King Shocks - Protection

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pfran42

pfran42

Joined
Apr 28, 2010
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76
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Location
Atlanta, GA
Website
www.pfranleds.com
Anyone have any thoughts on using modified shock boots in order to protect the chrome shafts on rear higher-end shocks (Fox/Icon/King/Radflo)? I have heard that debris kicked up by the front wheels can cause pitting on the rears and I want to take the proper precautions. I figured cutting the bottom off the shock boots would serve the purpose of protecting the shock shaft from dings and pitting while at the same time allowing moisture a path away from the shock.

I have run this by a few people, and opinions appear to be split between "If King though protecting the shafts was necessary, they would have included guards for that purpose." and "As long as there is no chance of water sitting against the shaft you should be fine."

The only negative I can readily see if that the boots are butt ugly...

Shock in question

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$7.00 pair of boots from the Walmart of 4X4

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Boot mounted on shock.

20120119_224258.jpg


Shock installed (keep in mind that I will be cutting the tapered section at the bottom of the boot in order to keep water from building up in the shock).

20120120_023043.jpg


Anyone think this is a bad idea?
 
I think it is a good thought, but if there was an issue, in research and development these companies would have made a change in design, or added boots.
 
Seems to me that cutting an opening to let water out does not always work and can hold mud/moisture in that might cause more of a problem than its worth....plus, the boots do look like poopoo. Put that $8 towards some new treads!
 
I recently removed a set of boots on some Bilsteins so I could see the witness marks on the shaft to see how much travel I was using. I was also recognizing that more expensive shocks usually run bootless and the rancho etc usually is booted. I think with a race type shock where you don't have the can over can situation of a twin tube to trap pebbles you don't really need the boots. If the boots fill up with crap the crap will be working against your shafts rain or shine, wet or dry.

I'm also thinking for the Kings and other rebuildables it might be easier to see when your shaft seals are shot without boots in the way which could get them to the re-builder in time to save some $$.

At the end of the day it's up to you, I say off with their boots! (unless you could find some vintage fluorescent green ones... those of course are awesome and add HP!)
 
Stick with the boots and make sure they have good drainage. Pitting around rear shock area is a big issue on 100s. Don't care how hard those shafts are, they will get pitted. If you don't want boots, you could fab mounts to move them behind the axle like spresso did.
 
Just what I expected. Good arguments on both sides of the coin. Reason why I did this in the 1st place was after seeing what Spressomon (Spress runs a homebrew flexible guard made from industrial material) and AutoCraft Aus have written on the subject. I knew there were some good objections but I could not remember what they were or who had chimed in against running boots.

On a side note...Anyone running the piggyback reservoirs in the rear and if so, where is the piggyback pointing? It was very late when I was mounting the rears and I was having trouble picturing the full articulation and wheel travel path of the rear axle. I ended up mounting the rears with the piggyback pointing rearward and outward. Is this the correct orientation?

(and yes, I know the boot is not cut yet...)

20120120_023043.jpg
 
Paul - This is a terrible idea and bad project all around... You should probably take those off and put your old shocks back on... You can send me the Kings and I'll just put them with my pile of Cruiser junk...
 
Paul,

The industrial belt shield was an idea I had that I was going to implement...before we moved the shocks to the rear side of the axle...so no need for that now on my rig.

For me and given the investment for these types of shocks its foolish IMHO to subject the piston shafts to peening from the spray that comes off the front wheels; they will eventually get effed up after enough high speed gravel runs. And when they get peened/pitted this will accelerate seal/wiper wear.

And since a good solution is relatively cheap and very effective for those with OEM shock mount locations why risk it?!

Dan
 
If you were running OME's or even Billies, I'd say run them open as those shocks are cheap enough to replace once they are pitted, and really aren't worth the extra effort. But Kings? Boot them, no questions. Make sure you have adequate room for crud to drain out, and check under the boots after mud runs and water crossings to make sure you don't have red clay muck wreaking havoc on the shafts. Even if mud/crud stuck inside the boots accelerates the wear on the wipers/seals, you can replace them. If the shafts get peened and all other forms of effed up due to debris impact, the shock is toast. As Dan so wisely stated....why risk it?
 
Well now I'm getting curious. The Billies I de-booted are on my tacoma in the stock rear location which on that vehicle means inside the frame rails with one in front of the rear axle and the other behind the rear axle. I only have a couple thousand miles in so far but the Taco gets most of the high speed gravel throwing fun so I'll keep an eye on each shaft and let you know what I find.

I guess my recommendation now is more along the lines of bare fronts and rear deflector guards like the ones spressomon once ran. I won't have the joy of making the call on my cruiser for some time... 180k service, front ARB and sliders are already on the spring list.
 
Jonathan, that looks awesome under there! So shiny and clean!
 
come on lets see those in action this SAT !! heading up from here at 7:30
 
Mxndrnks said:
Not kings... but here is the best shot I have of my piggy back remotes....


They are turned towards the middle of the truck...
Click to expand...

Dude...wanna come de-rust and paint my truck? Holy crap that looks good.
 
no-pistons said:
Jonathan, that looks awesome under there! So shiny and clean!
Click to expand...
Thanks man..... that is what happens when you are unemployed an have all the time in the world to clean up and repaint the entire underside.... the surface rust was pretty bad before I started.

Itsky said:
I have these on my Icon Piggy Backs

4Runner Stainless Steel Lower Shock Shin Guard - ICON Vehicle Dynamics
Click to expand...

But do they fit the 100??

TheFuzz said:
Dude...wanna come de-rust and paint my truck? Holy crap that looks good.
Click to expand...

Thanks..... It was a ton of work....I hope to never go through that again. It was a lot of time on my back.....
 
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Mxndrnks said:
Thanks man..... that is what happens when you are unemployed an have all the time in the world to clean up and repaint the entire underside.... the surface rust was pretty bad before I started.



But do they fit the 100??



Thanks..... It was a ton of work....I hope to never go through that again. It was a lot of time on my back.....
Click to expand...

What did you use to remove the rust and what paint did you use to paint it?

Fantastic job.
 
I used a handheld wire brush in tight places and a wire wheel attached to a drill on everything else. I also replaced every soft bushing, control arms, Sway bar links, pulled propeller shafts, etc at the same time. So, it was basically a frame "on" restoration job. For paint, I used the Eastwood rust converter, encapsulator and chassis coat.

No more highjack though..... Does any one know if those Icon guards above will actually fit our hundy?
 
Mxndrnks said:
No more highjack though..... Does any one know if those Icon guards above will actually fit our hundy?
Click to expand...

I am currently using some lower shock bolt guards on my 100 that were originally for an FJ. Bolt hole is same size. I did have to use a sawzall to shorten mine as they were too long though.
 
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