Air Bags and WD Hitch question

[eoc1212]

Hi,

Just installed the firestone air bags last night and will be taking the toy hauler out for the weekend. I have weight distribution bars too. Usually I lower the hauler onto the hitch and put on the WD bars, tighten them up and go. With the airbags... do I need to:

A: Raise the rear FIRST, by inflating he bags.... THEN tighten the WD bars?

OR

B: Do I put the WD bars on FIRST, tighten them up, THEN raise the rear with the air bags???

I want to be sure I don't put too much tension or weight on either of the components and get the full effectiveness of the set-up...

Thanks for the help!
Edwin

[thclimer]

I always leave about 10psi in my air bags. I have Equalizer WD hitch so my procedure is to connect the trailer to the ball. Then using the trailer’s jack, raise the back of the Titan until I’m able to swing in my load bars over their “L” brackets. Once load bars are positioned over their “L” brackets, another smaller “L” shaped bracket secures them in place. I then lower the trailer jack. If I’m going to be hauling a heavy load (above 7,000 lbs) I’ll put about 25-30 psi in the air bags, if its going to be less than 5,000 lbs I’ll probably only put 15-20 psi in them.

[eoc1212]

Oh... and the trailer I am towing is 7500 lbs...

[eoc1212]

Originally Posted by thclimer

Then using the trailer’s jack, raise the back of the Titan until I’m able to swing in my load bars over their “L” brackets.

On my WD hitch can tighten the load bars without lifting the trailer like you mentioned... interesting.

I am inclined to fill the air bags first, then tighten the WD hitch load bars... this is what makes sense to me... but I want to confirm that with the pro's first!

[Nissanloyalist]

Originally Posted by eoc1212

On my WD hitch can tighten the load bars without lifting the trailer like you mentioned... interesting.

I am inclined to fill the air bags first, then tighten the WD hitch load bars... this is what makes sense to me... but I want to confirm that with the pro's first!

Before my 5er i had a couple different bumper pulls and I always had to hook the WD hitch up first before the airbags since it would create to much of an off set in hitch height. If you want to fill the bags first then you need to readjust your hitch for the new height. I measured mine at stock so when the tongue compressed the suspension ( which was about 900#) I could bring it back to stock with the bags from where my original measurement for hitch height was. Hope that helps

[eoc1212]

Originally Posted by Nissanloyalist

Before my 5er i had a couple different bumper pulls and I always had to hook the WD hitch up first before the airbags since it would create to much of an off set in hitch height. If you want to fill the bags first then you need to readjust your hitch for the new height. I measured mine at stock so when the tongue compressed the suspension ( which was about 900#) I could bring it back to stock with the bags from where my original measurement for hitch height was. Hope that helps

Thanks... but this is not quite what I am asking. I am definitely going to drop the trailer on the hitch ball FIRST... no matter what, this is the first step. My question is... once I have done this... should I fill the airbags next, then tighten up the WD hitch bars/chain........... OR.............. tighten up the WD hitch bars/chain and then fill the airbags?

I think I read the answer on another forum... I am pretty sure te proper thing to do it
- hook up
- fill air bags
- tighten WD hitch bars

Thanks anyway.... edwin

[Nissanloyalist]

Originally Posted by eoc1212

Thanks... but this is not quite what I am asking. I am definitely going to drop the trailer on the hitch ball FIRST... no matter what, this is the first step. My question is... once I have done this... should I fill the airbags next, then tighten up the WD hitch bars/chain........... OR.............. tighten up the WD hitch bars/chain and then fill the airbags?

I think I read the answer on another forum... I am pretty sure te proper thing to do it
- hook up
- fill air bags
- tighten WD hitch bars

Thanks anyway.... edwin

I was never able to tighten the WD bars after I filled the airbags. Again because of the leveling differences. But again that was with my setup.

[lmm928]

If the WD hitch was set for the truck without the airbags you may have to make some adjustments to your hitch now that you have the bags. I would try raising the hitch one slot to make up for the raise in ball height and maybe even loosening the tension on your bars by one chain. Keep the trailer as close to level as possible and use the bags to then level the truck. To answer your question on which order to go in, I would put the bars on then fill the bags to the height you need.

[LONESTAR]

Need a direction here
this is the next add-on that i want to do....where have you guys found the best pricing on firestones?

[endicottg]

None of the Firestone kits are cheap. I did quite a bit of searching and found the "Suspension Connection" to be the least expensive. See web site below.

Firestone Air Bags, Springs & Compressors for Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Jeep, Toyota & Nissan truck & suv - Suspension Connection

By the way, for a procedure to connect my trailer, I connect the trailer, raise it slightly, set my bars (I use a Draw-tite setup and drop three links, lower the trailer, then put 35 lbs in my air bags. I think putting air in the bags first raises the rear end and makes it a bit harder to get the hitch on the ball if I'm on uneven ground. I bought a great little air compressor from Costco that I use when I don't have a regular compressor handy.

[HudsonValleyTitan]

Originally Posted by eoc1212

Hi,

Just installed the firestone air bags last night and will be taking the toy hauler out for the weekend. I have weight distribution bars too. Usually I lower the hauler onto the hitch and put on the WD bars, tighten them up and go. With the airbags... do I need to:

A: Raise the rear FIRST, by inflating he bags.... THEN tighten the WD bars?

OR

B: Do I put the WD bars on FIRST, tighten them up, THEN raise the rear with the air bags???

I want to be sure I don't put too much tension or weight on either of the components and get the full effectiveness of the set-up...

Thanks for the help!
Edwin

A buddy has the airbags and says that you should hook up and set the WD bars just as you did before. Then air up the bags to bring the rear end up to where you want it. The airbags don't negate the job of the WD bars. The WD bars help transfer weight evenly between the front and rear wheels of the truck. The airbags do one thing...they lift the rear end so it sits level.

[LONESTAR]

Thanks for info