Shock measurements please

[swamp rat]

If you had a K10 or a K20 with a 4" lift kit. what would you accept as acceptable compression travel from your shocks both front and rear? This would be with the truck on its wheels.

Can some of you please take a measurement if how much shaft length is sticking out of the body of your shock and let me know what you have?

[4eye4valve]

Am I correct to assume you are still having problems with the fox shocks?
If I were close to my truck I would measure the ranchos on it. Im pretty sure it has a 4" lift on it. Ive been interested to hear how well you liked the Fox shocks after driving on them.

[swamp rat]

Yea i'm still having trouble with them, the best BDS can do is 4.25" compression travel in the front and 4.6" compression travel in the rear, i just find this unacceptable and told then so. Part of the problem is the Fox shock box has a label on it with the part number, extended length and compressed length, the numbers are not accurate, the other part of the problem is that these shocks come from BDS Suspension and have BDS specific valving in them.

The way the BDS site works is the shocks are included with the price of the springs, then the Fox shocks are an additional upgrade. Yesterday I called my local shop that i ordered thru and told them im done with this and want my money back not only for this Fox shock upgrade of $269, but they also will have to ether put me into another set of shocks or also refund me more money from my original BDS lift kit purchase which includes the BDS white body steel shocks, or i will give them the opportunity to put me into a different set of shocks.

[swamp rat]

I would like to add also that this has been dragging on for over 2 months now, I have caught the BDS engineer in an outright lie to me, plus he as admitted that he was so wrapped up in Sima he didn't have time, to me this means the little guy with the old truck does not matter. He also stated that they give the same shocks for my year truck irregardless of whether the lift kit is 4", 6" or 8" and somehow nobody in the last 15 years has never complained about this. Then he suggested to me i have some strange one off frame and i should raise my shock mounts.. This crap has gone on long enough.

[Billhilly]

Hey Swamp Rat,
Been keeping half an eye on your build and threads on here. Haven't got time tonight to look back in your build thread, but you had already tried Bilsteins? I remember something. Anyway, it's sounds mighty frustrating (massive understatement I realise) where you are with it right now. Don't you love 'you're the only one who has complained' deal! I've had that before.
Here's a couple of links for tonight to Bilsteins. If you take the number from the Allshocks list, you can search it on the Truckspring site and it will give you extended and collapsed lengths. They (Allshocks) don't list a 4" rear for some reason. Their two front options give 8" and 10" of travel. A slight improvement on 4.25! Sorry if I've missed something obvious.

http://www.allshocks.com/v-1-bilstei...ad-shocks.aspx
http://www.allshocks.com/v-2-5125.aspx
http://www.allshocks.com/TRUCK/CHEVROLET/1972/K10%20K20

http://www.truckspring.com/products/...24-187077.aspx
http://www.truckspring.com/products/...33-185552.aspx
http://www.truckspring.com/products/...33-185569.aspx

[swamp rat]

I appreciate the Bilstein links!

I'll use these 2 examples to show what i'm dealing with..The Fox shocks came up with similar compression travel numbers using the lengths listed on the box's (5.5 to 5.6) until you lay them on a bench and physically measure them, the dimensions on the box don't match what you get on the Fox shock. Fox shocks ended up at 4.25 and 4.6. I could deal with 5.5" but 4.25 and 4.6 has me thinking i'm gonna be bottoming out every time i hit a pot hole.

This is why i want to know what you guys are ending up with, would you run these at 5.84"?


My truck FRONT measurement eye to eye:
Fully extended= 21.250
Weight on wheels= 19.50

Per this link:
http://www.truckspring.com/products/...24-187077.aspx

Shock Extended length= 21.62
Shock Collapsed length= 13.66

Formula: Weight on wheels-Shock collapsed length= Remaining compression travel.

19.50-13.66=5.84


My truck REAR measurement eye to eye:
Fully extended=23.875
Weight on wheels= 21.75

Per this link:
http://www.truckspring.com/products/...33-185552.aspx

Shock Extended length= 25.93
Shock Collapsed length= 15.91

Formula: Weight on wheels-Shock collapsed length= Remaining compression travel.

21.75-15.91=5.84

[Billhilly]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

I appreciate the Bilstein links!


This is why i want to know what you guys are ending up with, would you run these at 5.84"?

21.75-15.91=5.84

Again, with the information I have, then yes, I would run them.
There are a couple of other things going on here i believe. With 'weight on wheels' (static load) what is the measurement to your stock bump stops? I seem to remember that some of the lift kits state that you have to lengthen the bump stops. I wonder if most lift kits (4" 6") etc won't actually give you that total amount of extra travel, the shocks will be the limiting factor. With older trucks, even more so. There just isn't enough body length to acommodate the longer travel. For example, the front shocks you list only have a total of 7.59" of travel. (It's a long story) but I ended up with F4 BE5 6245 H5's on my truck (with modified top shock mounts) and they have 10.06" of travel. And I only have 2 1/2" of lift. These old trucks, with old style shock absorbers will always have issues I believe. Oh, one more thing. From fully extended (full droop) to weight on wheels, you are only showing 2" of movement. Haven't checked what mine was but that seems a little number?
Pic's of what I did here http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=217490&page=2 post #44

[swamp rat]

Originally Posted by Billhilly

Again, with the information I have, then yes, I would run them.
There are a couple of other things going on here i believe. With 'weight on wheels' (static load) what is the measurement to your stock bump stops? I seem to remember that some of the lift kits state that you have to lengthen the bump stops. I wonder if most lift kits (4" 6") etc won't actually give you that total amount of extra travel, the shocks will be the limiting factor. With older trucks, even more so. There just isn't enough body length to acommodate the longer travel. For example, the front shocks you list only have a total of 7.59" of travel. (It's a long story) but I ended up with F4 BE5 6245 H5's on my truck (with modified top shock mounts) and they have 10.06" of travel. And I only have 2 1/2" of lift. These old trucks, with old style shock absorbers will always have issues I believe. Oh, one more thing. From fully extended (full droop) to weight on wheels, you are only showing 2" of movement. Haven't checked what mine was but that seems a little number?
Pic's of what I did here http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=217490&page=2 post #44

Thanks for the reply, Keep in mind this is using 2 of the links you gave me for Bilstenes. Doing the math they are working out better than the Fox shocks.

The fox shocks actually end up at 4 1/4 front and 4 1/2 in the back.

I do understand that the suspension will not flex to the old bump stops so i didn't bother measuring that, i don't expect them too.

I guess maybe i don't know what is acceptable travel for these trucks but that why i'm asking and trying to find answers? I just don't want to bottom out on any pot holes.

So you feel the 5.84 is ok, would you also feel that the 4.1/4 front and 4 1/2 rear are ok also?

EDIT: Oh, yes i was a bit surprised at my static drop too, i thought it would be more, i do believe that after time the springs may also settle a little too.

[Billhilly]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

I do understand that the suspension will not flex to the old bump stops so i didn't bother measuring that, i don't expect them too.

I guess maybe i don't know what is acceptable travel for these trucks but that why i'm asking and trying to find answers? I just don't want to bottom out on any pot holes.

So you feel the 5.84 is ok, would you also feel that the 4.1/4 front and 4 1/2 rear are ok also?

K, but i would say that a shock will be damaged if allowed to bottom out, so the bump stops would need to be dropped to stop axle travel completely before shock stroke is fully compressed.

I've got around 5" of travel (up front) with the truck sitting on level ground. So yes, my personal opinion would be that is ok. (mine is actually blocked back to about 4" because of RHD steering box, sway bar etc).

I wonder what they had stock? Not alot I would imagine.

I ended up with the shocks I have because they were valved for F350's so would be capable of handling anything I load on!
I wonder what advice 'Truckspring' would give you. I hear alot of good things about the Bilsteins. Somewhere there was a website which made it alot easier to see what Bilstein had available.