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Old 06-28-2019, 02:43 PM   #1
vampress_me
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DRW air...?

So, the dually is great so far. But I have run into one issue with the rear tires, or more specifically, the valve stems on the interior tires. It took my daughter's smaller hand to reach in there to unscrew the valve stem cap, and the 2 of us to add air to the tires due to the odd angle the valve stem sticks out (plus a flexible air filler end thingie - not the rigid ended one like many gas stations have). And, actually, both rear tires are goofy. The interior wheel's valve stem points out/ towards the center hub while the exterior wheel valve stem points to the inside of the duallies. Not a great set-up to add air to the tires when I need to. And obviously Ford's engineers have never had to try to fill the rear tires or they'd have a better design....

What do you guys with DRW do to them to make it easier? Because I won't always have her with me, and it was plain ridiculous what we had to do.
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Old 06-28-2019, 03:59 PM   #2
chuckster57
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That’s about standard for the air valves. Lots of options at your local auto parts store. Extensions come in different angles and lengths. Happy hunting.
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Old 06-28-2019, 04:38 PM   #3
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A lot of extension options. And just minor point, seems simple but didnt occur to me to check, if you have to remove, rotate, or replace tires ensure that the (cough) tech doesnt hide a inner valve stem by not aligning the wheels slots. I got home from getting mine rotated and balanced and had to drive back to point out the issue.
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Old 06-28-2019, 04:45 PM   #4
MickLittle
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Just a side note...
On my Ford dually, you don't need to take the valve stem caps off to fill or ckeck pressure. The caps are made to fill and ckeck pressure without removing. A good air Chuck with a straight and angled fitting seem to work good for me.
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Old 06-28-2019, 04:54 PM   #5
JRTJH
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Lynette,

Google "DRW valve stem extension" and you'll get enough info to confuse even the most diligent "new DRW owner".... There's a couple of you-tube videos that show how the valve stem extensions work to make it easier to air up/down your dual tires.
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Old 06-28-2019, 07:08 PM   #6
cookinwitdiesel
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Found out this morning when doing a pre-departure check on the truck and trailer, my truck does not even have caps on the inside wheel stems. They were a weird rubber/flexible stem with a spring loaded cap that pushes in when you air and then seals the thing off when you back off. Maybe that is a GM thing since it sounds like Ford does it differently.

Also found it curious, the door jam air ratings were 70 for the fronts, and 65 for the rears (80 psi max stamped on sidewalls). I guess since there are 4 tires back there and not 2 they do not have to be maxed out on air. With the 2500HD it was 60 fronts and 75 rears (of course, completely different wheel/tire setup and of course load rating).
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Old 06-28-2019, 07:24 PM   #7
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You folks are having a steep learning curve on how to check and air up dual tire setups. This is something I have been doing all of my life. There are many brands and styles of valve stem extensions to help make the job easier. And no, it is not up to the vehicle manufacturer to make it easy for you.
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Old 06-28-2019, 08:22 PM   #8
vampress_me
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Thanks guys! I will check all this out when we get home. And yes, it is a slightly steep learning curve for me, that’s why I asked on the forum since I know other have DRWs. In our little town, when I was asking around, everyone just shook their head and said “yep, it’s hard to do”, no mention of extensions. But, not many DRWs around either...and I figured there had to be a better way.

And, it may not be their job to make it easy for us to work on, but I do have to poke fun at those engineers once in a while, whether it is Dodge with our ‘99 CTD that you had to lift the engine block slightly to remove the oil pan to remove the block fully (having to replace the cracked block is fun, right? thank god we had a shop to work in!), or any of our new Fords that the cab has to come off of to work on at all.
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Old 06-29-2019, 05:21 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cookinwitdiesel View Post
Found out this morning when doing a pre-departure check on the truck and trailer, my truck does not even have caps on the inside wheel stems. They were a weird rubber/flexible stem with a spring loaded cap that pushes in when you air and then seals the thing off when you back off. Maybe that is a GM thing since it sounds like Ford does it differently.

Also found it curious, the door jam air ratings were 70 for the fronts, and 65 for the rears (80 psi max stamped on sidewalls). I guess since there are 4 tires back there and not 2 they do not have to be maxed out on air. With the 2500HD it was 60 fronts and 75 rears (of course, completely different wheel/tire setup and of course load rating).
Yep, you might also air down to about 35 to 45 psi empty to smooth out the ride, check and inflation chart and scale your rear axle empty.
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Old 06-29-2019, 05:32 AM   #10
BauerAP
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Not to sound like a smart a— but are you using a dual head air chuck and gauge? Driving a 45,000# big red truck with lights every other day has taught me a few tricks checking dual tires. Not to state the obvious but some valve stems are made to pull instead of push.
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Old 06-29-2019, 08:27 AM   #11
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[QUOTE=cookinwitdiesel;347141]Found out this morning when doing a pre-departure check on the truck and trailer, my truck does not even have caps on the inside wheel stems. They were a weird rubber/flexible stem with a spring loaded cap that pushes in when you air and then seals the thing off when you back off. Maybe that is a GM thing since it sounds like Ford does it differently.

Also found it curious, the door jam air ratings were 70 for the fronts, and 65 for the rears (80 psi max stamped on sidewalls). I guess since there are 4 tires back there and not 2 they do not have to be maxed out on air. With the 2500HD it was 60 fronts and 75 rears (of course, completely different wheel/tire setup and of course load rating).[/QUOT

My last 2 GMC duallies I ran the tires at the door post pressures (70 front, 65 rears) towing a 16.5k 5th wheel with not a single tire issue, probably will now get negative comments from our resident tire gurus about underinflation or some such, but that's my story. Also at those pressures the unloaded ride wasn't TOO bad either. Tried the 80 psi a few times & even towing the heavy 5er the ride was too harsh & watching the TPMS it didn't seem to affect the temps with more/less pressure. Personally I ran the same pressures towing or not just so I wasn't always jacking around inflating/deflating tires, especially the rears which were PITA any way.
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Old 06-29-2019, 08:28 AM   #12
cookinwitdiesel
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I plan to just run sticker pressures all the time. Rode fine unloaded and good enough for GMC when loaded to gvwr.
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Old 06-29-2019, 09:08 AM   #13
MarkEHansen
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I took our new truck to a local tire store and had them put in metal valve stems for our rear duallies (the front wheels came with metal stems - go figure). For the inner wheels, I had them install 8" stems, and bend them such that they come out the outer wheel spokes. These work great and make it possible for me to run TPMS sensors on them.
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Old 06-29-2019, 02:43 PM   #14
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I travel with a Viair pump when on the road since I can’t depend on being able to use the air pimps at most service stations. It has a long handle chuck which reaches the inner valve stems just fine. My F350 has flow thru valve stem caps, so I don’t have to remove them.

The long handle check is at an angle that doesn’t allow me to fill the outer tires though, so I pull the hub cap and use the flexible chuck attachment to fill those. Definitely something I didn’t consider when purchasing the DWR, but carrying the Viair with appropriate attachments has solved the problem.
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Old 06-30-2019, 08:31 AM   #15
MN-Clark
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NAPA sells the best DRW valve extensions, in my opinion. Included we're rubber inserts for the outer wheel to support the extension tube. They fit my Alcoa aluminum wheels perfectly. The 1st set of extensions I used, we're not supported and caused the rubber valve on the inner wheel to fail. Lession learned for me!
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Old 06-30-2019, 09:43 AM   #16
travelin texans
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MN-Clark View Post
NAPA sells the best DRW valve extensions, in my opinion. Included we're rubber inserts for the outer wheel to support the extension tube. They fit my Alcoa aluminum wheels perfectly. The 1st set of extensions I used, we're not supported and caused the rubber valve on the inner wheel to fail. Lession learned for me!
Just for others that may be listening!
If adding extensions or TPMS sensors be sure you have metal valve stems installed or expect a flat due the rubber stems cracking &/or breaking off.
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Old 07-04-2019, 10:28 AM   #17
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After trying to air tires on our DRW (where two or more valve stems always seemed to be at the bottom of the wheel, which was hardest for me to fill), I decided to install valve extensions. I went through 3 sets of solid metal tubing-type extensions, but I always had problems with one or more leaking. I finally bought a set of flexible extensions with braided wire covering a flexible tube. Never had a problem with them. They are really easy to fill, since the valve is on a bracket that is held in place by the lug nut. Have used these extensions for over 3 years, with no problems whatsoever.
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Old 07-05-2019, 05:47 AM   #18
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One of the better investments we made when switching to DRW was a quality dual-head air chuck with gauge. Personally, I like Milton products for air equipment. With the dual head you can push/pull the inner and outer stems as on our F350 DRW. As already pointed out, make sure the tire store aligns the set in the same wheel opening, use high quality steel stems and extensions as needed.

The built-in gauge allows you to make the connection, read the pressure, then add or remove air as required all in one shot. Great addition to your tools!

see:https://www.amazon.com/Milton-S-506-...-1-spons&psc=1
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