Front travel

[GrimGreg]

Does anyone know the total travel distance our WD21s have in the front end? Actually the amount of travel at the bumpstops would probably be the actual measurement I need....?

[OldSlowReliable]

I heard 7.5" @ the wheel

[Precise1]

Does anyone know the total travel distance our WD21s have in the front end? Actually the amount of travel at the bumpstops would probably be the actual measurement I need....?

Got a jack and a tape measure??

 

Seriously though, I thought I had seen that info recently, I just have no idea where...

 

B

[silverton]

As I'm about to lift my rig, I was wondering this myself to see if I would benefit from longer travel shocks.

 

In the shock thread, the factory shocks have a total extended length of 14.95"

Edited July 27, 2010 by silverton

[OldSlowReliable]

As I'm about to lift my rig, I was wondering this myself to see if I would benefit from longer travel shocks.

 

In the shock thread, the factory shocks have a total extended length of 14.95"

You won't benefit from them by just lifting, You would need to lift so much that you would need lower bump stops or bj spacers to where the lower shock mount would be traveling lower than usual.

[GrimGreg]

As I'm about to lift my rig, I was wondering this myself to see if I would benefit from longer travel shocks.

 

In the shock thread, the factory shocks have a total extended length of 14.95"

You won't change the travel with a front lift, so the shock length stays the same. All a front lift does is change the ride height, the range of travel stays the same.

[GrimGreg]

Got a jack and a tape measure??

 

Seriously though, I thought I had seen that info recently, I just have no idea where...

 

B

Yeah, but I don't feel like undoing a T-bar....

 

 

I thought I saw MY1PATH post something about ride height, is that what you are thinking of?

[tmoore4512]

...and it depends on how tight you crank that bar as to how much actual travel you will get.

 

I believe TerranoNZ's (I think it was him) video shows some GREAT front suspension flexy flex....not sure if he did any cranking, and what tire size but I wish mine was that flexible!

Edited July 28, 2010 by tmoore4512

[Precise1]

I thought I saw MY1PATH post something about ride height, is that what you are thinking of?

I believe you are correct, and that's not the information you want, is it...

 

B

[OldSlowReliable]

...and it depends on how tight you crank that bar as to how much actual travel you will get.

 

The travel doesn't actually change, as said above, it just shifts it so you have less down travel and more up travel, but still the same 7 inches or so

Edited July 28, 2010 by OldSlowReliable

[MY1PATH]

Stock wheel travel lies arround 7~8" the setup was centered around roughly equal travel in both directions.(~4 up ~4 down) your average t-bar and UCA lift changes that to about ~2 down and and ~6up (~1/2" bumpstop gap.

So your typical lift will have no effect on the front shocks.

Now with rig jacked and changing your shocks.UCA's are on the bumpstops and the shock sill has room to extend (can't remeber but I think its about and inch) so low pro bumpstops and BJ spacers still wouldn't exeed the range of that shock.

 

Now what if you get a longer shock because you are trying to allow more travel (that you are already allowed) and now the shock body is longer. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU BOTTOM OUT and the shock has no more room to collapse?

[GrimGreg]

My thinking is to remove the shock and frame side mount for it, drill through the stock UCA and insert spacer tubes, then install a shorty coilover from there to a new mount off the frame.

 

I know most offroad style coilovers are at least 2' long, but I'm thinking maybe something from the sports car world would work as long as there was the right amount of travel and enough spring for the weight?

[tmoore4512]

Yea I do recall someone posting something about eliminating the torsion bars all together and using coil overs...hell that is pretty much what the yota's of new are doing IIRC. Wonder how it would work...

[MY1PATH]

its been done before but all the ones I seen were 2wd and the struts went where the shafts would. mayhaps you can do better, have fun.

[OldSlowReliable]

You could build a little upside down U over where the CV shaft goes out of bent tubing, put tabs on it like a inverted shock hoop, and then run the rest of it much further up, maybe even trim into the wheel well/engine bay to get the distance needed

[tmoore4512]

The travel doesn't actually change, as said above, it just shifts it so you have less down travel and more up travel, but still the same 7 inches or so

Okay so I was thinking, and went out and had a look. When you crank your torsion bars, it lowers the front shock mounting point, so in essence it is in fact giving you more travel, but the spring itself limits such. The lower arm drops, as does the shock, so I could see where a longer shock could be used, because a factory shock on a highly cranked/re indexed truck, would be at max...

 

its been done before but all the ones I seen were 2wd and the struts went where the shafts would. mayhaps you can do better, have fun.

Such little faith brother... No I am not claiming to be a fabricator by any means, but I do think it could be done. I have been poking around and looking, as my truck sits on jack stands...The real question is finding the proper wieght ration coil over and getting it positioned to keep the alignment right. Or would that be the challenge? Strictly for an off road vic?

 

You could build a little upside down U over where the CV shaft goes out of bent tubing, put tabs on it like a inverted shock hoop, and then run the rest of it much further up, maybe even trim into the wheel well/engine bay to get the distance needed

This is a great idea. And it could certainly work.

[jj big shoe]

Wheel travel is 6.5". That's with Superlift UCAs, low profile bumpstops, the T-bars removed and the weight of the front end compressing the lower bumpstops.

 

 

There's a bunch of info on the Sway-Away website in the Tech Room link. It made my head hurt.

I also found a couple torsion bar rate and coil rate calculators but couldn't make much sense of them either.

 

http://www.proshocks.com/calcs/torsionrate.htm

http://www.alternativecarparts.com/utilities/torsionbars.html

Edited July 31, 2010 by jj big shoe

[Precise1]

I can't prove it but it seemed like the SL (Rough Country twin) UCA had a lower bump stop, making for less down travel. CV safety feature??

 

B

[OldSlowReliable]

^ agreed, I had to really try to get the right amount of lift outta mine....to get it even close to even up, it required them resting 1/4" off the stock bump stops, low pros and its cranked to the same on those for a pretty even setup. I have considered several times swapping sides so the bumpstop on the UCA isn't used, but then I would probably hurt my shock and such and it wouldn't help me much

Edited July 31, 2010 by OldSlowReliable

[tmoore4512]

Nice pics bro, think this should be pinned...

[MY1PATH]

so I could see where a longer shock could be used, because a factory shock on a highly cranked/re indexed truck, would be at max...

{/quote]

 

But as stated, even @ full drop the shock has more to give. Even PPL with BJ spacers (increases maximum drop) have not maxed out the shock @ full drop.

[GrimGreg]

its been done before but all the ones I seen were 2wd and the struts went where the shafts would. mayhaps you can do better, have fun.

I saw one "backyard" job by a kid in NC who used a TM lift and made a mount off the LCA for a normal coilover. He went to a SAS setup real quick though.

 

Not sure if I would ever attempt what I'm thinking, but I thought I would share the idea and someone might. Even leaving the stock shock, I wonder if we could put some sort of coil setup in above the LCA.