"Official" Firestone RideRite + Lift Thread

Yes to both. Daystar cradles are made for just your situation since without them the fixed brackets would limit compression more than cradles. If fixed the bags can only compress and elongate so much. You lose a little from the thickness of the cradle and minimum height of the bags but not as much as by fixing them with brackets top and bottom.

 

I definitely need to do this! I'm running OME Dakar's and my cradles are starting to bend down towards the axle.

 

those of you with the firestones; I want to run them to carry heavy load maybe 6-10 times a year. When at the lowest recommended pressure, do they raise the rear at all? or are they free floating for the first bit of travel? I do have have a 1.5" aal, hoping the ride quality and height is essentially unchanged unloaded, only firmer on big bumps or when loaded. Is that realistic?

 

Ride and level are directly affected by the pressure but if you have no load and the minimum pressure then there won’t be any change. As you add air the ride gets firmer and higher. As you add load it gets softer and lower. With nothing but the cap and no AAL I run at 20psi, with tools 30-35psi, max load 65psi. Those numbers maintain ride quality and shock travel for me, too much air would be like having a heavy duty leaf pack all the time.

 

I have a somewhat different experience.

In addition to my airbags, I installed upside-down bumpstops with custom strike plates, so I can run them without pressure. With 5 PSI (the minimum) I'll get a Pogo type effect. Near 15 PSI was the sweet spot when unloaded. I found that any pressure at all in the bags raised the rear 1/2 inch to 1 inch. That's why I run them without air, so I can get under my garage door (but not recommended unless you have bumpstops) .

On a side note, @spectacolar.adventures goes into installing airbags with internal bumpstops here (with a 63 inch leaf pack).

 

Pictures of your special bumpstop installation would be most appreciated!

 

Here's the thread where I purchased them. Install pics are in the next two posts here.

 

I’ve had the air bags and Daystar cradles for a over a year now and my only complaint has been slow air leaks. Fully loaded, the system needs to be topped off daily. I cut my connections with a tubing cutter, etc and followed all directions to avoid that.
I was out for a MTB ride with a buddy who suggested trying Stans No-tubes sealant, the latex based liquid for sealing bike tires…think the green “Tire Slime” but thinner consistency.
Process: 1-deflate bags
2-remove guys from valve stem
3-put small length (6”) of clear tube on valve stem and other end on squirt bottle full of Stans
4-squeeze Stans into the system and reassemble valve stem.
My setup has both airbags at the same pressure, obviously you’d need to do both sides if set up independently.
So far, it is works big like a charm, it’s been over two weeks with no decrease in pressure. You probably need an couple ounces or less for the system, a small bottle of Stans will do both sides. You can find it anywhere on line or at almost any local bike shop.

 

OP here. ~8 years after creating this post, still running the original bags and I've never had a leak (KNOCK ON WOOD!).

 

I have been only running mine for two years but they hold their pressure great. Initially, I lost pressure after a couple of days. Then, I retested all the connections with soap and reinstalled any with air leaks. Now that can go three months or more without loosing any pressure.

 

Has anyone had any problems with these in the winter months? I am on the fence between these and the torque air bag system.

 

What kinds of problems are you concerned about? I have two years in mine and not a problem. I just set the pressure and forget. Winter and summer.

 

Never heard of any. Most leak issues have to do with connectors and not the bags but occasionally you do hear of faulty ones. Been in on this thread for ~4 years and haven’t read about any specific to winter. I suppose you could lacerate one with a broken chain. Road debris somehow doesn’t seem to get at them past the leafs/axles.

 

I've had mine 4 or 5 years now and the driver's side is leaking. I used soapy water and it is the fitting where the red air hose goes into the L fitting at the top of the bag.

I gotta figure out how to get in there and replace that fitting. Kind of a tight fit between the brackets.

 

Nope! no issues in Hot or cold.

 

So, interesting turn of events...when I was testing to see where the leak was coming from, I pumped them both up to 90 psi and let them sit a couple hours and the leaking coupling seems to have sealed itself. I dropped them both to 30 to drive around for a couple days and they're both holding steady again.

 

Not the smartest thing to do. I did that with a bicycle tire once. Ask me how much fun that wasn't.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the max pressure on the airbags is 100 psi. I just went to 90 (what my compressor is set at) at let it sit while I sprayed soapy water on the parts. Once I spotted the bubbles, I dropped it to 30 and they've both been there since.

 

The bags can take it just fine.

I pump the bags on my Duramax up to 80 PSI per side routinely when I install my Lance cabover camper. I've driven it thousands and thousands of miles that way on and off road, never caused any issues.

 

It's fine, they can take it.