Timbres, air bags or AAL

[Cecilt]

Set up is 2009 f250 , crew cab, 4x4 , v-10, 8500lb loaded TT, 1200lb tongue weight and 4 point equalizer. Trucks squares 1" in rear when hooked up. Squats 2+" when I load the golf cart in the bed at the same time. Want to level out the sag. What is best solution. Truck used 95% for towing.

[goducks10]

I have Timbrens on my Ram 2500. They set 1" above the axle unloaded. I have a 5'er with an 1800lb pin weight. Without the Timbrens the rear drops 2", which is fine since the rear is already 3" higher than the front. I installed them to gain a more stable ride. Less lean in the corners. Nice thing is they're a 30 min install, no air lines to possibly leak and the empty ride is the same.
They shouldn't affect your WD.

If you go with air bags then you need to load the cart in the truck, air up the bags to bring the rear back to it's original height. Then hitch up and set the WD to the TT's TW. That's how I did it when I had a TT with a different truck. I had to put a lot of gear in the truck and found that having to use 1000lb bars for the 450lb TW caused a stiff ride. I went to bags an bars rated @400-600lbs. Rode like a Caddy.

When I had the bags on the other truck I didn't have an on board compressor so it was always a PITA to air up or down. If I had the money I think I'd go bags and compressor over Timbrens. The towing ride was smother with the bags. Two different applications for sure, but I think the bags may give a better ride since the Timbrens are stiffer. Timbrens are definitely a cheaper way to go with decent results.

[Vannnce]

+1 for bags. Spend the extra coin down the road to get on board air too. really comes in handy to fill tires, cleaning with compressed air, some air tools etc...

[Ron3rd]

Cecilt wrote:
Thanks for the reptiles. Timbrens are $185 and I can install. Air bags are over $500 for the bags and compressor and then i would probably have someone install so over $600. That is a pretty big price difference. How do you set up a WDH if using air bags. Timbrens just install and I won't need to make any adjustments to my equalizer. Trying to weigh pros and cons. I think I have eliminated the AAL option. Tks

That's why I went with Timbrens on my Tundra; low cost and simple install and they get the job done.

But I agree with all the Air Bag users out there; hard to beat Air Bags for ride and versatility. I just could not justify the cost for my intended use. Very satisfied so far.

[2112]

The Timbren will still compress but at a lower, progressive ratio. It will take more load to reach that same sag point. Saying it a different way, it will still sag with the same load but not as much. They are not a hard stop.

[jerem0621]

Cecilt wrote:
With the Timbrens I have a question. As indicated in my original post my rear sags 1" after hooking up the Equalizer and probably 2"+ with the trailer and golf cart in bed. Should I even be concerned. Equalizer is properly set up and using 7 washers to boot.

The directions indicate to leave a 1" - 1.25" space between the timbren and the stop. With that much space I assume I will not be level when just hooked up to the TT but the Timbrens will be much closer to the stop. When I put the GC in the bed with the TT hooked up I might only loose an 1" instead of the 2"+ I loose now since the Timbrens will be hitting the stop and keeping the rear from sagging further. Am I correct on this assumption. I tow many more times with no golf cart than with one but I do tow about 2200 miles with the golf cart and 4000 miles without. tks

IMHO...no...you do not "need" to restore factory ride height under load. The rear suspension is designed to compress...if it doesn't compress then it's not doing it's job. When people use airbags to level out the truck the airbags take a lot of the weight.

When I had my 99 F350 Dually I hauled a Golf Cart in the bed while hauling the travel trailer. As they say...it rode like a caddy while under load.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

[coolbreeze01]

Can't you can't level it with your WDH?

[trail-explorer]

The problem with air bags is they "unload" the suspension to a degree that is determined by how much air you put in them, that unloading of the suspension cause the airbag to "support" the load rather than the suspension, thereby causing a slightly harsher ride.

Torklift makes a device called a "stableload" which is a nice product which causes the overload leaf in the rear springs to engage sooner, reducing or eliminating squat

[Cecilt]

With the Timbrens I have a question. As indicated in my original post my rear sags 1" after hooking up the Equalizer and probably 2"+ with the trailer and golf cart in bed. Should I even be concerned. Equalizer is properly set up and using 7 washers to boot.

The directions indicate to leave a 1" - 1.25" space between the timbren and the stop. With that much space I assume I will not be level when just hooked up to the TT but the Timbrens will be much closer to the stop. When I put the GC in the bed with the TT hooked up I might only loose an 1" instead of the 2"+ I loose now since the Timbrens will be hitting the stop and keeping the rear from sagging further. Am I correct on this assumption. I tow many more times with no golf cart than with one but I do tow about 2200 miles with the golf cart and 4000 miles without. tks

[usmc616]

Have you researched Roadmaster Active Suspension.

[ford_truck_guy]

Take a look at the TorkLift - Stable Loads . . . worth the money... you can disengage the lowers when not hauling heavy..... very simple

[2112]

I had airbags and found it a pain unless you have the onboard compressor. You air them up for the load. Unload at your destination and then it's a hard ride unless you lower the pressure. Now you need to air them back up to get the load back home. After 6 years of use one started leaking.

I have had Timbren's on my last two trucks and have no plans on going back.

[edatlanta]

I have Timbrens on my truck and have had for the past 5 years. My decision vs air bags: Cheaper, I installed, Never an air line leak, no pump to fail, does the job I needed, and continues to work every time I tow.

There is no one decision here, but Timbrens work well for me.

[CaveRun]

I wouldn't have anything else but ''airbags''! 🙂

I load my TC and hook up my pontoon, then add air to the airbags to bring the truck back up to level.

[Cecilt]

Thanks for the reptiles. Timbrens are $185 and I can install. Air bags are over $500 for the bags and compressor and then i would probably have someone install so over $600. That is a pretty big price difference. How do you set up a WDH if using air bags. Timbrens just install and I won't need to make any adjustments to my equalizer. Trying to weigh pros and cons. I think I have eliminated the AAL option. Tks