My initial impressions of the Rancho RS5000X shocks

Chris

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Those of you who have been following my build, know that I've been forced to tick with load E tires, as I'm running 16" Moab wheels and I love my Duratracs. For whatever reason, they don't make a Duratrac in a load C in 285/75/r16.

Anyhow, I keep them at 26 psi, and they aren't really all that bad to be honest. However, they do ride a little firmer than a load C. Let me start this by saying that I've run Fox 2.0 shocks, Bilstein 5100s, and OME Nitrochargers on a TJ.

I was a bit skeptical to get Rancho RS5000X shocks mostly because of how cheap they were. I figured anything this cheap couldn't be that good. Boy was I wrong...

I've only had them on for a few days now, but the difference is night-and-day, seriously! They ride so soft and smooth over bumps, they absorb almost everything, and they make it so you barely even notice there's a load E tire on there!

I can say without a shadow of a doubt that these things ride better than any of the shocks I've had on my TJs previously. This leads me to believe that a gas charged monotube shock is simply not the right choice for a TJ. The Bilstein 5100, Fox 2.0, and most of the others are setup for a very heavy vehicle near as I can tell. The TJ may be heavy to us, but it's nowhere near as heavy as a full size truck or something, which would be much more suited to one of those gas charged monotube shocks.

Now I will admit that the way a vehicle rides is largely preference. Some people like firm, others like soft. If you like soft and plush, these Rancho RS5000X shocks beat the others by a long shot.

I would have to say my only gripe about them whatsoever, is that I wish Rancho made a version that was finished really nicely. One thing I really like about the Fox shocks is the aluminum body and the way they look. The Ranchos just have cheap white spray paint on them. Nothing to really complain about (especially for the price), I just wish maybe they offered a version that was a bit more appealing cosmetically. Still, I think you could just paint them black very easily and be good to go.

Anyhow, in my honest opinion, these are the best shocks out there for the TJ, period. They ride so damn well it's amazing!

I ended up buying mine here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079VF6JN8/?tag=wranglerorg-20

With the $50 rebate from Rancho, they ended up only costing me a hair over $150, and they took me maybe an hour and a half to install all of them.

My final thought is that if you're in the market for shocks for your TJ, these Ranchos are absolutely the way to go, no question about it. Not only do they ride better than the competition, but they're considerably cheaper as well. It's really a no brainer if you ask me! It's as if these shocks were designed specifically for the TJ.
 
NIce review on those RS5000x shocks, I feel the same way about mine.

I am going to be trying out a new set of RS9000xl shocks very soon, they're sitting in my garage but my bad right shoulder (undergoing weekly therapy by the VA) is just now finally maybe getting up to the job. SInce I tow my pop-up tent trailer a lot and often through the mountains on tight twisty roads I'm going to see how cranking up the stiffness a tad while I tow works, lowering it back down for other situations. Towing is actually fine now with the RS5000x shocks but we're all always striving for perfection right lol?
 
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NIce review on those RS5000x shocks, I feel the same way about mine.

I am going to be trying out a new set of Rancho's RS9000xl shocks very soon, they're sitting in my garage but my bad right shoulder (undergoing weekly therapy by the VA) is just now finally maybe getting up to the job. SInce I tow my pop-up tent trailer a lot and often through the mountains on tight twisty roads I'm going to see how cranking up the stiffness a tad while I tow works, lowering it back down for other situations. Towing is actually fine now with the RS5000x shocks but we're all always striving for perfection right lol?

I was tempted to go with the RS9000XLs, but I figured how often would I actually be under there changing the settings. I don't tow anything, so it's probably not as big of a deal. However, if I ever need to replace these, I'll go with the RS9000XLs just to give them a shot. It might actually be cool to be able to stiffen up the rear shocks for when I put both of our daughters in the rear seat.
 
...If you like soft and plush, these Rancho RS5000X shocks beat the others by a long shot...

I wouldn't exactly call them "soft and plush" because they are an off-road shock, well, maybe compared to the Bilstiens and some of the others they are, but I can say that after running them for a year now that they are great shocks both on and off road.

...Anyhow, in my honest opinion, these are the best shocks out there for the TJ, period. They ride so damn well it's amazing!...

X2
 
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NIce review on those RS5000x shocks, I feel the same way about mine.

I am going to be trying out a new set of RS9000xl shocks very soon, they're sitting in my garage but my bad right shoulder (undergoing weekly therapy by the VA) is just now finally maybe getting up to the job. SInce I tow my pop-up tent trailer a lot and often through the mountains on tight twisty roads I'm going to see how cranking up the stiffness a tad while I tow works, lowering it back down for other situations. Towing is actually fine now with the RS5000x shocks but we're all always striving for perfection right lol?

I ran the RS9000 XL's on my last TJ. When I pulled the ATV trailer I cranked the rears up to 7 or 8 I think and the improvement was noticeable.

Just remember when installing the 9000's in the rear to rotate the can 180* so the adjustment knob is pointing forward or you will knock it off on the rocks.
 
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Just remember when installing the 9000's in the rear to rotate the can 180* so the adjustment knob is pointing forward or you will knock it off on the rocks.
Thanks and exactly, I did that when I had the earlier 5-way RS9000 shocks on my previous TJ. I even had a couple spare knobs I carried with me.
 
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I wouldn't exactly call them "soft and plush" because they are an off-road shock, well, maybe compared to the Bilstiens and some of the others they are, but I can say that after running them for a year now that they are great shocks both on and off road.

Well, maybe that's not right right words to describe them, however, coming from the other shocks, they definitely are much softer. Not in a bad way by any means though. Those other shocks don't feel like they are meant for a TJ to begin with.
 
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...This leads me to believe that a gas charged monotube shock is simply not the right choice for a TJ...

I agree, monotube shocks are not the right shock for most TJ's, they are just too stiff and are a better choice for heavier vehicles. I run the Rancho RS7000MT's on my F-250 diesel Supercrew and I can say that they are perfect.
 
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The X is a nice shock. Some just cannot get past the Rancho name and low price and feel unless a shock has a powder blue boot or a certain animals tail on the sticker, they are junk.

I've run some kind of Rancho shock for years and have never had a problem, plus you can't beat their customer service or their "if you don't like them, return them" program (which I have used with ZERO hassles).

And if I wanted a fancy sticker on mine I would just glue one on :)
 
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7 months with mine and a couple wheeling trips. Wait until you take your jeep offroad @Chris. The one thing I liked about my OME Nitros is how well they performed after working them a bit. The Ranchos perform just as good. I live in a fish bowl, surrounded by mountains, and I can tell you, the Ranchos are no slouch on the twisties either. I think Rancho did their homework on this shock!
 
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Thanks guys! This is gonna happen! I’m riding on the Rough Country 2.0 Nitros and I would say the name is appropriate lol


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I wouldn't exactly call them "soft and plush" because they are an off-road shock, well, maybe compared to the Bilstiens and some of the others they are, but I can say that after running them for a year now that they are great shocks both on and off road.



X2

I just changed from OME nitro to Rancho 5000x last week. I’m way less impressed with them than Chris. I also have load range E tires and the difference in the ride is minimal. It does ride a bit better, but in no way is my ride with the Rancho shocks and load range E tires smooth or even acceptable on the highway. I have not done anything rough off road yet but I expect them to perform fine.
For the money I’m okay with it slight improvement in ride quality until I move to load range C tires.
My bottom line assessment is that the very hard/stiff side walls on a load range E tire even at 25 psi, cannot be masked by any shock on the market. I was hoping for more of an improvement but I’m okay with the Rancho 5000x shocks.


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Curious if the Fox 2.0s you had, had the factory valving or not. My 2.0s are from BDS so I believe they are revalved. I think they ride great. I haven't had any other shocks on the TJ to compare to though.

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