Instantaneous G Force
I've seen a number of topics lately asking about how things are constructed, and it made me wonder... In a trailer, it relies on it's springs to stop sudden jerks and dips, and in a fifth wheel, m...
Forum Discussion
Hmm? This relates to my findings on different kinds of springs for suspensions.
My vote is for dumb old leaf springs. Why? Very little recoil. You get recoil with air bags, coil springs, anti-sway bars, torsion bars and the like. Leaf springs have a lot of drag or friction, even the ones with slippery shims between the leaves, which tends to act as a shock absorber, slowing down and mitigating any abrupt action, especially if you have many fine leaves, like the old WWII Willys and Ford Jeeps.
The rock racers have very exotic shocks with fine tuned valving, and a huge oil reservoir for banging across the desert or rocks. My bro tells me there are gurus that can make the shocks come alive and have the ability to dial-in and fine tune for the task at hand. For the real racers, this has become a fine art. Does it mean the shocks can do everything? I don't think so. I don't think a do-all shock can be anything more than a 'covers most situations' shock with much and high adjustability.
When on the Rubicon with my rock crawler, I adjust the shocks down to about medium. Why? It has too much resistance and rebound when traveling slowly grinding over the rocks. You want compliant. When on the highway going top speed (about 58 mph) I like the shocks on 9. It's a little stiffer but the control is much better since I have no anti-sway bars--just Rancho 9K's and dumb old leaf springs. One shock that's overlooked around these parts is the legendary KYB gas shock. Why do i like it? As you work the suspension more and more off road, the oil tends to heat up and make the shocks stiffer, which works well when you are whistling down the trail.
Just a bit more opinion for the suspension grist mill here.
regards, as always, jefe
My vote is for dumb old leaf springs. Why? Very little recoil. You get recoil with air bags, coil springs, anti-sway bars, torsion bars and the like. Leaf springs have a lot of drag or friction, even the ones with slippery shims between the leaves, which tends to act as a shock absorber, slowing down and mitigating any abrupt action, especially if you have many fine leaves, like the old WWII Willys and Ford Jeeps.
The rock racers have very exotic shocks with fine tuned valving, and a huge oil reservoir for banging across the desert or rocks. My bro tells me there are gurus that can make the shocks come alive and have the ability to dial-in and fine tune for the task at hand. For the real racers, this has become a fine art. Does it mean the shocks can do everything? I don't think so. I don't think a do-all shock can be anything more than a 'covers most situations' shock with much and high adjustability.
When on the Rubicon with my rock crawler, I adjust the shocks down to about medium. Why? It has too much resistance and rebound when traveling slowly grinding over the rocks. You want compliant. When on the highway going top speed (about 58 mph) I like the shocks on 9. It's a little stiffer but the control is much better since I have no anti-sway bars--just Rancho 9K's and dumb old leaf springs. One shock that's overlooked around these parts is the legendary KYB gas shock. Why do i like it? As you work the suspension more and more off road, the oil tends to heat up and make the shocks stiffer, which works well when you are whistling down the trail.
Just a bit more opinion for the suspension grist mill here.
regards, as always, jefe
