The Dumb Question Thread
- Thread starter SledheadX
- Start date
- Location
- Covington, Va
Mine is bolted to the interior panel just inside the rear hatch.
- Location
- Denton, TX
Hmm.. I'm trying to wrap my head around how my travel will be affected.. I'm fixing to put mine together and get them on. I went with All Dogs Coop springs equivalent to about 650# they say and will give me the ~2" of lift I was looking for without using a spacer. They advised to set the 5100s to 0.
Would this change the loss in down travel compared to a spacer lift? I've been up too long to visualize this..
- Location
- Covington, Va
Lemme try this. It may take a few renditions...
The shock sets the travel window for the suspension. Your suspension can not move more than the shock's travel. A spacer lift moves the travel window down.
You have the same travel as when it was stock but you've moved that window down to gain the lift. You "up travel/down travel %" is unchanged from stock (assuming you don't have coil bucket contact but that's for later). If you had 4" down travel, you still have 4" of down travel.
When you lift by using heavier rate springs, longer springs or the preload adjustment on the 5100s or Rads or whatever, you are keeping the travel window the same as without the spacer and changing your "up travel/down travel %" within that window.
Let's say (because I don't have a stock X or access to the actual measurements) you have a shock that has a total stroke of 8". At OE ride height you have a 50/50% of up/ down travel. 4" up and 4" down.
You add a x" lift top spacer to that shock to lift the vehicle. You have not changed the weight of the vehicle or the spring rate. So you get x" of lift by lowering the entire travel of the shock but you maintain your 50/50 split in up/ down travel.
Now. Let's say you pull that spacer and instead you use the 5100's adjustable spring seat to get x" lift. Now what you've done is gained x" of lift by subtracting x" from your down travel amount and adding it to the up travel amount. You are still operating in the same hypothetical 8" of travel, but you are in a different location in that travel window. (4" + x") up and (4" - x") down. Adding a heavier rate spring to lift or a longer spring will have the same effect as moving the spring seat.
- Location
- Denton, TX
Thx for the insight. That's kinda what I thought. I looked into it quite awhile and this is what I decided to get until upgrading it all down the road. I chatted with a CPL guys that used the All Dogs lift springs with the 5100s and they enjoyed it with about the same weight I'll have so we'll see. I'm done second guessing.
BTW, thx for the deal on the Warn. I ended up just going we with the XRC9500
smittybilt. I figure when it dies if I used it much I'll upgrade then.
- Location
- Livermore, CA
does this axle shaft look new?
- Location
- Denver Adjacent
ufck yeah it does. Way new.
- Location
- Covington, Va
- Location
- Denver Adjacent
True story
westslope
Wheeling
- Location
- Wildfire country, BC
I guess that inoculates the site against the dreaded SCREAMING CAPS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! phenomena.
- Location
- Livermore, CA
Anyone torqued wheel spacers on the front wheels without someone else pressing the brakes? /how?
Length of 2x4 between brake pedal and seat, slide seat forward to depress pedal. Or put it in 4wd.
- Location
- Livermore, CA
Was thinking something like that might work. No 4wd, so that 2x4 in the corner of the garage may get some more use.
- Location
- Denver Adjacent
I use my wrench cheater bar. It's about 2.5ft of steel tube.
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
Yeah, when I did mine I took a piece of pipe and set it against the spacer in between the studs, let the hub turn until the pipe was then braced against the ground.
- Location
- Burtonsville, Md
Time for my Dumb question ;; It seem's to me that having a snorkel facing forward would catch a lot of water when it rain's ? Do the head's pivot around to help stop that or is there some other way that stop's water entry ?? I ask because I HAD a Buick GS 350 back in high school with the functional hood scoop/vent's and when it rained at say med type rain shower the engine would be stuttering, at a serious down pour I would pull over and wait it out !!
Last edited:
- Location
- Denver Adjacent
Snorkel heads are fine in the rain. The water hits the back wall of the head and runs out of the drain grooves. The problem is snow. Because of how snow moves, it goes all the way to the airbox. My old YJ had a snorkel. First snorked vehicle I'd ever owned. Stalled on me in a bad snowstorm because the neck of the snorkel filled with ice.
So. Snorkel heads. Fwd in rain, backwards in snow.
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
I've read through a few threads on one of the tacoma forums where people have been able to remove a coil spring from the front coilovers by leaving it attached, jacking up the LCA, unbolting the nut on the shock shaft and then lowering the LCA down until all of the pressure is released on the coil spring, removing the lower coilover bolt, and the removing the whole assembly.
I want to lower the 5100's I have down to the lowest notch because I'm getting annoying coil bind with the 1 inch lift perch and they handle the preload pretty terribly. I'd rather just replace the coils but I'm going to hold off and see which way the economy turns before spending any money on those so for now this seems like the easiest route. I can't use a rental spring compressor because of the lack of space between the coils and the method described above seems like the easiest/safest route but I was wondering has anyone actually tried it on an Xterra before?
I want to lower the 5100's I have down to the lowest notch because I'm getting annoying coil bind with the 1 inch lift perch and they handle the preload pretty terribly. I'd rather just replace the coils but I'm going to hold off and see which way the economy turns before spending any money on those so for now this seems like the easiest route. I can't use a rental spring compressor because of the lack of space between the coils and the method described above seems like the easiest/safest route but I was wondering has anyone actually tried it on an Xterra before?
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
Ah forgot about the UCA. I measured droop the other other day and I have 3" with everything connected so I'm thinking maybe 4" should be enough to safely unload the coil.
I was pretty skeptical of the whole idea too until I watched a few youtube videos of the process and it almost seems safer than those clamp on kits because at least the coil is somewhat contained. For good measure before doing anything else I could run a few tow straps around the coil to the frame.
- Location
- Denver Adjacent
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
Haha well I promise if I end up doing it and don't have any teeth afterwards I'll make it my avatar
meisanerd
Need Bigger Tires
- Location
- Edmonton, AB, Canada
Have a buddy take a video recording of it. That way, worst case you can post it to Youtube, collect the ad revenue when it goes viral, and pay your dental bills
- Location
- Livermore, CA
I feel like I’ve read about someone doing that on one of the Nissan forums... maybe ClubFrontier.
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
I'm trying to think through some suspension stuff and need a little outside help.
A few years ago PRG Greg put together a chart on TNX of the travel numbers most of the coilover options available for the X. He list 5.8" travel for the Bilstein 5100 on an otherwise stock truck but the actual length difference in the collapsed/extended 5100 is 4.71" at the coilover.
So I'm thinking the 5.8" of travel he listed is what it actually translates to at the wheel meaning the wheel can travel up/down 2.9" in either direction from its neutral position?
A few years ago PRG Greg put together a chart on TNX of the travel numbers most of the coilover options available for the X. He list 5.8" travel for the Bilstein 5100 on an otherwise stock truck but the actual length difference in the collapsed/extended 5100 is 4.71" at the coilover.
So I'm thinking the 5.8" of travel he listed is what it actually translates to at the wheel meaning the wheel can travel up/down 2.9" in either direction from its neutral position?
I remember reading Greg's thread over there, have you seen this other one though? Some good info re: shock and wheel travel numbers.
https://www.thenewx.org/threads/strut-length-and-travel-comparison.59917/
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
That one I found first for some reason. The difference in numbers I thought was weird, I lean towards trusting Gregs #'s a bit more because I'd hope he knew the actual specs given his business. And then he list additional droop coming from the SPC UCA's but that has to just be allowing more droop that was already there I think?
- Location
- Covington, Va
Greg's post is probably the most comprehensive of its type.
What exactly are you asking though?
The answer to your first question is yes the numbers translate to wheel travel.
Sorta like Nisstec says T-swapped can get 12" of travel, which it can't, 10.5" is T-swapped travel and that is without the shock in the mix at all. Ball joint bind to ball joint bind. Period.
Think about it like this. The wheel is outboard of the shock, if you draw a triangle with the outside line being wheel travel, then draw a line a little farther in on the same side, it will be shorter than the wheel travel line..... that's your shock travel.
Sorta like Nisstec says T-swapped can get 12" of travel, which it can't, 10.5" is T-swapped travel and that is without the shock in the mix at all. Ball joint bind to ball joint bind. Period.
Think about it like this. The wheel is outboard of the shock, if you draw a triangle with the outside line being wheel travel, then draw a line a little farther in on the same side, it will be shorter than the wheel travel line..... that's your shock travel.
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
That visual makes perfect sense, now I'm getting a better handle on it I think. Does wheel offset come into play at all by extending that outer point even further?
I'm trying nail down where my front coilovers are sitting at travel/stroke-wise when at their resting point. I'm getting some really weird suspension reactions to road imperfections lately that make me think somethings off. I was able to measure 3" of droop on both sides which doesn't really seem to be the issue, it's the uptravel that feels like it doesn't exist. I jacked up one of the LCA's under the balljoint area with a block of wood/bottle jack as high as it would go and it only went up almost exactly 1". Took it out to try and stuff the front wheels, basically more of the same thing, maybe slightly more travel but definitely not enough.
kryter
First Fill-Up (of many)
- Location
- Aurora Colorado
have choices an AT or a MT not my dd but I hate the noise,, more rock and dirt where I live thoughts?
- Location
- Covington, Va
I've got 30k miles on Cooper Discoverer AT3s. I've been really happy with them. We do a lot of family travel and on the east coast it's a fair mix of terrain.
No it doesn't Because wheel offset doesn't extend the same line of the triangle. That would be extending the bottom flat line of the triangle.
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
I read this last night as meaning auto or manual transmission but you lost me at at noise and rocks lol. Now that I've slept and my brain is working again if not a DD I'd lean towards MT's although I love my Toyo Open Country AT II's, here's the tread at 44,500 miles:
General_Tarfun
Sliders
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
Extending that bottom line would increase leverage, similar to a cheater pipe on a breaker bar so I'm thinking that could end up making the spring rate feel softer than it actually is. Or am I way off base?
westslope
Wheeling
- Location
- Wildfire country, BC
If you are serious about noise and rolling resistance, go with M&S/4 season tires. I never have a problem on loose rock on steep surfaces, old logging roads or skidder trails, vegetation growth permitting.
- Location
- Denver Adjacent
My. Life.MT's are a bit harsh for DD... ask me how I know.