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> Air Bags & Shock Suggestions

KenC
post Oct 29 2009, 06:16 PM
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Member No.: 3,037
Favorite Truck Camper(s): sun valley
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: F250
Type of Tiedowns used: Torklift
Truck and Camper Setup: 2004 Sun-Lite Eagle WT on 2005 Ford F250



Howdy all. I have a Sun Valley Popup TC on an F250 (1700 lbs). Everything rides OK, but after as cross country trip from VA to AK have decided to purchase some air bags and shocks to lift some and steady the ride. Looking for suggestions from the worthy forum participants as to what brands have worked best and are quality/reliable.
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garbinator
post Oct 30 2009, 01:43 AM
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Favorite Truck Camper(s): Lance
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: 3500 GMC Dually 4X4 Crew Cab DuraMax w/6sp variable Allison
Type of Tiedowns used: Happijac, Altec power jacks
Truck and Camper Setup: Lance Legend 990 fully loaded series, Electric Jacks, Air Bags, heavy duty torsion bar, Titan extend-a-hitch, .357 Mag Marlin Lever Action (Cowboy rifle) for camper defense. Bose Acoustic Wave Machine to Ez the nights away...



QUOTE(KenC @ Oct 29 2009, 04:16 PM)
Howdy all.  I have a Sun Valley Popup TC on an F250 (1700 lbs).  Everything rides OK, but after as cross country trip from VA to AK have decided to purchase some air bags and shocks to lift some and steady the ride.  Looking for suggestions from the worthy forum participants as to what brands have worked best and are quality/reliable.
*



Firestones or air rides. both will eventually leak in time... mostly at hose connection points with age. I use a small portable air unit to add air. You may only require 35lbs is all for that particular load.

Experiment.

Never tried them myself, but supposedly Rancho 9000 air adjustable shocks are very good. If you wish to go fancy they offer an air pump built in allowing you to adjust shocks according to road conditions.

Biggest problem noted is user's over inflating them causing the seals to blow. Not a good thing I suppose. biggrin.gif
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truckmaniac
post Oct 30 2009, 04:59 PM
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Favorite Truck Camper(s): 2008 Arctic Fox 1150
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: 2008 Ford F350 King Ranch Dually Crew Cab 4x4
Type of Tiedowns used: Torklift
Truck and Camper Setup: 2008 Ford F350 Dually with Firestone Airbags, Rancho RS9000XL adjustable shocks,Torklifts, Fast Guns, Factory Class 5 hitch, Reese 41" extension to tow my Ranger Z21 bass boat and of course the 2008 Arctic Fox 1150 Dry Bath with Generator.



QUOTE(KenC @ Oct 29 2009, 06:16 PM)
Howdy all.  I have a Sun Valley Popup TC on an F250 (1700 lbs).  Everything rides OK, but after as cross country trip from VA to AK have decided to purchase some air bags and shocks to lift some and steady the ride.  Looking for suggestions from the worthy forum participants as to what brands have worked best and are quality/reliable.
*



I've used both the Air-Lift and Firestone air bags. Both were easy to install and work equally well. I'd let price dictate my choice not the name.

My pick for the best truck camper shock would be the Rancho RS9000XL series. I've used them on 3 different trucks and they can't be beat, in my opinion. These shocks are not "air" shocks, but are adjustable via a control knob on the shock that changes the dampening in the shocks via valving. You can buy an in-cab adjustment feature from Rancho called "MyRide", which uses air pressure to change the shock dampening in lieu of manually turning the control knob. I don't believe (and I may be wrong) that the MyRide is actually "airing-up" the shocks. I bought this system for my 2008 Ford Super Duty diesel and there is not a place in the engine compartment (super crowded) to mount the air compressor or wireless receiver that comes with the MyRide. Plus, I got to thinking about more hoses and fittings (possibility of air leaks) and sold the thing on Ebay. I decided I wasn't too old or lazy to get under the truck and turn the knobs.

My current rig is a 2008 F350 4x4 dually with an Arctic Fox 1150. The air bags were a must considering my camper weighs 4,500#s, but the truck would sway in cross winds or when an oncoming 18 wheeler passed, due to the factory shocks, which are almost new (only 15k miles on the truck) not properly controlling the load. On went the Rancho RS9000XL's, set the rears to 8 and the fronts to 7 and the sway is gone and the ride is much more controlled.

The Cheapest place for Ranchos = www.tsetruckstuff.com

You'll have to shop around for the best price on the airbags.
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Newenglander
post Nov 8 2009, 07:10 PM
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Favorite Truck Camper(s): None
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: Ford F-150 Super Cab
Type of Tiedowns used: None
Truck and Camper Setup: Apache Warrior, Rancho 9000XL Shocks



I have an even smaller Sun Valley Pop-up which I'm going to put on something about the size of an F150. I was told I could just attach something called a leaf assist over the existing leaf springs and that would give me the added strength I wanted. Has anyone used these?
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bikepsych
post Jun 29 2014, 10:37 PM
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Favorite Truck Camper(s): Adventurer
Type and Brand of Truck(s) Owned: 2013 Ford F250 Diesel
Type of Tiedowns used: Happijac with remote
Truck and Camper Setup: Currently stock F250 diesel with Adventurer 89RB camper fully loaded. Happijac Tiedowns.



I'll be adding SuperSprings SwayStops this week. I understand it should help considerably. Will provide a report once they're in.
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KY_Campers
post Jul 5 2014, 06:27 AM
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I've had Firestone Airbags on my F-150 for 7 years now and I haven't had any problems with them at all.... They will hold 100PSI, but I've never had to put that much air in the bags. . . The most air I've had to add was 80PSI.

When I go camping my camper is loaded down with A LOT of gear and I pull a 18' Bass Buggy pontoon boat behind. . . I've never had a problem with the bags leaking either.

I also have an under leaf helper spring from Advance Auto and it helps too. . . I bought it first and it worked great but I had to buy the airbags because of the load I put on the F-150. . . When I put the airbags on, I just left the helper spring on too.

Here's a link from Advance Auto for anyone that's interested in the helper spring.

Advance Auto Under Leaf Helper Spring

I'm planning to buy a F-250 diesel and I'm going to buy the Firestone Airbags for it.


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