jack-ramblin Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 I have a 93/94 dolphin and seems my air springs are not holding air. whats the hazard of travelling with it like this? it rides ok just when bumps are hit it sounds like it is bottoming. I see a few recommend the air lifts and no one has the model # needed around here. I can order from a link someone posted for 325.00 which I am probably going to do . but just curious if I can go 800 miles first or just to be safe put them on asap. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjrbus Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Considering they are an aftermarket item added by the RV manufacturer, guess it is ok to drive without them. I ran around a bit with one not holding air and I let air out of the other to equalize it. The danger, if the bags are good and leaking for another reason you will likely ruin the bags! Personally I would start with an inspection of the system to find out for sure where it is leaking. This is easily done with soap and water, squirt bottle, brush or squirt gun. Put air in system and listen for leaks, if you can not hear then brush, spray or squirt soapy water on everything in sight that looks like part of air bag system, including the schrader (filling valves) on outside of unit. A leak will show itself as bubbles. Do not assume the first leak you find is the only one! I had a slow leak in an air bag that mostly leaked when the vehicle was moving, so was hard to find. If a leak is detected then repair the leak and move on. If the leak is in the bags all you will likely need to replace just the bags, not the whole system. They will need more info to get you the right bags. Only my opinion and worth what you are paying for it. Jim SW FL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack-ramblin Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 thanks for the info.did not know they were addons. these are the ones I am looking at as per other thread http://www.sdtrucksprings.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=19781 seems others have used them with good results. yea I am going to test for a leak as I just put 52#'s of air in both and will drive it and see what happens then spray it but will probably just get new this way I know they are up to snuff to begin with instead of try to locate parts for existing set. thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanAatTheCape Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 what brand of air bags are standard on dolphins? also , troubleshooting a leak is not that hard. My bags (3-Ts) are quite visibile as are the air lines. Soapy water on the air lines and on the bags too. You can probably hear a leak if it is quiet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 Considering they are an aftermarket item added by the RV manufacturer, guess it is ok to drive without them. Jim SW FL Not really a great idea. When the air-bags are added, the OEM rubber leaf-spring "bump stops" are removed (to make room). Then if you remove the air bags - there is nothing to safely limit the spring travel and that can result in broken leafs. That is also one of the reasons why you are not supposed to drive with less then 20 PSI in those bags. Not unless you've got the new versions with built-in bump-stops inside the bags like Air-Ride sells. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjrbus Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 Hmmm, sounds right, But according to what I am reading the bump stop is 1 3/4" high. The mounting and metal on an air spring are about 5/8" times 2 is 1 1/4" plus the thickness of the rubber bag. So only a difference of less than 1/2". I could be wrong, I would drive on that, I did drive on that. The only issue I see is the likely destruction of the bellows without internal bumpers. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 My comment was what might happen if the air-bags were removed and the truck (RV) got driven with no bump stops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totem Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Not really a great idea. When the air-bags are added, the OEM rubber leaf-spring "bump stops" are removed (to make room). Then if you remove the air bags - there is nothing to safely limit the spring travel and that can result in broken leafs. That is also one of the reasons why you are not supposed to drive with less then 20 PSI in those bags. Not unless you've got the new versions with built-in bump-stops inside the bags like Air-Ride sells. Someone must have forgotten to tell the guys that built my rig to "remove the bumps stops" -The bump stops are still there; on opposite side of the struts no where near the bags. Got a pic in my gallery. @ Jack-rambling get the shrader valve core out and pump a bottle of tire slime into your bags, will be good stress relief and hand workout also.I got another 4 years from my bags on slime, then replaced after slime no longer worked. You will negative arch your springs otherwise and that ain't a fun repair... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustrmrk Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 I just purchased and installed the Air Lift Ultimate 5000 air bags from sdtruckparts.com and am very happy with them. They installed easily and work very well. Unfortunately, one of them has had a leak since I installed it. I've been unable to find where it is, so I called Air Lift. It turns out that "once in a while" new bags can leak around the end caps and be very difficult to find w/ soapy water. They're sending me a replacement bag under warranty. I'm not happy about the leak and having to R&R the bag, but their support has been great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 I just purchased and installed the Air Lift Ultimate 5000 air bags from sdtruckparts.com and am very happy with them. They installed easily and work very well. Unfortunately, one of them has had a leak since I installed it. I've been unable to find where it is, so I called Air Lift. It turns out that "once in a while" new bags can leak around the end caps and be very difficult to find w/ soapy water. They're sending me a replacement bag under warranty. I'm not happy about the leak and having to R&R the bag, but their support has been great. I've had them on the phone several times. Great people who speak English and live in the USA (for a change). The Goodyear air-bags are warranteed for life which is a good deal. Did you install as the instructions say or fudge things a bit? I found reversing a few things and drilling from outside the frame rails - instead of from the inside - makes the install go a lot easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustrmrk Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I installed my top pieces from the inside - I doubt it really makes a difference and I probably would have been better off to mount them from the outside. The bolt holes aren't quite perpendicular to the frame since I don't have a right angle drill. I have brake lines in the way on one side and the exhaust in the way on the other. I ended up having to drill at a bit of an angle but I figure the bolts are primarily to hold the bracket in place - the real work gets done by the bracket being flat against the frame and unable to move. On my rig there are some old brackets welded to the frame just forward of the old jounce bumpers that made getting the top pieces aligned front-to-back a close fit. However, I was just able to get them in there w/o modification. Had to work a bit to get the spring / differential case u-bolts loose - some PB Blaster on overnight and a long breaker bar did the trick. Other than that the install went very well. My warranty replacement bag is due in today and I'm hoping the R&R will go fairly easily, since I've already been in there once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I found drilling from the outside made the job a lot easier. I can't imagine working on things like the big u-bolts without a torch to heat them up unless it's a very non-rusty vehicle. I personally have never found PB Blaster to do a thing except make me feel like I'm doing all I can to free something up. I've sprayed a few test bolts as a crude test. Side by side, one left dry and one sprayed with PB Blaster. Then I stuck a torque wrench on both the next day. I found no difference in the torque it took to loosen. That being said - I still find myself using it at times when I'm in fear of breaking a bolt and it is too dangerous to put heat on. I've got air shocks and air-bags in mine. The shocks were only $45 for a pair so I figured they couldn't hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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