Buying shocks for my current 32 roadster project. Do Ride Tech shocks live up to all the reviews and hype they get? $305 each is a steep price to pay. For many years I used P&J's shocks on my customer ch***is then did So-Cal gas shocks for several years because I had to stay compe***ive. Never got much feedback from customers about the shocks unless one broke or leaked. I always used Aldan's on the rear if the suspension was coil over. I have Ride Techs on the front and Aldan's on the rear of my new deuce tudor highboy but only have about 300 miles on it. $1220 bucks is a heavy hit. I know a lot of ch***is guys won't invest that kind of money but if they are a good as said I will do it. Any experienced Ride Tech feedback?
Try the Bilsteins for the front, only about $120 each, waaaaay better than P&J and So-Cal, been using for years and no complaints @ all
I too am very happy with Bilsteins. Ran them on customers cars as well as my own for years. I even have them on my late model Chevy truck. Very good quality, great ride.
On my old 32, I started with P&J hydraulics. That was not good. I bought a set of Bilsteins which was a major improvement. I wanted to change ride height and bought shorter gas filled shocks from Speedway and couldn't tell any difference from the Bilsteins. I have built 2 off topic pro-touring trucks with Ridetechs coil overs. No complaints. Like you, I didn't like the price of them. I'm building another truck and purchased Aldans to save money. They are 2nd cl*** compared to Ridetechs in my feeble opinion. I haven't finished the truck so I don't know how they will compare performance wise. But, at my age, I would have to drive the 2 back to back for an accurate comparison. No memory. Ridetechs are the most common used shock in the performance world. As the road conditions worsen and our tolerance for poor anything increases with age, I would factor that in to the decision.
Another Bilstein here! In the last few days I've done a couple of test drives in my almost completed 3w coupe, and it rides beautifully! Got a few minor niggles to fix, but can't fault the ride. Chris
I've been amazed for many years,at how little so called mec.'s know about shocks. Wasted big $$$$$ shocks and screw them up with ****py mounts,then say it's the bad shocks In the 1950's we just got street car shocks of what ever size we could{ shorter was better from a hotrod stand point,as the mounts were going to be custom made anyway. Now lets talk about those custom mounts;; "Shocks work best ; if the bottom of the shock is out away from center of car an as close to tire as you can get it, then with the top of shock leaning in, of about 20* more or less.< on a vary lite rod{ 2000lbs say,even a max 45* can work. Some lean helps control sway. And also mounted ,when you hit a big bump> it dose not bottom out" Extra note/same goes for armshocks,but >> Friction shocks are dame near **** and if not kept tight all the time,don't work at all. Don't copycat those. The vast majority of shock fail****=The dum**** that mounted them wrong*,just look around at how many times you see shocks mounted a foot+ or more away from tire< the thing it should be controlling =WTH were they thinking ;they were not,an just did the easy thing for them=failed engineering cl*** FFFFFF.
Bilstein contacted my dad when they wanted to get into the Street rod Industry, he took a couple of cars that we had built for them to use as Guinea pigs, and made shocks in the typical sizes used. They even had a shock dyno down there, and they put other manufacturers shocks on, and they ended up destroying them selves. Along comes Ride Tech, they used to buy direct from Bilstein, when they couldn't buy deep enough, they took the Bilstein and reversed engineered the shock. Even the instruction sheet that comes with the Ride Tech shocks is how Bilstein told you how to figure for spring rate. with all that said, it is a good product, they make a BIG difference over anything else on the market. Sadly, bean counters came in and they ended up discontinuing the Bilstein coil overs, so now if you want a good quality shock for your Hot Rod, Ride Tech has them. Aldan's? They leaked in the box when we had them on the shelf, they'd repair them, but you ate the labor cost to R&R them. If it was me, I'd replace the Aldan's on the rear of my car, and step up to the Ride Tech shocks on my new car. Your a car builder, if it works on your personal car, that' the best way to show your customers and see for them selves.
My Cornhusker ch***is has buggy springs on both ends. The P&J shocks that came on it lasted 20k miles. Not bad. I installed Bilstein on both ends. 40k+ miles and still riding very nicely. Can't recommend Bilsteins enough!
Are Bilsteins the ones that you can give 'em a couple of clicks to firm 'em back up as they gradually get softer (worn)?
Steep buy in but I’ve heard a lot of good about the ride tech shocks. Havnt seen anyone regret them so far
I have RideTechs on both ends of my roadster. Coil overs in the back and after some experimenting and the RIGHT springs the back rides very well. The front on the other hand could use some improvement, although I think the problem lies in the spring. I have a SoCal ****on leaf spring with the top leaf removed, not a bad ride but I think it could be better., a little more compliant. The front RideTech rod shocks have very little compression dampening and VERY stiff rebound. I called RideTech and talked to a tech person and he said they did that because most street rods are over sprung in the front. The RideTech front rod shocks are non-adjustable. He said I could purchase adjustable fronts the same lengths as their rod shocks but like you mentioned the price is quite high. For now I'm living with it as it's not that bad. Maybe I expect too much out of a straight axle? I did try Bilsteins and they were pretty good, but I can't leave well enough alone.
I bought some Bilsteins on my 53 F100 with volare front suspension, they were supposed to be valved specifically for that suspension. They were no better than the KYB Gas adjust shocks that I removed. I used Ride Tech shocks on the rear of my 40 coupe and they were great, then they began to make a clicking sound, I sent them to Ride Tech, they returned them repaired, no charge. I like Ride Tech.
My Bilsteins are not user adjustable. They were custom built for the street rod application. I believe they are rebuild able by an authorized service center
So far, none of you have shown the actual model or part number of the Bilsteins you are talking about.
I'm in the same camp of interested to learn what Bilsteins you all are using. Edit: I think I found them: Short: https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Bils...-Front-Shock-10-11-Inch-Ride-Height,6790.html Tall: https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Bils...Front-Shock-12-13-Inch-Ride-Height,37048.html
I got my front Bilsteins from Posies. I suspect the Speedway items are the same, or very similar. If I was doing it again, I would try the Bilsteins from Speedway, linked in post above. My rear Bilsteins are for the rear of the Gen 2 Corvette, with IRS. They were much less expensive than what I paid for the fronts.
Does Bilstein offer a fully covered version that is painted and not chromed? I'm using Monroe's on my AV8 and have been very happy with them, but always looking for improvements.
Another vote for Bilstein shocks here. I started out with So-Cal shocks on my roadster and within the first few months, three of them started leaking - junk. I switched to Bilsteins and they made a huge difference. Some info: Bilstein Street Rods Shocks – ShockWarehouse POSIES Rods and Customs – Super Slide Springs – Street Rod Parts – Hot Rod Parts – Truck Parts – Ford and Chevy Suspensions and Ch***is Parts » BILSTEIN SHOCKS
I'm an excessively pragmatic ****er. I also tend to be a m***ive skeptic about high ad budget parts. Nobody advertised more about filters than Fram, as an example, and I bought 2 for my racer. I cut one open after the break-in/oil dump/exam process. I felt like a chump. What a sack of ****. You all know the rest but we're talking about shocks. I have less than $150 in all 4 heavy duty gas shocks under my 39. The **** was looking up mount style and open/closed lengths to get what I want. They're NAPA. How long could NAPA sell shocks for anything if they **** up in a few K miles? Not very. Granted I will not have the savoir faire of saying I have any variant of hot rod industry promo parts when it comes to shocks. That pragmatism? It really is just an old car that I have zero intention of carving freeway ramps at 60 or entering any pro solo rallies. I wanted a stable normal ride that will last for my tenure with it. If I need some extra attention on shocks I'll paint em up like barber poles. Once more, pragmatism. Or get Ride Tech to sponsor you maybe...?
ALL OF THIS IS SO TRUE. Shocks are no different than most other parts put on hot rods. People will NOT take time to learn how they work and what is available. What is sold and advertised for the particular application is not always the cheapest or best. Many times parts that are for race cars are way over rated for street applications. Shocks are a**** these. Most pro sprint car and midget race teams will keep close track of various parts like shocks as to how much and what type of use they get such as pavement or dirt. after a certain number of hours, they are retired and usually sold on ebay or other cl***ified forums.These usually do not have anywhere near 20% of their life span used up. Guess what they are now good for? Yup, longer street life than a new street shock. The really nice thing is, they are usually under $50. The big thing about these is, you need to learn how the compression and rebound is rated on the particular brand you are dealing with. This is where most people won't take time. Almost NO ONE ever checks on what street shocks are rated at when they buy them AND they do not have a clue as to what they need for a particular car. This can all be calculated but the standard method is to buy something that fits mechanically and fits the budget then try it and see if it works. That method just happens to work fairly well with used race shocks once you learn the simple rating system they use. As far as mounting shocks goes, when you are building a car it is far easier to build quick change shock mounts than conventional street type. A race car shock can be changed in less than 30 seconds. Not much of a street requirement but the "COOL LOOK" factor sure is worth it.
Yes close to the wheel. Yes a little angle for side forces and avaliable compression/travel. The angle vs straight debate rages on sometimes. I always (pragmatic again) felt straight up for race, angle for street. Transverse (buggy) springs don't go straight up attached to a wishbone solid axle be it front or rear. There's a bit of arc there, there has to be or it would break. The big socket end on the TQ tube and the ball on the front, they roll, like their axles. So doesn't logic tell us that ****in with the angle a bit helps? "BUT EFFICIENCY!" Exactly. You lose a smattering of travel but you got room, you have a bit more roll support (axles have a bit of arc travel), and coupled with other normal mods should produce predictable performance and confidence. One last parameter for coil over users and spring rates. Behind the axle will offer all the needed support with LESS SPRING NEEDED THAN YOU MAY CALCULATE. My coil overs under the racer (3545#) behind the rear axle on a ladder bar car, 110 in/lbs. I had so much fun with the "...no ****in way!" action it generated. The leverage available does extra work, less spring means more comfort for street and unimpeded action for racing. Most ran 130 and up and often battled inconsistent 60' times. And no, it didn't "squat" as most think they want, it lifted the car like it was designed to do. I've forgotten the technical jargon but you do get away with less spring and no losses when mounting behind the rear axle. I think I was like 3 or 4 inches back, shock center to axle center. Maybe it helps, maybe I'm rambling...
I run Bilsteins on the drag coupe and my daily driver pick up. No problems. But I am not objective to trying something else on the front of the coupe just to see what the results are.
One of the things not mentioned is whether we are discussing adjustable or non-adjustable. The other part is gas filled or not. There is quite a difference there.
I run Chrome Bilstein's on my roadster and my 41 PU. I don't think they make their hot rod shocks in an adjustable, but I been known to be wrong (last election). If I had an objection to the gas shock they sell it is in my lightweight roadster the ride is a bit harsh with me only in the car. Add a p***enger or a full tank of gas and the ride is impressive! I wish they made it with a chrome body cover over the top, but they stopped that long ago the tech told me. Maybe one of you guys can build some top bells, chrome them and sell them to us?
Now for the $64000 dollar question. Do they come hooded so they look more traditional and not street roddy?
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