Best shock for the buck?

C

Cavalier

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Michigan
So I have decided on a 1.5 body lift and a 2 or 2.5" suspension lift for my TJ

I've looked at the shocks posts but got a little overwhelmed.

I think Fox shocks are the consensus best but at a price of $169 a shock, that's a little pricey.

So, I am wondering what the best affordable shock would be. Rough Country's are approximately $130 for 4, Rancho 5000 are around $55 a shock, then theres Bilsteins and BDS.

I appreciate your thoughts and assistance in advance.

What I'm looking to do with the Jeep is light off roading in MI aka trails and sand dunes. NOT driving to red rock or mountains for rock crawling
😁
 
Ranchos all the way. I've run both the 9000xl adjustables and the 5000x's. Both are good but the 5000's are a great value.
 
Cavalier said:
Not 169 a shock. Ranchos are $20 more a piece - if someone said there were some that are 50 more - I might swing it but 4 ranchos for less than 2 fox - Im too cheap to justify that LOL
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Here's the thing with shocks....


You can get on the forum and have a dozen people recommend brand X to you.

Unless you're trying to gain a competitive edge in racing ...(abd by your own admission thats not the case)...
Your goal is a shock comfortable to you.
Only you can really answer that. The more shocks you mess with the more experience you'll have with the different brands. Ride alongs etc are a great way to learn some of them.
Do some research.

If you'd really like some Fox shocks don't settle. It's not that much more expensive. If you didn't get some would you be constantly second guessing your decision?

Can you find an extra 10 dollars per day for a month to afford the other two fox shocks?
Or better yet can you find an extra .42 cents per hour to nab a pair of Fox?

Honestly I think unless you get the Fox you'll be day dreaming aboit them quite a bit
 
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Just to throw another brand into the mix, I have Old man emu shocks and springs and my Jeep rides very nice
 
I hear there is a shock out there that works wonders on a TJ, ever heard of a company named Rancho? They have a RS5000X that is supposed to be a good choice for the TJ. Just sayin, nuff said! ;)
 
I took off my Bilsteins and put on Rancho 5000s, and I'm very happy with them. I actually have a very good contact at Fox Racing (Bob Fox was a client about 15 years ago) but these cheap Rachos do everything I want them to do. Only thing I did was scuff them up with some Scotchbrite pads and then shoot a couple of coats of rattlecan black paint to cover up that godawful white, and then also threw out the red shock boots.
 
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Cavalier said:
So I have decided on a 1.5 body lift and a 2 or 2.5" suspension lift for my TJ

I've looked at the shocks posts but got a little overwhelmed.

I think Fox shocks are the consensus best but at a price of $169 a shock, that's a little pricey.

So, I am wondering what the best affordable shock would be. Rough Country's are approximately $130 for 4, Rancho 5000 are around $55 a shock, then theres Bilsteins and BDS.

I appreciate your thoughts and assistance in advance.

What I'm looking to do with the Jeep is light off roading in MI aka trails and sand dunes. NOT driving to red rock or mountains for rock crawling
😁
Click to expand...
If you really looked at the shocks post, whatever that is, you would have your answer. Everyone on here recommends Rancho 5000X.
 
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jesseshoots said:
I have their nitro charged shocks and they're garbage. The PO put them on and I've been counting down the days until I replace them with some tunable fox shocks
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The Nitro 8000 are old school tech shocks still lingering from back in the days when companies were selling cheap truck lifts with rear blocks and new front springs. Those shocks had a place back in the day on a heavy truck but not a Jeep.
This is going back to the days of Old Trailmaster stuff as well. Invader N7 shocks...invader ss shocks, old school Rancho 5000's, Doetsch tech, heckethorn,

Skyjacker (newer) black max shock is a really good competitor to the 5000x from Rancho.
 
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