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Some trucks have "overload" springs that only compress once you've packed alot of weight on the truck. You can also add airbags to help if your squatting the truck too much.
__________________ "The problem with quotes on the internet is that you can never be certain they are accurate"----Abraham Lincoln
Years ago, we were towing big loads with 3/4 ton pick ups, the springs used to squat after a while, so instead of adding or replacing leaves, we installed Timbren Suspension kits in the trucks http://www.rubbersuspension.com/
I personally hated them! I thought they were dangerous. Everytime the suspension bottomed out on the rubber, the truck lost its ability to drive through a turn and became jerky. Like riding a gokart with no suspension at all.
These worked pretty well, we put the inflators in the rear bumpers and kept them at 90 psi for towing and 20 psi for not towing. ( assuming my memory is correct). What I didn't like about these is the mounting interfered with the Goose Hitch and some custom cutting and welding had to be done on the frame rails.
We eventually evolved to larger trucks and got rid of these things, which contiues to this day (moving to larger trucks), but you asked about shocks.
Shocks are tricky because I have a buddy that owns an auto parts store and he told me that most shocks are made by 1 or 2 places and the high end shocks are not much different than the stock shocks. I didn't believe him and installed set of high end Rancho's on my latest truck. I think they are far superior to the standard shocks, but I can't swear to it.
Maybe its more important to change shocks regularly than it is to buy the most expensive shocks you can find. Tough call. I'm no shock expert for sure. They can get complicated.
monroe makes shocks that are for heavy loads as well. something like load leveling shocks or something like that. i've got a set on mine and they help with the sag a bit but not much with the ride. they are really stiff
Shocks are motion dampers and provide no "lift" or support, except "load leveller" type, which have a coil-over spring on them. The big difference in shocks is the amount of motion dampening they provide, and the relative amount in both compression and rebound.
no i still have the tundra which is what i use to tow my boat, that was my friends diesel 2500 hd duramax w/ allison tranny and it towed the boat effortlessly, the new airbags are awesome, i think it will completely fix the sagging on my truck. when i put a leveling kit on my truck and raised the front end 3 inches the azz sagging became very noticeable, so now i have the airbags i wanted to know if heavy duty shocks would help also
2007 toyota tundra 4 x 4 , 5.7 l v8, 6 speed transmission, trd off road package, 10,800 max towing capacity. this is the picture after the leveling kit was put on it, so it made the ass sit low when towing.
towing after the leveling kit, notice how the azz sits low, before it was fine b/c the azz sat 3 inches higher than the front, now that its leveled the azz sits 3 inches lower than the front, so i added firestone ride rite air bags from adivce given from dadriva and i think that will be the solution.
being towed by friends 2500 hd
__________________ 12 ft skiff with 5hp tohatsu
Last edited by PelagicHunter; 03-30-2010 at 07:37 AM.
I had a set of Bilstein H/D shocks put on to replace the Bilstein TRD shocks that came with the truck as after 70,000 miles or so, I was noticing my truck bouncing a few more times than I remembered.
The Bilstein Heavy Duty's were a bit stiffer and the extra bouncing has been eliminated.
My Dad, with me for my ride to FL to buy new trailer and new boat to tow back to MA, this was in Maryland somewhere, late May 2007;
I've got a set of Rancho RS9000 shocks on our Excursion. I set them all the way soft when not towing, on 3 or 4 when towing. I figured that I could just keep adjusting them for more damping as they wear, but after ~4 years I haven't seen any degradation in their performance. They work very well for me.
I replaced my Rancho 9000's with the newer model Rancho 9000XL - beefier than the earlier ones, and they work really well. I tow a 12,000 lb boat trailer, and really like the adjustability. They also ride smoother when I'm not heavily loaded.
__________________ Richard Cook
New Moon (Bounty 257, Volvo KAD44P)
"Cruising in a Big Way"
it did squat the duramax 3 inches, the duramax wasnt leveled so when the trailer was put on it the chevy sat level.....
the boat did the same thing to my truck as well, but since i lifted the front 3 inches when i put the trailer on it the azz went down to make it look the way it does
Correct me if i'm wrong, but it sounds like he meant springs when he said "shocks." Go with the firestone ride rite kit. I've installed 4 of these kits and they're great, especially if you add the in cab control. My limited experience with the airlift brand has been poor. I believe the firestones are cheaper anyway. http://www.firestoneindustrial.com/riderite/
Before airbags:
Installed:
__________________
2008 Hydra Sport 23 Bay Bolt, 250 E-tec
2012 Ford F-350 6.7 Diesel
Last edited by viperkiller; 03-31-2010 at 06:43 PM.
Shocks for Towing? 
