Air shocks question

[BlackYJ]

while were on questions i was also wondering how to stiffen my air shocks? I have heard something about changing pins around inside it.

 

[BamaTJ]

while were on questions i was also wondering how to stiffen my air shocks? I have heard something about changing pins around inside it.

They are not pins, they are bleed screws and they will move more fluid which means a softer ride. I have done a lot of shock tuning and tinkering on both COs and airshocks. You can stiffen air shocks several ways.

The easiest is adding more oil, check with the manufacturer of the shock and see what the max oil volume is and add that much. Some tables are online like at Poly P that show the max and what they are shipped with, so you can now how much to add. Different manufacturers use different volumes, and the longer or wider the shock the more oil volume it can handle. So it is all different. You can also add heavier weight oil to stiffen up the shock. Most come with 5w shock oil (fork oil) so you can go to 7w. I would stay away from 10w.

The harder option is to revalve, not really hard but many people are scared of it because you have to take the shock apart. Most shocks have the valving specs engraved on the lower collar, if not they are standard valving per the manufacturer so call them and find out what they ship standard.

Post up the valving specs and the shipped and max oil volumes and I will help you out

 

[caglezxj]

I have never heard about adjusting pins. But I know you can add more oil and tune them in. Make sure you add the oil when the shock is fully extended or it will not go into the valving correctly. What brand do you have? And I imagine it is the front you are having trouble with?

 

[EOR MFG]

What Matt said is the best approach to tuning an airshock. The oil volume will make the most difference in the air shocks, but it will also make the rate much more progressive. Oil adjustment is effectively increasing the spring rate of the shock. If it is stiffer valving that you want then you have to go internal to the shock.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is making adjustments, and then driving around the yard for a quick test and settling on a rate. Because they are an emulsion shock by there nature they need to be driving for some time before you can be sure that the changes that have been made were in the right direction.


If you need valve shims I can help you

 

[BamaTJ]

The other thing is that if it is a 2.0 airshock and you are running it in the front of a heavier rig, then it is just not going to work great and will probably bottom out no matter what. The application of a 2.0 air shock is lighter buggies, hence you see them in a lot of comp rigs. They have unsprung weight ratings, so if this is a front application of a heavy rig I would look for 2.5 airs or even a 2.0 co. Unless you are doing a bunch of crawling I would think they would beat you to death in the front of a full bodied rig

 

[BlackYJ]

thanks for the input fellas. They are 2.5 in swayaways and in the rear of a full bodied yj. I will try to get the specs later tonight or tomorrow and post them up for you matt o.