sway bars or air bags?

[AH64ID]

Apparently I have the 11. 50 axle, for that you need the Hellwig #7658.

With very rare exception (like 03 SO Auto's with the 47RE0 all 3rd gen's have the 11. 5" AAM. .



That sucks thou.

 

[Matt400]

With very rare exception (like 03 SO Auto's with the 47RE0 all 3rd gen's have the 11. 5" AAM. .

I had an 03 SO 48re and the 10. 5, Pretty sure in 03 they were just using up supply of 10. 5's on SO's while at the same time using up supply of the 47's so it was mix and match that year depending on the engine and what parts were left over.

 

[AH64ID]

I had an 03 SO 48re and the 10. 5, Pretty sure in 03 they were just using up supply of 10. 5's on SO's while at the same time using up supply of the 47's so it was mix and match that year depending on the engine and what parts were left over.

Yeah. . thats even a rarer truck... not many 48RE 10. 5's

 

[gfresh]

I posted a new thread/question on identifying the 11. 50 and got this response from WoodChuck:



In the glove box is a sticker that tells you what the truck was built with, or your local dealer can tell you based on the V. I. N.



I can tell you for sure that the '06 has a 11. 5" axle. All trucks with the Cummins motor built after Jan. 1 2004 have the 11. 5" axle as well as the 50 state legal H. O. motor.



I contacted truckcomponentsonline (where I bought the Hellwig) and they told me to ship it back to Hellwig directly and truckcomponentsonline will credit me. Unfortunately, the Hellwig people charge 15% for restocking. Oops, my mistake cost me time and money. I guess I can't complain too much since I tossed the original box and now they have to repackage my return. I will keep you posted on how the RIGHT Hellwig installs and feels... in a week or two.

 

[CDonaldson]

I was on suspension connections website checking the Helwigs out -



they list P/N 7658D4 for the 3500's



and P/N 7658D7 for the 2500's.



When I looked at the installation pdf for each of those two part numbers, the instructions say for W3500 and D3500 with 11. 5 axles, same instruction sheet for both part numbers.



CD

 

[Trophy Truck]

air bags and sway bar info

I just installed the Hellwig rear sway bar AND air bags on my 06' short bed QC. I have a 2200 lb (empty) new Lance 845 Truck camper on the back. The bags (individually plumbed, might try a single line in the near future) work great to support the weight, 60 lbs levels the truck, 80 lbs raises the truck about another inch. The Hellwig sway bar does not really work with my weight... I was hoping for the sway bar to get rid of the sway when I turn out of a driveway or low speed 90 degree turn... It leans pretty good. (By the way, the Hellwig people (in Visalia, CA) are a pleasure to talk to). What worked for me in the past on my ex Ford with the same set up was - I had overload springs on that particuliar truck and I added my own version of "snubbers". I installed a soft bump stop under each end of my overload springs. This placed constant pressure on the springs, when the truck swayed the bump stops compressed slightly to prevent the sway.

 

[AH64ID]

I just installed the Hellwig rear sway bar AND air bags on my 06' short bed QC. I have a 2200 lb (empty) new Lance 845 Truck camper on the back. The bags (individually plumbed, might try a single line in the near future) work great to support the weight, 60 lbs levels the truck, 80 lbs raises the truck about another inch. The Hellwig sway bar does not really work with my weight... I was hoping for the sway bar to get rid of the sway when I turn out of a driveway or low speed 90 degree turn... It leans pretty good. (By the way, the Hellwig people (in Visalia, CA) are a pleasure to talk to). What worked for me in the past on my ex Ford with the same set up was - I had overload springs on that particuliar truck and I added my own version of "snubbers". I installed a soft bump stop under each end of my overload springs. This placed constant pressure on the springs, when the truck swayed the bump stops compressed slightly to prevent the sway.

Plumbing the bags in a single line would probably increase your sway and decrease your recovery time.

To decrease your slow speed sway you may consider different shocks, or play with the 9000 valving.

Do you have a level kit on the front of your truck?

 

[steved]

There are two thoughts on airbag plumbing...

*Plumbing them together prevents a sudden side-to-side shift in COG if you had a loss of air since the other would release at the same time... they don't have much volume of air, and it takes little loss to deflate them. They would be easier to keep even (in pressure) this way for sure...

*Plumbing independent allows you to compensate for unevenly distributed loads (heavier one side).

Mine are plumbed independently, and they did help sway and rocking (based on a 1500# slide in camper) noticeably... stiffer shocks also help a lot. As AH64ID indicated, increasing spring rate decreases sway... but at a sacrifice to ride. My airbags are not noticeable at 5psi, and even at 10psi you really can't tell the ride is any worse.

I think a lot of guys get airbags and then proceed to overload the truck because the airbags can "support up to 5000 pounds". Overload any suspension and it will perform poorly.

 

[Trophy Truck]

AH64ad, No leveling kit on front, and I have been up and down the RS9000 range.

Steved, good thoughts on the plumbing principle