WORK TRUCK SHOW -- SAF Holland has a new steerable lift axle, the Neway LSZ, that features a compact mounting, fast deployment and retracting times, and angled air bags for greater stability on dump, mixer, block and other vocational trucks.

“We’ve reinvented the 13.5K lift axle,” declared Kevin Motz, a product marketing manager, in presenting the 13,500-pound capacity product Wednesday to reporters at the NTEA Work Truck Show in Indianapolis.

Its mounting package is 17.5 inches long, 4 to 10 inches shorter than existing lift axles, he said, while explaining that “package size” describes the area from the front of the frame mounting bracket to the center of the axle.

A pair of “super chambers” lower or raise the axle in just 4 seconds, and does so more reliably than the air bags used by competitor lift axles, Motz said. A super chamber looks like a stacked pair of air-brake chambers, and in fact combines features of spring- and service-brake chambers, he added.

The super chambers provide 6,000 pounds of lift on each side of the axle, and 11 inches of total up- or downward movement.

Two suspension air bags near the axle ends are angled inward from bottom to top mounts, which resists lateral forces during cornering and running on uneven surfaces.

Spherical bearings are used at kingpins, which eliminate thrust bearings that often require shimming and reaming. This cuts maintenance requirements, Motz said. A parallelogram design maintains precise steering geometry for good handling and control, and minimizes tire-tread wear.

The Neway LSZ weighs 747 pounds with brakes but without hubs and drums. It is now available through SAF Holland distributors.