[Ebag333]

I've been looking for longer shocks, and unfortunately my budget can't handle OME L's at the moment. So in digging around (especially on the Aussie forums) I found that a lot of folks were happy with the Pro Comp shocks.

I couldn't find much information on them via Mud, so compiled some information from Summit Racing into a spreadsheet. I figure as long as I have it, I might as well share, right?

Before I compiled my list I measured the max compression I would have (which was 16"), so my list doesn't contain much below 15" or anything above 19".

For comparison here is the OME information:

Model		Body	Min	Max	Range		Upper	Lower

N73			13.57	23.40	09.83		Stud	Stud
N74E			14.57	24.40	09.83		Stud	Eye
N73L			15.23	26.26	11.03		Stud	Stud
N74L			15.23	26.26	11.03		Stud	Eye

These are the recommended shocks by Pro Comp. The first would be a set for a stock height vehicle, the second would be a set for a J spring(ish) lifted vehicle with 315's (these might be slightly long and need the bump stops spaced down a bit, it's your job to check that! ). All of these should be a straight bolt in option.

Pro Comp's customer support has been excellent. I have called them once and got my answer within minutes, and the e-mail to them regarding their recommended shock lengths was replied to in less than an hour (and during the lunch hour at that!).

Model		Body	Min	Max	Range		Upper	Lower	Gas

924530		2.36	14.56	24.50	10.12		Stud	Stud	Yes
924514		2.36	14.52	24.70	10.18		Stud	Eye	Yes

927530		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Stud	Stud	Yes
927514		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Stud	Eye	Yes

And here is the ES9000 information I've compiled from Summit's site:

Model		Body	Min	Max	Range		Upper	Lower	Gas

924514		2.36	14.52	24.70	10.18		Stud	Eye	Yes
924530		2.36	14.56	24.50	10.12		Stud	Stud	Yes
925530		2.36	14.79	25.17	10.38		Stud	Stud	Yes
924509		2.36	14.84	24.84	10.00		Eye	Eye	Yes
925501		2.36	15.49	25.74	10.25		Eye	Eye	Yes
925506		2.36	15.49	25.74	10.25		Eye	Eye	Yes
925509		2.36	15.49	27.74	12.25		Eye	Eye	Yes
925543		2.36	15.22	25.23	10.01		Eye	Eye	Yes
925553		2.36	15.22	25.22	10.00		Stud	Eye	Yes
926500		2.36	15.94	27.07	11.13		Eye	Eye	Yes
926502		2.36	15.94	27.07	11.13		Eye	Eye	Yes
926504		2.36	17.32	29.83	12.51		Eye	Eye	Yes
926505		2.36	15.94	27.07	11.13		Eye	Eye	Yes
926505		2.36	15.94	27.07	11.13		Eye	Eye	Yes
926508		2.36	15.94	27.07	11.13		Eye	Eye	Yes
926508		2.36	15.94	27.07	11.13		Eye	Eye	Yes
926510		2.36	15.56	26.79	11.23		Stud	Eye	Yes
927500		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Eye	Eye	Yes
927501		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Eye	Eye	Yes
927503		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Eye	Eye	Yes
927504		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Eye	Eye	Yes
927510		2.00	15.80	27.29	11.49		Stud	Eye	Yes
927514		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Stud	Eye	Yes
927530		2.00	16.27	27.76	11.49		Stud	Stud	Yes
929500		2.36	17.32	29.83	12.51		Eye	Eye	Yes
929502		2.36	17.32	29.83	12.51		Eye	Eye	Yes
929503		2.36	17.32	29.83	12.51		Eye	Eye	Yes
929508		2.36	17.32	29.83	12.51		Eye	Eye	Yes
929510		2.36	17.09	29.77	12.68		Stud	Eye	Yes
929543		2.36	17.32	29.83	12.51		Eye	Eye	Yes
932002		2.36	18.82	32.83	14.01		Eye	Eye	Yes
932003		2.36	18.82	32.83	14.01		Eye	Eye	Yes
932007		2.36	18.82	32.83	14.01		Eye	Eye	Yes
932008		2.36	18.82	32.83	14.01		Eye	Eye	Yes

And here's some of the ES1000 and ES3000 shocks. As the ES9000's have plenty of choices for eye/eye, I only looked at their post/eye and post/post shocks in these models.

I also wouldn't recommend the ES1000 or ES3000. These will likely be too soft and won't hold up to the weight of an 80.

Here's the choices for the 1X and 3X:

Model		Body	Min	Max	Range		Upper	Lower	Gas

124515		2.00	14.38	24.35	09.97		Stud	Eye	No
125553		2.00	15.22	25.22	10.00		Stud	Eye	No
126510		2.00	15.58	26.72	11.14		Stud	Eye	No
126513		2.00	15.58	26.75	11.17		Stud	Eye	No
129510		2.00	16.87	29.32	12.45		Stud	Eye	No
									
321560		2.36	12.55	21.31	08.76		Stud	Stud	Yes
324515		2.36	14.52	24.70	10.18		Stud	Eye	No
325510		2.36	15.04	25.75	10.71		Stud	Eye	No
325530		2.36	14.79	25.17	10.38		Stud	Eye	No
326553		2.36	15.56	26.79	11.23		Stud	Eye	No
327553		2.00	15.80	27.29	11.49		Stud	Eye	No

I'm guessing that the procomp 321560 isn't actually gas charged (error on Summits site).



Thanks to Kaoscruizer who found some bushings that should allow the lower rear mounts to bolt right in.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/EXP-68070

Pro Comp Suspension Systems 68070 - Pro Comp Shock Bushings
Bushings, Shock, Polyurethane, Black, Hourglass Eye, 1.470 in. Long, .737 in. I.D., 1.070 in. O.D., Pair

I just ordered a set, and will report how well they work.

[Ebag333]

For the rear there's a basically bolt in option for the OME L length shocks. Pro Comp offers their model 926510, which is 15.56" min to 26.79" max (11.23" travel, slightly longer than the OME L's), and is a stud/eye combo. Even with the medium height lift I think I'd bolt these in, and get a lot more cycling out of the rear.

There's a shorter option, the 925553, which is 15.22" to 25" (10" travel). This would probably be a good choice for 33's as they'll tuck better. They're an inch shorter in overall length than the L's, but that's still longer than the standard.

The longest option is 929510, which is 17.09 to 29.77 (12.68" travel). I'm not sure how you can fit that without adjusting the bump stop down, but if you had the bump stops adjusted for the L's they'd probably work just fine. And at 2.68" more length than the L's, you'd get quite a bit more travel in your motion.


There are no good options for bolt in for the front. The closest you can get is 925553, and you will need an adapter for the bottom mount, which loses you about an inch. You may have to adjust the bump stop even with that short of one, and the range isn't that great (10", an inch shorter than the L's). It's certainly an option, though.



Just for reference, I ordered 929508 (12.5" travel) for the front an 932008 (14" travel) for the rear. I plan on making new upper shock tower mounts for both front and rear, and using an adapter in the front for the lower mount (hence the shorter shock).

The rear does have more room to go up, especially if you have a body lift. It looks like I could go up between 4" and 5" from the stock location (the body lift gives me tons more room), though I'm only planning on going up about 3", which should put the min on the 932008's at 15.82" from the stock location. Fully compressed I'm sitting at 16" between the bottom of the upper shock mount and the center of the lower shock mount, so that should give me a bit of room to play with.

I could probably fit the next longest shock if I went up even further, but I didn't like the idea of having it that close to the body, and wanted plenty of room for adjustments.


My total was $153.96 delivered to my door for all 4. Slee sells the OME's for $186 a pair ($368 for four) not including shipping.

[Ebag333]

Shocks arrived today.

[Wrench]

What happened to this thread? All my posts are gone. A lot of great info is gone!

[Ebag333]

Originally Posted by Wrench

What happened to this thread? All my posts are gone. A lot of great info is gone!

I know.

sigh...operator error, lost the database, had to restore a backup from Monday....

Looks like Woody trashed the DB.


Did all your questions get answered though?

Originally Posted by Ebag333

Shocks arrived today.

So finally got home and took a look at 'em. First thought is that they're beefy. They're at least as hefty as the OME's I got.

You can compress them by hand just like the OME's, though it takes a bit more force. Of course that doesn't tell you anything about the performance.

Tomorrow I'm hoping to get the upper shock mounts setup. Maybe. Perhaps. It's supposed to be 100+ so maybe not.....

[Wrench]

Yeah thanks. I'm just waiting on finding out how good these will ride on and off road.

[alkaline747trio]

I'm sure the initial 10k will be awesome. Hell mine felt like a caddy for those 10k, but after that they just start degrading fast....real fast. I have about 15k on mine and they are shot. Granted, I wheel often and HARD. I have larger tires than most. And I was DD'n it and still wheeling it like a beater. But 15k is 15k to me, and that is sad...even for $75 bucks.

[jrjarrett76]

AlkTrio...

I'm thinking the 200 savings upfront might do it for me right now. If I recall you have 2.5" coils. What model of ES9000s are you running?

Thanks!

[retrofive]

Keep in mind you will need modify or use adapter for the front like Ebag said earlier.

[jrjarrett76]

I'm stock right now. Planning on going to med OME springs looking for alternative to OME shocks. Might settle for them with the higher price but looking to match PC ES9000s and trying to find info on what Downey was using on their kit. (It appears they have folded???)

[alkaline747trio]

6" Slee coils, and was running ES3000s in 14" flavor. 1000s and 3000s would do fine in dual shock applications on rigs as heavy as an 80, maybe the 9000s will stand up a little better. But 'you get what you pay for' holds true IMO.

[Ebag333]

Originally Posted by alkaline747trio

I'm sure the initial 10k will be awesome. Hell mine felt like a caddy for those 10k, but after that they just start degrading fast....real fast. I have about 15k on mine and they are shot. Granted, I wheel often and HARD. I have larger tires than most. And I was DD'n it and still wheeling it like a beater. But 15k is 15k to me, and that is sad...even for $75 bucks.

I've heard nothing but good things about 4wheelparts and them warrantying the shocks if they go out. It might be worth contacting them and seeing if they'll replace your shocks.

Originally Posted by alkaline747trio

6" Slee coils, and was running ES3000s in 14" flavor. 1000s and 3000s would do fine in dual shock applications on rigs as heavy as an 80, maybe the 9000s will stand up a little better. But 'you get what you pay for' holds true IMO.

It's my hope that having smaller tires, less lift, and the heavier ES9000's will make the difference.

I haven't seen much detailed long term feedback, but as I mentioned before (before the thread got wiped) the Pro Comps are popular on the Aussie forums. And it seems everyone runs the ES9000's, not the ES1000's or ES3000's.

Just remember, they are a budget shock. But so are the OME's, really.

OME are one of the cheaper end shocks on the market, with the best marketing.

In fact, from what I've read OME's and Monroes shocks are both made by the same company (though with different specs, of course).

[Ebag333]

Reposted from another thread, but a lot of the information was originally here (in one form or another).

Originally Posted by Ebag333

Go with the L shocks over the standard OME's. The standard are too short, and you can (probably) run L's without adjusting your bump stops (despite what some claim).

You will need to measure your compression to determine if you can run L's without adjusting your bump stops. You'll need whatever tires you are going to run in order to properly measure it, as the tire is going to be more a limiting factor on your compression than anything else.

For what it's worth, with 315's I have exactly 16" of compression in the rear. There is no way I can get more than that without cutting my wheel wells. I currently have the standard OME shocks (not the L's), and am moving to a longer shock because mine are too short (they were too short before the spacers, now they're really too short).

The L's are 15.23" long fully compressed, so if you're running 315's you should have plenty of room with the stock bump stops, and will get 2" more down travel than the standard (big difference). If you're running 33" tires, then you may need to adjust the bump stops down a bit, but likely in the .5" to 1" range, not the 2" range. If you adjust your bump stops down, you will lose upward travel (compression), so I would measure first before you pick your shock.

The OME's feel too soft for me, so I'm switching to long travel Pro Comps. You can see some of the discussion here, but a lot of good info was lost when the database was restored back to a few days ago.

[Wrench]

Can I get a link to Aussie forums? Thank you.

[alkaline747trio]

They wont replace any shocks with a dented body....mine didn't take long to be beyond that.

[Tools R Us]

IIRC Pro Comp is a brand, most of their products private label from other manufactures. They may or may not use the same vendor for all markets, so the Aussie shocks could be different manufacture/spec/shock from what we get? In this case I don't know who the manufacture is, but it wouldn't be the first time where a product works well in one market, not in another and is found to be different parts with the same name/part number.

[alkaline747trio]

Tools, that is probably the best explanation.

[PKP80]

Ever since I upgraded to KING/FOX shocks there is NO looking back. the amount of control and valving you get with them especially given the weigh of an 80 is well worth adding Eyes to mount them. plus they are fully rebuildable.

[cruiserruf]

Ebag333 have you installed the pro comp shocks yet? do you have any pictures?

[Ebag333]

Originally Posted by cruiserruf

Ebag333 have you installed the pro comp shocks yet? do you have any pictures?

Not yet.

Was going to, then getting a new exhaust got in the way. Boo hoo me, I know.

Planning to on Sunday. (*fingers crossed*)

[Ebag333]

So I finally got my front procomp shocks installed. They are the ones with the 12.5" travel.

No pictures yet as it's dark outside, and probably none before I go to work. (Yeah, it's cruel of me to post something like this and tease you without pics.)


After a lot of different plans and ideas on how to do the front shocks (I'm not OCD, Nay! I'm not!), I ended up doing something really simple.

For the bottom mounts I simply welded on a stud to eye adapter. Similar to this one:


(Though not that one, as Summit is silly overpriced. I think I paid like $5 a pop for mine.)

For the top I found some box steel the same dimensions. Cut off about a 2" long section, drilled a hole through the side, cut a square hole on the top of the existing shock mount, then welded it in. Super easy, looks great, and gave me about two or even three inches more of clearance. Remember, the stock setup has a bushing that spaces down the shock body by about 1/2 of an inch or so, so you gain that plus however high the new mount is.

I could have done something more complex and gone even higher, but didn't for two main reasons. One, it's more complex (simple solutions appeal to me) and two, I don't think I'll need it. If the front has the same compression as the rear, I need 16" of clearance. The shock I got for the front (929543) is 17.32" fully compressed. I think I gained about 1.5" to 2" going up (would need to measure to be exact), and lost an inch from the spacer at the bottom. That puts me at 17.32" minus .5" to 1", which should be right around the 16" minimum.

If I can fully stuff the tire to the point where I am over compressing the shock, I'll install some axle bump stops and space them down as needed. I really shouldn't need to go far at all, maybe 1/2" to 1".


As far as the way it drives...well...lets just say "odd". The rear wanted to roll and the front didn't, which caused some interesting body roll. It's definitely much stiffer than the OME's, so you do loose some of the softer/cushy ride. I could "feel" the road much more, and I think that handling will be improved once I get the rear shocks done. Right now it's a bit squirrelly as the rear wants to roll and the front doesn't, which causes some odd feeling (not dangerous or not drivable by any means, just feels odd).

The ride isn't harsh by any means, but you do feel a lot more as far as bumps/etc goes. I can't wait to get the rears in, then go and see how well it flexes.

[Ebag333]

Originally Posted by Ebag333

(I'm not OCD, Nay! I'm not!)

Because I'm not OCD I can tell you that I did not walk out to my truck, and got a tape measure.

And because I didn't get a tape measure, I can't tell you that I the square tubing is exactly 2" long, and the center of the hole (for the bolt) is 1.5" up the length.

If I was OCD, not knowing exactly would really bug me. Good thing I'm not OCD, eh?

[mister]

Get'em done allready.............

[Ebag333]

And here's the pics.


Passenger side, from the fender:




Driver side, from the front (notice how much room there is to go up, though you'd have to do a lot more fab work to make it happen):




Passenger side, lower mount. The insert (that keeps the bushing open to 1/2") popped out, so I was forced to go with a 3/8th's inch bolt. I upgraded that to grade 8 and called it good.





The upper shock mounts are so silly easy to do. If you ground it down and shot it with paint, it'd look OEM. You could also cap the top off for a more finished look, though I prefer it open for two reasons, one so you can see whats going on in there, and two so that the box flexes in a little and really pinches the bushing when you tighten the bolt up.

You can see in the PS pics that I have some washers in as spacers, the DS pic was before I had put in the spacers.

My only complaint with the Pro Comps is that the lower bushing is supposed to be for a 1/2" bolt (the upper bushing is for a 5/8" bolt, or a 1/2" if you use a spacer/insert), but the insert is a little tweaked and you can't fit it through. It's not a big deal to drill it out slightly to fit the bolt, you just need to be careful not to push the insert out of the bushing (like I did ).

If I were to order another set, I'd order them with 5/8th" bushings top and bottom, without a center insert. You can then get an insert that will step them down to 1/2", I found out today that my local Ace has 'em so I picked some up to use instead of provided inserts.

Still liking the ride/feel.



/me edits

Couple more data points.

1) Compressing these shocks is way harder than the OME's. Maybe I'm just a skinny white boy...but...dang.

2) I gained 1/2" of lift in the front after installing the procomps.

[mister]

Nice, how are the rears comming? Keep us posted with pics. I my go this way.

[Ebag333]

Still on hold. My bro dumped a project on me that, oh-by-the-way-I-need-this-done-in-3-days, has been holding everything up.

Good news is I got a new welder out of the deal, and am getting a lot of practice at arc welding.

[Ebag333]

Originally Posted by Ebag333

Something I'd meant to do, but never actually did, was measure the OME shocks for min/max.

The numbers I got (and I rounded off to the nearest half inch, so they're relatively accurate) are:

Model		Body	Min	Max	Range		Upper	Lower

N73			13.50	23.50	10.00		Stud	Stud
N74E			14.50	24.50	10.00		Stud	Eye

Compared to the original specs:

Model		Body	Min	Max	Range		Upper	Lower

N73			13.93	24.17	10.24		Stud	Stud
N74E			14.57	24.40	09.83		Stud	Eye

I suspect that the way OME measured the front shocks is a little weird due to the difference between stud and eye. For one, the L's have the same specs front and rear, when the rears should be about 1" different because of the difference between eye and stud.

I updated the first post for the standard (non-L) OME shocks, based on some measurements I took.

Looks like the front shocks are even shorter than I originally posted. I got those numbers from another thread here on MUD, they were supposedly the numbers from OME. I suspect that either they measured them weird, or just got them wrong.

The newer numbers actually make a lot more sense.

Keep in mind that the stud side of the shocks use a bushing that will add about a 1/2" or so, so that changes things a bit.

Anyone wanna measure the L's for me?



I also have one of the rear shocks basically done. Need to do the upper mount for the other side, and then I can bolt 'em in. Looks ugly, but it gets the job done.

Is it sad that other than some extra body roll/swaying, there's not a huge difference between driving with 2 OME shocks in the rear, and just 1?



Here is my very ugly new upper shock tower. I got impatient doing it, so it doesn't look nearly as nice as I'd like. Oh well.

As you can see, I went up 4" total, 3.5" to the center of the bolt hole. It's actually at an angle that roughly matches the original shock mount angle, so it's a bit less than that on the other side (maybe 3.75" total or so).

This just barely clears the body, and that's with my 1" body lift. So if you want 14" travel shocks, you're going to have an awfully hard time clearing them without a body lift or spacing your bump stops way down.


The shock I got for the rear is 18.82" at minimum. Since I went up 3.5", that leaves me at 15.32", which gives me about 3/4ths of an inch extra room, which is just about perfect IMHO.

For length I will be sitting at about 29" (from the stock mounting location). In comparison the OME standards are 24.40" long, meaning I'm seeing a gain of about 4.5" (and no lost up travel).

I like.

[Ebag333]

Rear shocks are finally both in.

The lower rear shock mount requires a 3/4" (19 mm) hole in the bushing. Make sure that you have the right bushing before hand, and save yourself a lot of hassle.

The 1" body lift was invaluable, because it made it very easy to bolt in the upper shock tower mounts. I just lined up the bolt, and then took a socket extension and hammer, and popped it through. I could see the head of the bolt between the frame and the body through the rear wheel well. This was after I had already lined up the shock bushing, washers (used as spacers), and holes in the mount of course.


I saw another gain of approx 1/2" of lift between the Pro Comp's and OME's. Took it for a spin, and I gotta say I really like the ride. It's not nearly as soft as the OME's, so you get a lot less body roll. When going around corners the OME's would roll over, then roll back. This is more of a snap over, hold it, then snap back. Takes a bit of getting used to, but doesn't feel squirrely at all, more of a sporty feel to it.

Handling is definitely snappier compared to the OME's.

It kinda reminds me of the way the OME heavies + OME shocks felt, but not as rough of a ride.



Now I just need to start doing all the fun stuff associated with taller lifts. Extended brake lines, diff breathers......

This weekend I'll try and make it out to the RTI ramp. I'm very curious to see what a difference it makes.

[landtank]

isn't this mount 90* out?

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_slVHNYKrqfc/Sq...0/DSC_0253.jpg

[Ebag333]

Originally Posted by landtank

isn't this mount 90* out?

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_slVHNYKrqfc/Sq...0/DSC_0253.jpg

Does it really matter?

I've looked at quite a few trucks, and many of them are mounted in that direction. Some are mounted in the other direction (foward/back). I talked it over with the guy who helped me do my front shocks, and he made the good point that there is not really all that much movement forward/back/left/right, the majority of travel is up/down.

While I haven't done anything super crazy flexy, I've gone through some stuff that stuffed the front about as much as you can, nothing contacts or is causing any problems.

It would also be more difficult to bolt it in if the bolt was in the other direction.