Air bags are not?

I put Firestone Ride Rites on my '95 K1500 about 5 years ago and they did wonders for towing. Much more stable and less chance of sway. I also have a '96 K1500 Suburban that tows the same trailer and but doesn't tow nearly as nicely. More sway, bouncing around, and rear end sag. Not horrible, just not a nice as having the airbags. I know part of it has to do with tires, but I'm convinced the bags make the bigger difference. The trailer is a 24ft Prowler at about 4800 pounds loaded.

I use them as well. The adjustability is great for the situations you describe.

Great comments. My thanks to all.
Jeff

W.E.BGood wrote:
TNRIVER...I tow a 6K dry 25 ft. Keystone Outback with an '08 Tundra 4X4 using a 1K/10K Equalizer...so we're pretty similar in set-ups.

I had Airlift 5000's installed on my truck for several reasons:
#1. To try to minimize some pretty horrible porpoising on some bad sections of concrete-paved highways we frequently travel. End result, while the bags helped somewhat, I found I needed to CORRECTLY adjust the Equalizer, carefully following the factory directions and doing careful measurements. That made ALL the difference in the world.

#2. Sometimes, even with the WD bars in place, it just settles the ride down on bad terrain and especially those bad "Bump Ahead" events you occasionally find on highways.

#3. To be able to tow/move the trailer without the weight distribution bars in place eg. negotiating tight corners and backing into tight campsites, traversing sharp/steep inclines, and getting into my drive without scraping the bottom of the hitch post on the pavement (high street crown + deep curb gutter + sharp driveway apron incline).

I consider them very useful, under certain circumstances.

Regards, BGood

I went with Timbrens on my Tundra mostly because of cost and ease of installation. Air Bags have all the advantages BGood pointed out and are probably superior to Timebrens but I've been very pleased with the Timbrens.

TNRIVER...I tow a 6K dry 25 ft. Keystone Outback with an '08 Tundra 4X4 using a 1K/10K Equalizer...so we're pretty similar in set-ups.

I had Airlift 5000's installed on my truck for several reasons:
#1. To try to minimize some pretty horrible porpoising on some bad sections of concrete-paved highways we frequently travel. End result, while the bags helped somewhat, I found I needed to CORRECTLY adjust the Equalizer, carefully following the factory directions and doing careful measurements. That made ALL the difference in the world.

#2. Sometimes, even with the WD bars in place, it just settles the ride down on bad terrain and especially those bad "Bump Ahead" events you occasionally find on highways.

#3. To be able to tow/move the trailer without the weight distribution bars in place eg. negotiating tight corners and backing into tight campsites, traversing sharp/steep inclines, and getting into my drive without scraping the bottom of the hitch post on the pavement (high street crown + deep curb gutter + sharp driveway apron incline).

I consider them very useful, under certain circumstances.

Regards, BGood

I did pretty much what the OP wants to do. I had an 08 F150 with a cap on it. TT weighed around 4000lbs loaded. We put a lot of stuff in the back of the truck. I had tried 1000lb bars but they were too much. So I went with some 400-600ln bars and added air bags. Prior to hitching I would load the truck with all the camping gear, air the bags to bring the rear back to original. Then hitch up and adjust the WDH for the add tongue weight. Truck and TT rode like a Caddy.

My opinion is that air bags have NO purpose for towing a conventional trailer.

I disagree with this. While it is true that any sag etc should be fixed with a properly set hitch, airbags will make for a smoother and more comfortable ride. They help with the large jarring bumps and reduce bounce and wallowing. Before anyone says I need bags because my shocks are shot is also wrong as the truck has new Bilstien HD shocks as well.

I only air mine up to 15psi when towing and the difference is noticeable.

skipnchar wrote:
My opinion is that air bags have NO purpose for towing a conventional trailer. Yes they can prop up the rear end of the truck but they do NOTHING to replace the weight lost from the front axle and that can make handling very poor. Use a properly sized and properly adjusted weight distribution hitch and it will not only raises the rear it will also transfer weight back to the front axle so handling is back to normal. Size the spring bars for 15% of the GVWR of the trailer which is the maximum the tongue will ever weigh when loaded. Get the bars as close to this number as possible without being UNDER it.

He is not asking about using them to hold up the front end of the trailer, he was asking about using them to hold up payload in the bed of the truck - when attached to the trailer. His example was firewood - and the ability to change the pressure in them on a trip (bed loaded on the way there, empty on the way back) VS an add a leaf what is (more or less) permanent.

My opinion is that air bags have NO purpose for towing a conventional trailer. Yes they can prop up the rear end of the truck but they do NOTHING to replace the weight lost from the front axle and that can make handling very poor. Use a properly sized and properly adjusted weight distribution hitch and it will not only raises the rear it will also transfer weight back to the front axle so handling is back to normal. Size the spring bars for 15% of the GVWR of the trailer which is the maximum the tongue will ever weigh when loaded. Get the bars as close to this number as possible without being UNDER it.

That`s what I do with them. sometimes the X is loaded and other times it`s just people. another thing with the airbags is you can vary the WD with the bags. I run around 30psi heading out on a trip and 15 or so coming home. with the TW change the airbags help adjust the WD.