Rear end sagging

[Teqsand]

Need some advice....

I have a 23 JTRD with a RUSTYS 4" lift and and a steel shell, it sits fairly level empty but sags when I start adding gear, it had a nice (required) rake before the addition of the shell and I need it back so I'm more level with gear and not doing the (fugly) Carolina squat....

What is a good solution?

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[SteveInOrlando]

This is exactly what air bags are for.

There are 2 models out there for the gladiator. basically, they go inside the spring on the rear, and when you add additional air, they expand filling the gaps between the springs making the spring stiffer temporarily.

I have used these on many applications and they work great! Hook up a trailer and increase the air pressure to level the ride.

 

[JTenn]

Need some advice....

I have a 23 JTRD with a RUSTYS 4" lift and and a steel shell, it sits fairly level empty but sags when I start adding gear, it had a nice (required) rake before the addition of the shell and I need it back so I'm more level with gear and not doing the (fugly) Carolina squat....

What is a good solution?

Man I'm diggin the turbine engine!! I would say air bags or max tow springs would be your best bet.

 

[Teqsand]

Man I'm diggin the turbine engine!! I would say air bags or max tow springs would be your best bet.

I have a 4" lift on it already.... max tow wouldn't help

Engine is a J58 out of an SR71

 

[Teqsand]

This is exactly what air bags are for.

There are 2 models out there for the gladiator. basically, they go inside the spring on the rear, and when you add additional air, they expand filling the gaps between the springs making the spring stiffer temporarily.

I have used these on many applications and they work great! Hook up a trailer and increase the air pressure to level the ride.

On a 4" lift spring?

 

[toddarama]

Engine is a J58 out of an SR71

Looks like that will be a difficult swap. Not sure you can fit that engine bay and still get the airflow you will need

 

[Teqsand]

Looks like that will be a difficult swap. Not sure you can fit that engine bay and still get the airflow you will need

Enough for idle and that should move the 37's pretty well

 

[chorky]

Theres really only a few solutions. One option is to grt a spacer in the rear to effectively raise it - however this just means the springs are preloaded and not really the right way to go. Air bags are another option and a decent one but it is unsure if bags will work properly for a 4” lift spring. Additionally, bags need to be inflated before weight is added as the bags available go inside the springs and ‘fill’ the gap between the spring coil effectively making it more difficult to compress.

The ‘right’ way to go about it is to get springs that are properly rated for the weight you intend to hail. This is why I opted for a lower lift but higher capacity springs than stock from AEV. I believe dobinson makes higher capacity springs for 4” of lift but they have questionable coating. I think Clayton now offers a higher capacity spring in 4” but unsure if their weight rating

 

[HooliganActual]

The ‘right’ way to go about it is to get springs that are properly rated for the weight you intend to hail. This is why I opted for a lower lift but higher capacity springs than stock from AEV. I believe dobinson makes higher capacity springs for 4” of lift but they have questionable coating. I think Clayton now offers a higher capacity spring in 4” but unsure if their weight rating

+1 to this!!

@Teqsand
My local off-road shop helped me work with Deaver springs to get springs made for the weight I was carrying in the bed.

https://deaverspring.com/

 

[Outside Reality Check]

Air Bag Man makes a great solution for the sag, I use them on a 3" lift. They might be able to work for 4". The heavy duty version wraps the bags in a cover. When the truck is loaded and my trailer is hitched, about 20 psi levels it out. The bags max out around 60 psi. Unloaded I set them at 6 psi for daily driving. I'm really happy with the performance overall.

 

[1stXMan]

I tried the Firestone flavor of coil bags. The right bag wouldn't hold air after only 3 months. Complete waste of money and time.

Timber Grove Enterprises makes a nice air bag setup.

I'm leary after my bag experience though. Springs is the right way to go.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Been holding air fine for almost a year now. Installed them in August of 2022. Pumped them up to tow my car hauler, then back down to 6 again, then up to haul some heavy stuff in the back, then back down to 6 and they are still there since last fall.

Rides like a dream. Handles the load fine.
Are there better ones? Maybe - but these work perfectly fine, easy install and hold air. I check, but they are always right where I want them.
Otherwise my rear springs are stock Overland rear springs.

The ‘right’ way to go about it is to get springs that are properly rated for the weight you intend to hail.

If you intend to have that load at all times, or almost all the time. Otherwise, dual rate is best. If you put in a higher spring rate, then remove the load, you have a rate that's too high for safety and keeping the tires planted when braking and steering.
A spring that's rated for your truck plus 800 pounds in the back will be too stiff if you take that 800 pounds out (except multi-rate springs)
If I were to build an overland truck and knew the weight I was intending to keep in the truck, then I'd get springs for the truck with the extra weight and have a much safer, better ride.

I put multi-rate springs up front because I don't always have 300 pounds sticking out front. But I got springs with a slightly higher rate than stock to account for the extra weight of the bumper and winch. So I matched the spring rate to the truck's front end load.

Since I vary the weight in the back - that's why I stuck with stock springs and air bags. Can't match a spring to the weight when the weight keeps shifting. Guess I could have checked out Synergy multi-rate rear springs........

 

[djthumper]

I actually changed up my rear springs for slightly taller springs, I think they are 1.5" taller than the ones that came with my kit. I would talk to Rusty's and see what you come with.

 

[chorky]

Been holding air fine for almost a year now. Installed them in August of 2022. Pumped them up to tow my car hauler, then back down to 6 again, then up to haul some heavy stuff in the back, then back down to 6 and they are still there since last fall.

Rides like a dream. Handles the load fine.
Are there better ones? Maybe - but these work perfectly fine, easy install and hold air. I check, but they are always right where I want them.
Otherwise my rear springs are stock Overland rear springs.


If you intend to have that load at all times, or almost all the time. Otherwise, dual rate is best. If you put in a higher spring rate, then remove the load, you have a rate that's too high for safety and keeping the tires planted when braking and steering.
A spring that's rated for your truck plus 800 pounds in the back will be too stiff if you take that 800 pounds out (except multi-rate springs)
If I were to build an overland truck and knew the weight I was intending to keep in the truck, then I'd get springs for the truck with the extra weight and have a much safer, better ride.

I put multi-rate springs up front because I don't always have 300 pounds sticking out front. But I got springs with a slightly higher rate than stock to account for the extra weight of the bumper and winch. So I matched the spring rate to the truck's front end load.

Since I vary the weight in the back - that's why I stuck with stock springs and air bags. Can't match a spring to the weight when the weight keeps shifting. Guess I could have checked out Synergy multi-rate rear springs........

Yes but the OP stated he has a steel shell which in itself without any load eliminated the factory rake. Rake is designed into trucks for the purpose of knowing there will at times be additional bed load.

AEV springs (and I think Dobison also) are multi-rate. The springs I have are dual rate, and rated for the weight I carry - my load is always there +- the weight of water, food, clothes, etc.... That may or may not be appropriate for the OP.

Airbags are a great way to go for mostly stock situations. I would be interested in knowing if they are appropriate for 4" lift springs though as that's a lot of extra room. Maybe they would work fine? Maybe not, I don't know. It is certainly worth looking into though and is the cheapest and easiest option if it would be fine.

I think the springs the OP has, for his specific situation, are not appropriate. They seem to be designed for a relatively light Gladiator that is doing a bunch of rock crawling. If a canopy alone caused it to level from having some rake, then that is a pretty light spring. Even with the factory rubicon springs in my Gladiator, it took about 350-400 pounds before the rake was eliminated and it was 'level'. I think the OP might want to consider a combination of new springs as well as airbags if they work with that amount of lift. I mean, to be level with just adding a canopy, means any amount of camping gear, or even a grocery store run, will cause sag. That's kinda sub-par IMO.

You did a ton of research for your own situation which is great. What amount of lift did the springs you go for net? Wasn't it like 1.5" or so?

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Yeah, for an all the time, or even almost all the time load - springs with the correct rate for the weight are best. With a shell that drops the truck that much, and it being there all the time, I'd absolutely go with springs with a higher rate.
Most air bags aren't great for tall springs or lifts and are mostly for "once in a while" loads. Not intended to be inflated to raise the truck back up and stay that way forever.
Airbags should be a "I haul/carry a few times a year, otherwise the truck is empty" type of use. Adjust as needed.
But an overland rig, or any sort of heavy rack or shell is basically changing the weight of the truck on a more permanent basis and springs are the best solution.
In a case where there's a lot of weight back there all the time, but it's increased when actually taking off for a week or weekend then multi/dual rate springs would be the answer.
Good for the extra weight of a shell, and still good when you toss in your dog, extra gear, food, water, whatever.

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