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Front Suspension
Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 6:18 am
by ROSSDC
I have never done any front suspension modification for off road before so I have been reading forums and books and it seems there are allot of option. My goal is to not slow down for the bumps and never work on the front suspension again. I would like to get as much travel as I can with the stock arms and raise the front end a little. To fit a longer shock I can lengthen the shock towers 2" without cutting into the body. I was thinking of welding in some sway-away adjusters, a neoprene stop for full compression and a hook and rod on full extension. I have heard the hook and rod is noisy but I don't want to mess with the limiting straps. Your ideas would be much appreciated. Thanks.
Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 6:36 am
by jsturtlebuggy
Most of the long travel front end that are available or you weld on the shock towers are made to use a 8 or 10in travel shock. On a 8in travel front end the shock tower is 4in taller than stock and actual travel is closer to 9in. If you have only 2in to body you may have to design something to fit. The shock that is used on the 8in travel front end is off the rear of a 68 and later bus. Using the stock shock towers on a link pin front end and cutting out the snubber in the middle can get you almost 8in of travel. You just have to fab and upper and lower stops. Something like what is in the pictures you posted. Jeff Hibbard's book on building Baja's and Buggies has some good ideas and pictures in it. Using the SwayAway adjusters lets you tune the supension to where you are driving. It is the same style that was used on the Porsche 356. They have held up well in off roading. I do not think you will ever find a front supension that you can build and forget about. They all take normal maintenance to keep them working.
Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 6:53 am
by fubar
I bumped into a group of buggies down in Whinchester Bay last weekend. They were running Fox shocks with zero spring or torsion and got around really well. Not a cheap way to go, but for $250 a shock it may be worth considering??
Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 3:42 pm
by markmark
You could fit the 8 inch travel shocks if you fit a body lift kit. Then you will also have more clearance for your tyres.
Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 2:30 am
by ROSSDC
I found one of my problems, it has the wrong shocks in the front and it's bottoming out on the shocks limiting the wheel travel to 3". I can't believe nothing is broken or at least I haven't found anything yet. I still plan to extend the shock towers to get as much travel as I can, sounds like about 8". But until the snow comes I am going to see how many mile I can put on with the right shocks in it. I can't believe it, 3" of wheel travel.
Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 3:48 am
by jsturtlebuggy
If you stay with the stock shock towers I forgot to say that they need to be welded together around the outer edge as they are only spot welded together and have been known to break apart when using a heavier duty shock than stock. 3in wheel travel, wow. I use either Bilstein or KYB with good results on a king pin front end. The KYB GR-2 are a great valve for the price.