Anyone running rear helper air springs on their rig?

[stevezero]

You wont need to run your bags at 25psi all the time.....i keep mine at 12 or less.... still provides support, but keeps the cushy ride. I up the pressure on mine when I have a heavy load....

I was unable to unbolt one of my bumpstops(was frozen more than the polar ice cap), so i ended up cutting them off at the top ring. That yielded about 1 inch of "lift"....Air lift sells "pucks" that you can use for a slight increase in height....serves the same purpose. I need to purchase a set of slee front coil poly spacers to level the truck out. Very much like a poor mans stock height lift.

Replacement bags are $10.00 plus shipping. I had a cut in a bag about a year ago. I want to redo my lines, and should have enough hose to get to the tank door. I have them going into the compartment where the jack/tool kit is.

 

[98 SNAKE EATER]

for 80 bucks I bet you install a set on the front

Gunna contact AirLift today and see if there's a kit available for the front

You wont need to run your bags at 25psi all the time.....i keep mine at 12 or less.... still provides support, but keeps the cushy ride. I up the pressure on mine when I have a heavy load....

I was unable to unbolt one of my bumpstops(was frozen more than the polar ice cap), so i ended up cutting them off at the top ring. That yielded about 1 inch of "lift"....Air lift sells "pucks" that you can use for a slight increase in height....serves the same purpose. I need to purchase a set of slee front coil poly spacers to level the truck out. Very much like a poor mans stock height lift.

Replacement bags are $10.00 plus shipping. I had a cut in a bag about a year ago. I want to redo my lines, and should have enough hose to get to the tank door. I have them going into the compartment where the jack/tool kit is.

I just kept it at 25psi overnight as per the instructions, however, I had set it to 25psi in the air

After I lowered the lift, I didn't check it again and just left it like that until a few minutes ago..

When I checked, they were both at exactly 29.5psi

I just dropped them to 15psi and the rear is still slightly higher than the front

Both of my bumpstop bolts were ultratight and the right one snapped just flush with the high hat


With the $10 replacement bags, would I need to send in the old bags

Cause if that's the price they're selling outright, then Summit ripped me a new one

As for the lines, the supplied line was more than enough to route to the filler with about 3 feet leftover (I stuffed the rest within the chassis)

 

[ed97fzj80]

For folks like me who like a level stance and only occasionally run loaded or tow, that seems like a really easy and fairly inexpensive way to make the compromise. Nice job of documenting the installation, too.

 

[Ebag333]

Gunna contact AirLift today and see if there's a kit available for the front

Browsing around I've seen this. It's almost double the cost, but looks like it'd take the place of the axle bump stops.

Is there a reason why you couldn't run the air bags in the front? Is the front spring a different diameter?

 

[stevezero]

The bag I replaced was $10.00 plus shipping.....Worked out to be 20.00 or so shipped...I didnt have to send my old bag back to them (of course it was out of warranty by about a month). I think normally they are more, but since she couldnt do a warranty replacement, she cut me a break on the price(supposedly).

I didnt drill out my holes for the air lines.

Sumotoy did an airbag install on the front of his rig. I think he used the airlift kit for a ford econoline van. It still required a bit of work for him. But he seemed to have liked it after he finished.....Theres a thread on here somewhere where he detailed the install.

 

[Cattledog]

Very nice install!

Airbags are not ideal for offroading. I would not bother to install in the front. The point of a spring lift is the longer springs, the springs increase articulation not just raising the truck. Highly inflated Airbags will make articulation worse not better.

But if you just want the truck to sit higher, ride like a board, and screw up the caster too, install them in the front and add 25 psi.....

 

[concretejungle]

That's a great install man!! Every job i've read about that you do is top shelf work. Now if you had a york onboard air you could fill them anytime, anyplace.

 

[98 SNAKE EATER]

Well, at 15psi, she's still about an inch high in the rear...

I left her that way cause I'm taking the bike to the shop an expected her to drop a little with the trailer attached, but after hooking her up, the height didn't even budge

Gunna see what happens later on when I load the golf cart

That's a great install man!! Every job i've read about that you do is top shelf work. Now if you had a york onboard air you could fill them anytime, anyplace.

Thanx, but there's no need for a York when you've got this

On a sidenote, the bags fill so quickly and easily that I might just carry a bike pump cause an airtank filled with 150psi+ could mean disaster if the air chuck got stuck

 

[Ebag333]

A thought occurs to me...

What do you think is the risk of the hose that goes through the lower mount wearing and leaking over time? Is there a gasket or something wrapped around it to prevent that?

 

[98 SNAKE EATER]

A thought occurs to me...

What do you think is the risk of the hose that goes through the lower mount wearing and leaking over time? Is there a gasket or something wrapped around it to prevent that?

Well, once the bag is seated, there isn't any movement at the nozzle and even if there was, there's nothing for it to rub against, so I'm guessing the risk of failure at the tubing connection is slim and none

I wrapped the tubing in plastic loom mainly for the sharp edges in the chassis where I routed it, but there was no need to loom around the connections themselves as they're already well protected by the hollow spring seat

 

[ddorsch]

well documented install.I was thinking of doing that myself.


Dave

 

[sandcruiser]

Great write up SnakeEater, thanks!

harbor freight has some $15 digital pressure regulators http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=98426 .
You could install those inline, then you could set it N forget it, assuming you connect to your tank up top. Might require figuring out a way to run power or the battery might die frequently. Not sure.

Would be slick.

They've also got some manual knob-style regulators

 

[CactusCruiser]

Primo write-up SnakeEater! Ordered a set of bags and just completed the install last weekend. Actually took my laptop out to the garage and used your tips and pics in addition to the included instructions. Couldn't have been any easier.

Hardest part was jacking my truck up high enough while in the garage in order to get jack-stand under the frame then allowing the rear axel to extend low enough to remove the springs. Ended up removeing the wheels to accomplish this.

One concern I had after the bags were installed and inflated was the fact that original hole in the lower spring perches is not centered (IIRC it is offset towards the front of the truck) and even though I (who is also very anal when it comes to directions) enlarged the hole to 3/4" it seems that the stem makes contact w/ the side of the opening. After your bags had settled into position do you seem to have adequate stem clearance?

Also, what prompted you to use 2 separate supply lines instead of a tee?

Cheers!

 

[98 SNAKE EATER]

One concern I had after the bags were installed and inflated was the fact that original hole in the lower spring perches is not centered (IIRC it is offset towards the front of the truck) and even though I (who is also very anal when it comes to directions) enlarged the hole to 3/4" it seems that the stem makes contact w/ the side of the opening. After your bags had settled into position do you seem to have adequate stem clearance?

I'm actually glad you brought this up

My valve stems do touch due to the small amount of clearance between the mount and the axle tube, but I have yet to have any problems

I installed a pair of Slee 1.5" aluminum spacers not too long ago and when I removed the springs and bags, I noticed the valves were slightly kinked to the side

No leaks at all, but having them angled like that just doesn't sit well with me, so I plan on adding a pair of bag spacers under each bag to allow the valves to sit straight

AirLift actually sells them as an accessory, but I plan on making my own by drilling a pair of hockey pucks

Also, what prompted you to use 2 separate supply lines instead of a tee?

Cheers!

The problem with the T-fitting is that the air is shared between both bags....

When cornering (or flexing), the air from the bag being compressed is forced into the other bag, making it unstable

Also, my rig isn't evenly weighted, so depending on how my gear is packed, I adjust the pressure independantly to even out the dreaded Cruiser lean (usually about 3-5psi more on the left side when towing)



Rick

 

[SUMOTOY]

I'm actually glad you brought this up

My valve stems do touch due to the small amount of clearance between the mount and the axle tube, but I have yet to have any problems

I installed a pair of Slee 1.5" aluminum spacers not too long ago and when I removed the springs and bags, I noticed the valves were slightly kinked to the side

No leaks at all, but having them angled like that just doesn't sit well with me, so I plan on adding a pair of bag spacers under each bag to allow the valves to sit straight

AirLift actually sells them as an accessory, but I plan on making my own by drilling a pair of hockey pucks



The problem with the T-fitting is that the air is shared between both bags....

When cornering (or flexing), the air from the bag being compressed is forced into the other bag, making it unstable

Also, my rig isn't evenly weighted, so depending on how my gear is packed, I adjust the pressure independantly to even out the dreaded Cruiser lean (usually about 3-5psi more on the left side when towing)



Rick

Rick:
Good write-up of the install and followup. I'm about 3 years on mine front and rear, here's my .02... I opened up the rear air valve opening to 3/4" and don't have bent fittings on the rear. I ran the lines in front out the top (strange to note, one side from the ToyFactory had a hole drilled the other didn't), and also have had no issues.

I read several posts on a variety of forums regarding independent bag air. For weight corner load correction they work well. I went with a long techie post some guy wrote up on another forum that basically claimed the cornering issues really have no effect. I T'd mine in pairs both front and rear and didn't notice any odd handling behavior, even with thousands of miles with 5000lb+ trailer loads.

I did use some ford van application for the fronts after giving Air Lift the airbag dimensions I was looking for. Pretty sure I put that in my post. I will say when I did the front bag dimension, I shortened the effective range to 1" up down, vs the 2" Air lift gives for the rear. I was looking for more effective spring rate the shorter stroke of the bag allowed for higher pressures in the bag without the lift.

For normal day to day driving I run 6psi in the rear, and can only think of a couple times running 25psi, as that is a lot of axle weight! Even with the tandem axle trailers, I rarely exceeded 20psi.

I like the fuel door line routing, and wish I had done that for the rear, but that's a long set of lines for the front! I mounted mine by the trailer hitch in the rear, and on the TJM bumper in the front. The key I was told by Air Lift Tech dept was to make sure you keep the schrader valve caps on. And their suggestion was to use a bike pump for the bags.

With 3 years installed, I have not had to service the bags at all. WRT your hockey puck idea, I'm pretty sure the Air Lift spacers are larger diameter, (I'll measure today), but otherwise that should work. I only used them in the front, and I zip tied the spacers to the perch to prevent movement on an unloaded axle, and have had no issues.

IMO/E this is an excellent addition to a work truck. BTW, for offroading, you can totally deflate the bags to allow full axle articulation. Also would note, in the front I just fully unloaded the axle, and squeezed the bag between the spring coils in situ.I didn't try that in the rear, but suspect you could do it there too....

HTH and my .02

Scott J
94 FZJ80 Supercharged

 

[98 SNAKE EATER]

Scott, I just found your threads (why couldn't I find them before???)


I had made countless inquires to AirLift, Firestone and other airbag companies and they all came back with the same results (nuthin for the front)


What Ford bags did you use? (P/N)


I originally wanted bags up front, but ended up going with a pair of 2" Metal Tech spacers after the winch install sucked the front end down

 

[SUMOTOY]

Scott, I just found your threads (why couldn't I find them before???)
I had made countless inquires to AirLift, Firestone and other airbag companies and they all came back with the same results (nuthin for the front)
What Ford bags did you use? (P/N)
I originally wanted bags up front, but ended up going with a pair of 2" Metal Tech spacers after the winch install sucked the front end down

Rick
I guess it was 4 years ago... My install notes, including part numbers used can be found here:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/52803-fzj80-f-r-airbag-install-procedure-long.html

My goal in the front was *not* to increase the ride height, just have higher effective spring rate to account for the TJM bumper (and possible winch addition). So I actually went 1" shorter on the spec inquiring for the application bag, and still used the spacers included in the ford kit. This allows higher pressure in the front bags without the 2in rise in height the rears get.

IMO/E one of the best mods I've done, and it's lasted much longer than I ever expected, given the abuse I've put them through.

<edit> BTW, just measured the front AirLift spacers... The Airlift spacers are 4in in diameter, the Official NHL hockey pucks I use as footrests for my home audio amps measure 3in diameter. If you follow my install in the link above, the 4in spacer fits perfectly inside the trimmed upper spring perch. The original 4 year old zip ties are still holding them in place. As a born redwings fan living in Chicago for the last 25 years, I like the coincidental suggestion, I just think that land area is a bit small for the bag app I used above <edit>

Cheers

Scott J
94 FZJ Supercharged
Airlift x 4

 

[sandcruiser]

You could buy a little pop-valve for the lines. I'd bet McMaster-Carr carries something that will pop @ 40 psi. Which is higher than the 35 max that you might want to run, but provides a safety margin.

On a sidenote, the bags fill so quickly and easily that I might just carry a bike pump cause an airtank filled with 150psi+ could mean disaster if the air chuck got stuck

 

[Marco7]

Scott, Rick or anyone running air bags on all 4,
Has your everyday on-road ride quality(ie: like over potholes) improved dramatically than w/o the bags?

 

[Marco7]

Anyone?