Bilstein shocks thread

Summit850 · April 20, 2019

My 5100's are in plan on replacing my ranchos by the end of the week. Hopefully I have a positive outcome like so many of you.

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Snowcamo · April 20, 2019

My 5100's are in plan on replacing my ranchos by the end of the week. Hopefully I have a positive outcome like so many of you.

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Its a breeze if you take the ranchos out and take both sets of struts to a shop and have them swap springs. That makes it a cake walk. Hardest part might be getting the strut back over the lca. I used a small jack and a 2x4 to lift it up to tje lca then slid it over.

huntr1117 · April 21, 2019

Its a breeze if you take the ranchos out and take both sets of struts to a shop and have them swap springs. That makes it a cake walk. Hardest part might be getting the strut back over the lca. I used a small jack and a 2x4 to lift it up to tje lca then slid it over.

Also reuse the factory nut at the top when you reinstall the spring. I few people have had the provided bilstein nut loosen up and make noise.

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Snowcamo · April 21, 2019

Also reuse the factory nut at the top when you reinstall the spring. I few people have had the provided bilstein nut loosen up and make noise.

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Agreed [emoji121]

SkiDooNick700 · April 22, 2019

So pairing the 5100s at top setting with a top spacer is ok to do? I got a ProComp 2.25" kit for my birthday back in Feb without really weighing the option of Bilsteins. Now that I'm finally about ready to get tires and do this leveling kit, all of a sudden I'm thinking I should consider these Bilsteins and sell the leveling kit.

jimmyboy8301 · April 22, 2019

16 minutes ago, SkiDooNick700 said:

So pairing the 5100s at top setting with a top spacer is ok to do? I got a ProComp 2.25" kit for my birthday back in Feb without really weighing the option of Bilsteins. Now that I'm finally about ready to get tires and do this leveling kit, all of a sudden I'm thinking I should consider these Bilsteins and sell the leveling kit.

how big of a top spacer do you want to add to the bilsteins? the top setting is 1.85" so i wouldn't add more than a 1/2" spacer

SkiDooNick700 · April 22, 2019

1 minute ago, jimmyboy8301 said:

how big of a top spacer do you want to add to the bilsteins? the top setting is 1.85" so i wouldn't add more than a 1/2" spacer

It would be 1/2" spacer. I want to be over 2" lift but under 2.5" lift. Sounds like some guys claim 2" lift from bilsteins. Wonder if I should do like a 1/4" spacer? I'm sure every truck lifts a little differently. Just would hate to have to tear everything apart twice if I do it wrong the first time lol. Rather would go slightly higher I guess. That gives an excuse to raise the rear sightly :-) if needed.

Sierra Dan · April 22, 2019

Any feedback on the 6112's yet?

Silverado-Hareek · April 23, 2019

On 4/20/2019 at 10:38 PM, huntr1117 said:

Also reuse the factory nut at the top when you reinstall the spring. I few people have had the provided bilstein nut loosen up and make noise.

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On 4/20/2019 at 10:40 PM, Snowcamo said:

Agreed

Quoting for emphasis. Definitely re-use the factory nut. My side mechanic did this when he installed my bilstiens and explained why...basically the factory nut has a larger surface area that makes contact with the frame when tightened down. As huntr1117 said, others have reported a popping noise in the front end and a loosened up nut when they used the bilstein provided hardware. Not sure why that is the case, but I haven't had any popping noises or loose nuts in my truck.

huntr1117 · April 23, 2019

So pairing the 5100s at top setting with a top spacer is ok to do? I got a ProComp 2.25" kit for my birthday back in Feb without really weighing the option of Bilsteins. Now that I'm finally about ready to get tires and do this leveling kit, all of a sudden I'm thinking I should consider these Bilsteins and sell the leveling kit.

Just run the bilsteins at the stock height with the ProComp 2.25" kit. That's was my exact old setup before I lifted the truck. I'm still running the 5100s with my lift and it rides great. Heres a pic of my truck before the lift. Setup is 2.25" Procomp ,3" blocks in the rear, 295/55R20 Ridge Grapplers, and 5100s front and back.

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Randys Denali · April 23, 2019

On 4/22/2019 at 10:15 AM, Sierra Dan said:

Any feedback on the 6112's yet?

I received my 6112s (47-273702) last week and tried to install them this last Saturday; unfortunately they didn't fit. The 6112 shaft was too thick and didn't fit through the OE top mount/top hat. I reached out to Bilstein and confirmed that I received the correct shocks.

In all honesty, I know most websites state shocks will not fit the Denali model with magnetic suspension, but I figured it's because they don't want to take responsibility for the dash alarms going off when the magneride suspension is disconnected. I've seen others on this forum replace the magneride with Halo shocks and other brands, so I didn't think it would be an issue. In this case, the 6112s did not fit my OE mounts.

There wasn't much information regarding fitment of the 6112s to the Denali model and the Battle Born Offroad website shows they will fit the Denali model. I tried reaching out to them yesterday, but was unable to reach them (probably due to the holiday on Sunday). I sent a email to them with the same information and I'm waiting to hear back...

Battle Born Offroad · April 23, 2019

On 4/20/2019 at 7:38 PM, huntr1117 said:

Also reuse the factory nut at the top when you reinstall the spring. I few people have had the provided bilstein nut loosen up and make noise.

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7 hours ago, Silverado-Hareek said:

Quoting for emphasis. Definitely re-use the factory nut. My side mechanic did this when he installed my bilstiens and explained why...basically the factory nut has a larger surface area that makes contact with the frame when tightened down. As huntr1117 said, others have reported a popping noise in the front end and a loosened up nut when they used the bilstein provided hardware. Not sure why that is the case, but I haven't had any popping noises or loose nuts in my truck.

We suggest using the factory nut as well!

5 minutes ago, Randys Denali said:

I received my 6112s (47-273702) last week and tried to install them this last Saturday; unfortunately they didn't fit. The 6112 shaft was too thick and didn't fit through the OE top mount/top hat. I reached out to Bilstein and confirmed that I received the correct shocks.

In all honesty, I know most websites state shocks will not fit the Denali model with magnetic suspension, but I figured it's because they don't want to take responsibility for the dash alarms going off when the magneride suspension is disconnected. I've seen others on this forum replace the magneride with Halo shocks and other brands, so I didn't think it would be an issue. In this case, the 6112s did not fit my OE mounts.

There wasn't much information regarding fitment of the 6112s to the Denali model and the Battle Born Offroad website shows they will fit the Denali model. I tried reaching out to them yesterday, but was unable to reach them (probably due to the holiday on Sunday). I sent a email to them with the same information and I'm waiting to hear back...

Please PM us your phone number or order number and we will reach out to you. These are not for the magneride, but you can fit them with purchasing the factory upper mounts for the non-magneride suspension.

Battle Born Offroad · April 23, 2019

On 4/22/2019 at 5:27 AM, SkiDooNick700 said:

It would be 1/2" spacer. I want to be over 2" lift but under 2.5" lift. Sounds like some guys claim 2" lift from bilsteins. Wonder if I should do like a 1/4" spacer? I'm sure every truck lifts a little differently. Just would hate to have to tear everything apart twice if I do it wrong the first time lol. Rather would go slightly higher I guess. That gives an excuse to raise the rear sightly :-) if needed.

You can do a 1/2" spacer (Use the under the shock spacer), the reason we dont suggest more is that the alignment adjustment is limited above 2" without aftermarket control arms.

dubwise · April 23, 2019

Does anyone offer a "pre-assembly" for the bilstein shocks?

Meaning if I wanted them setup at X height they would setup them up in house and ship them to me ready for direct install? That way I wouldn't have to mess with combining the stock stop hats / spring compressor / reassembly etc... ?

SkiDooNick700 · April 23, 2019

2 hours ago, huntr1117 said:

Just run the bilsteins at the stock height with the ProComp 2.25" kit. That's was my exact old setup before I lifted the truck. I'm still running the 5100s with my lift and it rides great. Heres a pic of my truck before the lift. Setup is 2.25" Procomp ,3" blocks in the rear, 295/55R20 Ridge Grapplers, and 5100s front and back.

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Thanks for the feedback - that is a great stance you had goin there! 3 inch block.. is that 2" taller than the factory about?

46 minutes ago, Battle Born Offroad said:

You can do a 1/2" spacer (Use the under the shock spacer), the reason we dont suggest more is that the alignment adjustment is limited above 2" without aftermarket control arms.

Battle Born, wondering your two cents on this... since I've already got the 2.25" ProComp kit for up front, what would be the advantage of running the 5100s with the 1/2" spacer as you suggested, vs running the 2.25" ProComp kit along with 5100s at the lowest setting? I got the kit a few months back so I'm pretty sure I'm stuck with it unless I sell it privately. Ultimately, will there be much of a difference in doing either setup?