GMC Motorhome: There are some good threads on Billy's Facebook page

Open forums today are great ways to learn things as well as seeing things others are doing. I enjoy reading and even getting involved in some threads….it’s much less about the work I do than I too am an enthusiast….enthusiastic on things I see, learn about and do so I too fall into the audience when I start oozing my enthusiast side. But then immediately something jumps into things that seem to taint things I post.

So many look at things as “well he WILL say that, he sells it” when it comes to air ride rear suspensions ( a thread that I feel this happened recently………. please let me set the record straight at the same time lay out why I feel so strongly about having the options you have when you install the “Quad Bag” rear suspension as named by Jim K..

I had installed a blue of those puppies and felt then having the option of limping home after loosing a tire…rim…bearing or whatever would make 1 or even 2 wheels not turn as a really good thing. I mean if any 1 of your rear 4 wheels cannot hold weight…….you will be on a flat bet tow truck….the coach cannot move in that condition.

There were some drawbacks of the original 4 bag system but at the time I was willing to overlook them to be able to drive on 5 or 4 wheels.

Then Jim K. showed persistence he wanted to offer a better alternative to the 4 bag system. At that time, Firestone had discontinued our original air bag and folks in the community were scrambling to figure out what the latest and greatest idea on rear suspension systems. Guys were coming up with all sorts of ideas…always a good thing and a challenge many GMC enthusiasts started dreaming on.

Hey but the problem is with this…it’s a very important part of the coach…it’s not like a new screen door idea or a wireless rear view camera….no this was something structural, something that if designed without some concept in mind may be dangerous if it were not failure tested and whathaveyou.

So the new idea “Quad Bagger” as Jim K. coined it….I thought the name was a bit on the silly side but it took off. The quad bag system was computer failure tested in Jim K’s hands in California. It is really expensive paying to be able to make such a claim as the rear suspension is reliable and safe. The tests were done though…just 2 shoeboxes of cash were not exchanged to be able to certify the results….but knowing that it passed safety protocols was enough for me. This is perspective of the system as it was computer tested

None of the other rear suspension options had been scrutinized to that level and again….if I can keep that 12,000 pound monster moving even with 2 out of commission tires brother that’s what I want to have. Moreover, designing it to accept ANY center line bolt pattern air bag (Firestone, Goodyear, Continental or off shelf Air lift bags made the quad bag system ultimately east to maintain. Any bag fits……..

The dropping the nominal air pressure out 40 year old air compressor system needed to maintain (@ 70psi nominal), was another positive attribute of the system. Being a 2 piece fixture, installation and repairs are made so much simpler than the of 1 piece structure of the old 4 bagger. Construction of the old system was a 1 piece construction made of 1/4″ steel. It could not be made any heavier, being a 1 piece fixture, the thig had to be strtched apart by hand to secure it in place then working 2, 90 degree air fittings in a 2″ slot at the middle of the fixture was a pint in you know where!

The quad bag system is made of 3/8″ sttel plates…no way to bend that into place….one piece goes in holding 1 air bag in the back then the second fiture section holding the second air bag bolts on to the front of the bogy pins and to the other section and there is a secure new vertical structure to push off of that will NOT move No way this set up will fail! THIS is why I am so adamant about using the quad bag system. It IS NOT because I suggested design ideas for installation and strength, more people…smarter people than me put collective heads together to come up with it. It was not a backyard idea someone came up with. It is a really well designed system that had been tested and adds so many reliability factors that really, if you want your coach to be safer, more reliable AND add the stability of a complete 4 sectioned 4 wheel discrete suspension….sorry but the quad bag is the only way to do all of that.

Yes, it costs more money if fact 2 times that of all the single bag systems out there that offer you only the same safety and reliability as the original 2 bag system……..1 wheel go out and the big tow truck will be on the way to pick up your cercus! And BTW, the white foam you see on that original air bag is soap suds caused by air leaking from this old bag. The reason this coach came in was one side of the coach would sit down after @ 4 days sitting. This bag was about to blow out making a possible mess of the body surround panel and leaving the driver in the ants on the side of the road! This guy got a quad bag system and never looked back Lower pressure needed means the compressor will work less….. an air control manifold allws you to pump up the system from any air source We no longer install an air gauge on this manifold…you have valves to control each bag with a fill valve as your backup.

So guys…please…. I did not make a post on the Facebook thread to see my print on the screen or to tell folks to do it cause I sell it or use them here……I talk about it because I have seen it help folks so much…..Nelson (a good friend) lost a wheel on I-10 coming home from the Panhandle. Shut that bag off, pulled off the tire and came on in. THAT’S what a reliable rear suspension is all about. Hey and his was the old 4 bagger but it still worked. The quad bag system is much stronger than the system that saved his bacon…….I’ll buy that!

So don’t think I’m promoting my own agenda….how can I sit there watching all those comments on systems that do less …cost less but don’t buy a suspension part on price alone and that’s the message I want to say on updating the rear suspension on a GMC Motorhome. Make it batter, get some help keeping your coach on the road!

A bummer, just got word the system price was increased to $1700 ….hey, I’m the messenger….someone else makes those decision but to be honest….for the safety and reliability …OK, that’s fine….what cost every goes down!

So yesterday, we installed yet another “suspension safety device” Oh and yes, shipping is @ $100. No Mayfair free shipping…. the system comes in 2 boxes……54 pounds each. Heck, by the pound it’s not a bad price! This is2 quad bag systems and Texas Tux china toilet and it’s all the hand truck can do! Some useless trivia, the original 4 bagger system came in 1 box weighing in at 56 pounds…….see. 3/8″ construction adds so much in structure and strength!

OK, so I needed to get that off my chest, I’m accused of killing threads, I usually don’t say much on Facebook until something gets dangerous or not true. I’ve never started a thread trying to keep my profile low and not threatening. So guys, I said all that to say this……when you read things on the internet, be sure you can pick out the truly good ideas from ones people do that well……. maybe things are not as they seem.

The quad bag inventory is with Jim K. at Applied. He has made a considerable investment in this producing and offering it to everyone. Yes, you can order it through me but I call Jim K. and have him ship it. The pile is in California so the shipping is less on the left coast. Many really smart GMC owners and engineers came up with the quad bag system and I feel that story and what it can help you with needs to get out. It’s not “buy mine” or some other reason……get the system because it makes things better…and toy would be surprised how bad things can be with 1 missing rear wheel. It took 2 days to drag a coach to use onlt 21 miles away! They could not find a flat bed tow truck……….. don’t let that be you

Now that I’ve pissed of a good portion of the community I’m sorry but someone had to say it …(The Emperor is wearing no clothes). It’s a free country and I still will work on Bob’s (big ole bags) I would be scared of this one and it’s known there are structural issues with this set up So there it is….shoot me now but this is why I spoke up on Facebook and will anytime I feel someone isn’t getting the whole story. If you expect your coach to continue to support you….support it with the best you can do for it. Have backups…don’t put your considerable faith in one mans idea….it’s too important