Air Bag Question?

So I’m ready to install my air bags. Reading the instructions it says that if the bags are pressurized, do not lift the truck by the frame because you could damage the bags from over extension. I’m thinking that you need to have at least 5psi in the bags, what happens if your full extend the suspension in an off road situation?

 

If you lift by the frame it will cause the rear axle to hang from the bag, putting stress on the bag. The bag will also prevent the rear axle from dropping completely. That's one of the reasons a lot of guys use the Daystar cradle. The cradle allows the rear axle to drop fully without putting any stress on the bag. That's what I did when I put Firestone bags on my 2008. Works great.

 

i don’t know about the Daystar cradle. I’m looking into it. Thanks

 

I've run Daystar Cradles since Day One for that exact reason. Zero issues. 100% do what they advertise. The airbags can be the limiting factor in articulation or fully drooping the axle on a service lift. I've seen a few bags fail (second hand, not first hand) in that manor, but those rigs typically had longer shocks or a different leaf pack. But I'd wager that for every bag failure you can find on the internet from overextension, there are probably 1000's of bags with zero issues doing the same thing.

The airbag itself is good from somewhere between 3" height at full compression and 12" height at full extension. I don't recall the tundra rear travel numbers off hand, but I believe it is around 12" at the rear wheels (but less than that at the spring/frame interface). So it is pushing the limit.

I do know that with my suspension flexed out, I can almost put my fist between the rear airbag and the axle. So Daystar Cradles were completely worth it to me. You would be hard pressed to notice any difference towing with the cradles vs without. My bags may or may not have been called on to support more than you 5er pin weight... Again, zero issues with them.

 

Thanks for the reply. I’ve ordered the cradles. I did have a message chat with Torque about the airbags being over extended when going off road and they “should” be fine so I asked about the warning in the installation instructions about not lifting from the frame and got crickets.

The did tell me that the air bag “same as the double bellow Firestone, has a max inflated height of 8.5”.

 

If you run stock suspension, generally shock absorbers are designed to be spring limiters. So the shock is
designed internally at full extension to stop over extension of your springs. Airbags should be fitted so that
at full extension of suspension the bags will no separate as their full extension is slightly greater than the
mechanical limit of springs. This is a leaf spring condition I'm referring to. It came from a long detailed
phone conversation with a tech from ARB/OME. I run triple bulb long BOSS bags on my 60. The bags will
pull at full drop but never separate, like designed.

 

I’m running a stock suspension. I agree that the shock should limit the travel and prevent airbag separation from the mount. My concern is the warning in the instructions that you shouldn’t lift the truck from the frame and doing so could void your warranty.

 

Ideally, that is correct. But airbag kits are designed with an off the shelf bag applied to many applications instead of a custom bag for each application. So while the shock absorber should limit axle articulation, it doesn't mean that the bag was designed to meet the same spec. I believe there was a new guy here not too long ago that had his airbag fail; the top plate mounting bolts separated when the vehicle was put on a lift. They were Airlift bags, if that makes any difference. Below is my bags, cradles, and (then) stock leaf pack with Bilstein 5160's which don't have much more travel than stock (25.7" extended length vs ~25" stock IIRC). Lots of room underneath the bag, and the cradle takes up about 3/4".

 

That's a bit prissy, if they don't feel their airbag is capable of static hang. Maybe find a different airbag. I have let mine hang for
months, especially right now while I'm doing major axle work.

 

I purchased the cradles so I no longer have to worry.

 

I have a stock suspension and don’t really do serious off-road like I use to. The cradles were cheap and then I didn’t have to worry about it. After all, isn’t have a truck about spending money on unnecessary things

 

Cheap? Here in Canada they are $130. In the US I found them on Amazon for about $90 US.

 

Ouch. They were only about $55 when I bought mine.

 

So I installed the cradles today. I notice that the rubber part of the airbag makes contact with the cradle. Is this normal? My worry is that the rubber contacting the cradle could cause the bag to wear through. In these two pictures the airbags are at 10psi and 20psi. I’ve been running them at 10psi so the truck doesn’t sit high at the rear.

 

That’s what mine look like.

 

Bags installed, now I get a snapping noise from the front end which has a 1.5 lift installed. At 32K she sits perfectly level just the odd inconsistent noise up front.