Which Airbag Kit?

[SickStroke6.0]

Hey guys,

I have a leveling kit on my truck with 33x13's. When I haul my horse trailer (which weighs about 12k pounds loaded) it tends to sag quite a bit, and whenever going over a big bump at 70 MPH, it bounces like crazy and makes it a little harder to control.

So I need some AirBags, ASAP. Which kit do you guys reccomend? Links are welcomed, so I can just click and buy.

Or if anyone has a good used set, I'll take them!

[Evil Eye]

Blake,
I went with the Firestone Ride Rite kit for use with towing my 12k lb toy hauler. It made a world of difference and leveled out my ride. You can get a basic kit for right around $300 with the fancy kit (with a gauge and compressor) for around $600. With simple hand tools, you can do the install yourself.

[SickStroke6.0]

Originally Posted by Evil Eye

Blake,
I went with the Firestone Ride Rite kit for use with towing my 12k lb toy hauler. It made a world of difference and leveled out my ride. You can get a basic kit for right around $300 with the fancy kit (with a gauge and compressor) for around $600. With simple hand tools, you can do the install yourself.

Shawn, that looks awesome!! That's exactly what I'm looking for. Where did you get your kit, and how hard was the install? Did you have to remove any parts, or did you just slide it in?

Also, what PSI do you keep your bags at while towing, and then when just cruising around town unloaded?

[Evil Eye]

Installation was simple with the ONLY exception being that my 5th wheel brackets were full frame brackets, so I had to get the ones you see above. It literally takes just a few hours in the driveway with a floor jack and some hand tools. The hardest part was feeling comfortable with dis assembly of the rear suspension, but I have since done it several times, replaced the rear leafs, added the Velvet Ride shackles, etc.

PS. I should have mentioned that I got my kit from a local vendor since there weren't any ORG sponsors who sold those kits at the time. I'm still not sure if any of the sponsors sell them.

[2006PSDSD]

So that frame mount goes across the top of the frame to connect the two airbag mounts?

[SickStroke6.0]

Awesome! What are the Velvet Ride Shackles? And did you just replace the rear leafs with stock ones? Mine probably need replacing.

And what about PSI in the bags? What do you run while towing, and what do you run while cruising?

[Evil Eye]

Originally Posted by 2006PSDSD

So that frame mount goes across the top of the frame to connect the two airbag mounts?

Not sure I understand the question, bud.

Originally Posted by SickStroke6.0

Awesome! What are the Velvet Ride Shackles? And did you just replace the rear leafs with stock ones? Mine probably need replacing.

And what about PSI in the bags? What do you run while towing, and what do you run while cruising?

Velvet ride's replace the stock shackles and have a rubberized insert to help cushion the leafs. I didn't notice any improvement with them... Yes, my old leafs were tweaked pretty bad and was likely due to towing without my bags for the first year or so. It's a 250, so it doesn't have the overloads like the 350's do. I just replaced them with some take offs that a buddy of mine had.

I run 0psi in them when I'm not towing and 85psi when I am towing a full load. 65psi when I'm just picking up the trailer from the storage yard.

[SickStroke6.0]

Originally Posted by Evil Eye

Not sure I understand the question, bud.



Velvet ride's replace the stock shackles and have a rubberized insert to help cushion the leafs. I didn't notice any improvement with them... Yes, my old leafs were tweaked pretty bad and was likely due to towing without my bags for the first year or so. It's a 250, so it doesn't have the overloads like the 350's do. I just replaced them with some take offs that a buddy of mine had.

I run 0psi in them when I'm not towing and 85psi when I am towing a full load. 65psi when I'm just picking up the trailer from the storage yard.

LOL, I've been hauling without airbags for about.... Hmmm... Seven years...

But thanks for all your help Shawn, I just sent Adam at FCDP a message on Facebook to see if he could hook me up with a Firestone kit!

[Evil Eye]

Originally Posted by SickStroke6.0

LOL, I've been hauling without airbags for about.... Hmmm... Seven years...

But thanks for all your help Shawn, I just sent Adam at FCDP a message on Facebook to see if he could hook me up with a Firestone kit!

No worries, my friend. I'm sure you will like them. Who knows, your leafs may be perfect, but mine weren't. They literally looked like they were oversprung coupled with BAD axle wrap. I didn't notice any changes when I went to the new leafs, BUT I felt MUCH better knowing they weren't seriously deformed.

BTW, I still have them in the side yard... Does anybody need some rear leafs??? Just kidding. I need to get them to the scrap metal yard, but that can wait until winter when it is cooler than 117*.

[2006PSDSD]

Originally Posted by Evil Eye

Not sure I understand the question, bud.

Are the airbag mounts bolted directly to the frame, or is there some sort of brace between them? It just looked like that might be the case from the pics you posted