[Spokerider]

Is it *ok* for Bilstein 5125's to limit rear suspension droop in a Samurai? Or, will damage to the shocks result?
Not wanting to have the springs fan out and damage them.

Not talking hard rock crawling here, but weekend warrior use / easy to moderate trails and overgrown roads.

OME springs and 5125's.

[shep]

I would fit longer shocks, so you don’t limit up travel you will need to mod the shock mounts.
Really easy to sort on the rear, bit trickier on the front but not super hard

[Spokerider]

Not sure what you mean by saying fitting longer shocks so up travel is not limited?

By my thinking......suspension compression *could* be limited with a shock choice that does not compress short enough.
I already know what the maximum compressed length of the shock can be, and still have full up travel. My question is about full extension of the shock.

Will damage result to the shock, if the suspension is at full droop, and the shock IS the limiting factor of excess droop? In other words......the shock is an alternative to a limiting strap.

[shep]

Spokerider wrote:

Not sure what you mean by saying fitting longer shocks so up travel is not limited?

By my thinking......suspension compression *could* be limited with a shock choice that does not compress short enough.
I already know what the maximum compressed length of the shock can be, and still have full up travel. My question is about full extension of the shock.

Will damage result to the shock, if the suspension is at full droop, and the shock IS the limiting factor of excess droop? In other words......the shock is an alternative to a limiting strap.

Yeah that is pretty much the opposite of what I said. Leaf springs need to be what limit travel not the shock

[WoolMinotaur]

Generally no significant damage will occur from the shock limiting your droop the load on the shock even when holding up the weight of the axle tyres etc is still quite low especially when you consider that most of your driving will probably done in situations where you don't reach full droop anyway. Consider that most 4x4s are setup this way from the factory and it doesn't seem to be an issue.

[Gwagensteve]

I disagree Shep, and so do manufacturers - shock travel is engineered to closely match spring travel in factory applications. I've built enough cars with shocks longer than spring travel to understand why it's not desirable.

However, what I think spokerider is trying to prevent is associated with having long shocks and no (or open) spring clamps. This causes the leaves to fan apart in the interest of the last tiny bit of ramp credibility but leaves the main leaves vulnerable to damage.

If spring clamps are to be retained and tight, I don't think having shocks longer than spring travel is much of an issue. If the configuration of the leaves eliminates clamps or you're chasing the maximum travel, having the shocks top out to limit damage is a problem in a crawling/trail car. It's not a trophy truck.

[Gwagensteve]

I disagree Shep, and so do manufacturers - shock travel is engineered to closely match spring travel in factory applications. I've built enough cars with shocks longer than spring travel to understand why it's not desirable.

However, what I think spokerider is trying to prevent is associated with having long shocks and no (or open) spring clamps. This causes the leaves to fan apart in the interest of the last tiny bit of ramp credibility but leaves the main leaves vulnerable to damage.

If spring clamps are to be retained and tight, I don't think having shocks longer than spring travel is much of an issue. If the configuration of the leaves eliminates clamps or you're chasing the maximum travel, having the shocks top out to limit damage is a problem in a crawling/trail car. It's not a trophy truck.

[Spokerider]

The OME springs have spring clamps, but they are not exactly holding the leafs "tight". They do allow the leafs to fan out somewhat on full droop.
Not wanting to damage the leafs......and correct, I won't be chasing full droop very often, it will be quite a rare event that I am full droop where I drive.

I'll get the bilstein shocks that limit the leaf fan out at full droop.

Here is what the clamps look like on the OME springs;

https://www.quadratec.com/sites/default ... /18036.jpg