Anti-sway bars ??

wintersun wrote:
Anti-sway bars help reduce sway but pickup trucks as a whole are usually driven with nothing in the bed and already have a stiff rear section and a solid axle so an anti-sway bar is not going to do anything at the rear of the truck.

Huge difference on an empty truck, even with stiff 1 Ton suspension.

wintersun wrote:
The downside to the anti-sway bar is that it can interfere with the motion of the suspension and make the ride harsher. With an empty bed and going down dirt or gravel road or washboard roads and the anti-sway bar is not at all a positive addition to the rear of a pickup truck. If I was going to drive my truck 90% of the time without a camper, and spend much time on bad roads with rough surfaces or potholes, I would not add an aftermarket anti-sway bar to it.

I do lots of driving empty and loaded on dirt/gravel roads and the rear anti-sway bar did nothing but improve the ride/handling.

Those comments do not appear to be from experience, as the opposite is what I, and many others, have experienced. They appear to be from internet folklore, as I have read them before but not from anyone's direct experience. You know, like Ford owns Cummings.

Anti-sway bars help reduce sway but pickup trucks as a whole are usually driven with nothing in the bed and already have a stiff rear section and a solid axle so an anti-sway bar is not going to do anything at the rear of the truck.

Adding a heavy camper that is also top heavy and presents a lot more surface area for cross winds to affect and an anti-sway bar at the rear axle becomes a lot more beneficial for the handling of the truck.

The downside to the anti-sway bar is that it can interfere with the motion of the suspension and make the ride harsher. With an empty bed and going down dirt or gravel road or washboard roads and the anti-sway bar is not at all a positive addition to the rear of a pickup truck. If I was going to drive my truck 90% of the time without a camper, and spend much time on bad roads with rough surfaces or potholes, I would not add an aftermarket anti-sway bar to it.

Makes sense. It's a challenge to know where to put the next dollar. reading some of the posts here is like reading Web MD and you being to worry about things like how much weight you are carrying. it is all a learning experience.

yosemiteford wrote:
Hi Wintersun. that's what I am coming to think. I think the anti-sway is for driving down the road and preventing sway - I don't have any problems like that.

Everyone. Thanks for the info and feedback. I appreciate it.

wintersun wrote:

yosemiteford wrote:
thanks all. my SRW does not have them - I too was surprised. Total weight is 12.5k and I run 60psi on the bags. I don't experience any sway unless I enter a parking lot slightly camber. I want to keep improving on my rig, so that's why I am considering them. I might hold off based on what I am reading. I also heard that going odd road with them doesn't work well and. I do go to the desert in the winter.

An anti-sway bar is not going to do a lot in this circumstance. The truck has more than 50% of the camper weight on one side of the truck meaning more load on the springs and tires. If it is a concern than I would first add another leaf to provide more load support.

I don't agree one bit with wintersun's assessment, an anti-sway bar makes all driving better. The only time it hinders is rock crawling, which doesn't work in a 8K lb truck.

The anti-sway bar will prevent sway, but also improves stability...even if it feels good now.

I take my truck on some pretty rough roads with plenty of off camber dips and ditch crossings and have not noticed my anti-sway bar effecting anything. I didn't have my anti-sway bar for the first few years, so I got a good handle on how it articulated. The airbags are going to be limiting factor anyhow.

There is probably a reason that just about everyone is recommending them, and I am sure it's nearly 100% from experience.

Even if you didn't have a camper an anti-sway bar is a great investment.

Extra springs can negatively effect you empty drive, anti-sway bars will improve it.

Hi Wintersun. that's what I am coming to think. I think the anti-sway is for driving down the road and preventing sway - I don't have any problems like that.

Everyone. Thanks for the info and feedback. I appreciate it.

wintersun wrote:

yosemiteford wrote:
thanks all. my SRW does not have them - I too was surprised. Total weight is 12.5k and I run 60psi on the bags. I don't experience any sway unless I enter a parking lot slightly camber. I want to keep improving on my rig, so that's why I am considering them. I might hold off based on what I am reading. I also heard that going odd road with them doesn't work well and. I do go to the desert in the winter.

An anti-sway bar is not going to do a lot in this circumstance. The truck has more than 50% of the camper weight on one side of the truck meaning more load on the springs and tires. If it is a concern than I would first add another leaf to provide more load support.

I don't agree with that as a person that started out without a rear sway bar. Adding the Big Wig to a truck without any rear sway bar is a huge improvement, both empty and loaded. Adding more leafs to the spring packs is a good way to make the truck ride like******when unloaded IMO.

yosemiteford wrote:
thanks all. my SRW does not have them - I too was surprised. Total weight is 12.5k and I run 60psi on the bags. I don't experience any sway unless I enter a parking lot slightly camber. I want to keep improving on my rig, so that's why I am considering them. I might hold off based on what I am reading. I also heard that going odd road with them doesn't work well and. I do go to the desert in the winter.

An anti-sway bar is not going to do a lot in this circumstance. The truck has more than 50% of the camper weight on one side of the truck meaning more load on the springs and tires. If it is a concern than I would first add another leaf to provide more load support.

I have all 3. First I went with the Helwig Big Wig and it was a big improvement- much less lean on curves. Then I added Airlift 5000 air bags with on-board pump, running 55 psi when the camper is in place. That ended any sag in the rear and made for better handling too. Last I added the Stable loads. They improve handling some too. I'll keep them all and consider all the money well spent.
They are all installed on a 2013 F-350 Diesel Dually Crew Cab Long bed. It had a sway bar on it- about 3/4. maybe 7/8" diameter. The camper is a Northstar Igloo 9.5. Truck weight empty - full of fuel and 2 people = 9000lb. add the camper and all our supplies etc. and we weighed in at 13,450 on a CAT scale.

I installed a Hellwig on my Dodge dually, made one heck of a difference over the stock one. We take it on fairly rough roads, cut down the swaying on these roads & so much better on the hwy. Spend the bucks! I paid about $250 thru Summit Racing, I think the MFG list on the rear bar was around $420.00. The best $250 I've spent along with the Torquelift bump stop jobbies for the springs.

If by chance your air bags are plumbed together, separate them. Plumbing together contributes to sway.

Jim, "Mo' coffee!"