Bilstein Shocks

Kyle.malone · Feb 10, 2011

How can I figure out what size I need. I got a 3 1/2" suspension lift from Bronco Graveyard and am now ready to purchase shocks.. I have read that many are running 5100 and 7100. Will I really benefit by runnign the 7100 in the front and if so what will I gain. If you are runnign Bilstein and a 3 1/2" lift, what series are you running and which is the product number? Thanks!!

ZookBronc · Feb 10, 2011

What shock location set up do you have? Hoops? Or ??

JW · Feb 11, 2011

I got mine from Lee at raceshock.com very knowledgeable and good prices. I have the 5125's no res and they work great

73stallion · Feb 11, 2011

you need 7100 reservoir shocks up front, 12" short body (can't get this size in non reservoir), and just get a pair of 12" long 5125's for the rear. and i agree with JW, call lee at www.raceshock.com , tell him you're a member here and he offers a discount.

1970mule · Feb 11, 2011

73stallion said:
you need 7100 reservoir shocks up front, 12" short body (can't get this size in non reservoir), and just get a pair of 12" long 5125's for the rear. and i agree with JW, call lee at www.raceshock.com , tell him you're a member here and he offers a discount.

hey ben i thought you need 14" for the 3 1/2" lift. i forgot what the stock size runs?

Louie · Feb 11, 2011

I went with the 5100 series shocks Bilstein has listed in their catalog for an early Bronco with a 2-4" lift in the stock mount location. They won't say what the valving is...it's supposedly proprietary info to Bilstein.

I've had them on there for almost 2 years now and a couple thousand miles. I think they're great with my Wild horses 2.5" lift! No sway. Not too soft, or harsh. Think they did a good job

Not sure why more people don't use these.

Kyle.malone · Feb 11, 2011

ZookBronc said:
What shock location set up do you have? Hoops? Or ??

I have the stock locations.

deltarat · Feb 11, 2011

73stallion said:
you need 7100 reservoir shocks up front, 12" short body (can't get this size in non reservoir), and just get a pair of 12" long 5125's for the rear. and i agree with JW, call lee at www.raceshock.com , tell him you're a member here and he offers a discount.

I have 7100s as well, but without the reservoir. I thought they were 12" but they may be 14s. Talk to Lee and listen to him. He said I needed 7100s, but I cheaped out and went with 5125s and they didn't do the job and had to buy the 7100s anyway. 3 1/2" lift and F250 shock mounts.

prosys1 · Feb 22, 2011

73stallion said:
you need 7100 reservoir shocks up front, 12" short body (can't get this size in non reservoir), and just get a pair of 12" long 5125's for the rear. and i agree with JW, call lee at www.raceshock.com , tell him you're a member here and he offers a discount.

What would these run for all 4 shocks?

GrillMaster · Feb 22, 2011

The fronts are about $175/ea. not sure what Lee's discount is. I cant seem to get a hold of him. See my recent thread in the Tech forum. Some good info there.

May want to do the F250 upgrade before you invest in the shocks. At least look into it. More travel!

prosys1 · Feb 22, 2011

GrillMaster said:
The fronts are about $175/ea. not sure what Lee's discount is. I cant seem to get a hold of him. See my recent thread in the Tech forum. Some good info there.

May want to do the F250 upgrade before you invest in the shocks. At least look into it. More travel!

I saw on his website that he had a special on the 7100's for $95 each. Not sure if they are the correct ones for my application.
Maybe down the road, but for now the budget is for the WH shocks. They should be good enough for the amount of driving and rock crawling I plan on doing.

prosys1 · Feb 22, 2011

Besides, I don't think my ass or my eyesight could tell the difference......

trailpsycho · Feb 22, 2011

prosys1 said:
Besides, I don't think my ass or my eyesight could tell the difference......

...so is that what too many years of driving a 'cruiser' will do for you? Or is it like the Jeep thing that burns when you pee?:-X;D

Sorry, man, it was just too easy...

Actually, believe it or not, there can be quite a difference in ride...and who cares what it looks like...if it looks good but rides like crap, then whats the point? The WH shocks may be fine, but there is a reason ALOT of folks spend the money for the Bilsteins or better. Welcome to Classic.

Socal Tom · Feb 22, 2011

Read this
http://www.broncoholics.com/support/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1256
Tom

prosys1 · Feb 22, 2011

trailpsycho said:
...so is that what too many years of driving a 'cruiser' will do for you? Or is it like the Jeep thing that burns when you pee?:-X;D

Sorry, man, it was just too easy...

Actually, believe it or not, there can be quite a difference in ride...and who cares what it looks like...if it looks good but rides like crap, then whats the point? The WH shocks may be fine, but there is a reason ALOT of folks spend the money for the Bilsteins or better. Welcome to Classic.

Here's a pic of my Cruiser rear bumper.....I'm going to get more of these made.

prosys1 · Feb 22, 2011

You guys have to realize that the wife and I have always wanted an EB. When we first started looking back in '90, there wasn't anything available in our price range. So we bought the Cruiser. (pic inculded) Sold that back in '07 to pay off my Goldwing (couldn't afford the gas in my Tahoe). Now I've bought a project '68 EB and am going to town.
Problem is the budget is tight right now and I can't afford the Bilsteins. Maybe down the road. Just have to get it trail worthy by mid May for the Mountain Toppers poker run up near Shaver Lake, CA. Been going every year since '91. Some of you should try it. It's great.

GrillMaster · Feb 22, 2011

I seems to me the best cheep option is the Rancho 9000 adjustable shock. Someone on here said they were $50/ea. If you want to buy a super cheep you can look for some used shocks I guess. I just sold some Rancho 5000s for nothing.

prosys1 · Feb 23, 2011

I had RS9000's on my Cruiser and I guess they were OK. I really don't have anything to compare them too. I thought maybe the WH shocks would be a good first choice for a fair price. Plus, I'm just getting started......not sure what I'm going to do with lift, tire size, motor and trans combo. After MT Toppers, I'll re-evaluate the direction I want to go.
Thx for the input.

Terkish · Feb 23, 2011

A lot of people seem to like the RS9000's. I am not one of them. They are what is currently on my EB. On a previous EB I had a 3.5 lift from Duff with the duff shocks. I really liked the way it road. Extreme difference over the RS9000's I have now. Could be spring factor in there to. I am currently in the market for a new lift set up and I think I'm going to go with WH they are close to me for shipping and their shock description closely matches Duff's. Some day I will up grade to a remote mount reservoir type shock. My 2¢

fishbronco · Feb 23, 2011

almost all toyota tacoma shock upgrades use 5100s... way better than anything rancho.

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