Slide-in Camper

[evldsl]

With Airbag systems being the norm with slide-in campers,why not use spring systems that behave normal unloaded and aide when loaded. Shock upgrade was also included and expected. Also a bigger anti-sway bar was also going in. Also I have seen stories of when one side of a axle drop's the airbag limits or tear's the airbag,causing a leak. Hell-wig makes a nice spring,swaybar and shock setup. What say all members who have slide-in campers in 2500 or 3500 SRW,DRW not to include due to better stablity. The slide-in will weight within 80 percent of bed weight.

 

[RAlberg]

I am not sure what the question is?? To accommodate my slide in camper, I put in adjustable fox shocks and airbags and GREATLY improved the sway and bouncing. I have a decent ride empty by airing down tires and airbags and adjusting shocks. I've heard anti sway bars are a good way to go. My question is what the ride will be like if you unload the camper? On my truck with things adjusted for camper and trailer a mouthpiece is required to control the teeth jarring ride if unladen. If your camper is on 24/7 stiffen the rear end to accommodate that purpose. Decision is a compromise based on you specific circumstance. LOL>

Bob

 

[Grizzly]

My 95 DRW stock and my 05 DRW stock handled my 11'3" Lance camper (sold in 06) great without air bags. No sway nor excessive squat.



MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

 

[Bob4x4]

This is the set-up that will work great empty or loaded.

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Long travel airbags along with 3"king shocks and hydro bumps. Like a Caddy ride but it will take a beating before you can bottom it out.



Bob

 

[evldsl]

I also have looked at Super Spring,and find this is a nice setup to,a bigger swaybar,also might due the trick. I have a regcab 2500 4x4 SRW. Any thought's from regcab owners.

 

[RJWEST]

02 ext cab 4x4 2500
I'm running 3k camper. . NO Factory Overloads,,,,
With Supersprings,& Hellwig sway bar ( Bilstiens)
They work ok, but ride is hard when empty and truck sits higher, ( I need blocks under the jacks to keep the jacks from extending to far )

The dodge 4x4 (SRW)sits high, it is hard to get the sway out.

Also, The super springs do not have much cleareance to the truck bed supports, Takes some carefull placement and proper Superspring. I went through 2 sets of supersprings ( and 3 sets of brackets to get the position right and the best load vs Sway,
( If you adjust 2 much weight transfer to the super spring
the OEM spring does not compress enough to load last spring,
this makes sway worse )

I WILL SAY: SUPERSPRINGS are GREAT people, they will work with you to get the proper set up, if you are considering them
I would suggest calling first, they will reccomend the best
for the application.

My opinion, From past experience ,Factory Overloads and sway bar are The best, That's in plan, when parts avaliable.

Even OEM overloads, you May need some additional tweaking, For That I would go back to airbags for the " Leveling/tweaking"

I have had Many set up's over the years , including 'Donuts'
(Timbrens ) If you live where the roads get bad ( Frost heavs , etc)
The timbrens can be quite severe when they contact the axle )

one of the problems encountered is when to much weight is supported by the add on's, if the factory springs are not compressed to where they are supporting load on all the leafs,
sway is worse, ( to much 'U") in the springs ) to much twist.
That is also why factory overloads ( that contact frame stops )
IMO, is best, weight contact point is spread out.
MO, when all the load is placed on the single main spring
( Add on Springs)all the twisting action ( sway) is placed on
the attach points .

Lastly, My experience, Ride quality and handling is subjective.
What is comfortable for some is not for others,

And , having owned 6 trucks set up for TC's , I have found each one to be unique on what it required for the loading.

Bottom line, Biggest factory springs, sway bar, airbags for leveling and BILSTIENS. .

 

[AH64ID]

Air bags are the norm because they are the best, hands down... thats all semis use, and you dont see them at an angle from issues...

I had them on my tacoma with zero issues, dad has them on his 06 with lots of hard dirt roads miles with zero issues... they will go on my CTD this spring.

You wont be sorry.

 

[NKent]

92 Drw

I haul a 3K# camper on my flatbed from time to time. Airbags have always worked well for me, even while towing my jeep.

 

[evldsl]

I still need owners from RegCab,SRW,LongBed owners. Not DRW short/long bed owners those trucks have different bed payloads and their spring assy's are different than mind. The Tacoma is to small to consider due to it's small bed payload. Thank you for your advice,but if their is anyone out their in the Regcab 5. 9L or 6. 7L diesel 4x4longbed with a bed rating of 2500 to 2800lbs who loads to 1800-2000lbs in his bed this is the advise I seek. Airbags might due it but limit axle travel unless you go with the long travel airbag systems,but the cost's go way up,I have seen price's at around 500-800 dallors. And that's just for the bags not to included the conytroller's. Thanks for the advice so far. Keep it coming

 

[Regcabguy]

My setup.

I've got an '07 reg. cab 2500 4wd w/2000# Northstar on my back 24/7. Lorenz's 2. 25 system w/23% stiffer front coils is complemented by Carli Suspension's long travel airbags. Makes for a very compliant,yet stable highway ride. For off road use it definitely needs 35's for the loose stuff.

 

[AH64ID]

Do you feel you need the long travel bags? According to firestone they put a bag in the kit that will travel more than OEM allows for. . so unless you are setup for long travel. . which most who carry lost of weight dont, then you are fine with regular bags... I had firestone bags on my toyota that I did a fair amount of wheeling in and they never stretched beyond their design. Face it these trucks dont flex a lot out back...

 

[Bob4x4]

Do you feel you need the long travel bags? According to firestone they put a bag in the kit that will travel more than OEM allows for. . so unless you are setup for long travel. . which most who carry lost of weight dont, then you are fine with regular bags... I had firestone bags on my toyota that I did a fair amount of wheeling in and they never stretched beyond their design. Face it these trucks dont flex a lot out back...

? Don't flex much ? Mine does.



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Maybe this helps... ... ...

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Bob

 

[Bob4x4]

IMHO anyone that appreciates a good ride off road will feel the advantage of the long travel air bags over the conventional bags immediately.



Bob

 

[AH64ID]

Thats not horrible for a 3/4... not by any means... but those arent stock shocks or springs now are they With stock shocks, even if springs aren't, you wont stretch a normal bag too far... and I was mainly asking the OP if he really needed LT bags. . I could tell by your first shot that you would

 

[Bob4x4]

I am not sure Firestone is correct. I see CTDs everyday and see many with bags pulled apart as well as bent brackets and broken u-bolts. There is no way I would run an overhead camper and worry about when my suspension would no longer be intact. I have had overhead campers on my last 2 trucks,some may say going with custom suspensions to support that hi CG load was too expensive,but what is the value of human life?

:-laf You are right those aren't stock springs or shocks. That set-up gives me a Caddy ride while being able to safely haul pretty much anything pretty much anywhere.



Bob

 

[SMorneau]

There is no way I would run an overhead camper and worry about when my suspension would no longer be intact. I

Bob

I have never worried about it in normal use (not offroad) with or without the camper. I have run air bags for a long time and they work fine within limits. It is up to the user to determine the limits they need to place on usage. If I wanted to worry about a failure I would worry about the tires. If offroading were a priority I would not use the plain old air bags.



The carli suspension looks nice to me and I would love to have one. Just can't seem to justify everything on a basis of safety. I would love to take a close look at the lives and habits of those who do cause I bet I could spot a safety issue or two:-laf

 

[Bob4x4]

As a Mechanical engineer I'll bet you could enjoy many of my suspension upgrades. They improve the on road stability as well as off road. The way the truck handles quick transient maneuvers at freeway speeds has already saved it on the 91 commute a number of time as well as an incident at speed on hiway 1 deep into Baja



Bob

 

[PJay9]

Had a 94 LB Cummins with airbags and a 10'6" lance. . it still was a bit scary when semi passed at 80, before Air bags it was down right unpleasnat to say the least plus it rode on the rubber snubbers. Air bags needed to be deflated when no load or they would knock your teeth out! Got my dually in Nov 2003... no suspension items added, just changed shocks to a better brand nothing fancy than OEM about 60K, it is all Dodge dually.

 

[Mr.Goat]

My 03 2500 reg cab, 8' box is stock except a set of Timbrens I had put in the back. My slide is old 1975, small 8', but heavy 2500 Ibs empty. So when loaded to travel it ways at least 3000 Ibs. I've had it over the weigh scales at the dump several times. It is also in pristine condition as I keep that way.



That is a fair load of dead weight to haul around in a 3/4 ton. The 95 carried it very well from coast to coast on many trips over the years without any modifications.

The 03's suspension is a little softer and I had some sway issues. So I had the Timbrens installed in Edmonton on the way to the Yukon.

That was a 3 month trip with no further suspension issues. I tended to get off the beaten track up there to do a little fishing and as long as I used common sense and took it easy it hauled me and the camper all over hells half acre.



There is not alot of travel between the rubber Timbren and the axle, which is of a concern to me. But she worked okay.



The suspension on Bob4x4's truck looks and sounds to be a very good set up. Probably worth a fair buck as well.

The big advantage you folks have down there in the states is the availability of shops that can provide the proper expertise plus the right parts for the application. These services and parts are not readily available up here. So we have to make due with what we have.



And for now the stock suspension and the Timbrens are cutting the mustard reasonably well.

 

[Regcabguy]

My 02.

After having my camper mounted on a '99 and now my '07,I've found that the 3rd. gen frame is substantially stiffer. The drawback, however, is the weak springs Dodge puts in these new ones. With aftermarket setups,your truck can handle the weight within limits and still hold up well offroad. For what I use my rig for Lorenz has provided me with a highly satisfying system that presently fills the bill. After riding in a variety of systems,I've found that offroad tires and proper air pressure complements the system enormously. Carli,Lorenz,Kore and Thuren seek to keep the center of gravity down low while still offering 10"+ of travel. That's the beauty of their systems.