30 lb vs 40lb struts

B

Beach

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2013
Messages
867
Can't find the suspa C16-22241 30 lb struts on amazon and I don't want to pay big bucks for them, several sources on amazon for the C16-15952 40 lb. FWC chart lists 40 front and 30 rear for my hawk with 1 solar panel, so question is; is there an issue getting the roof down if I use 40 lb front and rear. Sometimes there will be 1 or 2 surfboards on the racks also.
 
Beach said:
Can't find the suspa C16-22241 30 lb struts on amazon and I don't want to pay big bucks for them, several sources on amazon for the C16-15952 40 lb. FWC chart lists 40 front and 30 rear for my hawk with 1 solar panel, so question is; is there an issue getting the roof down if I use 40 lb front and rear. Sometimes there will be 1 or 2 surfboards on the racks also.
Click to expand...
Beach try to order them from the Suspa co.
I did that and ordered the mounting brackets also.
I think my struts were $30 each.
I used the #C16-15952 #40
Frank
 
Hello there Beach,
I have had four 30 lb struts on for 5 years. I have a 160 watt panel on Yakima tracks which I also use with bars for our 2 canoes. I have a rack at the back which holds the two sand mats for getting out of holes!. I decided to get the 40 pound ones and will be putting them on in a few weeks. The 30 lb ones are Suspa. The new 40 lb ones are from the Canadian co. listed in the other thread. I never lift the roof with the boats on (total 58 lbs) always slide them off at camp site. That said I'd wanted a bit more lift assistance so I got the 40's.
Remember...if you feel you have to pull the roof down....don't. Just close the door open the roof vent and put it on exhaust.... it will come down on its own.
 
I just found my original 30 lbs, 36" long gas struts.
i was wondering where they were.
Used them one season, then went to stronger gas struts.
Still hard to compress by hand/arm muscles.
Open/closed about 50 cycles or so, a little dirty, they should clean up or repaint-able.

If you want them they could be yours for FREE, plus the cost of shipping.
Which beach do you live on?
For an idea of how much shipping would be.
Send me a Private Message if you're interested.
 
This thread makes me curious...;

I bought my Granby new in 2016 with no solar. This year I had solar installed (1 x 160 panel) and the effort to lift the roof is surprisingly noticeable.

Would this mean I probably received my Granby with 30 pound struts and now with solar I should go to 40 ?
 
I have the same question for my 2016 Grandby. The front struts is labeled as 40 lbs, but the rear struts are not labeled. I called FWC, left message but have not heard back. I probably will upgrade to 40 lbs in the rear to give my shoulders a break.
 
I will say I went from none to the thirty pound struts and it was great...then I put a 160 W solar panel and a rack with sand mats and went to forty pound struts ...wow ...back to wonderful again.
 
I have a Grandby with solar and Maxxtrax mounted up top. I just replaced the 30 lb struts with 40s. Much easier up after the initial push and I love the way they come down smooth and slow with just a little help at the beginning. Very happy I did it and so is my back!
 
If there is anyone who would like free (you pay shipping) I have the 40 inch (Fleet, Eagle) 30 pound struts (4) if anyone wants them. They are 5 years old and work fine. Just send me a PM and I'll send them out.
GONE to AK!
 
I installed 40lb struts all around to compensate for (2) 100w rigid solar panels on the roof, which was a bear to open in the front. Now, surprisingly the rear, which has little weight, opens and closes very nicely while the front which carries the solar load, lifts open by itself and requires exhausting the fan and a little pulling to get the roof down. Must this be a consequence of strut geometry? Seems strange I would need to get lower rated struts for the front when thats where all the weight is.

full

full
 
I'm no wizard on this but I own an Eagle which requires 40" long struts as opposed to 36". (I used to have 30 now 40 pound lifters) That added length does change the lift dynamics as the first push up requires a bit of work as the struts are at an acute angle having very little lifting power....as they become more upright the lift power increases rapidly. Likewise the pull down has more resistance at the start and less so as it drops. Getting the fan to get more pull is good. I certainly would not complain about "opening by itself"!
 
Good timing for this thread. When I ordered my 2017 Fleet I didn't go with the FWC solar setup and did it on my own. I checked with the dealer and he said they would put the heavier struts on my camper since I was going to add panels. I'm not convinced that they did. It is a bit of a grunt to lift the top.

How can you tell which struts you have? Can someone point me to a source to determine which struts I have from the model number. Is 40 lbs. the strongest recommended?
 
It's not the opening by itself so much that bothers me, its that when I lower the front from inside it won't stay down long enough for me to get to the front latches before its popped up again.
 
Most struts will have the rating printed on the strut body. You might need to remove them to see the info.
 
Beach said:
Most struts will have the rating printed on the strut body. You might need to remove them to see the info.
Click to expand...
Ah, I found it on one of the struts that was turned the right way. It is a Suspa C16-32561 16/37. I assume that means 37 lbs, which people are referring to as the 40 pounders.
 
The bodies twist to read into.
So to be clear.... you close the front....then close the back.... then get out and the roof open in the front again by itself?

You need to go to the suspa site and put in the #.
 
Close the front with fan and windows/doors closed, go out and secure the front latches, then come back in and lower the rear. If I lower the front and then the rear the front pops up again. It's not a big problem, just strange that the front with two solar panels lifts itself while the rear with no weight acts normal. Guess I will get another solar panel for the front :p
 
Never heard of that happening. I’d leave fan on .... open rear door and put the back down. Then go out and latch. If it is opening itself in the front something is not right with the struts.... if there is room for another panel up front and you have a big enough controller to handle the charge to battery I’d definitely go that route.
 
Good day my WanderTheWest Four Wheel Campers friends.

I have a Project M that has 30LB struts and it is difficult to raise the roof. I just put a couple of solar panels on the roof and now the roof is even more difficult and comes down very fast in the front. I'd almost call it slams down on the front and the rear is not all that much better.

I currently have Suspa part number C160-22241 30LB struts.

Does anyone have a part number for the 40LB struts? Based on this thread, I went ahead and ordered Suspa part number C16-15952 35 from Amazon. Is there a better part number?

Thanks.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads - WTW

B
Wanted: 4WC Roof Struts
superduty
S
C
Gas lift assist strut part number for 2018 Fleet
2
marmotguy
M
B
**Sold** 2017 FWC Hawk and Ram 2500 for sale
damonhowatt
D
Lighthawk
2008 Hawk for sale
AWG_Pics
AWG_Pics
D
FOR SALE: FWC Fleet front dinette
ski3pin
ski3pin

New posts - WTW

Back
Top Bottom