Dt466 1995 f350

Jesse M. said:
I'm using 4 independent mechanical leveling valves, so it should add just enough pressure to maintain ride height. I think pretty similar to what you were describing.
My question is when it comes to off road, are the outside springs going to try to flip the truck in an off camber situation? I don't do any hard off roading, but I do see some washouts, ditches, mud, and things like that. I was thinking maybe a shut off valve between the spring and leveling valve turned off before leaving pavement might help?

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I think you would want to keep the leveling valves active when you are off road. Keeping them active will allow the leveling valve to add air when a tire drops into a washout or a hole.

Neway suspensions are the kig of air ride off road in semis. They are set up with a leveling valve in all four corners to follow the contour of the ground and keep the truck level. Watch the video.

Neway ADZ - More Durable - YouTube
 
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That's a pretty small reservoir for that monster 10 inch diameter bag...and it still helped a ton! What were the approximate diameter and length of it...I would love to run the math of that bag...then that bag with reservoir.
 
RockinRam....it does the opposite....so not...you definitely do not want the leveling valve operational while in travel. They are god awful...
 
cquestad said:
That's a pretty small reservoir for that monster 10 inch diameter bag...and it still helped a ton! What were the approximate diameter and length of it...I would love to run the math of that bag...then that bag with reservoir.
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I thought the tanks might be too big for them? I'm starting to run short on room under the truck too. The fuel tank goes in between the frame in the rear, and the exhaust has to go outside the frame if I ever get it done. :hehe: I just have it dumping down behind the cab currently. I'll have to measure them but I found a listing for a used one online. It says 9.5x9.25. But then says 9.5 wtw, 12" oal 9.5 dia.

OTHER Freightliner Other (Stock #21401329) | Air Tanks | TPI

I have my 2 rear bags controlled by a Touche Little Larry valve. I can air up or deflate each bag individually and I have a dual needle pressure gauge to monitor them. I had a single leveling valve for a semi on it for about 2 days and didn't like how it acted going down a weird field entrance. If it was flat and straight it was ok, but not side ways and un even.

Jesse, I hope we're not cluttering up your thread too bad. I know the discussion in here helped me already.
 
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DieselWrencher said:
I had a single leveling valve for a semi on it for about 2 days and didn't like how it acted going down a weird field entrance. If it was flat and straight it was ok, but not side ways and un even.
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Where did you have the leveling valve mounted? Both to the frame and the axle?

FWIW, the Neway has four leveling valves. One at each corner of the rear suspension and will follow the contour of the ground. Maybe it works well because of the size of the air system on the truck. Also, it could depend on the size of the air lines you have going from the leveling valve to the bags and from the tank to the leveling valve. Bigger line, quicker it will respond.

I currently have 1/4" line going from the tank to the leveling valve and from the leveling valve to the bags. I am going to revamp my air system and plumb in 1/2" or 5/8" line. It should react when pulling much faster with the bigger air line.
 
Would 1 gallon reservoirs be appropriate size, for both front and rear? The bags I got for the rear are similarly sized to DieselWrencher's.
I'm going to put a ball valve between the spring, and the reservoir, to adjust the "dampening". A solenoid valve between the leveling valve and the reservoir to lock the system in different circumstances. I'm going to do this on all four corners, for maximum adjustability, and experimentation.
The leveling valves I got for the rear also have a "dump" feature, I thought might be neat for backing under trailers...that's a lot of valves!
As far as cluttering this thread, it's all good info, not clutter.


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I had 1 leveling valve and yes it was mounted on the axle and the arm was attached to the frame. I used 3/8" air line to the valve and 3/8 to each bag. I thought about using GM leveling switches but haven't switched over yet. There just isn't enough time. Haha

And on the neway systems, on tanker trucks we used to take off the 4 valve systems and put 1 on each axle. The drivers had too much inconsistency and a lot of the guys said they almost got into roll over situations due to the air suspension. but that was 15 years ago. Maybe they redesigned the valves since then?
 
Jesse M. said:
Would 1 gallon reservoirs be appropriate size, for both front and rear? The bags I got for the rear are similarly sized to DieselWrencher's.
I'm going to put a ball valve between the spring, and the reservoir, to adjust the "dampening". A solenoid valve between the leveling valve and the reservoir to lock the system in different circumstances. I'm going to do this on all four corners, for maximum adjustability, and experimentation.
The leveling valves I got for the rear also have a "dump" feature, I thought might be neat for backing under trailers...that's a lot of valves!
As far as cluttering this thread, it's all good info, not clutter.


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The valve I'm using I can dump them both or one or the other. It is awesome for hooking up a trailer. It's awesome for loading and unloading things in the bed of the truck too. My only regret is I didn't do the front too. I'll have to revisit that later.
 
I didn’t give up, I just ran out of project money for awhile. I have made some progress, a lot of parts I had accumulated finally made it on the truck. Wheels and tires were the biggest recent addition.
Now, I’m reconsidering my transfer case choice. It’s a big heavy beast that us probably indestructible, but it is creating some challenging driveshaft angles and clearance problems.
I’m seriously considering an NP271. I found a number of NP273 for cheap, but can it be converted into a manual shift? I have not found much info about them, or much in the way of aftermarket support. Does anyone know if they can be run “divorced”?
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I went to the driveshaft shop with pictures of the dilemma. I’m going keep the big t-case, and use a two piece front driveshaft to clear the transmission pan. I came home with the carrier bearing I need, so I could do some measuring and eyeballing. It looks like it will be easier than I expected.


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I was planning on the pickup box, but I have been admiring it without the bed. I’ll have to set the box back on, and see how it looks.


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