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Just ordered new shocks

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MrPatriot

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Well, I finally took the plunge and ordered a full set of Fox 2.0 Performance series shocks. I ordered from Shock Surplus after countless hours wasted over the last year and a half reading forum posts, articles, and manufacturer sites as well as YouTube videos on the topic. I reached out to Shock Surplus to get their advice after watching several videos where they compared Fox and Bilstein shocks on the PW.

I was ready to pull the trigger on 2.5 w/reservoirs when they told me both the 2.5 and reservoirs would be a waste for my needs. I very much appreciate them being upfront and honest with their professional opinions. That saved me a ton of money for sure. I'm looking forward to getting them on my PW and seeing the difference over the crappy stock 4600's.
 
I found the folks over at Shock Surplus to be very helpful and informative when I was looking for shocks and not trying to 'upsell' you.
 
I have the Fox 2.0’s on my PW. Upgrade was not as noticeable as I imagined/people seemed to have hyped , but I think they do ride a bit softer/“raptor-y” on the highway and they seem good offroad as well. I didn’t get to do much back-to-back offroad testing so it’s hard to say. I’m mostly doing slower speed mountain trails, not high speed Baja running.

Personally, I don’t get the hype of Bilstein 5100s over stock 4600s. They are very similar shocks (internally), but the 5100s mostly designed for aftermarket lengths vs 4600 is OEM/OEM replacement. The 5100s are supposedly slightly stiffer even, which means they would ride less “Raptor-y” than stock.
 
el_barto said:
Personally, I don’t get the hype of Bilstein 5100s over stock 4600s. They are very similar shocks (internally), but the 5100s mostly designed for aftermarket lengths vs 4600 is OEM/OEM replacement. The 5100s are supposedly slightly stiffer even, which means they would ride less “Raptor-y” than stock.
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From what the folks at Shock Surplus told me, for a DD most wont' tell the difference between 4600/5100 but they are valved a bit firmer to accommodate more unsprung weight, do better at towing, and some 'off-roading' probably just trails as you mentioned.
 
el_barto said:
Upgrade was not as noticeable as I imagined/people seemed to have hyped
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What the... ??? You're killing me, Smalls. lol ... I hope that isn't true for my situation. These concrete roads around Houston are killing me. Constant bouncing. Really hoping this gets rid of some of it.
 
So, these kinds of shocks won't make a big difference when your hitting expansion joints. They have one valve and always respond the same whether you hit a big dip (low frequency), or an expansion joint (high frequency) impact. So its a compromise between having enough damping that the truck doesn't bounce itself out of your lane with low frequency dips, but yet enough compliance that the shock allows the springs to do their job with a high frequency hit. These kind of frequency selective damping multi valve dampers are common on cars, but I can't find anything like this for a truck.
 
Thanks for adding some much needed detail to the shock dilemma. So my issue isn't with the expansion joints. The roads on my side of Houston are straight trash. I, and my passengers, are being bounced around in the cabin non-stop on a lot of these roads because the crews that were supposed to smooth out the surface were apparently high on Crack those days and left waves instead. The constant vibration from the roads are killing me. Anything at this point would be an improvement. I'm hoping to install next weekend.
 
Have you checked out Accutune off road? They custom valve most of the shocks they sell based on the style of terrain you do. They also include 1 free re-valve in case you wanted to make a change.
 
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Never heard of Accutune. Wish I would've heard of them prior to my purchase though.
 
Accutune seem to be entirely unnecessary unless you're running off-road.... which it appears you are not.
 
MrPatriot said:
Thanks for adding some much needed detail to the shock dilemma. So my issue isn't with the expansion joints. The roads on my side of Houston are straight trash. I, and my passengers, are being bounced around in the cabin non-stop on a lot of these roads because the crews that were supposed to smooth out the surface were apparently high on Crack those days and left waves instead. The constant vibration from the roads are killing me. Anything at this point would be an improvement. I'm hoping to install next weekend.
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Any updates?
 
Sorry
UNifc6pF said:
Any updates?
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About the delayed response. Just wrapping up a major remodel in the house. Finally had a chance to swap out the shocks. I've only had them on the truck for 2 days now, but I'm not sold to be honest. Don't get me wrong, they removed some of the jarring feel going over the crappy concrete roads in my area. But, I don't think it did enough to justify the $700 spent on the shocks. It's still very early though. I need more miles to give it a pass/fail decision.
 
MrPatriot said:
Sorry

About the delayed response. Just wrapping up a major remodel in the house. Finally had a chance to swap out the shocks. I've only had them on the truck for 2 days now, but I'm not sold to be honest. Don't get me wrong, they removed some of the jarring feel going over the crappy concrete roads in my area. But, I don't think it did enough to justify the $700 spent on the shocks. It's still very early though. I need more miles to give it a pass/fail decision.
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Probably a dumb question but have you lowered the air pressure in your tires. My 2500 with Carli level kit and Fox 2.0 rides like a cadi with the tires psi lowered. 285/75/18 ridge grapplers
 
I have their 2.5” premium level kit and adjustable track bar. Fox 2.0 shocks. A little pricey but this truck is just my tow rig and hunting truck and will be with me for many years. Love how it looks and rides. Is it worth the cost, not sure, but I’m happy with it and would do it again.
 
MrPatriot said:
Sorry

About the delayed response. Just wrapping up a major remodel in the house. Finally had a chance to swap out the shocks. I've only had them on the truck for 2 days now, but I'm not sold to be honest. Don't get me wrong, they removed some of the jarring feel going over the crappy concrete roads in my area. But, I don't think it did enough to justify the $700 spent on the shocks. It's still very early though. I need more miles to give it a pass/fail decision.
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I replaced the shocks on my 3500 and it made no difference in ride quality, but did reduce some bounciness when going from road/bridge transitions. What really improved the ride for me was adding sulastic shackles. airing down to 65psi or less in the rear makes a difference too, but not as much as the shackles. They are one of the best upgrades I made to the ride of the truck. I live in Texas City and frequent houston area roads and 146 was the worst before the shackle upgrade. You felt pounded in the la port area.
 
Honestly had to Google sulastic shackles. Never heard of them before, but they look like an awesome solution for leaf springs. My truck has coils on all 4 corners. So that won't work for me. I had to drop my PSI from 65 to around 40 to get rid of some of the bounciness. And I know the area you're in as I used to worn at the space center and have friends that live in La Port and the surrounding areas. I'm in the Kingwood side of town and the roads suck.
 
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