ya, we got bored

 

hahahaha what psi was in your bags front and rear? ive been wanting to 3 wheel mine (for no apparent reason at all) but you need an incline?

 

a lil, it was an entrance to a driveway, i was at 200 all around except front right. thats on the stock rear axles tho, me n my friends r trying to build a "4link" style balljoint setup for the rear, so my wheels are independent, so i can reverse three-wheel at a stand still

 

damn 200 psi? what bags? mire firestones are rated at 120 psi

 

universal air up front, firestone dualport bags on the back, i was in a hopping contest last weekend, cuz no one would challenge the 4 foot high hopping s10. my car got about 6 inches up at 200 psi.next stop...nitrogen?

 

do it!!!!

 

haha ya im thinkin bout it! either way,i got the originality points.....imjust at that stage where im saying "do i sell and get a new toy, orkeep dumpin money in and get it even farther out"

 

well if you do inependant on the rear ull get mad props from me. shave the whole _____ fix up ur fab kit and roll it like a true dragger. primer and all hahahah

 

ya, i have drag blocks, my cars kit is ruined, *thank you ex girlfriend*.....but im either getting kit n repaint to sell.....or getting a kit, shaving everything, installing the suicide door kit me n my friends built, chopping the roof 4 inches and then repainting....i just am on the fence about it

 

Ah, the imfamous "____ing dog stance."

 

Lol... kids these days. I remember when the crews I used to run with were on the forefront of air hopping.

Here is a little free advice. Quite while you are ahead. Your car will NEVER stand up to the abuse. You have a unibody car that was never designed to handle the stress applied during "three wheel," "dog leg" and hopping. You'll quickly find yourself in one tweaked and useless xB.

And for the record... Firestone does not make a "dual port 400 psi" bag. All of the Firestone air bellows used for custom air suspension are rated at 150 psi burst pressure and 100 psi constant pressure. If someone sold you a bag and claimed it was what you typed it either isn't a Firestone, or isn't rated at what they claimed.

So what qualifies me to make these statements? First, I was there when air hopping began in the central valley. One of the first places in the country to begin hopping on air. Back then all anyone ran were Firestone bags and the occasional Airlift/Goodyear. We would take our standard Firestone 255 and 224 bags down to a local machine shop to have the 1/4" port machined out to 3/8" and 1/2" NPT. Occasionally guys would put a second port in, but it wouldn't last too long under pressure. With only about one full thread in the top plate, there was no way it would last.

Back then we were running 3/8" Parker "gold" valves and 1/2" line. It was huge when we pulled out a fullsize truck that could hop almost 6"! Progression came quick though and soon we had trucks running 1/2" Parker Skinners 3/4" line and ported Firestones. At Reso that year all anyone talked about were our fullsize hopping FEET not inches.

Only a couple months later Solakian Plastics was in contact with Brandon Sisco at Sisco Kustoms about developing a brand new airbag just for truck suspensions. From those conversations the very first Slam Specialties airbag was born. And the very first truck they were tested on was my buddy Phil's. That same gray fullsize was the one that could be seen in the video on Slam Specialties site back in the day. The video was taken at the Chevy show in Paso Robles, CA. The other video they used to have on that site was of a primered gray S-10 that had a huge 4 wheel hop as well. That was my buddy Steve's.

So where are those trucks today? Well the fullsize's frame went to crap. Even though the whole frame had been boxed it still bent right at the back of the cab. That truck was rebuilt as a HUGE lifted truck and continued to hit shows for a couple years. The S-10's frame went to crap as well. The whole frame has been ditched and a complete "body-dropless" is currently being finished up for it. Then again, that is what you get when you launch several thousand pounds worth of steel into the air.

So unless you want the same fate to befall your xB, I would seriously consider slowing down with the hopping and three wheeling. The trucks I mentioned had not only the factory frame to support it, but they were completely reinforced as well. It isn't going to take hopping feet with your xB to start seeing problems.

Oh, and if anyone wants to see some pictures of the trucks I mentioned, as well as some of the others from back in the fledgling days of air hopping let me know. I am sure I can dig a few up.

 

hm, apparently my friend was mistaken then.....but like you said, reinforced. if i changed up the entire underbody of the vehicle and reinforce it, shouldnt i be fine. the cars paid off, and i hate it, so i may as well have fun with it right? and i was at resolutions with my hopper friends doing 4 5 straight up in the air hops, mine was done mainly as a joke....;cuz no one would compete with this guy who could hop his car 4+ feet.

 

n i dont really appreciate the "kids these days" comment. i was a member of a very large scion car club, and then an even larger lowrider club, and then helped form my own, we have 10 trucks now all on air suspension we installed ourselves. just because i like crazy stuff shouldnt jusitfy me as a "kid"

 

i mean i do appreciate the advice, but if there is a way to do it, id rather here how, instead of "just give up" ya know?

 

that's nuts

 

Honestly... I think it is a mistake to even try with the xB. Not that it can't be done, but I just don't think it is worth it, even if you hate it.

To do it "right" it would take a lot more than some simple reinforcing. If you wanted to hop it and make it last you will likely need a full cage as well as other reinforcement.

If all you want to do is destroy the car through hopping it, that can be done on the cheap. I could take a stock xB and put it on its roof for $2000. Heck, probably get a world record for air hopping. But it wouldn't last more than one event.

And don't take offense to the "kid" comment. It is just one of my typical sarcastic remarks. And to be honest, the club thing doesn't do much for me. I have been involved in several clubs in my day, and have moved past it for the time being. In the end it is never about the cars (trucks). In most cases it just isn't worth the headache.

 

well im not speakin about like 3 or 4 feet of air, i just think it would blow ppls minds at shows even if it was a foot

 

Trust me when I say that being from California you aren't going to blow anyones mind hopping an xB a foot. Hell I could hop an xB FEET with parts I picked up from the local OSH for few bucks.

As light as the xB is the only way you will blow peoples minds by hopping an xB is to make the thing do a complete backflip. I helped build fullsize trucks last millenium that hopped feet. Hopping a 2400 lbs. car 12" isn't doing much in this day and age.

I am not trying to rain on your parade, just telling it like I see it. If you are actually willing to destroy a perfectly good car just to say you can hop higher than a pepsi can... have at it. Your car, your choice. Have fun.