revalving shocks....any experts?

[foolkiller]

I am going to install the kore recon kit( or similar set up) on my 07 truck that will have toyo 295/70/17 mt tires on it. heavy tire. and they will be ran at a high psi most of the time. rare offroading that would be mellow by most standards. the bilstein shocks with that kit will do fine i'm sure for a while. but i need to fiddle with something.



since i'm not going to play with the engine for some time (warranty) i am going to focus on playing with the suspension.



not sure who's shock towers i will end up with but will either be getting;



bilstein 7100

fox 2. 0

fox 2. 5

and, not sure weather i need a resevoir or not either... they seem to only effect cooling which won't likely be an issue for my truck.



i'm going for really controled smooth ride around town/freeway. and i suspect the kits available are tuned more so for off road use.



i am confident i will be able to handle rebuilding and revalving mechanically but don't know where to start with the valving/tuning technically. seems this is pretty proprietary knowledge for most folks. but i'm sure there's folks out there that have done this and are not trying to make money on it. not that that's wrong!! i just want to play with this item myself. and will likely pay the price one way or another buying parts to tune with anyway.



both fox and bilstein offer a VERY general starting point but don't address tire psi, weight or driving environment or specific trucks at all.



i did do the search and found zero discussions on actual numeric values for this topic.



i hesitate to ask kore, carli, lorenz and so on... . it's their bread and butter.



happy new year, jeff

 

[obie1]

Don't know about the re-valving issue, but I can say that I just got my Bilsteins from Geno's. They are revalved (or engineered) and the ride has been impressionable. This truck behaves totally different, not bottoming out, no lean in curves and smooth as silk on highway expansion joints. No wonder these shocks are back ordered all the time. Recommend try these for yours. Try them out before making mods...

 

[foolkiller]

i hear ya. i'm confident in the bilsteins as well but am aiming to have a project. the ones from geno's are the 5100 non-rebuildables unless i'm mistaken... . just like the ones with the recon.

 

[obie1]

Misunderstood but I'm with ya, Have a great New year hope all went well. .

 

[JHardwick]

The first step would be to buy a shock dyno. Shocks are a lot more sophisticated than you may think.

 

[Bob4x4]

You could make one of the SoCalRR's trips,you will be able to see how all the different systems work. We have all 3 systems represented and different levels of shocks



Bob

 

[Lorenz]

The first step would be to buy a shock dyno. Shocks are a lot more sophisticated than you may think.

A dyno helps, but the cost is so prohibitive it's not an option for the individual guy. Even with a dyno you still have to run your setup on the truck. Valving isn't as much of a science as you would think. It's more trial and error, with allot of user preference involved. I've used dyno charts to calculate our valving, I would say it accounts for 25% of how we valve.



Here's some ballpark figures. If I heard you right, you're willing to pull the shocks off the truck 1-2 times for a revalve to account for you preferences? You'll have a custom riding truck that is perfect for your tastes. YOUR preferences are key, far more important than a dyno run.



FRONT

If you go with 2. 5 series Sway-A-Ways, start with a mix of . 010-. 012 on the compression side. Rebound is highly dependent on the spring rates you choose. . 012-. 015 on the rebound is a good start.



REAR

Light compression, . 008-. 010, and heavy on the rebound to control the over sprung Leafs that come from the factory, . 012-. 015.



The rest can be done by the seat of the pants with a little elbow grease. There's a couple of other tricks that I'll share if you buy from us. Here's a write up that will walk you through the tear down and revalve of a Bilstien 7100.

http://www.lorenzindustries.com/media_july.html



You may want to check out our new 2. 25 Series System. Internal reservoirs (No Remote Resi's) and a 21% bigger piston area when compared to the 2. 0's. A smaller price tag is include... We use our tower with this System, you can toss stamped OEM shock tower!

http://www.lorenzindustries.com/kits_swayaway225.html





Sean Lorenz

 

[foolkiller]

Sean, I've actually spoke with you at a very different stage of planning for this truck. I am interested in all options here. I must be honest that I know zero about the SAW shocks or parts/tech support for them... . and that is a HUGE factor in my decisions to go with one product or other. I've read a lot of posts by you and value your opinions/inputs/advices. I really need to see your products first hand though. All I know about them is from posts here on TDR.



I am in San Diego If you wanna give me a peek.



Jeff

 

[foolkiller]

And Sean,



Your mail box is full. You have my number somewhere I know.



Jeff Croslin

 

[Bob4x4]

You could make one of the SoCalRR's trips,you will be able to see how all the different systems work. We have all 3 systems represented and different levels of shocks



Bob

Sean is a member of our group and does bring his truck out to play.



Bob

 

[foolkiller]

Sean is a member of our group and does bring his truck out to play.



Bob

hey bob4x4



i have been unable to find a calender or any info for the socalrr.



jeff

 

[big barney]

Here you go.



http://www.southcoastphotographic.com/socalrattlinrams/phpBB/index.php

 

[Bob4x4]

We don't have a trip date set right now,but we normally make it out to Glamis every month or two.



Bob

 

[foolkiller]

Here you go.



http://www.southcoastphotographic.com/socalrattlinrams/phpBB/index.php

thanks a bunch

 

[foolkiller]

We don't have a trip date set right now,but we normally make it out to Glamis every month or two.



Bob

gotcha. just registered w/ the site and i'll keep my eyes open for a trip.



take care, jeff