Terrain Tamer parabolics installed (9 Viewers)

[orangefj45]

Last time I looked at the parabolics the cost was quite steep due to shipping

If the shipping wasnt exorbitant due to weight/dimensions and overseas shipping from AU it would be more attractive and affordable.

For the money you're well into custom Alcan spring packs based on actual weight of your rig front/rear etc with lift of your preference with or without orbit eye option

Terrain Tamer now has a US branch in northern CA and we have plenty of the suspension kits and components in stock, along with lots of other parts to help keep our cruisers on the road

We are more than happy to help. Please feel free to reach out to us anytime.

Georg
Branch manager Terrain Tamer North Americe
209-714-4210
Northamerica@donkyatt.com.au

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

Last time I looked at the parabolics the cost was quite steep due to shipping

If the shipping wasnt exorbitant due to weight/dimensions and overseas shipping from AU it would be more attractive and affordable.

For the money you're well into custom Alcan spring packs based on actual weight of your rig front/rear etc with lift of your preference with or without orbit eye option

As Georg, said, you can now order Terrain Tamer suspension through the U.S. distributor.

I had a ride in an FJ40 with an Alcan kit including the orbit eye shackles. They do seem to increase articulation on the trail, but on the road the springs ride just like any other standard leaf spring. Alcan makes excellent springs, but they exhibit the same characteristics of all other standard leaf springs in terms of interleaf friction, which inhibits articulation.

 

[ali v]

Hi Guys,
Haven't posted on this forum in years, but i love the forum (more specifically the people on the forum ) and its helped me a lot so I hope i can return the favour.
I purchased terrain tamer parabolics for my '88 HJ61 around 9 months ago (pretty stock weight wise other than a roof top tent and third row of seats). I'm sharing to help people decide on / consider a few things:
1.They haven't settled at all. The first time i drove them in the garage, the roof rack clipped the garage door with an empty tank of fuel / nobody in the back. That's still the case now.
2. I had Bilstein shocks front and rear that weren't that old, so I kept them (B46 1004LT front, B46 1035 rear), which were great on my old OME springs, but due to the extra spring rate in the rear with the parabolics, they were a terrible fit - the back was so bouncy everything would bounce into the air, and 4wdriving was much slower in order to prevent setting up resonance that would just about lift the rear wheels of the ground. The shocks are def not stuffed either. Nothing against bilsteins, just shows you need to match the higher spring rate with higher damping.
3. I removed the spacers that come with the kit (20mm spacer above spring pack on front, 25mm spacer below spring pack on rear). You need to buy new leaf pack centre bolts, cos there isn't enough thread. No big deal tho. This means more clearance under the shock mount in the rear (always good) for the same travel but reduced topped out / bottomed out eye to eye lengths. In the front it stopped the nose down (raised) the front by 20mm (still nose down so I don't know why they did that, it looked like a 100 series ifs with rear only lift with them in ). This increases the stroke by 20mm because it increased the clearance between the diff and the bump stop, so also a good thing. However, be careful. I believe (and I measured everything, tape measure only FWIW) that the spacers are there on the rear because the terrain tamer shocks need the extra eye to eye length in the rear (385-632mm listed stroke) so they don't bottom out on compression. The bilstein rears had a shorter stroke (368-575mm measured), so worked fine. (Note that isnt the case with the fronts, 352-580 for the tt shocks, so i'm not sure why they spaced the fronts like they did)
4. The rear springs started squeaking really bad after a few months. I tried taking load off the springs, loosening u bolts and cleaning all the dirt out of the spring pack but no difference. I called TT and they said yep its is a know thing, they sent me out new rear inter leaf anti friction / spacer pads that are at the ends of the spring, which use something like an N70 rubber instead of a hard (teflon?) pad, and they are now silent (totally free too btw). Make sure you get tt to supply the rubber ones straight away, trust me, they will squeak and it is very annoying, and annoying to install on the double military wrap end.
5. To fix the bounce in the rear, i researched lots of options and settled on a set of Koni heavy track shocks, 82-2294. Note that koni website for late model (19mm pin) with 2" lift suggests 82-2297 (368-587mm listed stroke), that is incorrect. Koni salesperson confirmed the 2294 and said "Interestingly, the 82-2294 has almost 14% more rebound and 50% more compression control than the 82-2297, straight out of the box. The rebound can be increased to accommodate higher spring rates and the greater sprung mass of heavily accessorised and/or loaded vehicles." He also said there is 100% rebound control (i.e. up to double the rebound damping rate? Or maybe 50% either way?)) The difference after installing these shocks in the rear is incredible. I didn't adjust the rebound at all, I think perhaps it could use slightly higher rebound damping, but now i can 4wd in comfort without having to slow to a crawl for pot holes / whoops or to cross ruts in sand, and sits much more planted on the road.

Overall, really happy with the springs, just make sure you get the rubber inter leaf pads, and consider these koni shocks if you need something with higher damping for high spring rates, and def take the spacers out if you can to save some weight and add some clearance and travel.

1st pic with BFG 31's is with spacers, 2nd pic with Maxxis 33x10.5s is with spacers removed. Not the best to compare, sorry, its all i have.

 

[Greek Cruiserhead]

Thanks mate for sharing your experience!
My brother just oordered a TT parabolic set for his 1985 HJ61 (Aussie Cruiser).
He ordered the complete kit (shocks included), so I expect he will not have the issues you described with the shock absorbers, is it correct?

 

[knuckle47]

Great read…. I have been trying to decide if I should make the switch over to TT. Weather here just too cold for me lately but once it warms about 15*F more, I will need to make the decision…thanks for posting. Instead of 50/50 thinking. It more like 65/35 yes..

 

[volklflip88]

I'm well overdue to replace the spine compressing 4" BDS springs and was just going to go with OME but these look appealing...

Hoping to keep my Bilsteins from a cost standpoint but it would seem I need to get a matching shock to go with them.

 

[ali v]

Thanks mate for sharing your experience!
My brother just oordered a TT parabolic set for his 1985 HJ61 (Aussie Cruiser).
He ordered the complete kit (shocks included), so I expect he will not have the issues you described with the shock absorbers, is it correct?

Nice! Yea I would think that the TT shocks are matched for the spring. I would have had to put the rear spacer in the leaf pack back in if I got those (or extended the bump stops).

 

[ali v]

I'm well overdue to replace the spine compressing 4" BDS springs and was just going to go with OME but these look appealing...

Hoping to keep my Bilsteins from a cost standpoint but it would seem I need to get a matching shock to go with them.

Yea well thats why I kept the Bilsteins too, but if you have the same shocks as mine I can assure you the rear ones aren't a good fit. I've kept the bilsteins in at the front, they seem fine there. I think the rear parabolics being +500kg just have a much higher spring rate than the bilsteins were designed for.

 

[reklund5]

I'm really curious about these. I currently have what I *think* is an old CCOT "Hell for Stout" 4" lift on my 40, judging by the buckboard ride and beefy shackles. I sorta dig it's current stance, and don't completely hate the 'loominum wheels and 33x12.50 BFGs. Will these new parabolic springs and matched shackles match the rough height of my current setup? Will I need to go back to pizza cutters so they tuck under the fenders if it flexes, or add long bumpstops to keep the tires from knocking the body filler out of whats left of the body?

 

[knuckle47]

I may be mistaken but. I have been checking into these springs for a few months now reading anything I can find. I believe the lift is 2”

I am looking to get rid of that buckboard ride in favor of a smoother ride for a trail type road riddled with washboards and ruts or just plain level dirt roads. Ain’t pulled the trigger yet but the more I have read about guys using them…it’s something I think I am going to do

 

[charliemeyer007]

I'm thinking May after I check the engine, diffs, tranny and transfer. If all is good then new springs/shocks are on the table. I think the TT are my plans because I haven't read anything bad about them yet.

 

[firemanj92]

I may be mistaken but. I have been checking into these springs for a few months now reading anything I can find. I believe the lift is 2”

I am looking to get rid of that buckboard ride in favor of a smoother ride for a trail type road riddled with washboards and ruts or just plain level dirt roads. Ain’t pulled the trigger yet but the more I have read about guys using them…it’s something I think I am going to do

I'm thinking May after I check the engine, diffs, tranny and transfer. If all is good then new springs/shocks are on the table. I think the TT are my plans because I haven't read anything bad about them yet.

Have you guys watched the Jason's 40channel on youtube. He gives an in depth review of TT parabolic springs and TT's update to fight sway for the 40 series LC

40 Channel - https://www.youtube.com/@40ChannelCruiser/search?query=parabolic

 

[knuckle47]

Yup…. My first exposure to them. Jason’s review is very favorable. That is when I decided to dig further into them. And…it was over 4 months ago. Had I not been side tracked by another big house project, I probably would have them by now. It was all of the reading I had done while recuperating at night that got me really planning on them …even got the quote plus shipping from TT California but , I did start thinking about the projects and parts already accumulating in the shop. I am probably overwhelmed already but like @charliemeyer007 says….. I haven’t read anything bad about them yet…!

 

[Grayscale]

What about axle wrap? How about highway-rpm rear driveshaft vibrations? They don't look like springs for towing. I'm absolutely convinced that better spring articulation is going to stretch the limit of a non-sway-bar, a no links set-up.

 

[knuckle47]

I think that’s the conundrum; they’re not for every kind of use. Back in 1974/75, I was a young nut and used my FJ40 for a hi-way cruiser and a mountain climber on some amazing Vermont logging roads. It performed flawlessly and I had the body and brains of a 22 year old. So, few things affected my thinking and I just pushed and plowed through almost anything.

I just turned the page on my 50th year Land Cruising. Today, I have the brains of a 35 year old and the body hurts easily. My NEED for a suspension like this is to accommodate a less stiff bounce when I am out driving regular rural roads and dirt trails. I’m not likely to put my self in situations where I am forging through mud holes, climbing over rocks or placing the truck in high flex conditions.

It seems to me, after all I have uncovered, these Terrain Tamers will exceed most of my needs and will afford me a slightly more comfortable ride. Additionally my 1975 FJ40 will add 3.70 gearing, front disk brakes, caster shims, rebuilt steering knuckles, bearings and seals all around. I will have it stripped down enough to do it all at the same time.

I would urge all Terrain Tamers users to critically evaluate their rides under so many variable conditions and report back…these may be something many folks would avoid or enjoy

We all know the value of offering your 2 cents….thats mine

 

[Jdc1]

I think that’s the conundrum; they’re not for every kind of use. Back in 1974/75, I was a young nut and used my FJ40 for a hi-way cruiser and a mountain climber on some amazing Vermont logging roads. It performed flawlessly and I had the body and brains of a 22 year old. So, few things affected my thinking and I just pushed and plowed through almost anything.

I just turned the page on my 50th year Land Cruising. Today, I have the brains of a 35 year old and the body hurts easily. My NEED for a suspension like this is to accommodate a less stiff bounce when I am out driving regular rural roads and dirt trails. I’m not likely to put my self in situations where I am forging through mud holes, climbing over rocks or placing the truck in high flex conditions.

It seems to me, after all I have uncovered, these Terrain Tamers will exceed most of my needs and will afford me a slightly more comfortable ride. Additionally my 1975 FJ40 will add 3.70 gearing, front disk brakes, caster shims, rebuilt steering knuckles, bearings and seals all around. I will have it stripped down enough to do it all at the same time.

I would urge all Terrain Tamers users to critically evaluate their rides under so many variable conditions and report back…these may be something many folks would avoid or enjoy

We all know the value of offering your 2 cents….thats mine

Have a set ready to go on, as well as a 3.70 diffs.

 

[Chungas Revenge]

Have a set ready to go on, as well as a 3.70 diffs.

New thread forthcoming???

The 3.70’s and rubber overdrive are smoooth sailing and easy(er) on the RPM’s..

 

[knuckle47]

@wngrog suggested this for me when I was thinking 5-speed….easy on the tower cover and similar result for my needs

 

[Jdc1]

New thread forthcoming???

The 3.70’s and rubber overdrive are smoooth sailing and easy(er) on the RPM’s..

Once some progress is made.

 

[Chungas Revenge]

We were just talking about the divergent lifestyles of West Coast Vice East Coast usage/driving/wheeling in a 40 series.

3.70’s - Rubber Overdrive - Parabolics may be a nice setup for us land locked Eastern drivers.

Little known fact: Driving on the WV road network qualifies you for a “Lunar Landscape Driving Badge”.