Is it too low?Air Ride Install

I'm with you gimpy.

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Thanks, great thread ...great information..John

 

I'll just throw this tidbit in for arguement.
One customer built a pickup with air rear suspension with a small rolling lobe type bag. If you look at the rear of any semi tractor, you will see the air spring bag rides on a tapered piston base that gets larger in diameter in compression, which would make it a progressive spring. His words, 2.5 psi of air pressure when running empty, maybe 4 psi with a pickup load of gear cores. I drove the pickup, very comfortable. I'm not sure who's conversion he had bought and installed, but it worked extremely well.
Another customer with a champagne colored Buick convertible that has been on the cover of Street Scene and pictured in SRM, that had Shockwave compnents in it that Shockwave couldn't provide the "sweet spot" info for. Can't say Shockwave didn't get the right answers from the car builder
Sweet spot? Vehicle weight, air spring height at correct air pressure for the best handling and ride, and mounting points to make all of the previous to work together.
Engineering with the unknown builds a foundation to give answers by some of what is known, and then engineer from there.

 

I have a passionate dislike for Shockwaves. Every time I have had to deal with them was a customer asking me to remove them, in favor of properly sized conventional bags. They are overpriced, seem to leak (have never seen a set that didn't), and have a bellows that is too small for all but the lightest car.

Just don't go there.

 

We can agree on that. I never understood why someone would buy them when you could buy the right size bag and shock with the correct valving for way less.

 

Bottom line, don't bother with airbags if it's not gonna lay frame, anything else makes you a poser.[/QUOTE]

Exactly well said

 

I always set my personal cars up to lay out, but as I start to do work for people who have no experience at all with air ride, and some for customers that are not even that mechanically inclined, I almost feel like it is a liability to set up their cars to lay frame. Hitting a switch by mistake or by inexperience and hitting a bumpstop is a lot different than hitting asphalt at speed and losing all traction.

 

dam the more i read the more nervous i get on bagging my cars!

 

Left coast, you just need longer spacers at laid out...and you will be set. That will give you the most lift, best low pressure ride, and lowest stance. Put some bump stops in if you like....You will prolly pull em in three months as it wont be low enuff...its a sickness.

My 54 ride hieght is about 90 lbs. All my stuff lays out on some portion of the frame. That being said...I am building my wifes 55 buford right now...It will NOT lay out.

FNG...dont stress, once you goto bags you will love em. Build it right and you will prolly not have any issues.

 

I feel the exact same way,if its not going to lay frame why even bother.

Exactly well said[/QUOTE]

 

I like mine to lay body.. I built my own front suspension starting with S10 drop spindles and building my own x member, control arms etc.. I drive my car at 60lbs front and rear and it rides like a million bucks. I do admit that it is somewhat of a risk setting a car up to me this low but I fell confident in the suspension. I put a lot of miles on the car last year driving to many out of state shows etc.. I do always carry and extra bag, lines, fittings etc. just in case something should happen. For the past 13 years I have had at least 1 vehicle on air many of them I drove year round in Michigan winters.

 

Now that^^^ is proper use of air bags.That just looks stunning.......WOW !!!!!!!
What a great stance .

 

I agree! Chopd54, that car looks great. I like the color and scallops also. Nice work!

 

Man this is a beautiful car!!!! And leftcoast I really like yours too, been following your threads.

 

Thanks man

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So this board is now filled with Kustoms that lay frame so im wondering where all the Hotrods that layframe?

 

your gona get the best ride buy setting it up to the lowest piont like he said above its ajustable suspension ride hight is were ever you raise the car to any time you try and set up air ride with a certain ride hight in mind your gona sacrfise somethin else

 

your gona get the best ride buy setting it up to the lowest piont like he said above its ajustable suspension ride hight is were ever you raise the car to any time you try and set up air ride with a certain ride hight in mind your gona sacrfise somethin else
air ride set up correctly is safe if a bag can possibly rub on something its gona fail eventualy with an indipendant system ( valves in ea. corner )with a bag failure the opposite corner bag fully raised should get you safely to the side of the road ive drove home like this before at a slow pase

 

Alex kicks ass.thanks for the call on a Sunday night! Nobody cares more about their customers. :thumbup:

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Alex does kick ass, he got me set in the right direction! (I got a call monday night)

 

My 51 Buick lays about an inch off the ground aired out. While I like the look of her slightly off the ground, I'm about to lay body with the 50 Ford I am currently building, so it's not like I am biased either way.
I will say however, for many years this car was my daily driver (been bagged since 05 I think?), and I'm glad made a few precautions (like the small notch for my steering) as I had a line blow off once, and a bag blow out (not common)... oh and a compressor burn up (so I was drove home on very little pressure).
I have not had issues in many years though, and would drive her anywhere.

 

Sorry to bring up an older thread however, its only two months old so hopefully this isn't a problem.

I have a few questions about setting the appropriate ride height and not being too low and I'm confused by the above response... I want to install a mustang II front end and bags but from what I understand, there is no adjustment in a system like this... or is there? You mention setting the car up to use all of the bags travel thus having more than enough adjustment. how do you do that with a Mustang II? Seems to me a Mustang II kit comes ready to weld in and would provide a typical ride height across the board. Only adjustment would be with spindles, right? If thats the case, how does one know which to buy, stock height or 2" dropped?

Had a discussion about a particular kit and it was mentioned the bags were too small which gave a stiffer ride when low... Seems like you would have a stiff ride when full or out of air but wouldn't the ride be good when in between (i understand there is an optimal pressure but I'm talking in general)?

Sorry again to bring this back up but figured it was better to reply to this than start a new thread with similar topics.

 

sent you a pM