How good can a full-size solid axle suspension be?

[Metcalf]

@Metcalf Do you have any particular bump stops that you would recommend? I could try and get an OEM Ford one to work. I have heard that they compress a lot, hard to believe as they seem to be very hard material.

It depends a bit on overall weight, but I really like the 2000ish GM pickup rear foam bumpstops. GM 15712438

You can get them as generic replacements now too. The new OEM ones seem to be the best quality. They need to strike a smooth metal surface. Once they skin gets broken on them, they should be replaced. They will compress to 1" tall if you hit them hard enough. Pretty easy to mount also.

 

[Superduty]

It depends a bit on overall weight, but I really like the 2000ish GM pickup rear foam bumpstops. GM 15712438

You can get them as generic replacements now too. The new OEM ones seem to be the best quality. They need to strike a smooth metal surface. Once they skin gets broken on them, they should be replaced. They will compress to 1" tall if you hit them hard enough. Pretty easy to mount also. View attachment 719824

The 05+ superduty ones look very similar to those. How tall are those? They look to be 3-4 inches, which means with 5 inches of travel you really only get the first inch or two that are pure shock. Is that an issue?

 

[Metcalf]

The 05+ superduty ones look very similar to those. How tall are those? They look to be 3-4 inches, which means with 5 inches of travel you really only get the first inch or two that are pure shock. Is that an issue?

They are about 3.5 tall and compress to 1" give or take. That gives 2.5" of 'stroke'. They are quite soft for the first inch and then ramp up from there. It feels similar to hitting the dual rate stop on a coilover. They are dead quiet which is really nice. A lot of OEMs are going this way, but most factory applications ( vs the weight of the vehicle ) seem to be pretty stiff to me....my 07 ford for instance. These GM units feel GREAT on my #LX45 project ( at about 4500lbs ) both front and rear. I do have hard rubber 'final' stops on the rear, but replaced the inner rubber overload style stops on the rear suspension....made a HUGE difference vs just letting the rear suspension stop on the hard rubber, much more progressive feeling.

 

[Superduty]

@Metcalf My truck weight about 8900 lbs with the front being 4800 lbs. Is that gonna be too much for these?

 

[Metcalf]

@Metcalf My truck weight about 8900 lbs with the front being 4800 lbs. Is that gonna be too much for these?

That sound a bit heavy to me, but there might be something similar from a different application.

 

[nater]

Sumo should make some soft bump stops for a wide variety of trucks. I use them on my diesel ram, and they feel great.

 

[rnArmy]

Timbren sells bump stops. See if they have one for your application.

Timbren Bump Stops Vehicle Suspension | etrailer.com

I'm running a pair in the back of my 96 Ram 1500 4x4 with 2" lift.

 

[norcaltoy]

Did you ever make any progress on this? Seemed like the possibility of the bronco coil swap looked like the most off the shelf possibility for some springs

 

[Kevinm]

Any progress on this? I follow you on IG, im kinda surprised i havent seen any tech posts about this after stumbling on this 2 year old thread. Not that im knocking you

Im a big fan of those GM bumpstops too. I used them on my old toyota build and loved them so went with them on my current tacoma build but i mounted them in bump cans and used a 1/2” socket head capscrew through the centre as a way to give it some kind of adjustable hard limit. The idea is for it to only hit on those really hard hits that you didnt see coming. Time will tell if it holds up.

While in the junkyard I also stumbled on a bigger version that i assume/hope is made from the same material from another GM vehicle of the same era. Might have been a trailblazer, i cant recall. Iirc i had to cut them off though, no single bolt. Heres a pic of them beside some crappy 2wd tacoma bumostops something like that might be more suitable for a heavier truck

Im a big fan of trying to get the best ride quality possible/go as fast as possible within my budget too, i still plan to load my Tacoma up with camping gear etc so i went with a minimal leaf pack and air bags with daystar cradles.
My plan is to pull a vacuum on them to get them out of the way when not in use. I really don’t want the truck smacking them even if they aren’t inflated. If they wont hold a vaccum i plan to just hold them up with a strap if necessary.
I know the cradles were mentioned already and on a heavier truck i could understand the durability concern but imo it would negate your concerns about airbag wear and once you are loaded you are no longer concerned about going fast over rough terrain (i assume).
I have heard of the cradles breaking but i think improper set up is a big factor in most cases. Having a long travel bag that stays in contact with the cradle and at the proper angle, i cant see the cradle breaking.

So that’s my two cents

 

[Metcalf]

Any progress on this? I follow you on IG, im kinda surprised i havent seen any tech posts about this after stumbling on this 2 year old thread. Not that im knocking you

Honestly, the truck just didn't end up getting used in that way. I have a few other toys that do my primary big off road trips. When I decide to retire and just travel, I think a full-size regular cab 8' box pickup is still the top of the list to build a mobile-home from. I will definitely have to revisit this again at that time.