Air bag pressure

[svedspx]

To those who use air bags, do you inflate your bags before you put the load on them or after? The reason I was wondering is I set my bags to 8 psi before I load the 5r and I only get about 2" drop with the 5r loaded. I measured the psi in the bags after loading the 5r and I'm getting 17 psi. I have an RCSB and with the 5r loaded, distance from top of tire to wheel well is 5 1/2" in the front and the rear is 7 1/2" so the the truck is sitting pretty level, maybe a tad high in the back. I've got about 1500# pin weight. Seems like most are running 20-30lbs but is this after or before you put a load on them. Thanks

[TundraBay]

I run about 10 PSI unloaded. I always inflate after hooking up the trailer, otherwise I have to crank up the fifth wheel about six feet in the air to hitch it up.
After hooking up, the pressure is about 25, and I inflate up to 50 PSI.
I have ~2,200 lbs payload with hitch weight, generator, etc., and the pin weight all totaled together.

[cwit]

I have 5lbs.empty and that becomes 28 lbs loaded this sets my truck level and camper level . I may taqke out a few pounds when on concrete roads so you don't feel the crackes in the road.

[svedspx]

Thanks for the replys. I couldn't imagine putting 20lbs in the bags and then loading the trailer.

[fivecodys]

I guess I'm the odd man out.
I inflate to 25 psi and then add the fiver.
I have not had any problem with the trucks rear end being too high to get under the nose of the trailer.

Bill

[jdubh]

I used to add my trailer then air them up from the empty 10psi that I run out. I would notice that sometimes the 2000+ lbs of trailer weight added to the truck would push them up to 30-40psi. But recently I found out that if I air up to 50psi putting on my weight distributing bars is a heck of a lot easier...so I air up to 50psi...add the trailer, then go back down to about 28psi.