Ok heres the deal: I've got a pair of air shocks on the back of my 55 plymouth that are filled and deflated through a shreider valve, now first i was wondering what kind of valve i could use so i could release it faster from in side the car, second question: what about an onboard compressor? would it be feasable to run an onboard compressor to fill them and if it is what kind would be the best choice? or should i say screw it and save up for a set of bags in the rear?
I tried basically the same thing on my car that you are trying. The problem is that the air shocks are not strong enough by themselves to lift the car. They will hold it up, but once its down, its down.
not true... talk to 57joefomopar hes getting ready to run the exact setup your are talking about and i know it is possible i just dont know which valve or compressor
I suppose it depends on the weight of the car. My air shocks won't even begin to lift my 51 Chevy 2 door.
a few cars by me on the east coast use air shocks instead of bags... alot cheaper and alot less work for roughly the same effect it might depend on the compressor rather than the weight of the car seeing as alot of these cars i speak of are 50s cars that are all quite heavy this being one of them
The smaller diametre the cylinders the more PSI youll need to lift the car. Im looking into a set up like this for my 50 Shoebox cause I only want it to go up and down to help in drivability. I saw picks a while back on the HAMB of another shoebox with the same setup
i know for a fact that it lifts the car because i can fill it with a tire filler and it lifts the car and does it fast, and when i push down the scharader valve it lowers, i just want to be able to do this from inside the car, I check online and found some compressors for towing that seem to fit my needs but i might have to change the valve.
Find a compressor with a gauge fitted and pump up your shocks taking note of the pressure needed to lift the car. If you normally cruise with your mates do it with them in there as this will give you the upper limit you need to lift your ride. Once you know this you can then find a tire compressor or any 12 volt comp. to suit your needs depending on how fast you want to go. Bare in mind you that flow creates speed so line sizing counts. This may also mean you require a tank to store the air. Use a poppet style valve as opposed to a diaphram valve of the normally closed variety and "T' it in between the comp. and the shocks as a means of dumping the pressure. You could alternatively just fit a tank with a shraider valve as your supply and charge it before you cruise. Air shocks only use about a quarter the volume of bags so it should last quite a while. The other solution is a dive tank....think 3000 psi
I have a manual swicth,that allows you to blead the shock. I have several of these switch. As for filling you can install a tee fitting inline wich goes to a 12 volt compressor. To fill you hit a momentary switch and it will fill the shock. I have done this to get 3 inches.
No you still have the spring it just you can manipulate air shocks to provide the adjust ability of the ride hight.
what about this compressor: http://www.accessconnect.com/air_lift_compressor_kits.htm also any body know a good source for that valve maybe a part no.?
Man that picture is troubling. The problem with air shocks is they are only 1/8th ports (on all the ones Ive seen) On my Merc I have air shocks in the rear and for lift I use a old Caddy compressor from the early 90s with a toggle switch on the dash. It blows the 30 amp fuses often, but other than that it works real well. A buddy of mine went a different route and just used a portable air tank from sears (you know the kind that you fill with a compressor and then just take the tank) Then went to home depot and got a couple of ball valves. Ran the lines up front and the line from the tank in the trunk to the valves and you got air. One lets it down, one lets it up. not the safest method but the most efficent for the money. Not much can go wrong that you cant fix by carrying a couple extra small parts. Just refill at any gas station with air. We took a 2000 mile trip in his car with no trouble (from the suspension) If you need more info just pm me I will be glad to tell all I know
I have this setup on my Ford and it fine. http://store.summitracing.com/partd...part=AIR-25804&autoview=sku&Ntk=KeywordSearch
How long does it take to rise? I have a complete Monroe setup with a little yellow compressor and gauges, it takes forever (seems like) to get appreciable lift. (Of course I do have custom made lowered leafs that are extra stiff).
I used that compressor for the shocks on the back of the '58. Just needed enough lift to get in the garage. It takes maybe 30 seconds to built form 30psi to 100psi to get in. Seems like it takes forever, but it's a lot cheaper than bags.
The one overlooked problem here is that you are now trying to support the weight of a heavy car with mounts that were only intended to support shock absorbers, not the entire weight of the vehicle. Can it be done.................yes, is it the best or smartest way, not in my opinion
All- Air shocks may indeed lift, and support (starting to sound like a bra ad, eh?) your car, but that's never what they were intended for. Like all shocks, they are designed (ONLY) to dampen spring action. Filling the air shocks (partially) should only be done to provide stronger damping action. It may be a quicker and easier way than bagging, but if you fill the shocks enough to really lift the car, they are gonna take a hell of a beating, and chances are good they won't last long. Doing so will also (obviously) kill any semblance of a decent ride (you've effectively removed any actual suspension) and will also eventually shake your car apart. And yes. I learned this from experience.
And then there's my experience in which I've ran air shocks on the rear of my 55 F100 truck (in conjunction with springs) For over ten trouble free years(and 65000 miles)...I used a compressor and gage set from air lift (the helper spring guys) so I could raise and lower from in the cab and I usually did not go over 100-120 PSI.
I'm with you on this one...got a set on my chevy, air them up to about 60# brings the rear up about 1.5 inches.. just enough where it doesn't bottom out on the snubber... want to cruise, dump the air down to about 20 and the hubcaps disappear.. got at least 40k miles like this... Brian
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