like to see some 2600lb bags attached to axle inside frame rails. has any one had a bad experence with airbagit.com? went on s10 site they dont like that company. i bought my bags there now im worrying. had so many comments on how to install pan hard. would the lower cross brace from front lower bar to rear lower bar bolt be better?

 

airbagit.com is AIM/ChassisTech.
They have some history in ripping minitruckers (thats the market they catered to in from the mid late 80's-mid 90's) off with wicked high shipping costs to make up for thier low up front prices. They have had IN THE PAST a very poor track record for after the sale customer service. Some of thier stuff in the past hasn't been engineered to work correctly and they would always fall back on the fact that they dont have to help the consumer out becasue the part had already been installed and thus presumed to have been damaged by the end user.

Now that being said, the owner (Joe, Chicken Joe as I call him) launched a campaign in print and at the bigger minitruck forums last year to confront thier very very poor reputation and try to get resolution. It started with print and online attacks and some lawsuits filed against people that were targeted as saying bad things about the company... It ended up in the owner stopping that non sense and actually listening to the customer complaints and getting some resolution. It kind of seems like the owner has kicked some of his employees in the head a little and things are getting straightened out...

That being said, I always stick to the addage that a Zebra can't change its stripes. But you decide....

I like starting a bussiness relationship (buying stuff) with/from a company that IS A PART of the community they serve. Vested interest and a honest love of the hobby seem to create better bussiness profiles, IMO.... I will steer you STRAIGHT to Jason at Suicidedoors.com... his stuff is TOP TOP TOP notch and has a unbendable reputation in the mini sceen as well as the full size now...

Another great company is AVS, those guys are just like Jason and will take care of anything.

That being said, back to your airbags from AIM. I would doubt that you will have any problmes with the bags, though keep in mind that they have all of thier stuff brought in from china and its all private labled by them. Nobody else is going to be able to get you a AIM airbag unless its AIM. Sticking with known brands like Firestone, Slams, Air Ride and you can buy them from the above guys or really any hot rod or mini truck storefront that has a decent rep....

As for the setup questions you're asking on the panhard, give us some pics of the front and rear lower and we can answer further...

As for mounting the bags, make sure that mounting them on top of the rear axle is your last alternative. Mounted in that config, you will have limited axle lift as well as VERY VERY rough ride when running in the upper pressure range of the air bag. If you need ideas for a rear suspension setup, the best thing you can do is hit up a Minitruck forum like s10forum.com or streetsource and read read read. Also, hit up the mag section at the supermarket and pick up a issue of Mini Truckin, while you might not be interested in the overall subject matter as a whole, you will not find any other custom automotive segment doing anything as innovative with the rear suspension setups.

Of course this is all just my opinion but I have been in both the classic and mini sceens since the mid 80's....

EDIT: I noticed after posting this short novel (sorry) that you were a fellow Iowan... if you ar ever in Des Moines, hit me up and I will show you what I am talking about and we can talk suspensions with a couple of the local guys here. If you want to buy your parts local, Joe at 515 Customs (515) 229 6900 is here in Des Moines and stocks all the major bag parts as well as fabbing up four links. He build stuff for SEMA bound vehicles quite often... he's an all around great guy too!! Tell him Jason said hi too!!!

 

ohhh, and you wanted a pic, here is a pic. Its about 6 years old but this was when I had just plumbed the air system to see the suspension move.... course this isn't on a effie, but that shouldn't matter.... a solid rear axle setup is a solid rear axle setup!

 

Pictures by rbig1 - Photobucket took pics cant hardly see wire ran from front bolt to back bolt. is that enough angle. dont have stops installed. . have a brother inlaw in albion. will be up there around thankgiving. he is in a car club dont know which one. i believe its in desmoines. if my boss dont care. might sneek down to talk. dont know what is planed. talked to other guys about bagit must have been talking out there aaa. the way i wrote this must be scatter brained. to lazy to correct it.