Hauling a 3000 lbs truck camper on my new 2022 3500 ho aisin srw

So this new truck is a huge improvement over my 99 24v. More power better braking airbags etc this is a regular cab 8 ft box truck. Camper is 8 ft 8 inches long.I have put a 2 inch receiver on the front and a Torklift lock and load on the front for my 2000 Honda generator and 3.5 gallon extended run gas can so about 125 lbs on the front total including the hitch . Also a 13.5 btu roof mount ac. Rig is 11.8 tall and would clear 12 ft. Full of fuel 28 gallons water 18 gallons gen etc wife and me it weighs 11600 lbs total and 5880 lbs front and 5720 lbs rear. I sometimes pull a small single axle trailer with two 4 w atv about 1500 lbs so 150 lbs or a bit more tongue weight . This gives me a pretty balanced load front to rear as it turns out . So I’m happy with it over all but would like to discuss ways to improve the handling of it over all. It does well in the wind but I would like to maybe improve the side sway on low speed turns etc. Remember. I still want to keep the empty ride in the off season as good as possible also. I’m looking at Torklift StableLoad Or Hellwig sway bars etc. Please give me your thoughts and ideas about this. Thanks

 

I ran a Hellwog anti-sway bar on my 05 and found it to be a great addition. I didn’t have any negative effects on ride or handling, empty or loaded.

I am not a fan of the lower stable-loads that your SRW would use as they can cause damage to the leaf springs.

 

I run the Roadmaster sway bar on my 18. I used the Roadmaster rather than the Helwig Big Wig for 3 reasons.
1. 1 3/8" vs 1 5/16" so slightly thicker.
2. I prefer the way the Roadmaster mounts to the axle shock mount over the clamp of the big wig as I believe moving the axle mounting points out board gives more sway sway control. (Probably not a big difference though.)
3. I found the Roadmaster for a slight lower cost than the Big Wig when searching on line for it.

Either sway bar is a must have with a truck camper IMO.

 

I would also recommend an anti-sway bar as the first step. I assume there is one on the front axle, but not on the rear? The anti-sway bar will affect suspension (slightly stiffer) when truck is empty, but on only on turns and / or when passing over bumps that trigger suspension travel on the same axle at different times. Example - passing over a speed bump:

* If axle is perpendicular to speed bump, suspension stiffness will feel the same with or without an anti-sway bar. Although the anti-sway bar will move, its energy is cancelled due to both tires on the same axle lifting simultaneously.
* If axle is at an angle to speed bump, suspension stiffness will feel harsher with an anti-sway bar as each tire will independently energize the anti-sway bar four separate times. The difference will be minor.

Years ago I carried a truck camper that weighed out at 11,500 lbs gross on my 2002 truck that I am still driving. The truck came with OEM front and rear anti-sway bars. I replaced all four shocks with Rancho 9000 series 9-way adjustable shock absorbers. After some experimentation, I selected specific settings that were different for each axle. These shocks worked well.

- John

 

So no StableLoad users

 

What can I expect to pay for a anti sway bar shipping to alaska and man hours to install

 

Roadmaster $741 (assuming you have a 2022)
https://www.etrailer.com/Anti-Sway-Bars/Ram/3500/2022/RM73FR.html?VehicleID=2022117033

Labor should be about 1 hour.

 

Wow, these have gone up in price since I bought the one for my 05.

Another option is airbags plumbed independently. They do help reduce sway, but not as much. Dual purpose thou. It also depends on how much you sag under the weight as you want 1-1.5” of sag to load the OEM springs properly.

I can’t speak for the standard spring suspension, but to compare my 05 to the 18 the stock 18 has less roll than the 05 with airbags and the standard Hellwig anti-sway bar. Same load of 2 ATV’s above the bed rail. Smaller, lighter, and lower than a slide-in, but comparing the improvements in the frame and suspension.

 

Sway bar and Rancho 9000's on the rear. Crack them fully up loaded. You are into go-kart category!

 

Ugh, worst shock I’ve ever ran. Was addicted to the marketing for 4 different rigs, now the mention of them makes me nauseous. There are so many better options.

 

Just curious as what made them the worst shock you ever ran. They performed well for my application.

- John

 

The Hellwig Big Wig swaybars help a lot. The 8000# Timbrens really work well. Unloaded they'll be 1"-1.5" off the axle so the ride shouldn't be adversely affected aside from hitting culvers or speed bumps really hard. The stock shocks are junk. Even a set of cheap Bilsteins will help.

 

Same with me. Offroad Warehouse here discontinued them 15 yrs ago. Way too many warranty claims.

 

Everything. I have 0 positive comments about them.

Difficult to adjust, poor rate dampening, and crappy corrosion resistance. It was the same over multiple sets and part numbers. I really thought shocks lasted as long as a tank of fuel until I tried another brand and wow, there is life after RS9000.

I do currently have some 5000’s on my TJ and they are great, but they do not have any corrosion resistance and I live in a desert.

 

I will agree they were definitely difficult to adjust.

When I first installed the Rancho 9000 shocks and took a test trip with the camper in the bed, I was disappointed as well as far as truck handling. But, after experimenting with the settings, I found that I needed to adjust the front shocks on the low side (just slightly stiffer than stock) because the front axle weight did not increase much and the center of gravity remained the same. Then, I adjusted the rear shocks to a much higher setting (near maximum) to help cancel the much heavier weight and high center of gravity motion. Once I figured that out, they performed very well - actually better that I thought they would.

I ran those shocks for 190,000 miles and changed them out to Bilsteim 4600s when I sold the camper. Even at that high mileage, they were still doing the job well.

I have read in different forums of other people having bad experiences with the 9000 series shocks - some saying some of the things that you said. I purchased mine in the summer of 2003. Maybe quality was better then - just guessing.

- John

 

I had rancho 9000. As they got older they become increasingly hard to adjust. And I cleaned the adjusters all the time. Did they work well I guess but maybe there’s something way better now

 

So about $1000 bar shipping and installed . My truck camper was custom built for me. I’m 6 ft 6 and never have hit my head . Beds a long queen side ways so it’s a bit higher than normal also the fin and puck on the new regular cab I had to have a 2 inch platform built to make the camper higher in the bed. Also truck is a couple inches taller 99 to 22 and then add a 100 lbs air conditioner. I’m a bit to top heavy. Going down the road it’s very okay. It slow going in town driveways turn into stations etc when the weight shifts in truck it’s waddle waddle waddle side to side. Will a anti sway bar help with this slow motion back and forth ??If so I will will find a installer and buy one .Have it put on this winter. What do you think?

 

My old 99 had a rear stabilizer from the factory. Wonder why they didn’t put one on a new 2022 3500

 

Yes, an anti-sway bar will help. But, a set of well matched shocks in conjunction with the anti-sway is needed.

The anti-sway bar reduces the distance of lean by transferring the compression energy from the leaning side of the truck to the lifting side lifting side of the truck. If the truck goes into a sharp left turn, the truck leans to the right. This action will bring the frame closer to the axle on the right side, thus forcing the anti-sway bar axle connection to raise on the right side. That upward motion will be transferred through the anti-sway bar to the anti-sway bar axle connection on the left side of the truck which will place a lifting force on the left axle. This lifting force is canceling some of the truck lean to the right. This is a good thing for top heavy loads.

The rocking back and forth will still continue even with the anti-sways added, but the distance of the lean from side to side will be reduced.

This is where a well matched to load set of shocks absorbers come into play. In the example from above, the left side shock will resist extending during the lean to the right while the right side shock collapses. Then, when the truck returns back to the left, the right side shock will resist extending while the left side shock collapses. The anti-sway bar and the shock absorbers combined will work together as a unit and they should work well in controlling the rocking back and forth of your truck.

- John

 

My experiences with RS900’s was roughly ‘95-‘05, so I’m not sure if anything has changed. Many pairs of them, but looking back they were all disappointing.

I know that the 5000’s I currently have seem to be more susceptible to corrosion than the older 9000’s, and I thought they were bad before, but are performing great. Time will tell, I was super hesitant to even buy them but followed the more modern reviews.