41',43' LXi Gross Axle Weight Ratings

[pgchin]

I think is is a good thing (excellent thread idea here) that people are aware of their axle ratings, tires, rims, etc. You cannot be too careful! Most people run in the warmer months so road temps are higher, etc. With that said here are some practical suggestions that will assist newer owners in weight management:
1) IF you carry more "junk" in storage, THEN run 1/2-2/3 full fuel, .....this item alone will afford you more weight. Me I run "no junk" and ship everything home, but that's just me!
2) Weigh your coach every year with full fuel, and 30-50 gallons of water combined in all 3 tanks, try to run with no more than 100 gallons combined in all tanks at all times. I realize for boondocking, etc you will not be able to do this so for every gallon / 7lbs you have run over 100, try to remove fuel or junk weight to compensate, use the toad to offload the must bring junk! a good time is the start of the very first trip of the season with food, clothes,etc.
3) Inspect and grease the front end annually, check king pins, steering linkages, ball joints, tie rod ends,etc. Replace tie rod ends after 10-15 years, they take a lot of the stress in i-beam systems, they are easy to get, and are not very expensive, its good preventive maintenance. Replace anything else above if they are out of specification.
4) Manage your tires age and air pressures. I am NOT going to say anything else about tires..... or the HUGE Ukeleles will start playing! All I am going to say is to go the the tire manufacturer website and download the tirebooks and follow THEIR recommendations! Every tire belt package is different so there really is no common rules, for instance 12r g149's run a 4 ply steel belt package and the run temps are 10-15 degrees higher then a 12r xze with synthetic belt packages. Rubber compounds are designed differently for each belt package system, no two are alike, etc.
5) I-beams have been around for a LONG time, they are tough, take abuse and usually well underrated, so if you watch tie rods, tires, rims, etc and pay attention to your birdies weight and practice weight management on every leg of your journey, you will reduce the chances of front end failure. Most of all, if the road temps are High, slow down, I run about 62 most no matter what. My OO must have broke the s60 in at that speed because it just loves it from a fuel mileage and all around performance perspective. Obviously yours will vary but higher speeds, higher tire temps, get an IR temp gun and measure temp at the tire shoulder when you stop! it takes 5 minutes and we have to stop every 2-3 hours anyway for the 2- 4 legged dogs AND the old 2 legged dog driving!!!!-ummm yes me!

Update, David, I just saw your comment about the "bottle" in the next post! I was drinking tea when reading and almost gave the laptop a tea bath from laughing so hard!!!!!!! So funny!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!!! It reminded me of a story about when I was 4-5 years old driving around with my Dad in his 52 Buick straight eight. I had to "tinkle" every 10 minutes so he finally got tired of stopping, gave me a bottle with a screw top and told me to go in the back seat and use it,and WATCH my aim!!!!! TOOO funny, thanks for the memory triggers!