Articulating OME kit necessary for Bilstein lengths?

[reddog90]

I want to get an OME med/heavy 2" kit, but I want to run Bilstein 5100s based on their hype here. Do I really need to order my lift kit w/o shocks, install it on the truck, articulate for measurements, then order my shocks accordingly? I guess I could run with the part numbers for 0-2" lift in the old Bilstein part numbers thread and just exchange them if I need something different? It looks like bilsteins are available Amazon Prime, but I'd like to have everything on hand and get it all knocked out at once if possible.

I've searched and read through several old threads on this topic and haven't found a consensus. I book marked these two in particular:

FJ40 Bilstein 5100 and 5150 shock part numbers

forum.ih8mud.com

Bilstein 5100 shock question

forum.ih8mud.com

Thanks.

 

[rkymtnflyfisher]

I gambled on my shocks, I guess I may have lucked out.

It’s easy enough to install the lift, flex it, and order the new shocks.

But on the other hand, I gambled. Somewhere there’s a chart that gives a rough estimate on the correct shock for the lift height.

 

[Catfish28]

I put the same setup on my 78 a year or so ago. OME and bilsteins. I looked at the 2 threads you referenced above as well as the link in one of the threads that lists the compressed and expanded lengths of the shocks and ordered accordingly. I think I may have double checked after putting the springs on and the shock length needed at rest was right in the middle of the range of the shock. Very happy with the package. I don’t do any heavy wheeling though so I’ll probably never test the shock to it’s full range.

 

[1911]

I gambled on my shocks, I guess I may have lucked out.

It’s easy enough to install the lift, flex it, and order the new shocks.

But on the other hand, I gambled. Somewhere there’s a chart that gives a rough estimate on the correct shock for the lift height.

Bilstein has a chart of compressed and extended lengths for all their shocks, if you drill down far enough on their ginormous web site.
But yeah, there are threads here on Mud that will get you in the ball park.

 

[reddog90]

I put the same setup on my 78 a year or so ago. OME and bilsteins. I looked at the 2 threads you referenced above as well as the link in one of the threads that lists the compressed and expanded lengths of the shocks and ordered accordingly. I think I may have double checked after putting the springs on and the shock length needed at rest was right in the middle of the range of the shock. Very happy with the package. I don’t do any heavy wheeling though so I’ll probably never test the shock to it’s full range.

Bilstein has a chart of compressed and extended lengths for all their shocks, if you drill down far enough on their ginormous web site.
But yeah, there are threads here on Mud that will get you in the ball park.

How can I use this chart without installing the lift and measuring though?

 

[Catfish28]

I think I guesstimated based on what I researched, then installed the springs and measured the pin to pin length and assumed an inch or 2 of settlement after install and use. Ended up being about what all the guidance said for shock recommended for 2” lift.

 

[YoYoHo]

I am not 100 sure this will help you out as I have a BJ46 not an FJ 40 but the front is the same and the rear maybe but I have 45 rear leafs length wise.

I bought :
Bilstein BE5-6253-H5 8.5" Travel 5125 Series 255/70 Valving
Bilstein 5125 Series 6.5" Travel 5125 Shock 255/70 Valving

Which was what was spec'd for the 2" OME Lift kit and they were to short .

The below pictures show them at full extension with the Cruiser jacked up. By putting the truck on the ground I could get them to fit so I did that and drove up and down the road and wasn't real impressed with the ride. This could have been because of some topping out but I didn't like the valving anyway even after loading it up to ensure topping wasn't the issue. . My solution was to get a set of Fox 2.0 R/R and tune them to suit just like we do with every other car we build. I was being lazy with the Bilsteins and should have stuck to what I know.

Rid is much better now and I am happy with it from a leaf prospective

I ended up with :

Fox 2.0 Pro Series (LC 45) Front 8" Travel Smooth Body Shock with Remote Reservoir Bushing Ends Fox 980-24-404
Fox 2.0 Pro Series 10" Travel (LC45) Rear Smooth Body shock Remote Reservoir and "Bushing Style Ends Fox 980-24-032-A

 

[reddog90]

I am not 100 sure this will help you out as I have a BJ46 not an FJ 40 but the front is the same and the rear maybe but I have 45 rear leafs length wise.

I bought :
Bilstein BE5-6253-H5 8.5" Travel 5125 Series 255/70 Valving
Bilstein 5125 Series 6.5" Travel 5125 Shock 255/70 Valving

Which was what was spec'd for the 2" OME Lift kit and they were to short .

The below pictures show them at full extension with the Cruiser jacked up. By putting the truck on the ground I could get them to fit so I did that and drove up and down the road and wasn't real impressed with the ride. This could have been because of some topping out but I didn't like the valving anyway even after loading it up to ensure topping wasn't the issue. . My solution was to get a set of Fox 2.0 R/R and tune them to suit just like we do with every other car we build. I was being lazy with the Bilsteins and should have stuck to what I know.

Rid is much better now and I am happy with it from a leaf prospective

I ended up with :

Fox 2.0 Pro Series (LC 45) Front 8" Travel Smooth Body Shock with Remote Reservoir Bushing Ends Fox 980-24-404
Fox 2.0 Pro Series 10" Travel (LC45) Rear Smooth Body shock Remote Reservoir and "Bushing Style Ends Fox 980-24-032-A

View attachment 1932259

View attachment 1932261

What did you not like about the bilsteins?

 

[YoYoHo]

What did you not like about the bilsteins?

I did not like the valve rates. In basic terms the compression stroke was to hard and the rebound to soft meaning that the suspension was to hard and returned to quick thus making it bounce . By changing to the Fox I can change the valve stacks and play with it till i get it where I want. This lets me use the shocks to control the movement of the truck much better. The thing with a 40 is that it is short and likes to pitch and none of the factory shocks I have ever tried are setup correctly.

I got lazy when I bought the Blisteins as everyone raves about them but I think the reality of it is that most 40 guys don't waste to much time on shock tunes and the closest they get is maybe some external adjustments like the RS9000 use to offer back in the day.

Don't get me wrong their is a significant $$$$ difference between bilsteins and Fox so you would expect some value for money.

This is why when you look at something like ICON's and what Dylan does for each setup they offer, the shocks are tuned and tested in that application. When you start looking at the cheap stuff like OME / Bilsteins / Tough Dog etc most have a close enough is good enough and many such as the Bilsteins aren't sold as a 40 series shock they are sold as a general application.

If you ever get the opportunity to go shock tuning with some race guys you will quickly understand just how much difference a correctly valved shock can make to handling and performance. That said we are talking about a 40 here but they need every but of help they can get. To get it fully awesome though I am gunna need to go coils as leaf only have so much adjustment.

 

[snaggletto]

I tried a few random hydraulic shocks, then tried the nitrogen charged Bilsteins. They are still a bit stiff slow speed, but handled the higher speed hits much better. I wouldn't mind experimenting with some Fox's. What was the standard valving like, and what changes did you make to your valving setup?