corner steadies Forums

dodger148

When we had the VW T4 we tended to use the corner steadies when on firm ground, didnt make much difference on soft !
Since we have had the Boxer we havnt used,, I put it down to the rear leaf springs instead of the VWs coil.
The Corner Steadies on our van are welded to the towbar and act as a support for my [i:bff93c2cf9]SpareLine
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steadyeddie

arthur has steadies and it does make a difference but it depends on how you will use your van - if you are wildcamping it is probably b est not to use them just in case you need to move quick Rolling Eyes

if on site it depends how much you intend to move! Confused

Brambles

Hi all,
Go on let me throw in my tuppence worth as well.

I too had a lot of swaying on my 1st night - then I checked my tyre pressures which is opening another can of worms as to what it should be.
After inflating the tyres to the 'correct' pressure the swaying was remarkably reduced.

I have actually fitted steadies, the vertical wind down type and it does make a difference but to be honest any swaying does not bother me, but my wife prefers them down. However it is very useful to get that final micro adjustment for levelling. Do not expect steadies to make your van rock solid, they just don't. I would only fit steadies to the chassis and not the wooden floor. Just think of the damage if you were to drive off. Also if a wheel was to sink in mud you could put tremendous strain on the wooded floor.

To remind me they are down I sling the winding handle in front of the driving pedals as a reminder.

Jon.

Dudger

Very "After the fact" with this response - however
The thing with any corner steady (Especially if retrofitted) is that it should be weaker than the Chasis its fixed to - this is the case with caravan ones, and it applies to motorhomes too due to the added risk of driving off with them down. They are steadies as long as you dont wind them past the suspension range of the vehicle (Including when its blown by the wind) - any more and they become structural supports and should bend/break before damaging the mount. If they are correctly mounted to the van floor then they must be so weak as to not be worth while - hence i would guess they have been retrofitted in error.
It is possible to mount very strong units to all four corners of a beamed/ladder chasis and actually lift the vehicle for levelling - this is sometimes done on self builds. However the problem arises that in strong winds something has to give so either the van tips over or the steadies dig holes in the ground, or your van collapses Shocked

So at the end of the day if you decide u want to use em - check that they are correctly mounted, appropriate strength, and wind em in during a gale. Very Happy

Dave.
PS maybe didnt make it clear that the suspension is what allows a van to stay upright during severe winds, due to it 'giving' and damping the sway - exactly like when driving. - removing the suspension with steadies can be a problem.

Anonymous

I remember seeing my corner steadies when I boight the M/H acouple of years ago, never looked for them since.

KEN

jabber

Hi Ken,

I know the problem. Have you tried 'Specsavers'.

John Wink

Anonymous

I can't find them either, I wonder why?

Ken

bigfoot

I bought a pair of axle stands from Lidl for under a tenner.
I use them on my Hymer on a Ducato chassis. 2 pieces od marine ply prevent sinking in soft ground.
My wife's cousin, a former aircraft engineer invented a powered system which was fitted to all 4 corners of his Bedford CF and when you powered them up they would level themselves.
He sadly died about 23 years ago when I was still using my Carawagon.
He did licence the patent but I don't know to whom, his name was Mervyn Williams, maybe a trace on tinternet will help.

hammy96

We have had corner steadies on the last three vans we have had and do find that they stop the movement when walking about we also use a heavy duty motor cycle chain on each one for added security some thing else for the would be thief to think about
John Rolling Eyes