Probably opening a can of worms here, hope you have some popcorn handy.I have a GMC dually and pull a 5th wheel with a pin weight of approx. 4,000 pounds.The 5er has a trail air pin box and when I am on a decent road you hardly know the rv is back there but when I hit a typical Texas bridge transition there is a pretty harsh reaction and I am trying to reduce that as much as possible.I know the air hitch is probably best but I just want some feedback from those that have had experience with all the above.Thanks in advance.DougPS forgot to mention I have the Bilstine 4600 shocks.

Experiencing a similar problem, I queried the guys over on the Silverado/Sierra forum. For helping with bottoming out, the vote was about 80% for the Timbrens and 20% for the air bags. The other big part of the equation is stopping the reaction (the bouncing after the original bump). The 100% overwhelming response was for Bilstein 4600 series shocks. The Timbrems and the shocks are in my cart on Amazon to order when we're in one place long enough to receive them.Rob

I found the ride characteristics very unsettled with timbrens and a partial load, air bags worked much better for me. May not be an issue for you with such a heavy pin weight except when solo. But air bags can be adjusted to fit your specific weights, and with an onboard compressor you can adjust them on the fly. Anyway, air bags get my vote.

I am very happy with the Timbrens on my truck. No change to the unloaded ride, and not a dramatic change to the loaded ride either, except that it feels a little more planted and more importantly it handles bumps at speed far better now. You hear it and feel a little bump and on down the road you go. They seem high quality and were very easy to install. The fact that they're only attached at one end was appealing as I don't have to worry about over-stretching a bag off-road, and they're also zero maintenance. At about $200 it isn't much of a loss if you decide you don't like them, but I think you would.

If your suspension is supporting the pin weight just fine, and it should with a dually, go with the air hitch. I love mine.Air bags are not for me - a lot of that has to do with the 16 ply tires at 90-100psi, but the air bags made the unloaded ride a whole lot rougher. Enough to where we eventually opted for a full air ride. If you can afford that, I highly recommend it. A TS hitch (while expensive) is a whole lot less money and would have been sufficient for us if not for wanting to keep SRW. I would recommend replacing the stock Rancho shocks with Bilstein or Fox 2.0.

I did not NEED bags with a 4,500# pin on my 11 RAM Dually. I did add the 4600's and PacBrake air bags. I ran them at 30psi loaded at that psi the ride height did not really change BUT the ride quality was MUCH improved. Get the bags for improved ride you will thank me!!!

Timbrens, air bags or air hitch | Good Sam Community

wilber1
Explorer
Oct 03, 2016
With Timbrens I didn't notice much difference in ride when loaded. I had them on the truck for several years. Guess it just depends on individual circumstances.
n0arp
Explorer
Oct 03, 2016
Dayle1 wrote:
6.7 tow rig wrote:
So you are happy with the way the bags feel loaded then? That was my concern. What about unloaded?

Unloaded, with minimum psi (15 psi I think) you won't know they are on the truck.

Absolutely not true. I ran my Air Lift 5000 Ultimates at 5psi most of the time, and definitely knew they were there.
Cummins12V98
Explorer III
Oct 03, 2016
I ran 5psi unloaded in my PacBrake bags, the ride difference solo was NOT noticeable. Loaded they smoothed out the bumps!
IdaD
Explorer
Oct 03, 2016
wilber1 wrote:
With Timbrens I didn't notice much difference in ride when loaded. I had them on the truck for several years. Guess it just depends on individual circumstances.

I really only notice a difference when I hit a bump at highway speeds. They don't allow the truck to dip as much in the back so it settles down the ride. Just cruising down the road feels about the same to me as it did without them. Maybe slightly stiffer feeling but certainly not dramatic.

Unloaded, no difference. I like them.

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