Helper springs/ Airbags Etc.

[LittleBittyBigJohn]

I've been hauling pretty regularly lately. I guess I need to address the squat... Do any of you have experience with anything to help? I've seen air bags, big gigantic bump stops, and some sort of contraption that bolts onto the top of the spring pack. I don't want to spend a ton of money. It still rides just fine but it squats just a couple inches low in the back compared to the front and I blind oncoming traffic at night. The picture with the truck on the trailer I apparently had the camera on the fish eye setting. It was not as bad as the picture makes it look. It basically always squats to the same level, about 2-3 inches low in the back. I guess that's where it picks up the heavyweight spring in the pack.

 

[nisaacs]

Do you have a front level kit on your truck?

I have a '21 Ram 2500 with 5k Airlift bags, they work good, no squat. My truck has the factory front to back rake but still needed the bags for heavy haul.

 

[LittleBittyBigJohn]

Do you have a front level kit on your truck?

No, it's factory all around.

Also, do the air bags kill the ride when unloaded? Do you need to dump the air when empty then air them up for a load, or can you leave them aired up?

 

[nisaacs]

No, it's factory all around.

Also, do the air bags kill the ride when unloaded? Do you need to dump the air when empty then air them up for a load, or can you leave them aired up?

I run 10# in the left side and 5# on the right and never adjust. The air pressure will self adjust as you add weight. I have manual fill, plumbed separate. It will firm the empty ride some.

 

[dodge man]

I’ve never been a fan of air bags or other band aids. What’s your trucks payload? It doesn’t seem you’d be overloading a 3/4 ton. I’d say a weight distribution hitch would help you 100%.

 

[LittleBittyBigJohn]

It's not overloaded. While you are probably right about a WD hitch I'm not really interested in going that route. My friend and I have 3 car haulers that we use depending on which one is out or load size. We may go 500 miles empty to get something light, or take a 1 ton and bring back something tiny.

The one in the pictures above is a 24' -14,000# rated one with drive over fenders and 14 ply tires. It pulls really good and has great brakes. It's the one that goes on the longest trips.

 

[dodge man]

If you use a WD and have a light load there is nothing saying you have to use it if empty or carrying a lighter load.

 

[LittleBittyBigJohn]

don't you have to modify the trailer to use it though?

 

[George2615]

No, you don't have to modify the trailer to use a WD hitch. The only thing added to the trailer are what I call saddle brackets that clamp on. The chains attach to them for adjusting the hitch.
Not sure what year your 2500 is but it squats way more than my 2016 with my 14K 22' tilt bed trailer. Must have quite a bit of tongue weight. I use a WD hitch on heavy loads but most times I don't need it. Here's a pic of mine without the WD hitch.

 

[LittleBittyBigJohn]

That's about how much mine squats usually. That picture with the truck on the trailer looks way worse than it was. But it was still a little more squatted than yours. But that truck weighs a couple thousand pounds more than the tractor. I should have backed it up a foot or so probably and that would have helped a lot.