1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

Hello all.

Looking for any help helping me trying to wade through this mess of information on shocks. Im getting tired of my truck driving like a bouncy castle with these worn shocks, or lack therof (i ripped them off because they were so far gone, :lol:).

Looking from previous information on this site, I've almost decided on running some kyb's.

specifically KYB Excel-G 344068 on the front and KYB 344055 on the rears for my 3/5 drop. My question is will these be a good choice? will they bottom out?

thanks all :). :metal:

Re: 1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

Due to all the differences in what determines how much a truck drops for a specific spring you need to measure the length of the shock at ride height of your truck. Then compare that measurement to the compressed and extended length of the shocks your considering. Ideally you want the shock to be compressed 30 to 40 percent at ride height.

In other words what worked on my truck may not work on yours.

In addition you need to know what the shock length is at full suspension compression. Nothing will destroy a shock faster than it bottoming out internally before the bump stop stops the suspension.

Re: 1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

Those are the ones I've used on 3 trucks. ECE when they were in business shipped those with my 3.5/5 drop.

Re: 1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

I got so tired of this issue that I put full QA1 Suspension front and rear on my Truck.. yes it was a bit Pricey but I now have 18 settings to play with from super soft to I’m not moving. I’ve found a combination I like and my truck now rides better than a new one
I know this is a bit extreme, but I think it’s worth considering

Just my 2c

PS. I’m not affiliated with QA1

Re: 1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

Ok, thanks. ive heard of alot of these companys just repackaging and selling regular old shocks under a different name. looks like ill run those then, if they dont work well theyre a good enough price to take the hit, thanks for your input

Re: 1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

Putting a shorter spring in a vehicle will not cause a stock length shock to bottom out unless the bump location was altered. A vehicle is designed for a shock to fully compress at full bump. You could remove the springs completely and set it on the bumps and it will not bottom out. A shock will behave the same at all static positions. By lowering, up travel is diminished. Using a shorter shock to limit down travel is more relevant as the bumps prevent bottom out. Shock valving (dampening) is the issue. Finding one that suits your needs. Stiff springs and stiff shocks equal an uncomfortable ride.

Edit- the KYB Excel G are really soft. My brother in law went with those less expensive shocks on his 98 Suburban and it rides like a boat. The Gas-a-just mono tube are what I used on my lowered ride. They were excellent. I warned him before the purchase.

Re: 1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

I have those exact shocks on my lowered GMC and I am not happy with the ride. Over rough highway roads, it can get really uncomfortable and the front ends seems to dance around a little. I also did the ECE front drop spindles and lowering springs for a 4" drop. The rear I did the DJM flip kit with my original springs. I am now finding out that I only have about 1/2" of clearance in the rears when the springs bottom out because the flip kit which raises the rear axle, which actually requires a shorter shock. Looking at the specs, the front shock size would be a better fit for a lowered/flipped leaf spring rear. I've read that some use the front shocks all around.

After extensive research, my plan is to go for the Belltech Street Performance shock. the SP2103HA keeps popping up in my search as the ones that would fit my application. The price range is a lot more reasonable than the QA1's or Ridetech versions. I may also investigate putting a new set of leafs on the rear. Need to measure the old ones to see if they have sagged.

Re: 1972 c10 3/5 drop shocks confusion.
 

geez didnt know they were bad, im thankful for my coil spring truck, alot of messing around to try to get it to run huh? i ended up getting the gas a just's and are happy. theyre pretty nice.