Hello to all;

A recent experience with an 18ft flatbed have me looking for a way to level out my rear suspension.

I have been looking into Airbags, which i believe will give me a wide variety of load settings. Although I am not thrilled with drilling holes in my frame.

On the other side are the Hellwig helper springs. These look like the overload springs on my friends f-250. The install looks easy enough, however it may mean sacrificing ride quality and suspension articulation (4x4 truck).

So, I am requesting input from those who have experience with each of these systems or another that i am not aware of .


Thank you

 

I went with the Hellwigs.



Factors for me were cost, ease of install, set it and forget it use.

I also got a couple of added bonuses after installing them. They stopped the wheel hop the truck had when the tires spun on wet pavement or on gravel. It also cured the rear end 'clunk' I had. The truck also handles better, rides better and I can actually haul something in the bed without it hitting the bump stops!

Yeah, they 'firmed' up the ride, but for the better IMO.... I didn't like the soft suspension the stock suspension had anyway. If I wanted to 'float' over the road, I would have gotten a Crown Victoria.

I didn't go for the air bags because they cost more, install required drilling, the potential for leaks and you have to air them up or air them down. Didn't want to pop for the extra $$ for an onboard compressor either. And, I saw that they were only going to clear the tires by only around 1/2"....

Ride quality is very subjective.... It did change it... For the better IMO, but to someone else, it might not be what they like.... You can adjust the tension on them, so there is some wiggle room in that respect.....

Can't say too much for the articulation part, but leaf springs are not the best at that to begin with....

Good luck!

Mitch

 

Thank you for the input and the picture.

In your second picture I see a trailer. How did the hellwig's help with towing?

thanks again.

 

Im almost sure they have a firestone kit for the 04s that requires no drilling. After much though this summer that is the setup I am going with. It will be all out though with the compresser and adjustments in cab.

I think its a matter of prefrence. Most of my friends run bags with no issues, and tow ALOT.

My F-1fitty sags to about level (it has alot of rake factory) when the 18' is properly loaded with the trail rig. I just like the amount of adjustment the bags give you, and whats $600 when I paid close 30k for the truck, another grand for a trailer, and my trail rig is closeing in on 2k.

 

I've not towed without them, so nothing to really compare to.....

The truck only drops about an inch, but the WD hitch brings it back up again. Tows really well at anyrate...

 

On my old '00 F-350 I installed a pair of Timbren rubber helper springs. I did a lot of towing, both tag-along and gooseneck and these babies really helped. There is no post-install maintenance and installation was super easy - they replace the stock bump stops. When unloaded they don't come in contact with the axle. When loaded, they keep the rear end from sagging and also smooth out the ride over bumps. If I start towing with my current truck I'll be installing a pair on it too. Here is the link to the Timbren web site and to a site that I found to have the lowest price (as of 2.5 years ago)... TruckSpring.com

 

i installed firestone air bags 5,000 lbs yesterday on my 5.4 lariat 4x4 screw it got rid of the bouncey bounce it also helps w/ body roll feel and i have a set of airlift on my other 4x4 and have not had problem w/over ext.so i hope to enjoy them and im sure i will one more thing i have the 2 1/2" daystar in the front and when you air the back up all the way (just for kicks) the rear gos up 3" so you can imagen the look M.W.

 

This is GREAT! Thank you guys.

The input and new ideas increase my choices.

Keep them coming.