10k mile review:
Ironman Foam Cell Pro "Stage 2":
Stock load springs
with UCAs
no new trackbar or KDSS spacers (wasn't offered at the time, not sure I need them as my 'lean' is the same as stock 3/8~1/2" depending upon gas tank etc).
I do have some 'armor' as far as full aluminum skids and steel sliders (mostly front suspension weight).
It was under $1400 bucks shipped at the start of the pandemic... not sure I'd pay the current pandemic pricing for these or others (availability is non-existent across the board it would seem).
The on road ride has been good. Not too rough or too soft. Nice and controlled. Washboards have been excellent compared to stock. No noticeable fade where as stock I could feel things get soft quite quickly. Alignment tracks very well.
Rear springs have settled out at 1.75" of lift. Front coilovers are adjusted to the same lift over stock.
I've seen discussion here and some youtube videos about if the coilovers are adjustable on the vehicle. I can tell you that I have adjusted them using the following tools and steps.
Tools:
1) Ironman spanner wrench (7mm pin with a 17, 18, and 19mm hex cutouts [outside to inside of spanner], also note that this tool is beefy but I don't think they cut the hex cutouts to proper specs as I had to 'press-fit' my sockets and tap them out... tight)
2) 17mm allen socket (maximum leverage)
3) "breaker bar" (I used an 3/8" torque wrench)
4) Adapter for 17mm allen to breaker bar
5) Oil / lube (NOT WD-40)
6) 3mm allen wrench
Steps:
1) Measure height of fender to center of hub distance.
2) Subtract target height of fender to center of hub distance from measurement of 1.
3) Multiply value from step 2 by .69. This is the amount you will want to move the adjustment collar up or down.
4) Put on your PPE (glasses, gloves, etc.)
5) Make vehicle safe to work on (chalk tires etc.)
6) Loosen lug nuts (do not remove) with vehicle on the ground (remove center caps if required)
7) Jack up vehicle safely to lift wheel assembly off the ground
8) Place vehicle on appropriate jack stands and remove vehicle weight from jack
9) Remove lug nuts and wheel assembly
10) Lube threads of shock body above and below adjustment and locking collar along with joint of upper adjustment collar and spring seat collar.
11) Loosen (and remove if you'd like) set screws of adjustment and locking collar using a 3mm allen wrench
12) Loosen locking collar using the Ironman spanner wrench, 17mm allen socket, and breaker bar by turning counterclockwise a minimal amount (if reducing height, move collar down by the value in step 3).
13) Raise/lower adjustment collar by the value in step 3 using the Ironman spanner wrench, 17mm allen socket, and breaker bar by turning clockwise/counterCW (this will not be easy and will require lots of elbow grease and positioning but it can be done)
14) Reverse order of disassembly.
15) Drive around, verify you are happy with the setting, adjust as needed, go get alignment.
No spring compressor or removal of coilover required. The only thing removed from the vehicle is the appropriate wheels. No suspension (LCA, Steering Knuckle ball joints, KDSS, etc) hardware needs to be touched.
Now to address some concerns people have had over the 'foam cell pro' designs.
1) Foam! It's not oil that is foamed, it is closed cell foam (like a yoga mat or a wetsuit material)
2) Since the bubbles are encased in the closed cell foam, they don't mix with the oil
3) Since the foam is compressible (flexible rubber/nitrile/etc like o-ring material with compressible gas), thermal expansion / contraction is easily managed without the complexity of external accumulators (remote reservoirs), extra seals, etc.
4) The oil capacity is near 100% and the oil will surround the foam providing a high level of convection to the outer body (gas in an external reservoir is unlikely to convect a large amount of heat away from the oil since they are only connected through a small hose and gasses are generally poor at transferring heat)
5) As the oil heats up, the foam will compress and the system will build some pressure. Without getting into True Vapor Pressure / Reid / Vapor over Liquid ratios, it's unlikely that cavitation is a concern. The piston acts as a pump and creates a 'high' pressure side that pushes fluid to the 'low' pressure side.
6) The eyelets and other connections being rubber instead of metal to metal like heim joints (spherical bearings) provides an OEM level of noise vibration harness characteristics with high reliability.
Foam Cell Pro Testing - Ironman 4x4
Looks like they tested their setup on a shock dyno on a 200 series. While there is subjectivity to valving such as progressive, linear, and digressive, if you're not planning on the running the Baja 10 million, then these are probably a good option presuming the price is right.
