Best shocks for 3 suspension lift?

[aidanm]

Hi all,
Ive been researching different shocks for a long time and just asking for peoples personal experiences. Will be having jks dual rate springs and was wondering what everybody thinks would work best with my setup? Brief summary: It’s definetly not the lightest of jeeps, has steel bumpers front and rear with a winch on the front, steel rock guards, spare tire and will have spare tire carrier, Dana 44s, and 35x12.50x15 Mickey Thompson Baja boss mts(or Baja legend mtz’s not sure which would be better), my question is which one would better? I’ve heard the Bilstein 5100s are good for high speed but not low speed bumps but I’m kind of thinking with the more weight it would be better and the overall response of the suspension would be better because it’s a little stiffer, the Rancho 5000x shocks are much softer which leads to not as great handling from the suspension and can lead to more body roll which would be fixed slightly by the dual rate springs, the Rancho 9000xl shocks are adjustable can I have heard that overtime the adjustability wears out and they are tougher to fit into a TJ and often hit on the lower spring perches. Overall I’ve just heard that the Bilsteins last longer and are better quality and are stiffer but are better handling while the Ranchos are cheaper and don’t last as long but have a softer ride, but this leads to not as great handling.

 

[TheBoogieman]

I'm staying out of this one.

 

[aidanm]

I'm staying out of this one.

Too many words?

 

[Rickyd]

Your jeep doesn't look heavy to me. No body armor.that said,you need to pick shocks based on your installed coil heights and what is actually available that fits. 3" lift isn't easy to find shocks with the most travel.

 

[macleanflood]

Many many many shock posts. They're all over the forums. My ten cents is Black Max shocks...which are soft...and an Oro Swayloc sway bar to get the on road handling back.

If you've got the time and money go Fox 2.0s with custom stacks and valving... can't recall but there is a shop that has the tube dialed.

If you've really got time and money then throw coilovers at it.

-Mac

 

[JustDandee]

I run 5000x on the JKS- it has matched well. Would recommend the pairing….however a side point-The dual rate springs are nice riding but if you plan to be rolling heavy all the time I might look at heavier linear rated spring. Your static weight, if it’s heavy enough, is going to consume the soft portion of the dual rate spring and leave you on the heavier portion only and with less lift/ suspension travel if that makes sense?

 

[aidanm]

I run 5000x on the JKS- it has matched well. Would recommend the pairing….however a side point-The dual rate springs are nice riding but if you plan to be rolling heavy all the time I might look at heavier linear rated spring. Your static weight, if it’s heavy enough, is going to consume the soft portion of the dual rate spring and leave you on the heavier portion only and with less lift/ suspension travel if that makes sense?

So then wouldn’t you want bilsteins which are stiffer to keep the springs on the softer side

 

[imahnu]

So then wouldn’t you want bilsteins which are stiffer to keep the springs on the softer side

I’d go with the Blackmaxs myself. I’ve used all of those other shocks and they don’t ride quite as nice. The bilsteins ride too stiff regardless of how heavy your Jeep is.

My Jeep with me and what I carry on a day to day basis comes in at 4,440 lbs which is only 10 lbs short of its max GVWR. That being said the blackmaxs work wonderfully.

The rancho 5000x are a close second IMO.

 

[aidanm]

I’d go with the Blackmaxs myself. I’ve used all of those other shocks and they don’t ride quite as nice. The bilsteins ride too stiff regardless of how heavy your Jeep is.

My Jeep with me and what I carry on a day to day basis comes in at 4,440 lbs which is only 10 lbs short of its max GVWR. That being said the blackmaxs work wonderfully.

The rancho 5000x are a close second IMO.

Are the Blackmaxs a good in between of the bilsteins and the ranchos? Handle a little better but are still pretty soft?

 

[aidanm]

I’d go with the Blackmaxs myself. I’ve used all of those other shocks and they don’t ride quite as nice. The bilsteins ride too stiff regardless of how heavy your Jeep is.

My Jeep with me and what I carry on a day to day basis comes in at 4,440 lbs which is only 10 lbs short of its max GVWR. That being said the blackmaxs work wonderfully.

The rancho 5000x are a close second IMO.

I’ve seen that the quality isn’t as great and there can be dead spots overtime in the shocks. Do they ride softer than the ranchos or a little stiffer?

 

[Jerry Bransford]

So then wouldn’t you want bilsteins which are stiffer to keep the springs on the softer side

It's the shocks that are responsible for ride quality, not springs when they have the appropriate spring rate for a TJ. I personally would definitely go with the RS5000x over the Bilstein 5100 where a TJ is concerned.

 

[aidanm]

It's the shocks that are responsible for ride quality, not springs when they have the appropriate spring rate for a TJ. I personally would definitely go with the RS5000x over the Bilstein 5100 where a TJ is concerned.

I’ve seen reviews that they aren’t as good quality and may need to be replaced often. I’ve also seen reviews that they are too soft, leading to body roll, especially around tight turns. Have you had this issue Jerry?

 

[JustDandee]

So then wouldn’t you want bilsteins which are stiffer to keep the springs on the softer side

I can only say the 5000x JKs spring is firmer than factory set. I did use the factory shocks with the JKS spring for short while and can say the 5000x is not softer than factory. Hope that helps.

I have ran a Bilstein 5100 with an old man emu spring on a Tacoma- was little soft for me but not apples to Apples.

I drive a quite a few miles on BLM/ forest services roads- building something that was going to work best on washboard roads was what I was after. Happy with the outcome.

 

[Jerry Bransford]

I’ve seen reviews that they aren’t as good quality and may need to be replaced often. I’ve also seen reviews that they are too soft, leading to body roll, especially around tight turns. Have you had this issue Jerry?

I really liked my previous RS5000X shocks and they did fine on my tight twisty mountain roads. I wish I was still running them. Even with my Antirock set to its least stiff setting.

 

[JMT]

Hi all,
Ive been researching different shocks for a long time and just asking for peoples personal experiences. Will be having jks dual rate springs and was wondering what everybody thinks would work best with my setup? Brief summary: It’s definetly not the lightest of jeeps, has steel bumpers front and rear with a winch on the front, steel rock guards, spare tire and will have spare tire carrier, Dana 44s, and 35x12.50x15 Mickey Thompson Baja boss mts(or Baja legend mtz’s not sure which would be better), my question is which one would better? I’ve heard the Bilstein 5100s are good for high speed but not low speed bumps but I’m kind of thinking with the more weight it would be better and the overall response of the suspension would be better because it’s a little stiffer, the Rancho 5000x shocks are much softer which leads to not as great handling from the suspension and can lead to more body roll which would be fixed slightly by the dual rate springs, the Rancho 9000xl shocks are adjustable can I have heard that overtime the adjustability wears out and they are tougher to fit into a TJ and often hit on the lower spring perches. Overall I’ve just heard that the Bilsteins last longer and are better quality and are stiffer but are better handling while the Ranchos are cheaper and don’t last as long but have a softer ride, but this leads to not as great handling.

It doesn't matter. Whatever great qualities you see in a budget shock will disappear after the first week.

It's like comparing all the $10 fishing rods at Wal-Mart.

 

[imahnu]

I’ve seen that the quality isn’t as great and there can be dead spots overtime in the shocks. Do they ride softer than the ranchos or a little stiffer?

Quality is definitely lower than bilsteins but I believe price is half that. I haven’t developed any dead spots in them. I would say they are softer than the ranchos

Body roll can also be fixed a ORO swayloc.

I personally would much rather have the ranchos or blackmaxs with more body roll than the bilsteins with less body roll.

 

[aidanm]

I run 5000x on the JKS- it has matched well. Would recommend the pairing….however a side point-The dual rate springs are nice riding but if you plan to be rolling heavy all the time I might look at heavier linear rated spring. Your static weight, if it’s heavy enough, is going to consume the soft portion of the dual rate spring and leave you on the heavier portion only and with less lift/ suspension travel if that makes sense?

Did you do the 2-3” shocks or the 3.5” shocks? I feel like the 2-3” might limit the travel a bit.

 

[aidanm]

I wish somebody made a shock that handles similar to the 5000x but had better quality(don’t we all lol)

 

[aidanm]

Has anybody had any experience with the jks jspec shocks?

 

[jjvw]

I wish somebody made a shock that handles similar to the 5000x but had better quality(don’t we all lol)

I wish there was a bolt on shock that handled better than the 5000x and had better quality.