time to do air ride

everything but the drivetrain

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time to do air ride

Postby swank » Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:46 am

anybody come across any good links for making your own set up? or does anybody have any great ideas they've come up with? what kind of airbags should i use? where would the cheapest place to get them be? what's the coolest set up you've seen? thanks.

dave

ps, i'm talking about the kind with NO more leaf springs.
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Postby Cowboy_Customs » Sun Feb 11, 2007 10:08 am

I have had much time to think about this. I am wanting to do the same. A 4 link with a track bar will hold the axle in place, and a custom top and bottom mount for the bags will suffice. Im planning on using freightliner Airbags behind the axle if they are too tall to mount on top of the axle. most semi air bags are located like that so i figured why not? I am also going to use the automatic leveling valve so when I put a load on it, it will automatically air up the bags to a pre-set ride height. This all goes hand in hand with the York OBA system I plan to put on too.
Fleet pride would be your best bet for the air bags, figure 200 a peice i belive is what they go for.
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Postby KTA » Sun Feb 11, 2007 10:35 am

There is a guy on the DTR advertising a full Kelderman air ride setup.
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Postby Cschafer » Sun Feb 11, 2007 12:55 pm

I built all my own bag setup. I still have leave springs for axle location but set soft so it rides on air. The only thing I would have to do is add heavier bags to the front and link it to completely ride on air. It's pretty straight forward, I see by your website that fabricating is not a problem for you so the brackets would be easy. I run 2800 lb bags in the back that are perfect for me but Id think they would work in the front well. I think a truck store would be a good info base for that. I have pictures of mine in my gallery on tdr if you want to check it out, same username.
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Postby Philip » Sun Feb 11, 2007 2:05 pm

Do some trolling around this website.

http://www.stengelbros.com/

Look at pic's real close. I am sure you can find something that can be adapted( or copyed :D ) to a 1st gen.

Bags off of a 8 bag KW air ride would be the smallest. They are rated for around 4k lbs each.

This link has some good reading in it.

http://www.goodyearindustrialproducts.c ... index.html
93 W350 Club/cab w/duals, buckets & console, B&W flatbed, G56, 6 spd, 3:07 rears, gages, HX40/16, 4" exhaust, 6X.018 sticks, rear air ride suspension
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Postby Cowboy_Customs » Sun Feb 11, 2007 2:40 pm

I like some of those setups, the one with the 3/4 leafsprings atached to the bag mounting base is a good way to keep the rear axle located front to back, same with the big beam accross the top of the axle. ideas ideas...
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Postby PToombs » Sun Feb 11, 2007 4:24 pm

I am going to add bags to mine also. I'm going to leave the stock spring, and use the leveling valve of a big rig also. Then the height stays constant, loaded or not. I was looking at these- http://www.fsip.com/riderite/applicatio ... dge.shtml#. There is a dealer local, I haven't priced them yet.
pete

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Postby Philip » Sun Feb 11, 2007 5:24 pm

Pete those are just helper bags. They don't improve the ride. They just handle heavyer loads.
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Postby swank » Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:37 pm

is it ok to weld brackets onto the axle tubes? i've got a parallelogram design that's starting to come together in my brain. i'm liking that approach better. seems like those other types, with the large single beam that starts in front, goes over, and ends up in the rear with the bag would take some serious engineering. i don't know anything about pinion angles or anything, so i don't know if doing a parallelogram(4-link?) would be more or less difficult, or if it would be the same amount of thinking. if it's about the same, i think the 4 link would look way better.

i'm also considering the crossover steering thing while i'm under there. i've been told that it will help with turning radius. i don't understand how that part would work, but i do understand how it eases the stress on the frame and what not.
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Postby swank » Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:47 pm

Philip wrote:Do some trolling around this website.

http://www.stengelbros.com/

Look at pic's real close. I am sure you can find something that can be adapted( or copyed :D ) to a 1st gen.

Bags off of a 8 bag KW air ride would be the smallest. They are rated for around 4k lbs each.

This link has some good reading in it.

http://www.goodyearindustrialproducts.c ... index.html


these the ones your talking about? the 4th ones down?
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Postby swank » Sun Feb 11, 2007 9:50 pm

and are the "rolling lobe" style the ones to get? if they are/are not, why? and what style IS best?
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Postby MMiller » Mon Feb 12, 2007 6:22 am

Yes you can weld to the axle tube. You could make a 4 link without any track bar, by making a triangulated 4 link.

Crossover steering, will change the stress on the frame, and will crack the frame if its not boxed. When you do this, make up spacers, and box up the frame. Go to the TDR and I have some pictures of my crossover setup, no pics of the boxed frame on my 90 though. You'll need a tall truck to clear the factory crossmember, 6" lift at least.

A couple good places to troll for 4 link info and crossover steering info:
www.pirate4x4.com To search here, use google, "4 link pirate4x4" or become a member to make search work($)
www.ramchargercentral.com
http://www.keldermanairride.com/category.php?id=21

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Postby Philip » Mon Feb 12, 2007 6:36 am

The link air ride system would be the easyest one to mfg for our app. On this setup you reuse your orginal front hanger. As far as the tube use a 2" square tube with a 3/8's wall. MFG the spring hanger section. After the axle you could eather leave the ends like the pic shows or tie across and run a bar between the ends. You would use a panhard rod to keep the axle centered. The bags could be mounted inside the frame or outside with this method. If you go inside the frame mount the bags on the cross beam.



You could do a 4 link setup. But it will take longer to mfg and it takes a lot more complex bracket fab work. Also when you weld on the tubes they might warp. If they do then you have problems. If you think of a trianangle type 4 link then you will need to weld brackets to the center section of the rear end. Not sure how good your weld would hold on a cast center section.

When your looking at air bags. Use ones that any semi repair shop can get threw their normal supply chain. It makes it easyer if you blow a bag on a trip. The KW 8 bag setup is a common item. They are around 10" in dia and installed height is around 12". These are easy to find places to mount. The larger semi bags are around 14" in dia with a installed height of 20" or so.

Any more ??? :lol: :lol:

I think that talon system could be modded for use on a front axle pretty easy.
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Postby Cschafer » Mon Feb 12, 2007 8:54 am

Trangulated 4-link will be pretty hard to pull off in our trucks. The fuel tank, trans crossmember and oil pan are just plain in the way to do it. Mine would already have it if I could of pulled it off.
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Postby MMiller » Sun Feb 18, 2007 7:48 pm

My gosh guys. Philip, Cade, just were is your sense of adventure? :shock: Remember, we are talking to Swank, the guy with twins, and a modified floorboard to make 5" exhaust clear!!!

Go on over to the Pirate, and look at all the welds on axle tubes, and brackets they make, and such. Get some ideas and start fabbing. You also have to make sure the rear won't "jack" on you when you launch.

Michael
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