I think Rob and Gary (along with a few others) reported that it was the actual welds that seem to break.

Dan

**Gyro Gearloose** · 10-09-2018, 01:36 PM

Originally Posted by Toes in the water

The undercutting welding item on page 12 caught my attention. I do not know if this is an issue with some/all of our LCI frames/spring hanger mounts but I am going to pay more attention and take a look at mine. I do not recall you, Rob, or anyone else bringing this up so it is probably not a concern. In fact I think Rob and Gary (along with a few others) reported that it was the actual welds that seem to break.

Dan

Hi Dan,

Thanks for the kind words. I agree there are some good people on this forum and a lot of diverse skill sets.

We have discussed undercutting, somewhere in this thread somewhere. I think the undercutting, long hangers and constant flexing is the main reason for failure.

See this thread and the perfect storm comment in item #32 .

pat

**MidwestCamper** · 10-09-2018, 04:40 PM

Originally Posted by Cate&Rob

Hi Jim - Both the LCI tech and I inspected the other hangers and could find no visual indication of similar breaks. But, I don't know that I could have seen the break that did happen, with the two edges of the fatigue line pushed tightly together. I have been thinking about how to reinforce these hangers since we first saw that LCI video several months ago. This "V" insert looks like a viable idea. The major difficulty is that I think the entire suspension would have to be dropped to have these welded into place.

Rob

Rob,
Did they weld in your V support only on the underside? If so there is most likely room to do this assembled. Also someone stated awhile back about the additional stresses in making a right hand turns versus left hand turns where this could be plausible in fracturing only the right rear hangers. I like all the ideas here and would like to see Pat make up the Panhard setup but I think a MORryde type bracket if done right could also help as a cheaper option albeit not quite as effective. The reason is that it looked like this bracket was held on with a clamp where I had seen a pic of one the other day where it looks like it also ties in with a longer spring hanger bolt. This tie in could help reduce the rotation on the hangers. Of coarse the Panhard bar would be the premier option.

**Cate&Rob** · 10-09-2018, 05:15 PM

Dan & Pat . . . this thread has grown so long that referencing earlier posts is almost unmanageable. The break line in my hanger and others that have posted pictures, is beside the weld bead in the heat affected zone of the hanger. There is no undercutting in this area. There is some minimal undercutting above the weld (as is common in overhead welds) on my trailer where the hangers were added after the trailer was built, but in production, I expect that the frame would be inverted and these welds would be horizontal down where even a basic welder could control undercutting.

Rob

**minnow101** · 10-09-2018, 06:41 PM

A suggestion to a moderator ? Perhaps the more recent on going discussions regarding Pat's, Midwest Camper, Rob's and others on the engineering fix and diagrams can be broken off into a separate topic. Might make it easier to follow along. ?? The original posts can be the problem and the new topic can be the potential fix.

**J&G garage** · 10-10-2018, 06:55 AM

Pat someone didn’t read the welding instructions when they built my frame. I think all the hangers have undercut welds. I believe that’s what caused ours to fail. I think exceeding the minimum bend radius is a culprit also. I just received spring hanger drawings from Lippert and the minimum bend radius should be 1/4”. Not sure all hangers have this generous a radius.