Borcht Warrior
New member
Hey everyone, fairly new to this site but I see some familiar names on the posts and a lot of good information.
Saw a similiar post in the PX but that was a lot of pictures about an install on a Chev and then a few pics about an install on a dually.
I purchased and installed a R4Tech kit for my 2006 CCSB F-250 about 3 weeks ago. The kit took me about a week to install. I should clarify that is was 4 full days and three evenings after work. As a side note, I started this project exactly 7 days before I was leaving on vacation and I needed my truck to pull the TT. Not exactly good planning on my part.
I did it in my garage and I had help from friends and neighbors over the week. I could have shaved a full two days off I did not have to deal with rusted and seized parts during disassembly.
Like other posts I have read the instructions are not good at all. Some large color pictures would have helped out alot. I must have re-read those instructions 10 times.
The bags of hardware are not bagged with any sort of purpose so you are mostly guessing and measuring bolts the whole way.
They also use a locking nut in many spots, almost like a nut with too shallow of threads that is really tough to tighten with hand tools. Air impacts and Air ratchets are a must if you want to get this done quickly.
The fitment of most of the parts is great although my kit had the front brackets mislabeled for the driver's and passenger side. (this took some additional time to figure out).
I only had two issues with fitment of the kit.
The first was the passenger side air bag is installed very close to the exhaust. My exhaust is aftermarket 4" so this is not the vendors fault but it caused some issues. The exhaust tailpipe should have been removed as it would have sped up the install on this side. Mine was welded to the muffler but I should have ground the tack off and removed it. Once everything was in, there was less than an inch of clearance between the tailpipe and the airline feeding the air bag. I used some "Cool It" products by Thermotec to protect the air bag and air line.
Second fitment issue was with the axle pads where the air bags sit on the axle. The top of the pads include a rolled over piece of plate that extends down at the front of the axle. This vertical part of the plate was hitting my sway bar and not allowing the whole assembly to sit on the axle properly. At first I thought that my sway bar had shifted and needed to be moved. I loosened it up and moved it but then it did not look right so I put it back into its original position. I ended up cutting the vertical plate off those pads so that they would sit on the axle and not touch the sway bar.
I had also never worked with push to lock fittings. These are a snap to use but I was a little leary at the start if I was doing things right.
One tip is to make sure that you leave a lot of slack for the small air lines that run to the shocks. I cut one too short and it works but you cannot lift the truck by the frame unless you have enough slack.
I also question what needs to be done when I have to put this truck on a hoist? Will the air bags hold the axle or do I need to install limiting straps?
Saw a similiar post in the PX but that was a lot of pictures about an install on a Chev and then a few pics about an install on a dually.
I purchased and installed a R4Tech kit for my 2006 CCSB F-250 about 3 weeks ago. The kit took me about a week to install. I should clarify that is was 4 full days and three evenings after work. As a side note, I started this project exactly 7 days before I was leaving on vacation and I needed my truck to pull the TT. Not exactly good planning on my part.
I did it in my garage and I had help from friends and neighbors over the week. I could have shaved a full two days off I did not have to deal with rusted and seized parts during disassembly.
Like other posts I have read the instructions are not good at all. Some large color pictures would have helped out alot. I must have re-read those instructions 10 times.
The bags of hardware are not bagged with any sort of purpose so you are mostly guessing and measuring bolts the whole way.
They also use a locking nut in many spots, almost like a nut with too shallow of threads that is really tough to tighten with hand tools. Air impacts and Air ratchets are a must if you want to get this done quickly.
The fitment of most of the parts is great although my kit had the front brackets mislabeled for the driver's and passenger side. (this took some additional time to figure out).
I only had two issues with fitment of the kit.
The first was the passenger side air bag is installed very close to the exhaust. My exhaust is aftermarket 4" so this is not the vendors fault but it caused some issues. The exhaust tailpipe should have been removed as it would have sped up the install on this side. Mine was welded to the muffler but I should have ground the tack off and removed it. Once everything was in, there was less than an inch of clearance between the tailpipe and the airline feeding the air bag. I used some "Cool It" products by Thermotec to protect the air bag and air line.
Second fitment issue was with the axle pads where the air bags sit on the axle. The top of the pads include a rolled over piece of plate that extends down at the front of the axle. This vertical part of the plate was hitting my sway bar and not allowing the whole assembly to sit on the axle properly. At first I thought that my sway bar had shifted and needed to be moved. I loosened it up and moved it but then it did not look right so I put it back into its original position. I ended up cutting the vertical plate off those pads so that they would sit on the axle and not touch the sway bar.
I had also never worked with push to lock fittings. These are a snap to use but I was a little leary at the start if I was doing things right.
One tip is to make sure that you leave a lot of slack for the small air lines that run to the shocks. I cut one too short and it works but you cannot lift the truck by the frame unless you have enough slack.
I also question what needs to be done when I have to put this truck on a hoist? Will the air bags hold the axle or do I need to install limiting straps?
