Need *soft* shock recommendations (hate my Bilsteins)

[306K5]

On 3/17/2024 at 8:56 AM, Grumpy Bear said:

When I opted for the King OEM coil-over which came with a 750# spring. With the minimum preload the shock was very close to the top of its travel. Within a half inch. The 600# spring brought it to about a quarter inch above mid travel and minimum preload. This shock has 1 inch more travel than stock which gives two inches more wheel travel. No custom control arm was required as it fall then within the range of the stock geometry.   I then installed the Bell drop spindle. 

 

I could install the 500# springs, get a softer front. Preload would center the travel. Softer linear valving or lighter fluid and it could become car like. 

 

When I did the rear drop spring set up and removed the block the stock length King lands right in the middle of its travel. As I don't use more than a thousand pounds EVER in the box.... perfect. 

 

Truck has 178,000 miles on factory arms and bushings, ball joints and tie rods. Holds alignment and is still on its second set of tires. Went 125K on the first set when the dated out with 5/32 even wear still on them. 

 

A rebuildable shock with tunable piston shims is a different beast that a fixed shim piston with a bypass circuit. 

 

This setup took the 'jar' out of the ride on expansion joints and potholes and the bump hop at the rear. Vastly improved the ride and with more travel bumps are like landing on a cloud. Not bouncy. It gave it more control, not less on the ramps. This truck came with allot of front bar and needs none in the back as set up. 

 

But yea, expensive and time consuming not a budget many will be happy with. 

 

If I were doing this again, I would have ordered the same rear shock with the remote reservoirs instead of the piggyback. I don't often hit the bump-stops, but I could shorten them if piggybacked with plenty of room. I gave up some compression distance. The reservoirs would hit the axle tube without the stops. And no, they can't be flipped or rotated. They just hit something else.  I tried. 

 

I like the stance. Not slammed, just nice..........2/4 drop, 1-degree forward rake. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think I'm going to spring for the 500# front setup. I want car like out of my 16 rcsb. I've been following your posts for a couple years now. I like the 2/4 drop as well.

 

I was going to go with an older model rear leaf, still not sure there yet. 

 

Bums me out there isn't a more affordable custom spring/shock supplier out there. I was going to try viking but just can't find enough feedback on ride quality long term.

 

 

[Grumpy Bear]

7 hours ago, 306K5 said:

 

I think I'm going to spring for the 500# front setup. I want car like out of my 16 rcsb. I've been following your posts for a couple years now. I like the 2/4 drop as well.

 

I was going to go with an older model rear leaf, still not sure there yet. 

 

Bums me out there isn't a more affordable custom spring/shock supplier out there. I was going to try viking but just can't find enough feedback on ride quality long term.

 

 

 

You could also try FOX. They also use a linear piston. https://accutuneoffroad.com/  Might be a bit less. 

 

The right spring sets the shock at mid or just above mid travel. The right valving then can make if feel very nice. They work together. 

[306K5]

On 3/31/2024 at 7:42 AM, Grumpy Bear said:

 

You could also try FOX. They also use a linear piston. https://accutuneoffroad.com/  Might be a bit less. 

 

The right spring sets the shock at mid or just above mid travel. The right valving then can make if feel very nice. They work together. 

Hopefully this summer I can reach out and make a move. I will definitely price out fox as well.

 

Fingers crossed I get someone at accutune who wants to help with a street setup.  I think you and I are the only two looking for a suspension setup like this. Baffles me.

[Grumpy Bear]

7 hours ago, 306K5 said:

Hopefully this summer I can reach out and make a move. I will definitely price out fox as well.

 

Fingers crossed I get someone at accutune who wants to help with a street setup.  I think you and I are the only two looking for a suspension setup like this. Baffles me.

 

Filthy Motorsports helped me with my setup. Keeping him on 'task' was pulling hens teeth. Ditto Deaver. I've run into this mentality buying bathroom fixtures. 

[Vincej138]

11 hours ago, 306K5 said:

Hopefully this summer I can reach out and make a move. I will definitely price out fox as well.

 

Fingers crossed I get someone at accutune who wants to help with a street setup.  I think you and I are the only two looking for a suspension setup like this. Baffles me.

 

Your buying off-road spec'd shocks for the street, so its a bit odd cause you will never see the true benefits that a 2.5" body shock offers. The same dampening and ride can be obtained from a 2.0 shock. So its kinda spinning wheels asking for a 2.5" setup. Honestly you would be better off just doing the factory spec'd fox with liner valving and the 550lb spring with 0 preload on it. Or if your 2wd, just get a spindle lift. The main diff between the 2.0 and 2.5 is not ride quality, its oil capacity thus allowing the shock to stay cooler as it cycles its travel more in rougher terrain faster. You could argue piston size helps control things, but for a pure street vehicle it wont be noticeable. You will never heat that shock up to the point it starts fading based on your needs and desired use of the truck. 

 

Its rare because its a waste of $, and on the vendor side of it, its hard because they way the shock is designed to be used and work is not what your asking it to do, so in our eyes, its a complaint and unhappy customer waiting to happen. 

 

To get correct valving, real correct vehicle specific valving, you need video of the suspension working through its entire range of travel, adjust, do it again multiple times. Much more going into the spring rate also. You need your motion ratio, you need to account for GVW at the corner and unsprung weight and then how much inital preload is needed just to support and carry the vehicle weight. You need to account on where you want your ride height to be vs. how much up/down travel you want. 

 

Accutune is great, but without having you and the vehicle there out in the dirt or street, it will never be perfect. "Soft" is subjective and different for every person. But your going to companies who specialize in one thing and asking them to do the opposite. So your gonna get some pushback cause if its not right, its on them and not the customer who had unrealistic expectations. 

 

Im not trying to be a downer, but your over thinking it. Your taking a $2K coilover setup and making it into a $150 monroe.

 

 

 

 

[306K5]

2 hours ago, Vincej138 said:

 

Your buying off-road spec'd shocks for the street, so its a bit odd cause you will never see the true benefits that a 2.5" body shock offers. The same dampening and ride can be obtained from a 2.0 shock. So its kinda spinning wheels asking for a 2.5" setup. Honestly you would be better off just doing the factory spec'd fox with liner valving and the 550lb spring with 0 preload on it. Or if your 2wd, just get a spindle lift. The main diff between the 2.0 and 2.5 is not ride quality, its oil capacity thus allowing the shock to stay cooler as it cycles its travel more in rougher terrain faster. You could argue piston size helps control things, but for a pure street vehicle it wont be noticeable. You will never heat that shock up to the point it starts fading based on your needs and desired use of the truck. 

 

Its rare because its a waste of $, and on the vendor side of it, its hard because they way the shock is designed to be used and work is not what your asking it to do, so in our eyes, its a complaint and unhappy customer waiting to happen. 

 

To get correct valving, real correct vehicle specific valving, you need video of the suspension working through its entire range of travel, adjust, do it again multiple times. Much more going into the spring rate also. You need your motion ratio, you need to account for GVW at the corner and unsprung weight and then how much inital preload is needed just to support and carry the vehicle weight. You need to account on where you want your ride height to be vs. how much up/down travel you want. 

 

Accutune is great, but without having you and the vehicle there out in the dirt or street, it will never be perfect. "Soft" is subjective and different for every person. But your going to companies who specialize in one thing and asking them to do the opposite. So your gonna get some pushback cause if its not right, its on them and not the customer who had unrealistic expectations. 

 

Im not trying to be a downer, but your over thinking it. Your taking a $2K coilover setup and making it into a $150 monroe.

 

 

 

 

 

Just a quick reply on my phone here. No offense taken at all to any of that, all valid points. 

 

You are correct in saying off road suspension is really not being utilized. 

 

I guess my issues is, the regular cab short box trucks are sprung for big payload and I'm assuming share the same front coil as the heavier trucks so it rides like a lumber wagon. 

 

I can't go buy off the shelf front coils that have a spring rate I'm looking for, so I'm forced to go custom off road stuff. 

 

If a 2.0 shock will give me the ride I'm looking for I'm happy. If I could buy a $150 Monroe shock and coil setup that doesn't ride like a pogo stick I'm also happy. 

 

My truck sees 30mph driving around rough roads. I rebuilt it from salvage, so it has a unique use case. 

 

Have a dually for heavy stuff etc. 

 

Just on a mission to make it ride nice, and enjoy talking/reading about it. Appreciate your input!

 

[306K5]

TireTech, a member from another forum compiled the chart I attached. 

 

It turns out he too has the same spring rate as my truck, which is 810lbs.. the highest you can get due to a snow plow prep package. 

 

Knowing that I'm running that ridiculous spring, I'm going to give a lighter oem spring a shot. He went for the 612 lb springs.  I think I may go for 515lb springs.  Or try a KYB strut with spring assembly for a 2015 Tahoe RWD. Just waiting to hear back from them on spring rates.

 

My truck is a good guinea pig for the light spring, I'll eventually post when I get to try them out.

 

 

[Grumpy Bear]

9 hours ago, 306K5 said:

TireTech, a member from another forum compiled the chart I attached. 

 

It turns out he too has the same spring rate as my truck, which is 810lbs.. the highest you can get due to a snow plow prep package. 

 

Knowing that I'm running that ridiculous spring, I'm going to give a lighter oem spring a shot. He went for the 612 lb springs.  I think I may go for 515lb springs.  Or try a KYB strut with spring assembly for a 2015 Tahoe RWD. Just waiting to hear back from them on spring rates.

 

My truck is a good guinea pig for the light spring, I'll eventually post when I get to try them out.

 

 

 

Been looking for this spring chart for years. Thanks! 

Edited April 13, 2024 by Grumpy Bear

[Grumpy Bear]

On 4/2/2024 at 11:28 AM, Vincej138 said:

I'm not trying to be a downer, but you're over thinking it. You're taking a $2K coil over setup and making it into a $150 Monroe.

 

My truck is a pavement queen. I do not regret getting spendy with the suspension. It gave me everything I was seeking. CONTROL on washboards and vastly less jar on bridge expansion joint and RR tracks. Granted, I live in Illinois where our highways are potholes and moguls.  

 

I tried a set of Progressive shelf shocks and while the washboard was sweet the control was awful, and potholes and the like were jackhammer harsh. Bottom out on even relatively smooth track crossings. The Digressive units the factory installed were downright dangerous. Brad at Filthy Motorsport listened and provided a very nice KING OEM direct fit setup that we resprung once to get what I was after. Even that was on me, not him.

 

I misunderstood a measurement reference.   That was about 150K miles ago and they are still as sweet today as they were when delivered. For me...money well spent. 

[23RST]

On 3/22/2024 at 8:27 AM, Chevyguy273 said:

Where did you find these for an unbelievable $200 for the pair? 

pick & pull nearby - they definitely just listed the price wrong.... they screwed up but I didn't say anything lol

[Farmerman1379]

On 4/13/2024 at 9:00 AM, Grumpy Bear said:

 

My truck is a pavement queen. I do not regret getting spendy with the suspension. It gave me everything I was seeking. CONTROL on washboards and vastly less jar on bridge expansion joint and RR tracks. Granted, I live in Illinois where our highways are potholes and moguls.  

 

I tried a set of Progressive shelf shocks and while the washboard was sweet the control was awful, and potholes and the like were jackhammer harsh. Bottom out on even relatively smooth track crossings. The Digressive units the factory installed were downright dangerous. Brad at Filthy Motorsport listened and provided a very nice KING OEM direct fit setup that we resprung once to get what I was after. Even that was on me, not him.

 

I misunderstood a measurement reference.   That was about 150K miles ago and they are still as sweet today as they were when delivered. For me...money well spent. 

I know this is probably a loaded question. I'm switching to 17 inch wheels and 265/70r17 Cooper Road+Trail ATs from stock 285/45r22 Cooper At3 4S. CCSB 4x4 with 112k miles with a RC lower strut spacer for level and original suspension components. I don't tow or haul much anymore and offroading is contained to driving around the farm. I'd like a more forgiving suspension for daily driving the same junk Illinois roads without giving up much if any handling (not sure if that's feasible). I'm also not hung up on keeping it leveled and i definitely don't want to lift it. If anything I'd like to do a reverse level. A few things I am considering are 6112s in the front set to a lower pre-load setting with either 5100s or 5160s in the back. I also thought about doing the Deaver mini pack in the rear with drop shackles in addition to new shocks. I also considered the Eibach Pro Truck set. I don't want to spend several thousand on suspension, but if I can get into a decent setup for around 1500 I think it would be well worth it. It doesn't need to ride like a cadillac, but if I can make driving it more enjoyable and pleasant for me and my passengers, I would be happy. 

[Grumpy Bear]

1 hour ago, Farmerman1379 said:

I know this is probably a loaded question. I'm switching to 17 inch wheels and 265/70r17 Cooper Road+Trail ATs from stock 285/45r22 Cooper At3 4S. CCSB 4x4 with 112k miles with a RC lower strut spacer for level and original suspension components. I don't tow or haul much anymore and offroading is contained to driving around the farm. I'd like a more forgiving suspension for daily driving the same junk Illinois roads without giving up much if any handling (not sure if that's feasible). I'm also not hung up on keeping it leveled and i definitely don't want to lift it. If anything I'd like to do a reverse level. A few things I am considering are 6112s in the front set to a lower pre-load setting with either 5100s or 5160s in the back. I also thought about doing the Deaver mini pack in the rear with drop shackles in addition to new shocks. I also considered the Eibach Pro Truck set. I don't want to spend several thousand on suspension, but if I can get into a decent setup for around 1500 I think it would be well worth it. It doesn't need to ride like a cadillac, but if I can make driving it more enjoyable and pleasant for me and my passengers, I would be happy. 

 

Adding more spring will make it worse. Spring rate is the basic issue with a truck. Because, well.... it's a truck. As much difference as it made and it made a bunch, it's still a mile off the ride of a car or SUV. 

 

Talk to Accutune Off Road but I don't think you will get what your looking for. I got improvement but not what I was looking for. NO ONE builds that set up. Sorry. 

[Dunn]

AT4/TB come with racho monotube and all the Z71 trucks come with Rancho twin tubes

[Farmerman1379]

On 9/3/2024 at 10:15 PM, Grumpy Bear said:

 

Adding more spring will make it worse. Spring rate is the basic issue with a truck. Because, well.... it's a truck. As much difference as it made and it made a bunch, it's still a mile off the ride of a car or SUV. 

 

Talk to Accutune Off Road but I don't think you will get what your looking for. I got improvement but not what I was looking for. NO ONE builds that set up. Sorry. 

I gotcha. I ended up getting my 265/70r17s on and it rides so much better than the old 285/45r22s. I might try the Bilstein 4600s, take the spacer out of the front, and take the block out of the rear leaf pack. Probably the thing that bothers me most right now is washboards on county roads. It's like the rebound can't keep up and it bunny hops in the rear end. There's one section of the road that is pretty awful, and the rear end will get loose and kick out to the side.

[Grumpy Bear]

1 hour ago, Farmerman1379 said:

I gotcha. I ended up getting my 265/70r17s on and it rides so much better than the old 285/45r22s. I might try the Bilstein 4600s, take the spacer out of the front, and take the block out of the rear leaf pack. Probably the thing that bothers me most right now is washboards on county roads. It's like the rebound can't keep up and it bunny hops in the rear end. There's one section of the road that is pretty awful, and the rear end will get loose and kick out to the side.

 

That is one thing the King and FOX systems handle very well. Bunny Hop.