Kings preload adjustment question

[CharlieS]

Hi all, I put taller rear springs on and am adjusting preload on my Kings front coil-overs and want to cross check my results.

The short version is that I think I am getting roughly 1/8" of height change per full rotation of the preload collar. Are others seeing similar?

Truthfully, the accuracy of my measurement is iffy and has poor resolution. It could be off by 1/8" +/- and I don't think I'd be able to tell. I've tried to refine it a little by putting a bolt on a rare earth magnet and locating it at the center of the wheel to use as my hub center point. This seems to give me a little more repeatable results. I should try to rig something more accurate up, but I'm running out of time before a trip, so just want it to be close enough.

What is the range of acceptable variance side to side on an axle? I'm off more than I want to be at 1/2" side to side, but I think if I take two turns back out of the passenger side it should get me within 1/4" (but given the accuracy mentioned above, could be off).

To verify, I did run through a drive cycle to settle the suspension before measuring post adjustment values.

I have an alignment appointment tomorrow, so hope to do the "final" adjustment tonight.

 

[CharlieS]

I backed the passenger side off 2.5 turns and am at the same ride height side to side (1/16th off, within my margin of measurement error).

Another source said 5 turns per inch, FWIW.

 

[AnyMal]

LX calls for .5” if I’m not mistaken to be “within spec”. That obv was not sufficient for me but you can never really get it perfect with AHC due to what my reply is really meaning to say:

If possible do the leveling on the alignment rack.

From all the toiling I’ve done, I can tell you that is the best way. As you change the corner heights up front, your caster is affected and vise versa. If you are an alignment stickler like me, you will want to align, dial your cross caster (if you want), level, then caster sweep it again.

I know, i wish i owned an alignment rack too…

 

[CharlieS]

Thank you.

 

[BadReligion]

@CharlieS What are you using to get the adjustment hole on the preload collar past the remote reservoir line?

 

[CharlieS]

Aha! A man who has looked at this job!

It is less than ideal. They really should be removed to do it without a hack. But, as they say, where there's a will, there's a way.

If you *very* *very* slightly loosen the hose fitting (11/16" spanner), you can move the 90 degree hose fitting enough to allow some movement. Not so much thst you lose oil, but enough that you can pivot the hose with slight force.

Also, there is one spot in the preload collar rotation where none of the holes are accessible (because of the split in the collar), to get past that I also used a coil over wrench that I had from a prior vehicle (Bilstein PSS9 on a 911) and a brass tipped drift I had from my motorcycle days. These might not be necessary, but helped in the heat of the moment.

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If i had the time, I'd fab up something with a slight bend in the tip, maybe from a cheap screwdriver with an appropriately sized round shaft. That would help a lot with getting around the harder to reach part of the rotation where the shock tower limits access.

One tip for anyone trying this on the vehicle - lube everything well before and during. Top and bottom.

Also, we should be careful, we're starting to stray into tech.

 

[BadReligion]

Ha. Thanks. Not exactly looking forward to this but need another 1/2" or so of lift up front before I send the truck in for a final alignment. I do have some round metal rod that fits into the adjustment holes. I may try to fab something up out of that. It is mild steel so it may bend a bit but I'm hoping it doesn't take much force to turn the collar.

 

[CharlieS]

Dead blow hammer helps, lots of lube top and bottom. The rod supplied with them works, but the process could benefit from a custom tool (as mentioned above) to minimize the fiddling (when the adjuster hole rotation is blocked by the side of the strut mount "bucket").

A round shaft screwdriver with the end cut off and a slight (30 degree?) bend would be clutch. Heat the shaft up with an Oxy Acetelyne torch and it'd bend like a twizzler.

1/2" of lift difference was 2.5 full turns of the collar on mine. Just need to land in a place where you can still tighten the 3/16" allen pinch bolt.

 

[bloc]

I made a tool out of an obscure toyota fastener i had lying around. Works very well.

King 2.5 front coil adjustments

Hello all, with a few thousand miles on my king 2.5 setup as they settled in I needed to adjust for an inch of uneven sag in the front. Ben at filthy told me king recommends removing the coil over for adjustments but it wasn’t absolutely necessary, but didn’t provide details at the time. They...

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[CharlieS]

Dang, I totally forgot about that. Brilliant!!