Compiled 80 series suspension component spec thread... shocks, coils & more. (2 Viewers)

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Last year early summer I changed out my Slee 6" to ~3" Dobinson coils. I chose the c97-144vt 3-3.5" in front and the c59-615v 4" flexi for the rear with plans to put spacers in the front to level it out once the springs settled to ride height. After some testing and measuring I realized I hadn't lost nearly any down travel in front or rear and I enjoyed how much better the truck drove on and off road. I like the very planted and understeery feel with the lowered height in front and decided I don't want to make it taller after all.

I measured my "actual lift height" according to the diagram posted in this thread from Toyota by measuring the coil spring bumper heights. By that scale it appears I have about ~2.75" lift in the front and ~3.7" in the rear according to the 1991-1992 years numbers. I would have guessed more like 3" front and 5" rear by the amount of stink it still has.

With all the spring options listed from multiple manufactures I don't see why there is such a big gap in free heights and not really many variances in options for ~2.5" rear coils. If I want a 1" lower spring than the 3" Flexi the free height of the coil drops by 3.6" in total.

Essentially I'm looking for a true 2.5-3" spring thats free height is as least as tall as my Slee 6". Like a 2" flexi, which would theoretically have a free height of 20.5" but there is nothing even remotely close from any company I can find.

Rear spring specs:
Slee 6" med/heavy- 20.25"/20.7" free height
Dob 4" Flexi- 22.6" free height (these only lowered my height by ~.5" from the Slee 6")
Dob 3" Flexi- 21.5" free height (these only lowered my height by ~.25-.5" from the 4" Flexi)
Dob 2" VT- 21.25" free height (have been told these will be around same height as a 3" Flexi on a light truck)
Dob c59-223v 1.75-2.5"- 17.7" free height (next closest in free height)

No intentions on adding a rear bumper swing out, roof rack, drawers, or fridge. Input appreciated.
Cruiser 1.jpg

The day I put the 3" front and 4" rear in it seemed pretty level.
Cruiser 6.jpg

Dropped down to 3" rear springs after the front settled down.
Cruiser 5.jpg

How it sits now. Kind of a bad angle, but it's pretty much sitting flat and not flexed or stuffed on any corner.
Cruiser 2.jpg

Cruiser 4.jpg
 
You haven't extend your coil search to OME coils .? they have few options on 2" - 3" range different spring rates.
Yeah I have. This is as close as I can find:

OME 3040- 20.1" free height (3" lift 250lbs/in) I think these could provide as much lift as my current 3" 175/275lb flexi
OME 2860- 19.1" free height (0.5'-2.0" lift 220lbs/in) I doubt I can run my tires on this low of a lift.

You can run '6" lift shocks' on most 3-4" lift coils. I'm have to keep running a 29" length, 12" travel shock because I can use all the up travel it has and would over compress a shorter one.

EDIT:
In my searches I overlooked 2 options listed on the first page that could work in the parameters I was searching.

3" ICON 53006 ~20" free height (220/280lbs)
2" TJM 770RR80C- 20.3" free height (145/250lbs) Going to try these
 
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Last year early summer I changed out my Slee 6" to ~3" Dobinson coils. I chose the c97-144vt 3-3.5" in front and the c59-615v 4" flexi for the rear with plans to put spacers in the front to level it out once the springs settled to ride height. After some testing and measuring I realized I hadn't lost nearly any down travel in front or rear and I enjoyed how much better the truck drove on and off road. I like the very planted and understeery feel with the lowered height in front and decided I don't want to make it taller after all.

I measured my "actual lift height" according to the diagram posted in this thread from Toyota by measuring the coil spring bumper heights. By that scale it appears I have about ~2.75" lift in the front and ~3.7" in the rear according to the 1991-1992 years numbers. I would have guessed more like 3" front and 5" rear by the amount of stink it still has.

With all the spring options listed from multiple manufactures I don't see why there is such a big gap in free heights and not really many variances in options for ~2.5" rear coils. If I want a 1" lower spring than the 3" Flexi the free height of the coil drops by 3.6" in total.

Essentially I'm looking for a true 2.5-3" spring thats free height is as least as tall as my Slee 6". Like a 2" flexi, which would theoretically have a free height of 20.5" but there is nothing even remotely close from any company I can find.

Rear spring specs:
Slee 6" med/heavy- 20.25"/20.7" free height
Dob 4" Flexi- 22.6" free height (these only lowered my height by ~.5" from the Slee 6")
Dob 3" Flexi- 21.5" free height (these only lowered my height by ~.25-.5" from the 4" Flexi)
Dob 2" VT- 21.25" free height (have been told these will be around same height as a 3" Flexi on a light truck)
Dob c59-223v 1.75-2.5"- 17.7" free height (next closest in free height)

No intentions on adding a rear bumper swing out, roof rack, drawers, or fridge. Input appreciated.
View attachment 2575751
The day I put the 3" front and 4" rear in it seemed pretty level.
View attachment 2575760
Dropped down to 3" rear springs after the front settled down.
View attachment 2575764
How it sits now. Kind of a bad angle, but it's pretty much sitting flat and not flexed or stuffed on any corner.
View attachment 2575765
View attachment 2575766
Sweet set up for your toy! My buddy got this 4BT80 project we'll work on after we finished installing the bumpers from 4Wheelonline onto the current Silverado project. We'll definitely consider your set up here.
 
I've settled on Dobinsons shocks, but I'm still having trouble with some of the published spring rates (e.g. 850/medium duty vs 851/light duty but both are advertised with identical spring rate) - what are the softest coils that give a 2" lift on a lightweight (Slee front bumper, winch w/ synthetic rope, WK sliders single battery) 80? Trying to avoid a situation where an advertised 2" spring gives me 4" lift and the truck won't fit in the garage any longer...
 
I've settled on Dobinsons shocks, but I'm still having trouble with some of the published spring rates (e.g. 850/medium duty vs 851/light duty but both are advertised with identical spring rate) - what are the softest coils that give a 2" lift on a lightweight (Slee front bumper, winch w/ synthetic rope, WK sliders single battery) 80? Trying to avoid a situation where an advertised 2" spring gives me 4" lift and the truck won't fit in the garage any longer...
Remove the word "duty", and replace it with "load". Springs are all based on lift height and load rating.

A 2" spring for no weight and a 2" spring for 110lbs or whatever could have the same spring rate, but the heavier-rated coils will be taller in free height to still support that weight at the listed lifted height. If you put a 2" spring made for 110lbs, and you don't have 110lbs, you'll have more lift because you don't have the weight on the vehicle.

If you pick a 2" spring made for more weight than what you've got, and also if your baseline is way low (this happens all the time with 80 owners still running stock 20+ year old worn out suspension), your lift height will come up more. If you want 2" over where your truck is sitting right now, and that's your limit, you'll have to figure out current springs and rates of what you've got and do the math on the other options to get the correct lifted height.
 
I've settled on Dobinsons shocks, but I'm still having trouble with some of the published spring rates (e.g. 850/medium duty vs 851/light duty but both are advertised with identical spring rate) - what are the softest coils that give a 2" lift on a lightweight (Slee front bumper, winch w/ synthetic rope, WK sliders single battery) 80? Trying to avoid a situation where an advertised 2" spring gives me 4" lift and the truck won't fit in the garage any longer...
2 post back...
The old school TJM 2" lift does well on lightly loaded 80s. Fronts are single rate.
Shoredreamer from memory had a set before he got heavy.

Jason Andrews just got a set 2" TJM 770RR80C- 20.3" free height (145/250lbs)​


With OME the 851, 850 & 850J are all 220# rate but have roughly 1 more turn plus .5mm thicker which make them approx 1" taller lift from each other.
 
gents. anyone know which page the 97 lexus LX 450 coils are listed on? i read through this whole thing at one point but not sure where these would be at specifically.
also. i would like to compare the OEM to the dobinson mediums i have on there now so i can get a baseline understanding of the values involved with comparing coils. so if these dobinson mediums are somewhere specific i’d be grateful if anyone has a post or page number.
i’m basically trying to write down the values and see if i retained anything i read here where i first thrashed through it. also i’m not quite sure if these mediums are what i need on my rig or not actually.
thanks

D17B89BE-6DDF-443D-8473-E8F143394886.jpeg


4F04D760-C0E3-4B16-9338-3C6EE9EC68FC.jpeg


DD13E4E8-C934-4C6D-994E-45AEDA1662AD.jpeg


07C2D4F2-A699-4CFC-8147-7FA571E19906.jpeg


32E4AA14-532E-4CF5-81A3-CD3C18E2B6C6.jpeg
 
Not sure if this is the right thread to post this in but i'm looking at getting just a 2 inch Iron man 4x4 lift (stage 1) for my 80. Are the adjustable panhard rods totally necessary for that amount of lift? I've had a few folks tell me that without upgraded panhards their 80 had a "drifting'' feeling while cruising at highway speeds.
 
gents. anyone know which page the 97 lexus LX 450 coils are listed on? i read through this whole thing at one point but not sure where these would be at specifically.
also. i would like to compare the OEM to the dobinson mediums i have on there now so i can get a baseline understanding of the values involved with comparing coils. so if these dobinson mediums are somewhere specific i’d be grateful if anyone has a post or page number.
i’m basically trying to write down the values and see if i retained anything i read here where i first thrashed through it. also i’m not quite sure if these mediums are what i need on my rig or not actually.
thanks

View attachment 2612140

View attachment 2612141

View attachment 2612142

View attachment 2612143

View attachment 2612144
Lx450 coils are said to be softer rate.
Check out post #1 & #3.
 
Lx450 coils are said to be softer rate.
Check out post #1 & #3.
thanks a lot for that. i see it now. looks like the left is a larger diameter coil, taller and more windings. i couldn’t tell if they were supposed to be the same color or not.

“20.25" .558" Blue/ Yellow/ White/ 8.75 wraps LF (96/97 LX450)
19.5" .555" Green/ Yellow/ White/ 8.25 wraps RF (96/97 LX450)”

i need to study up on the dobinson medium in post 3 but can i please ask if you have heard of guys without an aftermarket front or rear bumper moving up to a heavier set of coils? meaning they want a stiffer ride? or it feels like the medium coils have too much give?

<edit: here are the/my LX450 rear coils for completeness. looks like there were two different sets of coils on the LX450 or something? or i am not understanding the rears exactly i guess?

“97 LX 450.
Color listed in order from bottom to top.

Rears have 6 coils
RR- 2 blue/ Red 5.5 wraps
LR- 2 White/ White 6.25 wraps.

18.5" .600 15.2mm 2 pink, yellow, 6.25 wraps (1997)
18.75" .610 15.5mm 2 green, green 6.25 wraps (1997)
>

F5E234FC-4725-4738-9085-35FEF534DED1.jpeg


A7098362-E6B1-435A-B167-E1EFE65329F2.jpeg
 
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Ok, seems everyone (OME, Dobisons) is out of some component of their lift, be it springs or shocks etc.....
I have a stock '96 80 with 352K miles on original suspension. To say the least the suspension is shot.

What do ya'll think of this kit? Ironman Nitro Gas 2" Suspension Kit.

I hate the green coils (would paint black), but they are in stock and 25% off.

I could get by with stock height, but would like a small lift for aesthetics not because it would be needed.
I use this 80 mainly to go hunting / fishing / some camping with not much "hardcore" off-roading.
I live in the MS Delta and will see a good bit of buckshot mud and cross a ditch or three during hunting season. .
I hope to someday to get the time to do some "Overlanding" in the Ozarks & Smokey Mountains and maybe the extra height will come in handy.
 
Ok, seems everyone (OME, Dobisons) is out of some component of their lift, be it springs or shocks etc.....
I have a stock '96 80 with 352K miles on original suspension. To say the least the suspension is shot.

What do ya'll think of this kit? Ironman Nitro Gas 2" Suspension Kit.

I hate the green coils (would paint black), but they are in stock and 25% off.

I could get by with stock height, but would like a small lift for aesthetics not because it would be needed.
I use this 80 mainly to go hunting / fishing / some camping with not much "hardcore" off-roading.
I live in the MS Delta and will see a good bit of buckshot mud and cross a ditch or three during hunting season. .
I hope to someday to get the time to do some "Overlanding" in the Ozarks & Smokey Mountains and maybe the extra height will come in handy.
I have the 2 inch Nitro Ironman lift and its worked out really well so far. I've only had the lift on for about a month. The overall stance of 80 looks a lot better imo. Still haven't even had the radius arm bushings installed yet or an alignment but the 80 still handles "OK" at hwy speeds. currently running 285/75/r16 Nitto Terra grapplers and they are just big enough to compliment the lift. I'll definitely upgrade to 35's in the future. 25% off is a helleva deal. i say go for it.
 
I have the 2 inch Nitro Ironman lift and its worked out really well so far. I've only had the lift on for about a month. The overall stance of 80 looks a lot better imo. Still haven't even had the radius arm bushings installed yet or an alignment but the 80 still handles "OK" at hwy speeds. currently running 285/75/r16 Nitto Terra grapplers and they are just big enough to compliment the lift. I'll definitely upgrade to 35's in the future. 25% off is a helleva deal. i say go for it.
Thanks for the reply. Do you happen to have any pics? Do I need additional spacers in front to get rid of stinkbug?

What spring load did you choose? I am currently stock, but the next upgrade will probably be a bullbar and winch. I was thinking that if there is "stinkbug" and I chose the "heavy" springs for the front that it might even out the look.
 
This is a lift & component specification thread.
If you install a lift & specify what lift how much it lifted your rig with bottom of fender measurements with how much weight is in the trunk etc... that info we want here.

Thank you for your time.

Happy Trails.
 
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Thanks for the reply. Do you happen to have any pics? Do I need additional spacers in front to get rid of stinkbug?

What spring load did you choose? I am currently stock, but the next upgrade will probably be a bullbar and winch. I was thinking that if there is "stinkbug" and I chose the "heavy" springs for the front that it might even out the look.
For sure! I’ll try and upload some better pics tomorrow. I went with the performance load in both the front and rear. Check with Ironman and see what they recommend. I found their customer support to be fantastic.

985F3DD7-0014-4A0D-B999-36E3666D6939.jpeg
 
I searched this thread and didn't see mention of these options so thought I would add them to the list. They are rather difficult to find when searching. Keep in mind there may be other options not listed here, but this should be comprehensive enough.

Superior Engineering Front Shock Options:
6" Adjustable 2.0 Monotube Remote Res Shock 10.5 Inch Travel- Length: Open 660mm Closed 392mm Travel 268mm SE-26454
7" Adjustable 2.0 Monotube Remote Res Shock 11.8 Inch Travel- Length: Open 710mm Closed 410mm Travel 300mm SE-26455
7" Adjustable 2.0 Monotube Remote Res Shock 12.8 Inch Travel - Length: Open 776mm Closed 450mm Travel 326mm SE-26475

Superior Engineering Rear Shock Options:
  • Superior Engineering 2 Inch Lift 2.0 Remote Reservoir Shock Rear - 9.5 Inch Travel Open 627.5mm Closed 385.5mm Travel 242mm SE-26476
  • Superior Engineering 3 Inch Lift 2.0 Remote Reservoir Shock Rear - 10 Inch Travel Open 647.5mm Closed 395.5mm Travel 252mm SE-26477
  • Superior Engineering 4 Inch Lift 2.0 Remote Reservoir Shock Rear - 10.5 Inch Travel Open 675mm Closed 405mm Travel 270mm SE-26478
  • Superior Engineering 5 Inch Lift 2.0 Remote Reservoir Shock Rear - 11 Inch Travel Open 702.5mm Closed 423mm Travel 279.5mm SE-26479
  • Superior Engineering 6 Inch Lift 2.0 Remote Reservoir Shock Rear - 11.5 Inch Travel Open 732.5mm Closed 438mm Travel 294.5mm SE-26480
  • Superior Engineering 7 Inch Lift 2.0 Remote Reservoir Shock Rear - 12.5 Inch Travel Open 772mm Closed 455mm Travel 317mm SE-26481

 
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Specs & pics from @spyduh

SOF4FM 4" Medium front is for plus 150 lbs
Driver Side 505mm/Passenger Side 515mm ~ wire size approx. 19mm ~ 12.5 turns

SOF4RHP 4" Heavy is for plus 300 lbs
Driver Side – 510mm Passenger Side – 520mm ~ 21.5" wire ~ 10.2 turns

As per @baldilocks post:
The heavies are a 4” lift spring if your rig weighs something like 7k pounds. Mine lifted my rig almost 6” empty and what I call a full load only mashed them maybe an inch to 1.5” inches so I still had at least a full 4” of lift with my version of a heavy load. And they don’t ride harshly unloaded. A high quality product.
20210413_172552.jpg

Front SOF4FM 4" Medium Approx. 19mm
20210423_101234.jpg

 
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Ironman foam cell has been getting popular, thought I would throw down some spec from baldilocks.
I'll type it in when I have more time.
I thought I would help out by gathering the specs for the Ironman foam cell pro shocks. I hope the photo is readable. 3 year 60k warranty and owner rebuildable. Individual shock component part numbers are listed in the catalog as well View attachment 2687078
Front:
0" ~ 45683FE 615-370mm ~ 24.21-14.57"
4" ~ 45683LFE 670-397mm ~ 26.38-15.63"
6" ~ 45683LFE1 730-427mm ~ 28.75-16.8"

Rear:
0" ~ 45682FE 618-383mm ~ 24.33-15.08"
4" ~ 45682LFE 670-409mm ~ 26.38-16.1"
6" ~ 45682LFE1 730-439mm ~ 28.75-17.3"

Namepart #ClosedOpenRec BS
OME60070LFront15"26.3"0"
DobinsonGS45-9124"Front15.35"26.37".5"
Ironman45683LFE4"Front15.63"26.38"N/A
Icon 2.0AC565114-6"Front16.85"28.17"1"
DobinsonGS59-6846"Front16.53"28.66"1.5"
Ironman45683LFE16"Front16.8"28.75"N/A
OME60071LRear15.24"26.5"1"
DobinsonGS59-6874"Rear16.02"26.77"2"
Ironman45682LFE4"Rear16.1"26.38"N/A
Icon 2.0AC565114-6"Rear16.85"27.42"1"
DobinsonGS59-6856"Rear17"28.74"3"
Ironman45682LFE16"Rear17.3"28.75"N/A
 
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Can you tell me exactly how you are measuring shock extended length? When I get me Radflo back from being rebuilt I can mesure them.
 

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