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Tips
Tips

Shocking thoughts

71tr

Jedi Warrior
Offline
I will be replacing the tube shocks both front and rear on my TR6 very soon. Any comments, opinions, experience with Spax, KBY, Koni, Other would be appreciated. My driving style is fast road. Also, suggestions for most economical source would be useful.
 
I have (and love) Konis, only problem is that you must remove them to adjust.
 
The Ratco coil-over for the rears is an interesting thought.
 
might want to go to the AVO shocks site. they have fully adjustable ones but shipping might be $$$$.i have heard they are better than spax and externally adjustable.
rob
 
I have the BPNW tube conversion that came with the KYB shocks. I didn't really care for the shocks, thought they were too stiff for me. I changed to Spax, they are adjustable from the rear with easy access. Anyway, I still have the brand-new KYB shocks from the kit. If you want them, you can have them just for the cost of shipping, which would probably be 15-20 bucks.
They are new.

Let me know. You stated that cost was important. Free is good.
 
The Spax work well on my car and can be adjusted fairly easily with a slot screwdriver with a long blade.
I had a set of the non-adjustable KYB but felt they did not control the spring motion adequately (too soft). I am using stiffer springs than stock, so they would probably work well with stock springs.
Simon.
 
British Parts Northwest is showing front SPAX for the TR6 at $180/pair which is the best price I've seen. Apparent part number is G479. Thanks everyone for the input.
 
Hi,

Konis are great and are what I use on the front of my TR4 (rears are Armstrong levers). The adjustability of Konis means that they last a long, long time. One set I have is 30+ years old and still work fine.

Konis are also rebuildable, although to be honest it's almost as expensive as buying a brand new set.

Some day maybe I'll modify things a bit and use aluminum-bodied Koni coil-overs... right after I win the lottery.

BTW, there is a way to adjust standard Konis without removing them. However it means making up a special tool for the purpose and cutting a hole in the car's inner fender to give access. The coil-overs would be much easier to adjust. I'm not certain of it, but they might also be double adjustable. The standard type are single adjustable.

Also FYI, apparently Koni now offered for TR2/3/4 front end are identical to those for TR4A through TR6. The last set I ordered (using the old part number) now comes with the "shield" or "cap" over the push rod, where the originals didn't. The rating is the same, since the weight of the cars is practically the same. It's mostly just a cosmetic difference (the Koni logo and color of the shock have changed too), but to be sure check for any clearance issues if running coil springs with the thick aluminum spacers on top. Seems okay on my car with the original stock 1-1/4" spacers, but I plan to use some custom thinner spacers to lower the car a bit and plan to check clearances carefully.

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cheers.gif
 
Am I the only one that finds the stock type stuff to be adequate?

I have the regular $30 moss shocks on the front (are they KYBs? - I forget) and rebuilt lever arms on the back and am quite happy with the performance. Especially the difference between new parts and the old...

In the interests of total disclosure, the rest of the suspension is rebuilt with nylatron, stiffer springs and stiffer swaybars, but I have yet to find the shocks a limiting factor.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Am I the only one that finds the stock type stuff to be adequate?

[/ QUOTE ]Not at all! Ironically, many folks never end up comparing apples to apples; rather, they'll ditch worn-out, 40-year-old OEM shocks in favor of brand-new Konis or the like. Sure it's bound to be a drastic improvment, but sometimes so is simply topping off the rear lever shocks with fluid and putting new OEM (or equivalent) shocks on the front.

Meanwhile, I'm also a Koni fan, having had them on Spitfires, GT6s and Volvo 140 series cars. In all cases, I did "compare apples to apples" and was very pleased at the improvement in each application.

Unfortunately, having Konis rebuilt nowadays generally costs a good deal MORE than you might pay on sale for brand-new ones. If Koni no longer makes the shock (or if the current shock they supply isn't quite like the original, as seems to be the case with Spitfire front shocks), then it might be worthwhile to have old Konis rebuilt. I'm still debating which way to go on a pair of Koni front shocks for a Herald/Spitfire. On the other hand, the reason I can't use one of them is that it appears to be bound up/rusted from years of bad storage (or possibly an internal problem). Every other Koni I ever had I was never able to come close to "wearing out"!
 
The original lever shocks on my six were in terrible shape so I had them rebuilt by apple. They did a great job but then I decided on the complete frame off and while upgrading so many items decided to "upgrade" to the tube conversion.

There must be a latin or greek word for the psychosis that we have for these LBC's. I hardly think twice about spending money on this rebuild but when my SAAB daily driver needs new shocks I go with the more economical solution. What am I crazy?!
 
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