Bilstein 7100 Shocks.

[RustyPW]

When I went to Moab this year. I had King 2.5 shocks on the rear of my PW. I like the shocks, but the draw back to them for me was the reservoir. Be cause the reservoir is mounted on the shock. I had to move my spare tire to the bed. Well, I use my bed to haul things. So I had to get rid of the King 2.5's so I could mout my spare back under the truck. So I got Bilstein 7100's for the front and rear. I used them at Rausch Creek with good results. They handled my 35', 8,600 lb camper with no problems. With all the slow going at Rausch Creek with major flex. they handled that too. I'm happy with them for now. Here's a picture show of the install.

[RustyPW]

More pic's.

[RustyPW]

More pic's.

[azracer]

Hows the ride on the 7100 compare to the 2.5" stage 2 valving Thuren ride? I may be facing this issue too because I want to put my 35" spare under the bed also. I did not have an issue though with the OEM tire. I just got my 35" spare as they were on national back order for months (Yokohama AT 315/70/17). I did see I had 2" the tire could move back (over the OEM spare location) and hoped that if I found a way to keep the tire against the OEM hitch (ratchet strap) I could make it clear both the Diff cover and the shock reservoirs. I'm also thinking of flipping the shock over and adding boots or guards to protect the shafts similar to your 7100 shocks.

The reservoirs on mine are a little further away from the heim and as such they may just clear the underside of the bed, IDK for sure but I'm going to look into it because if you had issues with a 35" spare and did not see any way to make it work then I'm likely SOL too. The shock and reservoir if flipped may just clear the axle too IDK. I guess I need to check all the fitment issues first. The rock crusher is going to be very close too I suspect. I also want my bed open too as I haul stuff in it as well and now that I have my spare tire back I'm going to likely face this too.

[azracer]

Why does it crop the photo in my above post and not just re-size it? Or is it just me seeing it cropped?

KP - I resized the photo and attached it.

Mark - AKA Cactus Red

[RustyPW]

Ken, the ride between the two shocks for me is close. As I do street and slow off-roading. Fast desert traveling. I don't know how the two shocks would compare. As for the rock crusher clearance with the a 35". My stock 33" tire would hit it. I use it as a extra bump stop with the 35". To hit the cover, both outer bump stops have to hit at the sametime almost.

[TwinStick]

Rusty--- aren't those the 5160 Bilstein shocks ? Or are the 7100's w/resivoir something new ? Never seen them before ?

EDIT : NEVERMIND-FOUND THEM !

[Cactus Red]

Russ, did you ever have the Bilstein 5100's on the truck? If so, how much change did you feel from that?

...To hit the cover, both outer bump stops have to hit at the sametime almost.

That's the same with the DT ProFab cover.

[RustyPW]

Russ, did you ever have the Bilstein 5100's on the truck? If so, how much change did you feel from that?

...To hit the cover, both outer bump stops have to hit at the sametime almost.

That's the same with the DT ProFab cover.

Never had the 5100's on the PW. Just Ken's old King 2.5's on the rear. The 7100's ride good on the street. Small bumps you won't notice them. The big stuff is handled nicely. for what I did at Rausch Creek this past weekend. They worked good too for that type of off-roading.

[fbenross]

dumb Q... why would need a shock with a resivor on a PW any way ?

[pdavey]

dumb Q... why would need a shock with a resivor on a PW any way ?

Dumb answer. Why Not? Or cause it looks cool

Actually I did mine so I would have better control on fire roads at a higher rate of speed.

Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk 2

[AceMan]

Or just to drive fast through Philly's unmaintained streets. If anyone's driven in Philly, you'll know what I mean. The Rausch Power Line Rd and mist if the Green trails are in better shape.

Posted by a Carrier Pigeon suffering from malnutrition enhanced by Borg ENIAC nanobots deiven by a TRS-80 mobile @2.4k baud.

[FirerescuePW]

Extra fluid. Better cooling of said fluid. Low speed wheeling with lots of suspension movement will heat the fluid. Not like high speed, but enough to feel the difference if you are at it for hours at a time.

Sent from an undisclosed location.

[coder]

I have progressed up through various levels of shocks in my PW and here is what I noticed:

OEM Bilstein's PW specific valving:
- compliant and absorbent but not overly soft
- some noticeable side to side sway
- when pushed hard they go right to the bump-stops
- they fade when pushed hard for a long period

Bilstein 5100's:
- somewhat stiffer than the OEM's
- a more controlled feel than the OEM's not as much side to side sway
- when pushed hard they go right to the bump-stops
- they fade when pushed hard for a long period

Bilstein 7100's with Carli Performance 2.0 PW valving:
- slightly stiffer than the 5100's
- the more you push them the better they feel
- when pushed hard they don't go right to the bump-stops but resist
- they don't noticeable fade when pushed hard for a long period

King 2.5" Pin-Tops with Carli Hemi valving:.
- like driving a high-end sports car around town
- its like being glued to the road, but you feel every imperfection
- no sway in the corners, the more you push them the better they like it
- I can do 45-50 mph down a dirt road and hit fairly sizable ruts and bumps comfortably
- on rough roads I find myself waiting for the "wam bam" on big bumps but nothing happens, just a soft thump
- no fading when pushed hard for a long period

Here's a picture of my shock test route a 30 mile long, straight shot, maintenance road, in the Mojave desert's Ward valley.

[ldgregory]

I have progressed up through various levels of shocks in my PW and here is what I noticed:

OEM Bilstein's PW specific valving:
- compliant and absorbent but not overly soft
- some noticeable side to side sway
- when pushed hard they go right to the bump-stops
- they get real hot and fade when pushed hard for a long period

Bilstein 5100's:
- somewhat stiffer than the OEM's
- a more controlled feel than the OEM's not as much side to side sway
- when pushed hard they go right to the bump-stops
- they get real hot and fade when pushed hard for a long period

Bilstein 7100's with Carli Performance 2.0 PW valving:
- slightly stiffer than the 5100's
- the more you push them the better they feel
- when pushed hard they don't go right to the bump-stops but resist
- they get hot but don't noticeable fade when pushed hard for a long period

King 2.5" Pin-Tops with Carli Hemi valving:.
- like driving a high-end sports car around town
- its like being glued to the road, but you feel every imperfection
- no sway in the corners, the more you push them the better they like it
- I can do 45-50 mph down a dirt road and hit fairly sizable ruts and bumps comfortably
- on rough roads I find myself waiting for the "wam bam" on big bumps but nothing happens, just a soft thump
- no excessive heat or fading when pushed hard for a long period

Here's a picture of my shock test route a 30 mile long, straight shot, maintenance road, in the Mojave desert's Ward valley.

Wow! That's some awesome info. Thanks for putting that together. That needs to go in the FAQ Cactus Red.

[Juday]

Damn! You've spent some money on some good shocks! It's great to have actual first hand experience with the different kinds though! I know what you mean about the King shocks. I had a set of custom valved Sway-A-Way coilovers, then a set of RadFlo coilovers on the front of my Titan. Those babies could take dips/bumps GREAT, but MAN you felt every little imperfection in the road.

[azracer]

Another reason for reservoirs is to take the gas separation piston/chamber out of the shock body to provide more piston travel within the same length shock body. To put it another way... You can put in a longer shock shaft in the same shock body. If you had done the front shocks Rusty did w/o an external reservoir the up travel would have been reduced by almost 3". So that shock would not have worked with the pintop adapter on top of it. If the gas chamber had to be put back in the shock body the shock travel would be reduced by a great deal. You would have needed a longer shock and a shock tower adapter to make the longer shock body work for even OEM shock travel.

Just my opinion but a 2.5" pintop shock with an external reservoir would yield not only maximum travel but superb fade resistance and as a result maximum oil life, while giving a great ride on or off road. I went a little over the top with a long travel short body. I can get 12" of shock travel where a 10" shock body is being used. Suffice it to say I have yet to figure out how to get the use of that last inch or so of droop LOL. I do get full stock (OEM) up travel though. The Thuren 2.5" long travel short 10" body 12" travel shock on my rig yields just about 11" of travel. If I can figure out a way to get that last inch of droop I will report how I did it, but I'm not too motivated as I'm very happy with the travel I have now. For reference OEM shocks are way under 9" and a 2.5" pintop is just a smidgen under 10". While the 2.5" 10" shock with Thuren towers is a full 10" of travel and the 12" short body can yield up to 12" of travel, however right now my sway bar links seem to be my limiting factor for droop to achieve that 12" maximum travel.

FYI: I can get my 2.5" front so hot you can not touch them for very long. But the bypass shocks on the rear are fairly cool in comparison. I know the weight is a big factor but I believe the bypass plays a role in heat build up too.

[Ducky's Dad]

...As for the rock crusher clearance with the a 35". My stock 33" tire would hit it. I use it as a extra bump stop with the 35". To hit the cover, both outer bump stops have to hit at the sametime almost.

Rusty, I am confused. If the 33" spare was hitting the RockCrusher, how did you get a 35" spare under there? Or did you? I have a RockCrusher and was hoping to put one of my old Toyo 35s under there as a spare when I mount up new tires on my H2 wheels. Doesn't look like the Toyo 35 will fit, and I need the bed for hauling.

[RustyPW]

Hey Ducky. The only time that I know when the spare tire hit the diff cover is if I look for marks on the cover. Because I can't feel it when it hits. And I think both bump stops have to hit at the same time to do that. If you're flexed, I don't think it hits. I've been running a 35" spare under under the bed ever since I went to 35's, and that's been 4yrs.

[Ducky's Dad]

Thx.

[ACRucrazy]

After you have had several months with the 7100 and airbags, would you do it again if you could? I am looking at the same setup for my PW.

[RustyPW]

Yea, I would do it again. It fits my needs. The 7100 shocks ride nice on the street, and control really well off-road. This past weekend. I had the camper loaded to over 9,000 lbs. Took it to Ocean City Md for my honeymoon. Only needed 30 psi in the air bags. Towed with no problems. Gas mileage sucked. 4.6 mpg going over the mountains of WV on RT68.

[vanished]

Sounds like when I get into the mountains - hard to stay out of 3rd gear and 5000 Rpms... Lol. Unless you creep up them at 35 mph!

[Will]

I replaced my shocks not too long ago, (before I stumbled on this forum) I wanted something different than stock and thought the actual Bilsteins were the same as stock... I didn't have the funds for the Kings and then I found the Rancho 9000 adjustable with a Power Wagon Specific shock. I don't know, you guys will probably know more than me and this may have been a mistake and granted I waited a little long and my stockers were like driving on four basketballs but they are way better than the stock and I'm super pleased with them so far. You can set them to your preference. I ended up dialing them up more and more and realized I like them on the stiffest settings. The truck is much more responsive. Certain bumps I hit everyday I barely even notice now. They do a good job absorbing those "oh crap" bumps that sneak up on you that you don't have time to slow to a crawl, I've found myself saying, "Dang, that wasn't near as bad as it looked". I had some pictures but can't find them (sorry) of the install. Of course they are direct replacement. Much bigger in diameter. I'd say they eliminated 80% of the side to side sway I had. I also went with the steering stabilizer and the front end feels much more "together" and controllable. I spent a total of $430 for all 5 shocks. I've had them on for about 10k miles so far and still like them. Maybe next round I can upgrade again to the Kings but for now, I do believe these are an excellent choice that meets in the middle.
Rancho RS999058 Rear
Rancho RS999044 Front
Rancho RS7416 Steering

http://www.gorancho.com/shock_lookup.ph ... &x=40&y=12

[SheepdogOutdoorsman]

I had Rancho 9,000 series shocks on my '07 1500 4x4 and loved them ... I think for the HD's though they may be too weak. Especially with bigger tires.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk