Racing suspension is here!!!!!!!!!!

[Kilby]

I'm aaallllll over it! No really!

 

[jwinnie]

Kent,

From what I have read you have done a outstanding job developing this product. I don't think you could find a better bunch of people to market it to than we, the TDR



It saddens me that there is not enough interest in a 2wd system, and that it is hard to develop. I would send you a check tomorrow if you had one.

I have a question about IFS systems, I was always under the impression that REAL fast Baja trucks were all IFS, 2wd or 4wd. Is this true? I have always been able to go down washboard roads twice as fast in my truck as i could in a solid axle truck. What is your view on this?



Thanks again for your time,



John

 

[dsherman]

Had them installed 9-9-03 with leaf pack got to love that suspension. My wife also likes the ride!!! got to keep the boss happy!!! Oo. :--)

 

[Dr.Kayak]

Originally posted by dsherman

Had them installed 9-9-03 with leaf pack got to love that suspension. My wife also likes the ride!!! got to keep the boss happy

dsherman: How does it ride on Freeway expansion joints? Perfectly smooth?

 

[Kyle]

dsherman - What wheels/tires

dsherman,

What type/size wheels and tires are you running?

 

[dsherman]

WoW

Dr Kayak,

On the expansion joints it rides like a car. We have a thunderbird and it feels similar to that. We live in Corona, Ca. and on the 91 freeway there is what I would call whoopdie doe's or ripples in the freeway. It takes the shock out of them. Rides nice but still can feel them. My wife can now cross stich in the truck. A lot better than when it was stock. Makes a noticeable difference going over railroad tracks, speed bumps, pot holes and going up driveways. Before I use to go over railroad tracks at 30 MPH and get air with my truck. Now it just rolls over them. It makes a great deal of difference off roading. I only got to try it once already but put it through a lot. I'll try to keep you posted when I go out to the desert.

 

[dsherman]

WoW

Kyle,

MY tire is Michelin LTX. Stock rims and tires. The size is LT 265-R75-16. The tallest tire I would buy would be the Bridge Stone Desert Duelers 285-R70-16. To me these are one of the best off roading tires. I have them on my jeep and they are awesome. Besides I can't go any bigger or my BABY will not fit into the garage.

 

[TomGolden]

Corona, huh? Did you get your truck from Frahm Dodge? That's where I bought mine. Pretty decent folks. They picked me up at Ontario airport, took me to the dealership and I signed my life away.



Hmmm... that kinda sounds like what I did when I went in the Army... :-laf



Please let us know how it does out in the desert. My folks live out near Barstow, and I go off-roading a bit out there when I visit. Also hunting a bit further towards Vegas, and in various nearby states, so I am very curious to hear how this suspension will do for you. It sounds mega Oo. from all I have read and heard so far!!

 

[BPINE]

Hey Tom, my buddies suspension is going on today, this is the truck with the 19. 5's on it. We will beat it up tonight and I will report back.



So far I am not very impressed with my 19. 5's, the ride is much harsher and the tread moves around causing a very uncomfortable feeling. I was told by the shop I bought the tires from that this was normal and should clear up in about 2/32 of tread life. This is not good because that could be a while.

 

[Kyle]

Which tire?

BPINE,



What tire (make, model, size) is on those 19. 5's? Did you get them locally or from Rickson?

 

[Kilby]

We just installed our T-Rex system this week and slapped new 35" flippers on the truck too. I must say that this system does indeed ride nice and customer service from T-Rex is absolutly top notch!

You can see the rest of the pics here. http://kilbyenterprises.com/misc/t-rex/



#ad

 

[BPINE]

Re: Which tire?

Originally posted by Kyle

BPINE,



What tire (make, model, size) is on those 19. 5's? Did you get them locally or from Rickson?

They are 245-70-19. 5 Michelin XDE's M/S. These came from Rickson but I can get them locally as well.

 

[Dr.Kayak]

Kilby:



#ad




Do you have to trim out that much of the front wheel well for the system to fit?

 

[Clinton]

Okay Kent, I've gone through this thread several times over the past weeks and I've got some subjective questions that only your ass can answer.



I use my rig as a RV; not to haul or tow one, but the truck itself. I have an A. R. E. DCU topper and a KargoMaster external pipe rack loaded with outdoor toys. Typically, the truck is used as a whitewater assault vehicle loaded with two to twenty kayaks, a bunch of people and a cooler of beer. Not too heavy. Then I'll drive down some goat path to some river or creek. These Southeast river gorges have roads that are very different from your Baja test bed. If I go 80 mph at any point I may well drive off a bluff if I make it through the trees first. We're talking slow speed crawling with slick clay mud and rocks too big to hit any way other than slow.



I can understand how the T-Rex system would be superior offroad at high speed and on the highway, but what can I expect at crawl speed? What will my ass feel in comparison to the stock set-up? Often I worry about rattling the topper and rack to oblivion on these roads. Will the T-Rex system provide better cushioning to these investments that ride on the top of the bed? Is the leaf 'repack' applicable to the 2nd gen. trucks? Does it help eliminate axle wrap? If not, what is the best way to deal with axle wrap? Thanks.

 

[Kilby]

No. It's optional. I actually had both inner fenders mounted but took them back off to cut them. Without cutting, you can't see the reservoirs. I wanna see the reservoirs.

Originally posted by Dr. Kayak

Kilby:



#ad




Do you have to trim out that much of the front wheel well for the system to fit?

 

[jrobinson2]

T Rex First Impressions

Installation was not to bad, the instructions called for using the new shock mount as a reference to mark and drill the new holes from the top, instead I made a template from the new bolt ring and did everything from the bottom. (If this is a problem I'm sure Kent will say why. )Getting the LH shock, accumulator and mount through all the wiring and hoses is a bit tedious to say the least . I trimmed the plastic fender liners about 1" around the upper shock towers to prevent rubbing and put a small bend in the steel inner fender where the hose passes for clearance. The LH rear shock seems to clear the stock 245 75 16 spare tire by a couple inches, but much bigger tire wouldn't fit.

As for low speed ride I drove a road behind the house with a lot of rocks before and after the installation at about 15 mph and didn't notice much change. Kent may be able to valve better for low speeds but on my truck it seems to really start working well between 20 and 30 mph, I think it just requires a certain amount of inertia to deflect these heavy springs no matter what you do with shocks. The performance on washboards is very good, there is still vibration but the truck is dead stable at any speed over 25 mph, there is no shaking and the rear of the truck never tries to walk around at all the system is miraculous on holes and washouts, less so on bumps that go up but still very good Ive had the system on a week now but the paved road performance is still undetermined as I have only had time for about 10 miles on the road (I have about 75 miles off road) There are a few minor things I'm not quite as satisfied with but I have not had the time to call Kent and talk about them yet.

Jared

 

[Kyle]

ProComp's?

Kilby,



How much were those rear leafs?

Were they a complete replacement or did you add them to your existing leaf pack?

What's the height difference from stock?



Also, I'm anxious to find out how those ProComps work out for you. I was about to get those same tires the last time I replaced mine, but ended up getting Parnelli Jones' -- which I regret (but that's a different story).



Kyle

 

[Kilby]

The springs in the pics are the replacements for the OEM overload spring. It goes under the OEM spring pack. When adding the replacements only and no spacers, the truck doesn't really get raised at all.



I've only had the tires a few days but they seem pretty good on the streets and freeway. They didn't take a whole lot of weight to balance either.

 

[Lee R]

Rear axle jump

My '97 2500 was awful and uncontrollable when driving in soft sand and gravel because of the rear axle jumping and sounding like it was tearing the rear springs and bed off the truck. I stopped in some soft sand on an offramp near Corona. Before T-Rex, I would have had to use 4X to keep the rear-end on the ground. Not any more. I stayed and played in the sand for some time and was late for my appointment. I tried fast and slow starts, quick stops, 4x4, reverse and had no axle jump at reasonable acceleration. I can see no reason to buy that MB G Wagon at a $100,000 and its not even a Diesel. Just thought you might want to know.

 

[Kyle]

OEM springs?

Lee R,



Does your setup have the OEM springs?