Opinions on off-road shocks?

[RangerBoy94]

Theres no such thing as over kill in the world of offroad trucks lol. For what you want to do I would get the skyjacker 2 inch coils, belltech lift shackles, f250 shock towers, some good blisteins, and a pair of extended radius arms. After all of that you will have a pretty flexy truck for near stock.

 

[Bennybooster]

Haha, hell yeah dude. That will be awesome for sure. I’ll be interested in how that turns out!

Thanks again about the F-250 shock mount suggestion. Are the F-350 mounts you said you have the same as the F-250's? Are they new?

With the F-250 shock mounts, is a limiting strap of some sort necessary to make sure the spring doesn’t come out during maximum flex?

Would they be overkill for a 2" lift?

I have one set that are brand new and one from '86 but they are rust free. And no they wouldn't be overkill IMHO

 

[DrewNukesEm]

Theres no such thing as over kill in the world of offroad trucks lol. For what you want to do I would get the skyjacker 2 inch coils, belltech lift shackles, f250 shock towers, some good blisteins, and a pair of extended radius arms. After all of that you will have a pretty flexy truck for near stock.

Yeah you’re right. Haha, I was thinking about that after I posted it…

That is pretty much the lift I have decided to go with except I think I will just use 2" spacers as I have the 2.3L engine, so I think my coils should be pretty flexy.

Also, I don’t think I will be going with extended radius arms (at least anytime soon), they are more than I would like to spend, and I’m not a welder to be able to make my own.

I’m definitely going to look into the F-250 shock mount mod a bit more, but I think I’m sold on it so far.

It’ll be a budget lift, but I think it will be a great bang for my buck.

Thank you for your suggestions!

I have one set that are brand new and one from '86 but they are rust free. And no they wouldn't be overkill IMHO

Cool, thank you man. PM sent.

 

[ronclark]

Hello all,

I’m planning on lifting my ’84 2.3L Ranger 4x4 with a modest 2” lift.

2” spacers up front, camber bushings - 2” Belltech 6400 (or similar) rear shackles.

I will also be replacing some bushings front and back, with polyurethane ones; the vehicle has been sitting for some years…

I will be upgrading from my OEM shocks as well, and would like some opinions on what ones to go with.

I would really like to go with Bilstein’s as I am familiar with their quality but it doesn’t look like they offer anything for a 2” lift; just stock, then 4” and up.

So I have been trying to decide between 3 different brands, 7 different shocks-

1. James Duff’s 70/30 auto-adjust shocks as they claim they are specifically designed for Ford Bronco’s and RBV’s…

2. Skyjacker Nitro 8000’s, because they are around the same price with the rebate they have going on right now. I have never run SJ before, however I have heard bad things about them, along with Pro Comp (mainly from jeep guys)…

3. Because I would really like to go with Bilstein’s, I am also really considering the new mono-tube Skyjacker M95’s as it looks like they are offered in the same sizes as the hydro’s and nitro’s are.


The only other shocks I was looking into were by Doetsch Tech who focuses on off-road and Rangers…

4. DT3000

5. Pre-runner 8000

6. Nitrogen gas 9000

7. Baja Ryder’s

Has anyone had any experience with any of these shocks? I would really like to hear what everyone has to say, and suggestions, especially you hard core off-road guys.

Thank you, I really appreciate it!

What did you end up doing?

I am going to replace the junk pro-comp soon, i am trying to decide to do the 250 shock towers or not, before i buy the Bilstein shocks for the fronts.

 

[jesse93]

i have rancho xl9000 with resivors and i put them on the soft setting and i love the way they ride and the travel is awesome

 

[DrewNukesEm]

What did you end up doing?

I am going to replace the junk pro-comp soon, i am trying to decide to do the 250 shock towers or not, before i buy the Bilstein shocks for the fronts.

I actually ended ordering some Skyjacker hydros. Skyjacker has a deal on their shocks right now, $35 mail in rebate on hydros and nitros, and $55 back on their M-95 monotubes.

I’m on somewhat of a budget right now so I went this route. I intend to do the 250 shock towers and Bilsteins eventually, but this will suffice for a while.

After the rebate, the shocks end up costing about $30 a piece including shipping, not too shabby.

i have rancho xl9000 with resivors and i put them on the soft setting and i love the way they ride and the travel is awesome

Yeah, those are the only Ranchos I’ve heard good things about. The adjustability would be pretty cool to play around with, but personally if I spend that much on shocks I will probably end with Bilsteins.