How to deal with side to side sway?

[Mighty Dodge Ram]

You do have shocks in the rear…you don’t have coil springs, you have leaf springs. Yes, you could go with a larger diameter anti-sway (actually anti-roll) bar and that might help. I have experience with airbags on two different rigs and like them. Their primary purpose is to level a load (NOT TO ADD PAYLOAD) but if plumbed separately, I find that they act to decrease roll from side to side. I’m not familiar with your model year but as others have said, if your frame under the bed is not fully boxed you will see torsional twisting. Just keep going slow and take your time.
Add: airbags for trucks “typically” do not replace shocks.

 

[simple]

I think of the air bags as a spring as well. Changing air pressure adjusts how stiff they are (spring rate). Swapping them for the overloads would be to change the spring rate. Force = spring rate * distance. When the truck body rolls it moves the spring to a distance where the force of the spring over comes the force of the body roll and pushes it back the other way. It's possible that an air bag system could have a higher spring rate so that it moves less distance before stopping the roll. Distance = force / spring rate.

A shocks job is to slow down the speed of the roll or the rate at which the axle moves relative to the frame. If you go over a pot hole and the truck rolls back and forth several times before settling you might want to look into different shocks. Both springs and shocks have to work together for best results.

It's hard to say for sure from the arm chair quarter back position. If your ok with it how it is, it makes sense to stick with what you have. What you describe sounds normal for a camper on single rear wheels but without riding in it, its really hard to offer an opinion.

 

[greg.potter]

Sway bars resist body lean during hard cornering - they limit articulation. In off-road situations what this means is that the sway bar only lets the suspension drop the wheel rolling into a depression so far before the body starts coming over. With the sway bar disconnected the wheel is allowed to drop further and the body does not come over as much. Additionally when the sway bar is twisted trying to resist the wheel dropping into the depression it stores that energy like a spring, as the wheel comes up that force is returned to the axle resulting in a certain amount of "rebound" which is what can cause the side to side oscillations that can go on for a couple of cycles until the shock absorbers dampen the action.

Vehicles like the Wrangler Rubicon, Dodge Powerwagon and the new Ford Bronco come from the factory with electrically actuated sway bar disconnects to address this issue. The difference in driving down a rough road / trail with your sway bar disconnected versus connected is night and day in terms of body roll.

 

[rruff]

The difference in driving down a rough road / trail with your sway bar disconnected versus connected is night and day in terms of body roll.

Yes, swaybars are only good for less lean while cornering on the road. Everywhere else they tend to make things worse.

 

[GeorgeHayduke]

A swaybar really helped control the Scout Kenai on our Ram 2500. I think the RTT raises the center of gravity surprisingly high on these campers. Sounds like new shocks might also help too if you get sway after sharp impulses (potholes) rather than cornering.

It was mentioned earlier in the thread but bears repeating: make sure the airbags are plumbed separately and not connected together otherwise that can accentuate sway.

 

[Mtpisgah]

I installed bags and a 2.5” lift on my Gladiator Mojave to try to fix the sag and bouncing from steel bumpers, winch and an AluCab canopy camper. It is ok Offroad now but going through some road turns (especially driveways with grade differential) it rocks a lot. I ordered a HellwIg anti sway bar and it arrived yesterday. It will help on the road and hinder off road, but I think it will be worth it in the end.

 

[rruff]

road turns (especially driveways with grade differential) it rocks a lot.

The swaybar will probably make that worse, not better.

 

[Mtpisgah]

The swaybar will probably make that worse, not better.

Hmm. I talked to the guys that have done work on the truck and they said it might help. And I did not buy the sway bar from then, so it was not just a sales tactic. We will see.

 

[svinyard]

You guys are all awesome. Lots of good education here. Looks like I could use some better shocks etc or the airbags. Its really good on the road so far, I can even kind of rally the thing through twisty paved roads up the mountain...but yeah I get that extra boinga-boinga when I get into a deep rut on one side.

 

[rruff]

Hmm. I talked to the guys that have done work on the truck and they said it might help. And I did not buy the sway bar from then, so it was not just a sales tactic. We will see.

They probably don't understand. It *will* help when cornering on a road where the front and rear axles are on the same plane. But when you transition to a different plane (front and rear axles on different planes), the sway bar will keep the suspension from articulating, which will cause the cab, bed, and camper to lurch instead.

You may wish to talk to Peter (Montypower) about this. He removed both swaybars from his F250 (+camper) and installed good shocks and springs. He commented that it was better behaved when turning onto sloped driveways.

His F250 is a newer model with the stiff frame. If you have a truck with a flexible frame the frame itself will articulate... and the swaybar will probably not have much affect in that scenario. The frame will "bounce" too because it's big undamped spring. IMO a stiff frame (most new trucks 1 ton and under are stiff), no swaybars, and good springs and shocks are the way to go. Or if you can push a button to engage or disengage swaybars that would be even better!

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Search ford sway bars.

 

[Deleted member 12023]

Which shocks are you thinking of?

I have King 2.5's on my truck with a custom set of springs Deaver made. Stock front swaybar, no rear. The shock tuning was a game changer. It's an 07Ram2500 at 10500lbs.

 

[Darwin]

I have King 2.5's on my truck with a custom set of springs Deaver made. Stock front swaybar, no rear. The shock tuning was a game changer. It's an 07Ram2500 at 10500lbs.

Have you thought about removing the front sway bar or going aftermarket? The head to side window bang I get going over uneven terrain has me contemplating it, despite all aftermarket manufactures warning against it.

 

[rruff]

...despite all aftermarket manufactures warning against it.

They are in CYA mode. They warn against it because... if you drive like an idiot, you can flip over making sudden directional changes on the road. It's fine if you learn the limitations of your vehicle. It's usually best to slam on the brakes if you are trying not to hit something... then let up and dodge, to the extent you are able.

 

[Porkchopexpress]

Sway bars resist body lean during hard cornering - they limit articulation. In off-road situations what this means is that the sway bar only lets the suspension drop the wheel rolling into a depression so far before the body starts coming over. With the sway bar disconnected the wheel is allowed to drop further and the body does not come over as much. Additionally when the sway bar is twisted trying to resist the wheel dropping into the depression it stores that energy like a spring, as the wheel comes up that force is returned to the axle resulting in a certain amount of "rebound" which is what can cause the side to side oscillations that can go on for a couple of cycles until the shock absorbers dampen the action.

Vehicles like the Wrangler Rubicon, Dodge Powerwagon and the new Ford Bronco come from the factory with electrically actuated sway bar disconnects to address this issue. The difference in driving down a rough road / trail with your sway bar disconnected versus connected is night and day in terms of body roll.

This is a pretty good explanation. I would be careful recieving internet advice on a specific suspension setup, especially as you aren't familiar with shocks vs springs, (no offense). Having a reputable suspension tuner see the truck in person and explain specifically the issues you are concerned with is probably your best move. Or just leave it alone and drive carefully over potholes.