85MH325
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• Eastern, IA, USA |
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• Registered on 3/20/2004 |
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• 54 posts |
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 Posted:12/21/2004 07:40 |
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| Quote: | My X has the E's that I keep at 80 when towing. I have the rancho adjustables at 9 (rear) when towing. With 5 people, gear and the TT Im well over the Xs GVWR, Im sure that has a lot to do with it. My wiggle comes from bursts of wind side loading (overpass exit, semis, etc..). Many say its a fact of life and I should live with it. Its really not that bad, I just thought I could improve it.
Eric,
The X is an 04, 4X4, PSD. Ken sent me an email with some sugestions. The leaf springs are a little different on the 04s (at least mine), I think he knows about it but the installation is the same. |
Well, this is interesting. I'm FINALLY having my radius rods installed today in preparation for a couple hundred mile trip tomorrow. I confess that I haven't had the EX out of the garage since Ken shipped my rods in October, so I haven't been too concerned about getting them on.
Roger, you haven't told us the size or type of TT you tow, and that might be helpful. Unfortunately since I don't know you personally, I don't know how much experience you have with towing either, so if you're a seasoned veteran, please don't take offense at my questions; but they may help figure out what's going on for us.
First the 'wiggle' you experience while towing may not be 'wiggle' at all. It may just be wind-loading induced sway caused by your trailer. Some trailers sway no matter what you do. It's one of the reasons I pull an Airstream tri-axle. They're just not prone to sway to begin with. Now, that said, I worked like crazy for two towing seasons to figure out what was going on with my Ex/AS combo.
What I finally (with the help of the posts here) figured out was that several things were happening. First,, I hadn't had my tires aired up enough (you do). Then the draw bar I was using was too long and able to actually flex, which is NOT what you want to happen. The flex in the draw bar was actually rendering the Dual-cam ineffective! What I couldn't figure out after all that is why it still was affected by wind-loading, and of course, I now recognize it to be lateral rear-axle movement under the body.
The ''wiggle' we're all (I presume) experiencing in our Ex's doesn't typically occur (at least on mine) on a straight stretch of smooth road (however, I have noticed it in severe gusty cross winds). It's most obvious on curves at speed, with washboard, ruts, or train tracks; anywhere the body and the rear axle tend to want to move in different directions at the same time. It gives a 'slithering' , less- than-full-control feel to the steering, and then, if extreme, can move the entire truck when the suspension 'snaps' back into place. It's pretty disconcerting; it's not at all similar to an alignment pull or lose steering wander.
Trailer sway can be induced by any number of factors, but the most likely is either tire underinflation either on the TV or trailer, and is most likely to happen when the tongue weight of the trailer is less than 15% of the total trailer weight.. This can be a design flaw in the trailer, or can come about by trailer loading issues. Car trailers, for example, will sway like crazy if the load isn't positioned properly over the axles. There are tons of posts regarding this issue on just about every RV forum out there.
It sounds from your posts and Ken's posts that you are meticulous and have a good understanding of this stuff, but the more info we have, the more likely we'll be able to figure out what's going on with your rig. I am greatly concerned that you are "well over the X's GVWR". That alone is cause for real concern and can cause all kinds of problems towing. What else can you tell us?
Roger
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E. Long
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• Subscriber since 1/1/2001 |
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• Atlanta, GA, USA |
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• Registered on 1/23/2001 |
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• 2,229 posts |
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Posted:12/23/2004 01:00 |
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| Quote: | | Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus ... or at least a Mrs. LAND YOT! (I love this woman!) My wife told me what she was getting me for Christmas because it was too large for her to get it home. I spent most of today bringing home a new (and considerably larger) metal-cutting band saw ... one with a coolant / lubricant recirculation system. (yee-haw) Now, I will need to sell my old one (I'll do that locally). |
Now, how did your wife know to buy you a metal-cutting-band-saw-with-a-coolant/lubricant-recirculation-system? Found it in the catalog? When it comes to tools, my wife is a deer in the headlights! 
-Eric
'67 Galaxie 500 - 390 FE, .030" over, FE to AOD adapter, disc brake conversion. The Daily Driver.
'00 Excursion - 7.3L PSD, LANDYOT Gen-II Radius Rods, Factory Tech Valve Body, 200K+ miles and going |
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LANDYOT
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• Subscriber since 11/23/2003 |
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• Newport News, VA, USA |
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• Registered on 7/15/2003 |
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• 1,110 posts |
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Posted:12/23/2004 05:56 |
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Easy. She went with me to the Northern Hydraulics store while I put my hand on the one I wanted. She knows better than to buy something like that without making certain it's the exact item I need (OK, want).
She could also tell how much I wanted it by the amount of drool dripping from my chin. |
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BigStrokerX
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• San Diesgo, CA, USA |
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• Registered on 12/23/2004 |
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• 9 posts |
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 Posted:12/23/2004 19:21 |
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Hi everyone, I'm new here and semi new to my PSD X. I bought a used 2001 PSD X about 9 months ago and am loving it. Particularly since I bought it LOADED with lift, gauges, programmer, DVD...etc.
Anyhow since I've had it I've upgraded my Pro-Comp shocks to Fox w/ rezzie, added Airlift system to help with pulling my toybox and also added a rear Hellwig swaybar. I have since come upon this site and this post regarding radius rods. I don't know what they are or how they mount, but I want some. My X wanders a bit and since I have a 6" lift with blocks in the rear, I have a little bit of axle-wrap when I get on the go pedal to hard.
Are these radius rods still available? Cost? Shipping to Cali? Can they be used with airbags? The airbag installation required the removal of the jounce bumber but I still have the block with the "wing" on it in the rear. Can they be used on a lifted X?
Thanks for any info.
BigStrokerX |
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LANDYOT
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• Subscriber since 11/23/2003 |
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• Newport News, VA, USA |
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• Registered on 7/15/2003 |
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• 1,110 posts |
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Posted:12/23/2004 19:25 |
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BigStrokerX - Check your mailbox. BTW, welcome to the forum!!!  |
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LANDYOT
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• Subscriber since 11/23/2003 |
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• Newport News, VA, USA |
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• Registered on 7/15/2003 |
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• 1,110 posts |
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Posted:12/31/2004 17:39 |
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 I just finished sending notices to those folks on my "to be contacted later" list. Guess what? It's now later ... meaning I am ready to start receiving requests again for the radius-rods. Hope y'all have a safe and Happy New Year! |
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powrby4d
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• Raleigh, NC, USA |
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• Registered on 12/27/2004 |
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• 3 posts |
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Posted:1/1/2005 00:25 |
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Hi there Landyot. Just got my '03 EB Excursion V10 and immediately noticed the symptoms I have read about here (i.e. shimmy/loss of control over bumps, need to constantly correct steering, etc.). Looking the suspension it does seem reasonable that a big truck like that might suffer from those high blocks with nothing but leaf springs to locate the axle. I have read much about your radius rods in this forum - if you can send me the details of what it takes to install them I would appreciate it. The part I saw about cutting out stock pieces sounds a bit bothersome and perhaps unwise.
Thanks!
2003 Excursion EB V10 |
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LANDYOT
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• Subscriber since 11/23/2003 |
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• Newport News, VA, USA |
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• Registered on 7/15/2003 |
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• 1,110 posts |
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Posted:1/1/2005 09:24 |
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| Quote: | | - if you can send me the details of what it takes to install them I would appreciate it. |
Welcome to the forum, and you picked a great username (powrby4d). I cannot send the info to you through this website's e-mail router, and I cannot see your e-mail address. But I can send it to you via reply e-mail if you'll click my username and send me an e-mail. BTW, congrats on your new acquisition. |
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85MH325
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• Eastern, IA, USA |
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• Registered on 3/20/2004 |
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• 54 posts |
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Posted:1/2/2005 16:50 |
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Ken, finally got them installed and completed a 400 mile round trip. In the words of Garth from "Wayne's World": "most excellent dude!"
I second for the umpteenth time all of the claims made in the forty pages above! These things are great.
Thanks again, Ken!
Roger |
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LANDYOT
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• Subscriber since 11/23/2003 |
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• Newport News, VA, USA |
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• Registered on 7/15/2003 |
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• 1,110 posts |
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Posted:1/13/2005 19:21 |
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| Quote: | | I just finished sending notices to those folks on my "to be contacted later" list. Guess what? It's now later ... meaning I am ready to start receiving requests again for the radius-rods. Hope y'all have a safe and Happy New Year! |
If anyone else misunderstood what I said above on 12/31/04, please allow me to be a tad bit more clear ... I am now making them again.  
I've received a couple e-mails from folks who weren't certain. On the other hand, they may not bother to keep up with all the posts in this thread. |
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