Replaced Shocks

[Roger & Marcia S]

Finally getting around to replacing the shocks on my '07 BF. Thanks to all the good advice from fellow members the job went easy. Ordered the Koni shocks from LTB Autosports good price and free ship. After a few phone calls we found out that Koni does not make the FSD shock for the E450. They are the red adjustable ones, which is better than what I have now. When I talked to Koni they said at this time they will not make the FSD.
Back to the job, the left front shock was easy thanks to the hole in the floor board that dmews001 talked about. I took an old 5/8"box end wrench and bent it to about a 45 degree angle +/-. Vise grips on lower nut, new wrench on upper and a small adjustable to turn the 5/8. As soon as the top loosened some turned by hand and done. I did not remove the tire.
One other question, how many have replace the rear anti-sway bar on there BF? Was it worth the effort? What did you replace it with, Roadmaster or Helwig?


Thanks for the help
Roger

[hrgermany]

I tried to install the rear sway bar made by Helwig on my 1995 E350 but
the mounting interfered with the air bags.

Hans Rueckert

[jlef123]

Had Hellwig rear swaybars and Bilstein Heavy duty shocks installed on my 2002 26 ft RB at the FMCA SEA rally earlier this year. Going up to the rally and returning home we had 15 -20 mile an hour crosswinds. There was a noticeable difference in the coach's handling after the installation. It was well worth the cost. The installer's sales pitch was that the Hellwig bars are made from a steel that is significantly stronger than the competition. Don't know if that is just a salesman's hype or real but the coach is driving much better.

[whemme]

How much heavier was the Hellwig rear swaybar compared to the standard OEM one? My concern would be that on some 26' RSB coaches depending on how they are loaded, the extra weight of a heavier swaybar might bring the Dana 80 rear axle weight up to or over its weight rating.

[jlef123]

That's a good question. I have E-mailed Hellwig with your question and will post their response when I get it. You specifically mentioned RSB models. Is there a significant difference in rear axle weight between a RSB and a RB and why?

[Rich Flaugh]

I took delivery on a new 24'RB a few months ago and was disappointed on how it drove. There was a lot of "wander" in the steering. I found a local tire shop that was very experienced in front-end alignment of the E-450 "twin I-beam" suspension and had it aligned at about 800 miles, they also "tightened" the steering box. The unit drove much better. Ordered Helwig front and rear anti-sway bars and had them installed at local truck shop and found more improvement. Now have a coach that drives significantly better than the two Born Free units that I previously owned. Total cost was about $1,100 but I'll probably put 30,000 miles on in the next two years so I feel it was worth it. Too bad they can't come from the factory and drive this well.

[Brent]

A number of people post of the improvements they need to make to obtain what they feel are safe and satisfactory handling. I agree with the previous post, why can't a new unit come with what is considered good handling and balance?

Is the issue particular models with more weight or shorter wheelbase?

[Mel Wilbur]

I have the IPD (now roadmaster) sway bars on both front and rear and have been very pleased with the install. Also Koni shocks and parabolic springs plus Safe-T-Plus steering stabilizer which combined have made an improvement in ride and handling.

[bigdipper]

I may have posted this before, but I was unsatisfied with handling of 2011 24RB compared to 2001 23RK, both on E450 chassis. After lurking for awhile on RV.Net, I picked up recommendation to have caster set at about +5 degrees with right side +.5degrees ahead of left. This is within Ford specs but will probably require installation of brackets to do the trick. Use an alignment shop which specializes in trucks and they should both understand and be able to do the job. Toe and camber should be at center of the specs. I am now satisfied with the new unit. Passed this on to Kim.
Ralph

[cmeadows]

I considered replacing the worn-out bushings on the stock anti-sway bars with a set of the urethane bushings from Moog. That probably would have improved the ride to something better than stock. It was going to be just as much labor to replace the bushings on the original bars as it was to install new bars. The IPD/Roadmaster front bar appears to be engineered better than the Hellwig front bar, but the rear bars appeared equal. I went with the Hellwig bars and got them from Sdtrucksprings.com.

Hellwig--1997-2007 Ford E450 - FRONT Sway Bar, 1-3/8" diameter, #7008
Hellwig--1997-2013 Ford E450 Super Duty Cut-A-Way Chassis - REAR Sway Bar, 1-1/2" diameter, #7180

To answer Bill's question on weight added by the bars, below are the weights of the old (stock) bars and the new Hellwig bars.

Front old (stock) – 19.04 pounds
Front new Hellwig – 25.89
Front new Hellwig additional hardware kit (included) – 9.86
Front new Hellwig Total – 35.75
Front Difference: an additional 16.71 pounds

Rear old (stock) – 22.15 pounds
Rear new Hellwig – 38.05 pounds
Rear Difference: an additional 15.90 pounds