WJACKSON11X
1/2 ton status
So this all started after the 1 ton swap and a 3" TC lift with rear blocks. The Burb was still sagging a good bit in the rear and the 25 year old rear springs were way too soft. They made driving a little sketchy at times and I wanted to be able to pull a small boat or trailer without issues. After thinking quite a bit, I decided to try some airbags. I ordered them through Sdtrucksprings.com for just over $300. This rig will not be wheeled, so this was the most logical route. I have heard good things about airbags and glad I decided on them.
Finally got the airbags on Friday night while the wife and kids were gone.. The install went really smooth. The worst part was drilling the 8 holes in the frame, which isn't that bad. I wasn't sure how the bags were going to affect ride and ride height, but damn this thing rides nice now! Not only did it level out the ass end, but it also fixed the soft rear. The rear was so soft, that it actually made driving unpleasant at times.
Max pressure on the bags is 100psi. I currently have 48psi in them and it seems to be about perfect with no load on the rear. I even hooked up my 17' Basstracker to it, but it didn't budge the rear.
Here is a before pic. you can see the ass sagging quite a bit. Looks worse in person. I could literally push the rear down a couple inches with my hand Ill get an after pic up tomorrow. I forgot to take one.
These are pics before I aired them up
I did take some measurements before and after the install to compare ride height.
Pass side rear before
pass side after (48psi)
Drivers side before
Drivers side after (48psi)
So I gained about 2" of lift in the rear with the bags at 48psi. I just measured from the ground up to get a before and after. The drivers side sits a little lower.
I mounted the air valves separate so I could adjust for side to side adjustment if needed. I decided to mount them near the tag and turned out nicely I think.
Finally got the airbags on Friday night while the wife and kids were gone.. The install went really smooth. The worst part was drilling the 8 holes in the frame, which isn't that bad. I wasn't sure how the bags were going to affect ride and ride height, but damn this thing rides nice now! Not only did it level out the ass end, but it also fixed the soft rear. The rear was so soft, that it actually made driving unpleasant at times.
Max pressure on the bags is 100psi. I currently have 48psi in them and it seems to be about perfect with no load on the rear. I even hooked up my 17' Basstracker to it, but it didn't budge the rear.
Here is a before pic. you can see the ass sagging quite a bit. Looks worse in person. I could literally push the rear down a couple inches with my hand Ill get an after pic up tomorrow. I forgot to take one.
These are pics before I aired them up
I did take some measurements before and after the install to compare ride height.
Pass side rear before
pass side after (48psi)
Drivers side before
Drivers side after (48psi)
So I gained about 2" of lift in the rear with the bags at 48psi. I just measured from the ground up to get a before and after. The drivers side sits a little lower.
I mounted the air valves separate so I could adjust for side to side adjustment if needed. I decided to mount them near the tag and turned out nicely I think.
looks perfect in that first pic
