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Old January 17th 04, 10:36 PM
Bret Chase
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On Sat, 17 Jan 2004 14:17:22 +1300, "rnf2" >
wrote:

>:|
>:|"David Thomas" > wrote in message
e.com...
>:|> I'm considering adding rear air springs to my '99 Toyota 4Runner to
>:|> level the 4x4 when towing our 2003 Coleman Santa Fe pop-up camper. I'm
>:|> mainly concerned about the coil springs rubbing holes in the air bags
>:|> over time. This is my wife's kid taxi so no plans for mudding or any
>:|> rough off-road (although we do live down a 1/4 mile gravel drive).
>:|>
>:|> I'd like to hear from other's experiences with these air springs. What
>:|> brand they used, how long the bags last, that sort of thing.
>:|>
>:|> Thanks!
>:|>
>:|> David
>:|
>:|Why do you need to level it? A towed item such as a caravan or trailer
>:|should be balanced to have about 20-50Kg on the towbar. IOW you should be
>:|able to lift it comfortablly without straining, and it should definately
>:|notdepress the springs overmuch.
>:|
>:|You should be able to pack the camper proper, I've been able to lift with
>:|one hand the drawbar of trailers loaded with over 2 tons.
>:|
>:|rhys
>:|



I hate to disagree with you here, but a trailer *should* have 10% of
the weight on the tongue (ball hitch) to maintain good stability and
tracking. a trailer with 2 tons on it should have 400lbs on the
tongue. pintle hitchs and 5thwheel/goosenecks can have significantly
more weight on their tongues.

-Bret
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