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Lowering 202 Tradesmen

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BobcatBob

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I bought a new to me tradesmen when I went to hook up my gooseneck horse trailer the bed is too tall I can’t level the trailer. After a lot of measurements it looks like I need. 2 1/2” drop in the rear and 1 1/2” in the front so my truck and trailer will ride level.. anyone have a good fix?
I can get the springs made and I guess trim the bump stops. Will I need other parts as well? Don’t know what to do.
Thanks in advance
 
Did that with Dexter 2 5/8” kit.
My tailgate is 59” high with 11” between tire and top of wheel well
 
What are the details of the truck? Year? 4x4? 2500?
 
Do you have any adjustment in the GN coupler?

You may have to lift the trailer the 2.5” how are the axles on the trailer are they torsion or spring? If springs are the axle tubes above or below the springs?

what truck?
 
I put a 2-5/8” lift on the trailer and am looking into 16” wheels and tires.
It is a 2021 Ram Tradesmen 4x4 2500HD
Coil springs front and rear
20” factory wheels there is a full 11” between tire and bottom of well
 
The coil sprung 4x4 2500’s are the tallest of the HD lineup. They also have the softest springs, which is why they are so tall. They sag quickly under load and 1500lbs would likely get you close to the 2” you want. What is your pin weight loaded?

You may be able to swap the springs out for 2wd springs. The rear would drop 1.8”.

I don’t know if the front 2wd springs will work or not, but that would be a 2” drop.
 
I guessing pin wt to be 700 to 800
It drops the truck 1.5” when I hook it up I need another 2.5” to get a least 6” between top of gate and bottom of gooseneck. If that happens the trailer will be level but the truck will be 1.25” too high up front…
 
That is one low trailer, and it’s been lifted.

What did you pull it with before?
 
2011 F350 single rear wheel the gooseneck is 61” off the ground when it sits level.
The truck is tailgate is close to 69” with sn 11” gap above the rear tire to the top of fender well..
 
That’s the normal height for a 2500. The 11” is there to allow for the suspension to sag under load.

A 3500 with air-suspension would be about 2” lower normally and 3” in ALT, and the lowest a 4wd HD SRW Ram sits. My truck in ALT is still level front to rear and the fronts of our trucks are the same. You should be able to drop 3” in the rear and stay level. The 2WD springs should do that. You may want airbags to not sag more than 3” from your current empty height thou.

Did you just lift the trailer? Or lift it for the Ford?

Ford specs show the tailgate height at 57.7”-58.5” depending on the cab/bed configuration. Meaning the 1.8” lower 2wd springs should put you about where the F-350 was.

While the 2WD trucks do use a moonbeam axle and a similar suspension the steering setup is different, which makes me think the 4wd steering won’t allow you to lower the front, but that’s just a guess.
 
On the Ford the trailer was pretty good. I leveled it for the Ram. I got a price for custom made spring to lower me 2.5” and have the same spring rate. Do you know if I need to change any other parts or just the springs?
 
Since you lifted the trailer 2 5/8” I’m surprised it’s not riding like it was with the Ford. The heights should be pretty similar.

I’d presume shocks are needed. You can look at parts diagrams to see if anything else is different 2wd vs 4wd, as you’re essentially lowering to 2wd height.

I do think you will run into clearance issues lowering the front thou.
 
You would need 2wd trac bar aswell i also believe the 2wd has different bump stops aswell…

I would personally modify the trailer not the truck. Thats what i have done for all my trailers. Its a lot cheaper easier and better in my opinion
 
As far as the back and lowering it I have looked into Timber Groves airbags. They have a couple of lowering kits that replaces the rear coils with their airbag set up. The 1.5 inch drop is around 1,000 with manual fill. They have compressor units to add just more money. They have good reviews too. To my understanding it’s pretty much just a easy swap and they boast better load limits. You might check them out.
 
H3LZSN1P3R said:
You would need 2wd trac bar aswell i also believe the 2wd has different bump stops aswell…

I would personally modify the trailer not the truck. Thats what i have done for all my trailers. Its a lot cheaper easier and better in my opinion
Click to expand...

I am going to guess sway bar end links and shocks too. Possibly control arms as they are fairly short.

I could see lowering the rear of the truck a little, but I would not modify the front at all.
 
BobcatBob said:
I put a 2-5/8” lift on the trailer and am looking into 16” wheels and tires.
It is a 2021 Ram Tradesmen 4x4 2500HD
Coil springs front and rear
20” factory wheels there is a full 11” between tire and bottom of well
Click to expand...
If you decide to do 16” trailer wheels, let me know. I put 17.5’s on my 380FL and still have the 4 original aluminum wheels and tires, ( about 1800 miles on them )2 more matching aluminum wheels and the new spare
with tire on it. I’d let all 7 pieces go for 1500.
 
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