New Tires & Shocks at 50k miles

[Galway Girl]

On the road at Kartcher cavern SP in AZ.

Since we are here for a week, I decided to  Replace all tires and installed 4 new shocks at 50k miles.  
 

 At same time checked springs for wear /cracks and re-lubed all Zerks. 
 

The tires had simply aged out but one in particular had an odd scalloping wear pattern.   (Cause was a slightly loose bearing castle nut on that right/front wheel.) 

The shocks were getting a bit rusty and I decided to change as prevention.  ( All 4 seemed functional upon removal.) 

Since the original tires  were 16” LT Michelin, I stuck with the brand and now run:

Michelin Agilis Cross Climate

LT225 /75 R16 115R E1 BSW

Shock replacement is:

Monroe Magnum RV 555001 

 

I was able to get the tires at a local Discount Tire in Sierra Vista. ( took 3 in one day and 2 the next as we had chores in town. ) 

Ordered shocks online and shipped to my sisters who we visited on the way here. Shocks went on quickly once the unit was jacked up so suspension was hanging. 
 

All set for the next stage of our trip where we will  meet up with several owners at Ladybird Johnson for the Eclipse. 

[Mike and Carol]

We lived in Sierra Vista many years and have camped at Kartchner Caverns a lot too.  Your Ollie will be riding smooth on the way to Texas!  Mike

[ChrisMI]

Thanks for including the part numbers.  I really enjoy reading reports of 50k/100k/etc. These trailers can really pound out the miles. 

[MAX Burner]

@Galway Girl - Nice looking sneakers!  Peace of mind is a precious feeling with running gear....IMO.

[Emgmtg]

Has anyone had a problem with Discount Tire refusing to mount an LT tire on their Ollie?  My local Discount Tire said for liability reasons they only mount ST tires on travel trailers.  

[rideandfly]

43 minutes ago, Emgmtg said:

Has anyone had a problem with Discount Tire refusing to mount an LT tire on their Ollie?  My local Discount Tire said for liability reasons they only mount ST tires on travel trailers.  

Discount Tire replaced our Ollie's LT 16" tires with Cooper LT over two years ago without issues, but John Davies said Discount Tire would not replace his Ollie's tires less than two years ago, assume it was LT tires.

Here's a 10/22 thread about Oliver changing to 15" Goodyear ST Tires.

 

Edited May 14 by rideandfly

[jd1923]

Save the frustration and some $$$. Buy from Tire Rack or Simple Tire and have them shipped to a shop of your choice, or one of their installers. Both of these companies offer 2-year damage protection and DT charges $35 (each) or more.

I recently purchased tires for our TV from Simple Tire and one of their listed installers was a local repair shop we frequent. Two years ago, I purchased tires from Tire Rack and one of their listed installers was the Pep Boys just down the street. I saved considerable $$$ on both purchases and much more if you are considering buying DT "certificates" (damage insurance).

I've found more than one DT location, where there 20-something sales guys act like your stupid (like telling you must have ST tires) and I've left the store twice for this reason (not again). The only plus I see for DT is if you lose a tire when away from home.

[KenB]

I replaced shocks this weekend along with replacing the original wheel bearings and greasing the suspension.  Three of the four shocks had dead spots and were not working correctly.  I don't think we have 50k miles on ours like the OP, but we have at least half of that.  Tires are still looking good, but I know the tires were manufactured in November of 2017 and should be replaced just because of age.  Original wheel bearings looked good, but I replaced them anyway with Timkens because I already had them apart and new bearings were on hand.  This was the first time I'd been into the wheel bearings on this trailer.

[MAX Burner]

Hey, @KenB - how many miles do you estimate were on your shocks before replacement?  Just curious...  TKX

[John Dorrer]

After 160,000 miles on our original shocks (2013 F250), it was overdue for new ones. While inspecting the underside of the truck the Ford service guy found the rubber bushings between the frame and cab, and frame and bed, were either gone or rotted, allowing steel on steel. The truck rides so much better. Next time I won't wait so long.

[jd1923]

19 minutes ago, John Dorrer said:

After 160,000 miles on our original shocks (2013 F250), it was overdue for new ones. While inspecting the underside of the truck the Ford service guy found the rubber bushings between the frame and cab, and frame and bed, were either gone or rotted, allowing steel on steel. The truck rides so much better. Next time I won't wait so long.

Ours is a 2001, so much older, but also just over 160K miles. First thing I did was to rebuild the entire suspension (ball joint, bushings, etc.) and steering and 4 Bilstein shocks. I'd say 100K miles or so and 10 years max for TVs.

A 2003 Ram 2500 we had for years, one day had a banging sound under the hood while driving. Turns out the top shock mount was like yours, no rubber, just metal.

These OEM Oliver shocks however, seem to go too quickly. Waiting to hear if the Bulldog is truly a different build.

Edited May 15 by jd1923

[rideandfly]

2 hours ago, jd1923 said:

These OEM Oliver shocks however, seem to go too quickly. Waiting to hear if the Bulldog is truly a different build.

Going to install the Bulldogs in the morning, will post some photos.

[KenB]

4 hours ago, rideandfly said:

Going to install the Bulldogs in the morning, will post some photos.

Thats what I installed last weekend too.  The Bulldogs are very slightly longer than the Monroes.  I had to compress the bottom rubber mounts just a little bit by tightening up the bottom mounting nut/rubber assembly before the top threaded mount would slide into place in the upper Oliver bracket.  It was much easier to do that than try to compress the new shock and slip the top mount in place.  You'll see what I mean, easy.

[KenB]

14 hours ago, MAX Burner said:

Hey, @KenB - how many miles do you estimate were on your shocks before replacement?  Just curious...  TKX

I'm guessing around 20-25k miles.  Could be less, probably not more.

[KenB]

Slight hijack and not an Oliver tire, but this is the result of an old tire on a 14k equipment trailer I borrowed to move my compact tractor about 130 miles earlier TODAY.  I've been home just long enough to get something to eat and to feed the pets.    

We were about 50 miles from home, moving at 65 mph on the freeway heading north towards Duluth, MN when this happened.  Nothing damaged except my VISA card since the borrowed trailer didn't come with a spare.  Fortunately there was an emergency tire repair service station a few exits back and I was back on the road in about an hour.  They came to me and replaced the tire with a new one in the parking lot of a bait store.

Edited May 16 by KenB

[rideandfly]

19 hours ago, jd1923 said:

These OEM Oliver shocks however, seem to go too quickly. Waiting to hear if the Bulldog is truly a different build.

Galway Girl , hope you don't mind my posting photos of the Bulldog and original Monroe shocks for a physical comparison, we were curious if they were different builds.

 

Here's the original Monroe shock next to the new Bulldog shock. The rod cover is longer on the Bulldog and rod end of cylinder is built differently, they are different builds.

[jd1923]

Thanks @rideandfly agree they are different builds. Hoping the internal seals and other components are superior. Time will tell. Those of you with these, going on long trips this season, please inspect your shocks afterwards to see if there are any leaks. They can only be better! 😂

[rideandfly]

4 minutes ago, jd1923 said:

Thanks @rideandfly agree they are different builds. Hoping the internal seals and other components are superior. Time will tell. Those of you with these, going on long trips this season, please inspect your shocks afterwards to see if there are any leaks. They can only be better! 😂

We used to spend an extra $5 per cylinder for better quality seals during cylinder manufacture to greatly increase the life of industrial hydraulic cylinders.

[johnwen]

15 hours ago, KenB said:

Thats what I installed last weekend too.  The Bulldogs are very slightly longer than the Monroes.  I had to compress the bottom rubber mounts just a little bit by tightening up the bottom mounting nut/rubber assembly before the top threaded mount would slide into place in the upper Oliver bracket.  It was much easier to do that than try to compress the new shock and slip the top mount in place.  You'll see what I mean, easy.

Hi Ken,

Do you by chance have a part # for those Bulldogs?

Is it    1213-0656 ?

John

Edited May 16 by johnwen

[jd1923]

@rideandfly are the diameters of the pistons and shafts the same? 

[rideandfly]

3 hours ago, johnwen said:

Hi Ken,

Do you by chance have a part # for those Bulldogs?

Is it    1213-0656 ?

John

[johnwen]

24 minutes ago, rideandfly said:

Thank you 

[rideandfly]

3 hours ago, jd1923 said:

@rideandfly are the diameters of the pistons and shafts the same? 

Both shock's rods are 3/8" and Monroe barrel 1.64" OD & Bulldog barrel 1.66" OD, probably pistons are close to the same diameter depending on barrel wall thicknesses in each. The Monroe shock weighs 2 pounds 5 ounces and the Bulldog shock weighs 2 pounds 14 ounces.  Have not seen any oil leaks with the Monroe shocks.

 

 

[John Dorrer]

On 5/15/2024 at 2:57 PM, jd1923 said:

Ours is a 2001, so much older, but also just over 160K miles. First thing I did was to rebuild the entire suspension (ball joint, bushings, etc.) and steering and 4 Bilstein shocks. I'd say 100K miles or so and 10 years max for TVs.

A 2003 Ram 2500 we had for years, one day had a banging sound under the hood while driving. Turns out the top shock mount was like yours, no rubber, just metal.

These OEM Oliver shocks however, seem to go too quickly. Waiting to hear if the Bulldog is truly a different build.

Per my original comment, the bushings were between the cab and frame, and bed and frame. Nothing to do with shocks. Replaced shocks due miles and bumpy ride.

[jd1923]

11 minutes ago, John Dorrer said:

Per my original comment, the bushings were between the cab and frame, and bed and frame. Nothing to do with shocks. Replaced shocks due miles and bumpy ride.

Just reread your post and yep, that’s what you wrote. This was a thread about tires and shocks, so I assumed as such. Wow! This is crazy! Body mount bushings are NOT a service item!

There are guys on the Cummins forum that replace these after 500K miles on commercial hauling rigs. Just had my bed off on my 2001, and all mounts are supple rubber on this 23 year old truck, that spent its life in the desert of the Phoenix Valley. Highly unusual is your experience.