whats the simplest air bag setup?

[sqweaka]

hi all, ive managed to get hold of a set of used air ride bags.. look very much like these, only the stickers on the top of the bags have worn off, so i cant I.d them

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Firestone-4-...-/320622412673

i dont have much of a budget, but would love to use them.. whats the simplest/cheapest way i can install them, can i just set them with tyre valves and have them at a set hight, then if funds become available later, add tanks/ compesser later!

ian

[NEWFISHER]

Check the suspension section and follow along a few builds in there.

[tmoble]

any idea what make/model/year truck your going to be working on?

[sqweaka]

yep.. its a 49 1/2 ton chevy pickup! thanks

ian

[mr48chev]

What suspension does the truck have now?

Some people have done air bag suspension with an I beam axle but you can't get the truck as low as most guys like with a stock axle. The axe hits the frame and that is as low as you are going to go.

I don't see an issue with putting the bags on and running lines up to a central point with a tire valve fitting in place much like air shocks are done all the time. It would be more trouble than it is worth to just put a valve at the bag and have to crawl under the truck to add air though.

Side note: The Jag XJ (mid 80's) front suspension that I picked up last year for my 48 pickup had been set up for bags and one of those suspensions might be more than reasonable in price in the UK. One of the guys on here has an installation of one in his build thread.

[dante81_98]

so this is some advice from a guy that has had a few air ride vehicles. you would be much better off and happier to save up a little money and get at least 1 compressor, 5 gallon tank and some kind of valve system. You can go electric valves or manual. But either way you will want to be able to adjust them.

Also, its not like they will bolt right in. There is some fabrication that will need to be done to get them in. Like mr.48 said, it depends on what you already have for a suspension or what your trying to go with. Also how low you want to get it.

Just dont think of it as a "how cheap and quickly can I get these bags in there?" Take your time and gather the parts and get at least a basic system and plan put together. You will be much happier in the long run.

[sqweaka]

ok, thanks for all your help guys.. im guessing this subject has been covered many times and its abit tiresome... but this is all new to me and im trying to work out how it all works in my head.. and appreciate any help!
im not necessarily after the cheapest method, just a simple understanding of what works and what wont,

im going to fit/make a home made four bar rear end and i have a jag ifs for the front end, im planning on C notching the rear of the frame also.. so it should be able to sit low! i have a small 1 1/2 - 2 gallon tank plus the bags linked above, or some thing very similar looking to them! i doubt i will want a system that will be used to raise and lower every time i park it, prob just find a hight im happy with and stick with it, unless towing or with the bed loaded,

ian

[e015475]

You might check these manual valves out -

http://www.littlelarrys.net/

I'm doing a '49 with bags and I like the simplicity of the manual valves

Mr48Chev - any possibility you'd take some pictures of the LCA mount on your Jag IFS and post them? How about the upper spring pocket too?

[sqweaka]

thanks that touche one looks cool, dont see the need to have 4 valves..
that text also answers another Q i had in my head.. if you connect the two rear or front bags together with a T, wont the air transfer to the other side when cornering?
they recommend the use of sway bars or anti roll bars as we call them! is that theory correct?

[dante81_98]

Yes, you will get air transfer if you t the front and rear bags. I have ridden in one truck that had this with no sway bars and it was not enjoyable at all. I wouldn't run that setup without sway bars.

[e015475]

I think you've answered your own question - each bag needs to be isolated to keep air from transferring from one side to the other during cornering or any other time the suspension is unevenly loaded (like when someone who weighs 240 lb is driving the truck, like me, for instance)

From front to back, the bags will operate under different pressures because there is more weight on the front than the back.

I suppose you could just put a Schrader valve at each airbag and be done with it, but if anything leaks you'd have had to carefully design your lower limit stops so you could still limp back home to fix it. Most with airbags seem to want to have the ability to lower the truck to the ground so that's where they put the limit stops, but if it leaks and the truck is driven that way it will hang up on any road irregularity and won't have any turning radius because the front wheels may hit the fenders in a turn.

Then there's always the possibility of a flat tire. If you're running with low clearance on bags, you may not be able to get the tire out of the wheel well to change it without raising your suspension up. I have 10" wheels in the rear of my truck and I'm pretty certain I couldn't get the wheel off if I had a flat if the truck was low.

To get any utility out of the truck with airbags, I don't see anyway around having an on-board source of air and storage. It seems to me that a proven solution like the little larry manifold setup is a reasonable cost to counter the risk of not being able to get your truck up off the ground.



I plan to run a XJS sway bar up front on mine and it if still under-steers, add the sway bar on the rear too. I'm going to put the mounts in the rear, but I won't add the bar unless I have too.

Just my 2 cents.................