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Full Kelderman Air Ride System

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Several people have asked about my Kelderman setup in my long bed Mega Cab thread so I decided to start another thread about the suspension. Copy/Paste from other thread:

The front kit is a fairly easy install, I did it myself in my shop, but I do have a lift and a pretty good set of tools and mechanical knowledge. The rear is an entirely different story. It requires cutting off existing spring mounts, welding on new mounts, welding a mount for the track bar, and some custom fab work that always seems to crop up. Although you don't need to remove the bed, it will be MUCH easier to do so. The air compressor / air dryer assembly is quite large as well and absolutely will not fit anywhere with the brackets as they send them. We customized the brackets some and got it to mount outside of the frame beneath the passenger floorboard. The air dryer hangs lower than I like, It's basically about as low as the front suspension arm, but the only other option would be an even more custom bracket off of the frame behind the cab where there is more room to have it tucked up closer to the bed floor. This will only work if you have a long bed, on a short bed not a chance since the spring hanger is only a few inches back from the cab.

I custom mounted the switches and low air warning light in the little removable panel right above the E-brake release and put on a new decal I had Kelderman send me. I have a feeling Kelderman is going to start mounting their switches the same way after they see it. Took less than 10 minutes to do and really turned out nice.

Unless you have a really heavy bumper winch combo or a snowplow, etc. I'd say it's definitely not worth it to do the front alone. I put about 500 miles on it that way before having the rear installed and it really was a negligible difference in ride quality. I'm sure it was better, but the rear end makes the dang truck so rough it over shadows any front end improvement. One thing to also keep in mind which I wasn't happy about it is it WILL lift the front of your truck about 1.5-2" even though it is labeled as stock height. When I called and asked them about it they told me, "yeah, it works like a leveling kit" I pointed out it says stock height and they said, "nope, on the '13 and newer its a lift" If you only put enough air in them to prevent it from being that much of a lift, they will bottom out quite often as it only leaves a small amount of travel. I'm running mine about 1/2" lower than the recommended height and everything seems to be fine. My reasoning for not lifting it is so I can fit under my 5th wheel without having to tow it nose high.

The ride is definitely better, no doubt about it. The front end was a little "bouncy" till I turned up the shocks (Rancho 9000 adjustables) now it's pretty nice. I haven't hauled anything with it yet, so I can't comment on it loaded but I would imagine it will be even better. It's also really cool being able to just flip a switch and lower the rear 3-4" to back under a trailer, then flip the switch and lift it back up. I'm really looking forward to that vs. cranking the jacks on my 42' gooseneck loaded with 14,000lbs on the deck. One thing about lowering it however is the rear air bags are HUGE, half again bigger than any helper air bag you've seen and they also have a 3/4" line running to an accumulator tank (ping tank) on each side which looks to be about a gallon or so in size. Point being when you dump the bags, you are dumping about 3-4 gallons of air. The 2.5 gallon tank the system keeps filled doesn't have enough volume to lift the truck more than about half way until the compressor has had enough time to bring everything back up to pressure. Lowering the truck takes 10-15 seconds, raising it probably 45 seconds to a minute (haven't timed it) which really isn't a big deal if you are hooking up trailer lights, safety chains, etc. But might be a pain if you simply dropped it to put something in the back and then raise it back up before driving away. I'm probably going to add a second 2.5 gallon tank to the system since I'm thinking about adding some air horns as well

Even with my lift, tools and ability, I'll probably take my next truck to Kelderman themselves. I consider myself an "average ability" welder, and I don't have a plasma cutter so it would be working with a cut off wheel and grinder. Given the importance of the suspension, I'll happily pay to have it installed. And If I have to pay anyway, might as well go to the source and know that it will be done perfect. I had to finish a few things and correct a few things the guys who stretched my truck did wrong after I got it home and up on the lift.

Feel free to ask me any more questions about the suspension or the stretch, happy to help

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Take note RAM! This is a REAL "air suspension" system!

More pictures Powder X, MORE pics please! Front too.
 
Not sure, haven't seen a stretch on Diesel Brothers. Company that did mine is Precision Bodyline who also goes by Longbedmytruck.com out of Salt Lake City
 
Power Extreme; Very nice write-up, thanks for all that time.

My '04 3500, SRW rides very rough on rough roads, like, well, a dram 1 Ton truck! I'm OK, but my wife's comfort is @ zero. My air bags help with hgt whilst RV'g, but its the ride comfort that is not tolerable.

With that said, pls.comment on the [perceived] ride quality improvement. Spending $3k is too much of a gamble without some valued input. I certainly invite other Kelderman users to comment also. Thanks much.

Wally
 
Whether or not the ride was worth the money is definitely a hard question to answer. Do you "need" an Aisin when a 68rfe will do? Do you "need" a Limited when a Tradesman will do? Since I'm not concerned about the price but more about the result, I can say for me it was worth it and I will install another kit on my next truck in a few years.

I've owned a BUNCH of diesel pickups, I've tried just adding airbags, adding airbags and removing the overloads, the Ridetec replacement springs with airbags Sulastic rubber shackles and finally the full Kelderman kit. Airbags alone helped loaded made the unloaded ride worse. Removing overloads and airbags helps some, not a lot. The Sulastic shackles helped a pretty fair amount.

The ride with the full Kelderman kit is absolutely better than stock. No doubt about it. I still haven't had a chance to try it loaded but I'm certain it will be considerably better than stock.

You mentioned $3k. Is that the full rear kit? I paid a bit more than that. But I also have auto leveling and onboard air. Keep in mind unless you are quite handy and have a full set of tools including a plasma cutter and welder, you will need to have it professionally installed which will most likely cost $500 to $1,000.

I suggest to start you air the rear tires down to about 45 psi or so, the fronts to 65- 70 psi and put a full set of Bilstein 4600 shocks all around which will give you a noticeable improvement. If you still want the ride better and you can afford it, skip everything else and go straight to the Kelderman setup. You won't find a better ride on a truck that also has the ability to haul a lot of weight. There are some Offroad long travel suspension setups that ride fantastic empty, but they don't have the capacity and will sag terribly with a slide in camper.

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I just read your sig and see you've already put quite a bit into your truck including Bilsteins and overload bags. I suggest the Kelderman kit, you won't be disappointed. I'll be traveling through Wisconsin on I-94 in May pulling my 5th wheel headed to the east coast, you're welcome to meet up with me and go for a ride if you haven't made a decision by then. Or Kelderman isn't all that far from you, you could make an appointment with them to go for a ride in one of their trucks and if you like it have it installed while you're there.
 
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Unfortunately my truck is back in Salt Lake at the dealer STILL trying to fix the stereo and such that Precision Body messed up when they stretched it. Once I finally get it home I'll take pictures. Basically it replaces the coil with an airbag and relocates the bottom mount of the shock a couple inches to give extra clearance.
 
Powder Extreme: A most generous offer indeed, unfortunately we're not returning 'till June. I never thought of seeking Kelderman for a 'ride'; will followup that idea.

P.S. I'm a retired power plant Instrument Technician & no stranger to automotive work & welding, and as it happens I have a plasma cutter to accommodate some of my blacksmithing hobby needs. Does Kelderman supply custom brackets, etc. to be fitted to the frame assy. & that's why cutting & welding are necessary?
 
Has Kelderman addressed the reported welding and fatigue problems reported on 100,000 mile plus installations? Most seem to revolve around supplied bracketed.
 
Yes, they do supply new brackets that need to be welded on in place of the original hangers. Wasn't aware of any 100,000 mile issues. I suppose things can wear out after that amount of time, but I don't see how it could be more than the joints at some of the locations. Not like other joins in the truck can't wear out in that amount of time either. Ball joints, etc. As far as their brackets fatiguing I can't answer that.
 
Welds shouldn't "wear out". The complaints I am referring to are about poor welds on their brackets or adapters that fatigue and fail over time, causing other damage that Kelderman doesn't stand behind. I know 100,000 + miles are a lot but a weld should last a lifetime.
 
I have been thinking about having Kelderman do my truck but I talked with one of the dealers here and he said that it would void the warranty in some areas. Was your dealer willing to warranty your truck without problems. I was considering the stage 2 kit that they make. The kits that you did on your truck should make it ride like a limo. Thanks for posting your experience with them.
 
Thanks for the write up! I've been considering Kelderman for over a year and it's been hard finding reviews on the ride quality which is the primary reason I'm looking at it. I've got a Ford Excursion with leaf springs on all 4 corners and I hate the way it rides. Especially when I hook my 12k+ lb toy hauler onto the hitch and I'm riding on the bumpers. Not fun! Off road the smallest of rocks or washboard put the rear end into the overload springs and causes some serious kick-back vibrations.
You've probably been on some washboard dirt roads by now, whats the kelderman feel like? Also what shocks did you install with yours? That can make a huge difference on any spring.
If you plan on being in the SLC area again I'd love to meet up for a quick test run to feel it. $10k for a full system is a heck of a bill to swallow. I'm probably only going to do the rear end on my Excursion without any expensive air control system and if I fall in love with it I can add the front and air control. I'm having a hard time understanding why the 4-corner air control system is $3500 that seems pretty ridiculous to me. I think I'll just manually inflate the bags and save that $.

I just remembered the TDR is a Cummins forum, oh how I miss my cummins, but gotta have a 3rd row. Be nice, I just purchased a 2017 RAM 1500 HEMI and love it! But the Ford Excursion is my family tow hauler rig and the topic of this subject. :)
 
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From the few kits I have seen they do not match oem quality.If you were to look at the Hardware that Carli Suspension produces you will see a high quality that kelderman does not acheive.I would pass on Kelderman if you plan on keeping your truck for the long haul
 
Hey Bob funny you should mention Carli because they are my other option. They have a full custom system for my Excursion which still retain leaf springs but using high quality Deaver springs and long travel airbags. I noticed in your sig you have the LT airbags. I would love your thoughts on your setup and especially what you think of the LT bags. Also which shocks came with your package? The excursion comes with King 2.5.
 
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