Those air bags look like cheap quality and you hear too many complaints about them. Besides, who wants to go air them up every time you hook up to something? Unless you want to spend money on an on board air compressor, which adds to the headache. Stiffer coil springs??? Forget about it. You got the wrong truck if you feel the need for a heavier spring. Instead do what makes sense. Timbrens are the way to go. No maintenance, ready to go whenever you are, they keep your truck's soft ride when unloaded, barely noticeable stiffness when loaded, and they keep the truck level. Put them on and forget you ever had a problem with it. Simple.

 

The beauty of this (and other) forums is the fact that we can discuss things and share are opinions. With that being said, in regards to your opinion on Air Bags, i have an opinion on Timbren's which you brought up. I have actually ridden in a truck with them. I do like the design and contemplated them for my truck. But the reason i opted to go with air bags instead was for a few reasons.


They may look cheap but the quality is top notch. AirLift is a respected company. They even have a lifetime warranty. Installation takes less then half an hour with no tools whatsoever. A razor blade and pliers are all you need for the air line install. Zip tied the air fitting under the rear bumper. I can remove the whole system in 30 minutes or less and leave no trace of it.

Really? I have heard none whatsoever. What complaints have you heard and do you have any links? I have used mine dozens of times in the last few months and they work fantastic.

Why do you have to "go" any where? I always have a portable air compressor in my truck in case i get a flat. I don't know anybody who doesn't own a tire pump these days considering they can be had for $20.00 at almost any auto parts store or Walmart. It takes literally 20 seconds to fill the bags to 40PSI to carry 1,200 lbs. Their is no involved "Airing up" procedure. I also have a portable air tank i have used. They take very little air volume. I don't randomly pick up heavy loads. I know when i am going to. So i either put air in them before i leave my house or put it in when i pick up whatever the load is. Either way, it's a simple 30 second procedure.

No maintenance whatsoever on air bags either.

So are air bags. Again, it takes 20 seconds to fill them from any air source.

So do air bags. They do not alter the ride in any way until you put air in them.

So do air bags. And unlike Timbren's, Air bags can be adjusted for ride quality depending on the weight you are hauling. Or you can stiffen your ride when you are hauling nothing if you want. Timbren's can not be adjusted at all.

So do air bags. And you can adjust the level. You cannot with Timbren's.

Timbren kit for my truck: $199.00. No adjustability whatsoever.
Air Lift kit for my truck: $78.00. Fully adjustable for leveling and ride quality loaded or unloaded.

That is why i went with air bags again instead of Timbren. If i was ALWAYS carrying lots of weight, such as a slide in camper, salt spreader, contractor carrying a ton of tools, etc then a Timbren system would make sense for me. But for a person who only hauls loads on occasion an air bag system is MUCH more flexible and sensible not to mention less then half the price.

 

i had firestone airbags ... they worked great until i tinkered with them then i had some minor leaks, but would still hold air for a day or two and never went flat, just dropped down a little.

i switched to timbrens when running around with a 24ft trailer frequently so i didnt have to air up and hoping to balance load better. they worked great for loaded purposes: kept truck nice and level even really heavy, rode well when loaded, no thought or effort at all.
downsides: rode stock on relatively smooth road but when you hit a bigger bump like railroad tracks truck would bounce much harder off of them like a pogo stick, which got dicey a couple times going around curves, especially as coil springs probably are starting to sag a little with age. it wasnt terrible most of the time but i just got tired of dealing with it and i wasnt hauling as much weight as often anylonger.

switched back to airbags and ended up ordering a set of air-lifts (had already given my firestones to a family member) and they are great. hold pressure almost perfectly for days/weeks and at 35psi holds loads quite well (especially compared to stock)

i would debate slightly higher rate springs only if i had a consistant load, otherwise i love that stock ride.

- also, i think i got the bags on amazon for about $80-90 bucks and it took an hour or two to install in the driveway- slip bag inside of the coil springs and route the hoses, so not really much of an investment. timbren are actually even quicker to install as they just replace the bump stops.

 

On my 06' which had leaf springs i used a Helwig kit which had Firestone Airbags as part of it. Install was fairly easy. Did it with the truck on the ground and wheels on. No jack or ramps and it took about an hour. That system worked beautifully with no issues at all. When i got my 11' a few months ago i looked for a similar system but all they seem to make is the type i ended up with, where you slip the bags inside the coils. I would guess that the system that has standalone bags mounted to the bump stops and axles would be better overall, but so far i am impressed with the coil bags.

I am in agreement with you Isky that if you plan on always having heavy loads that beefier springs and Timbren's make more sense. But if you spend the majority of the time driving your truck with no load at all such as myself air bags can't be beat.

 

I have a 2012 Outdoorsman quad cab, I have Timbrens for 2 years now. I tow a 27ft 5th wheel. Had air bags don't want air bags ever again

 

hey kayakman, what kind of problems did you have with your air bags?

 

The problem I have with the Timbrens is where it goes. In place of the factory bump stops, do you realize how much load you are putting on your vehicle to make use of that. Pass.

The AirLift bags are good option to stop sag for lighter loads, but for heavy trailering, I personally decided I'm going with the Tuftrucks TTC-1223 Heavy Duty Rear Spring replacement coil. It's factory ride height, but the spring rate is 50% greater than the factory spring rate. Throw the AirLift bags in there if you want, the price makes it worthwhile probably.

Combine that with Bilstein 5100's in the back and front. And no squat.