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Old 07-24-2019, 12:43 PM   #121
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1988 32.5' Airstream 325
calgary , alberta
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Front air bags

There is a electric tool I borrowed from a friend who runs a service center it goes on the valve stem and sucks the air completely out of the rubber bag it ends up like the size of a banana and comes out the bottom of the coil spring with ease.
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Old 07-24-2019, 03:28 PM   #122
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There is a electric tool I borrowed from a friend who runs a service center it goes on the valve stem and sucks the air completely out of the rubber bag it ends up like the size of a banana and comes out the bottom of the coil spring with ease.
Sure would like to know more about that "electric tool"!
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Old 07-24-2019, 06:30 PM   #123
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Originally Posted by davejay View Post
Hey,
I just stumbled accross this post. Soooooooo cool. This is exactly what I want to do to our 325. Someone actually makes the mounts. That's the hard part.
Question, did you buy an axle? Did it have the correct spindles on it. Will our hubs and back plates with brakes bolt right up? If so, what is the mfg of the axle. Part number. I got a trailor place 5 minutes from me. They got everything axle wise I may need. The bags. What did you use. And finally, did you have to cut the tube? Did you need the extra with, or was that a personal preference. I notice my tires are pretty close to the wheel well on the inside. Would it be possible to simply make a spacer for on the drum . I think we got enough wheel stud to do. That. I don't think it would load up the outer wheel bearing. This could be my winter project. Full air ride will make the coach ride so much better. The torsion bar setup, in my opinion, was kind of an afterthought. Nobody built that kind of stuff back then. I also like the alignment cams. Did you know that Hunter Engineering first 4 wheel alignment computer only came out in 1981. Up till then it was still the old technology,they used back to the 50s mirrors and light beams lined up to mirrors on the back wheels. Pretty primitive eh? Anyway, any part numbers of stuff would be greatly appreciated. Thanks DJ
I'll try to answer your questions somewhat in order.

The "mounts" I think you are talking about are made by Ridewell and are a model called RAR-244 Featheride. It is a suspension system for trailers rated at 8000 lbs. https://www.ridewellcorp.com/store.h...uct=20&back=49

The axle is a 7000 lb. trailer axle with a 4" drop and our hubs and brakes fit as a direct bolt on. It is a standard trailer axle and you can go to Dexter or your local supplier and order the axle in any length.

The bags came with the Ridewell suspension and are a standard Goodyear unit with Firestone and other equivalents.

Now, the Ridewell is not sold for this application. It was the closest unit I could find the would fit and that I could make work. I actually switched the left side for the right side and right for left so I could make everything fit especially around the holding tanks. It is also designed for a 4" dia. axle tube and the 7000 lb. axle is 3 1/2" so I had to add a sleeve to make it work. I also had to cantilever the mounting outboard of the frame rails to make it fit. All this somewhat weakens the system but it is rated at 8000 lbs. and the Airstream axle is rated at 3500 lbs. so I figured my mounting modifications would be fine for the application. Henchion highly modified their axle for Airstream and when I asked Dexter to build the same axle for me they laughed me saying it would never work. No one will build such a system because of liability and only an OEM who needed to solve a problem and had the engineering staff would consider such a thing provided they had the volume to justify it. I am a machinist by trade and spent many years in power plants working on both steam and hydro generating units. I also spent many years running the machine shop for a large fire department. At both positions we modified and fabricated many things because there was no over the counter stuff available for what we needed. With my background I was comfortable building this system.

As to the axle I did cut and extend the axle because that was the only axle I could source now. To custom order the proper length axle would have meant a 8 to 10 week wait. I simply didn't have the time. And yes I did add about 1 1/2" to the length to give more room in the wheel wells.

What I did was not high science, mostly welding simple steel plate, tube, and angles to form a mounting system. The big thing was a great deal of measuring and fitting to make the system physically fit and operate at the proper height operating range of the bags while going down the highway. The other thing was while not in use with no air in any of the bags I needed the bulk of the weight on the drive axle so as not to overload the tag axle. Also while the bags deflated resting on the blocks everything had to clear the holding tank. That was the challenge because there is just not much room to work with. The bottom line, it's in, it fits and it works.

I didn't know the year computerized alignment started but I am certainly old enough to remember the mechanical systems and our alignment work at the fire department was done with a tape measure. And yes it worked.

I'm sorry I missed the wheel spacer question. Yes it would overload the bearings because trailer hubs are designed to have the load centered over the bearings. Airstream has the load 7"+ outside the bearing center, this is why a 7000 lb. spindle on a 3500 lb. axle. I wouldn't chance adding to that load when I could use a longer axle.
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Old 07-24-2019, 06:46 PM   #124
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Originally Posted by bkahler View Post
Sure would like to know more about that "electric tool"!
Funny you should mention this. I helped/watched Tony install a bag yesterday. We used a simple hand vacuum pump to collapse the bag and add hose clamps. We left the hand pump attached until the bag was probably halfway into the spring.
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Old 07-24-2019, 06:56 PM   #125
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Hey,
Sweet ride. I wonder if that was a funeral coach. Or maybe a handicap custom made coach. Very clean looking. How many miles on it. I'd be interested in how the cummins was mounted and wired. I wonder if I could stuff my 7.3 in our 325. I just spent 3 K on a new trans. My excursion gets about 16-18 on the freeway. Bet I'd get at least 10 n the AS. Nice catch DJ
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Old 07-24-2019, 07:11 PM   #126
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Last week MAYCO was honored with a visit by the infamous Tony aka Isuzusweet and family. This week the honor is mine.
Here is a pic of Tony trying to photo bomb me and his lovely ladies.

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Mayco had some great pics of their two moho's together. Well I'll see his two and raise to three. All by the way are turbo diesels.

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Rascal had to check them out to make sure all was in order.

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We had a great visit, stuffed ourselves with lots of food, enjoyed spirited conversation and yesterday Irene took the ladies for a tour around the area and as Tony said "Had their talons painted" while I watched Tony install a front air bag, check brakes and pump a little grease. A great time and this morning they loaded on the ferry to Victoria for a visit with family. Godspeed.
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Old 07-24-2019, 08:11 PM   #127
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Quote:
Originally Posted by davejay View Post
Hey,
Sweet ride. I wonder if that was a funeral coach. Or maybe a handicap custom made coach. Very clean looking. How many miles on it. I'd be interested in how the cummins was mounted and wired. I wonder if I could stuff my 7.3 in our 325. I just spent 3 K on a new trans. My excursion gets about 16-18 on the freeway. Bet I'd get at least 10 n the AS. Nice catch DJ
Thanks. It was ordered as an empty shell with the first that we can find Cummins/Allison. It was built into a mobile test lab for onsite chemical testing at oil refineries. We were told it was purchased by an individual who took it to an Airstream dealer for conversion to a motor home. We bought it at a local auction just north of Tacoma, WA. The interior looks very Airstream at first glance but a closer look reveals subtle differences. The face of the overhead cabinets are square rather than tapered back, the bath and galley counter are longer, the dinette seat backs are inclined with storage behind each seat. All little things but obviously customized for the owner.

The clock shows 52,000 miles but it is not the original speedometer so true mileage is unknown. The oil was fresh when we got it and I put about 1500 miles on it before the oil started to darken so it appears to be low mileage. The interior also shows little wear.

The Cummins looks to be a very clean factory installation with no shop made parts that I can find. My experience so far, about 2000 miles is 12 to 13 mpg. I have been running it pretty had to see what it can do so conservatively I might see a consistent 13 mpg.

From memory I think the 7.3 is a pretty wide engine. It might take a bit of a shoe horn to make it fit but anything can be done if you really want it.
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Old 07-24-2019, 09:12 PM   #128
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It is basically the same coach however the interior is a custom installation with subtle changes from a factory Airstream. It originally was a mobile test lab and had two generators and two propane tanks. It still has two tanks but only one generator. It also has different windows and a large rear door like the Can Am trailers. And of course the Cummins engine Allison transmission.
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Old 07-25-2019, 04:12 PM   #129
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Originally Posted by Smartstream View Post
Last week MAYCO was honored with a visit by the infamous Tony aka Isuzusweet and family. This week the honor is mine.
Here is a pic of Tony trying to photo bomb me and his lovely ladies.

Attachment 347516

Mayco had some great pics of their two moho's together. Well I'll see his two and raise to three. All by the way are turbo diesels.

Attachment 347517

Rascal had to check them out to make sure all was in order.

Attachment 347518

We had a great visit, stuffed ourselves with lots of food, enjoyed spirited conversation and yesterday Irene took the ladies for a tour around the area and as Tony said "Had their talons painted" while I watched Tony install a front air bag, check brakes and pump a little grease. A great time and this morning they loaded on the ferry to Victoria for a visit with family. Godspeed.

Wonderful!!!!
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Old 07-26-2019, 08:07 PM   #130
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That is so cool to see those 3 rigs parked together!
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Old 01-15-2020, 05:07 PM   #131
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Well it has been quiet for a few months with a few health issues creeping in but we are still moving forward. We have been hit with a bit cold weather this week. It has been a mild fall but now it's catching up.

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We had about 5" on Monday and about a foot last night. For us that's about three years snowfall. Needless to say not much work going on.
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Old 01-16-2020, 10:42 AM   #132
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I like snow.......
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Old 01-16-2020, 11:14 AM   #133
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I like looking at snow.....about 52F here today.
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Old 01-16-2020, 11:54 AM   #134
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I like snow.......
I do too...when it's at your place.
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Old 01-16-2020, 12:01 PM   #135
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I like looking at snow.....about 52F here today.
It is beautiful...until it starts to melt and gets mixed with all the mud and crap. It's 42°F here now, Wednesday's snow is not the norm around here but it does keep things interesting.
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Old 01-16-2020, 03:28 PM   #136
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I like looking at snow.....about 52F here today.
DITTO! I love watching it snow but that’s it. Many places on the front range in Colorado are just right when it comes to snow....big beautiful snow storms blow in and give the landscape that magical look after a fresh 8”, then it’s all gone in 24-48hrs and the temps are in the 60s. Many towns don’t bother to plow much.
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Old 01-16-2020, 06:01 PM   #137
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DITTO! I love watching it snow but that’s it. Many places on the front range in Colorado are just right when it comes to snow....big beautiful snow storms blow in and give the landscape that magical look after a fresh 8”, then it’s all gone in 24-48hrs and the temps are in the 60s. Many towns don’t bother to plow much.
Yeah it's funny like that. Many people love the beach and ocean until they have to deal with the sand and salt. I guess to enjoy the great places and scenery you have to put up with some inconvenience.
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Old 03-19-2020, 07:25 AM   #138
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Dan,

for some reason I completely missed your Tag axles replacement last year (probably due to having my head deep inside a trailer at the time). I am compelled to comment on your achievement to let you know that I am in total awe. I wouldn't even know where to start, let alone finish something like that and yes, I do a lot of things mechanically and restoration on these beauties. Thumbs up and 9 rivets for you!!
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Old 03-19-2020, 07:47 PM   #139
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Peter thank you for the very kind words. It was a fun challenge that needed to be done and I'm happy with the results.

One of the great things about this group is the number of really talented people working to keep these old beasts on the road. They come up with great stuff and are happy to share what they learn to help others. If I can make a small contribution I'm more than happy to do so.

Things must be slow in Austin if you have time to be browsing through old treads. Thanks again for the kind words. Now I have to try to figure out what to do with all those rivets.
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Old 03-19-2020, 08:50 PM   #140
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..

Things must be slow in Austin if you have time to be browsing through old treads. Thanks again for the kind words. Now I have to try to figure out what to do with all those rivets.

Plenty busy here with my latest 350 addition and I am glad to keep myself occupied.

What happened is that I followed your link in another threat about your dump valve replacement and as I was scrolling up, I saw the three MH's, got curious and read that until I saw comments from all the big guns giving you all kind of kudos about something. I mean, come on, if you see compliments from the likes of Bradkahler, Tony, Keyair and even Bobmiller to name a few, you just have to find out what the hell is going on
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