Suspension....To Resi or not To Resi, that is the question!

jstim

New member
So I added all the armor to my 99(Full Shrockworks treatment), and Radflo 2.0 no longer cuts the mustard. I know I need at a minimum a 2.5, with a 650# spring. I have and in the back of my mind am considering a 700# spring. Here is the nitty gritty, I wanted ADS, or King adjustable valving. Apparently that doesn't sound like it's an option, neither even have the remote resivoir CO. Is it worth it to have the Resi? Or should I just avoid the pain of having the Resi? I'd like some solid insight on the pros and cons. I'm going change out the rear shocks too in the next 6 months as well.
 
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So I added all the armor to my 99(Full Shrockworks treatment), and Radflo 2.0 no longer cuts the mustard. I know I need at a minimum a 2.5, with a 650# spring. I have and in the back of my mind am considering a 700# spring. Here is the nitty gritty, I wanted ADS, or King adjustable valving. Apparently that doesn't sound like it's an option, neither even have the remote resivoir CO. Is it worth it to have the Resi? Or should I just avoid the pain of having the Resi? I'd like some solid insight on the pros and cons. I'm going change out the rear shocks too in the next 6 months as well.

From what I have gathered and noticed on some rigs is the front really dont need the Resi. The rear shocks seem to fade out quicker so the resi works really well in the rear. But again, resi is always better!!
 
So I added all the armor to my 99(Full Shrockworks treatment), and Radflo 2.0 no longer cuts the mustard. I know I need at a minimum a 2.5, with a 650# spring. I have and in the back of my mind am considering a 700# spring. Here is the nitty gritty, I wanted ADS, or King adjustable valving. Apparently that doesn't sound like it's an option, neither even have the remote resivoir CO. Is it worth it to have the Resi? Or should I just avoid the pain of having the Resi? I'd like some solid insight on the pros and cons. I'm going change out the rear shocks too in the next 6 months as well.

I have nearly 3" of preload on my 650lb springs to get me 2.5" of lift. My coils aren't hitting each other yet, so I am not "springing" for the 700lb springs yet.:mullet: I had them on my old coilovers and I much prefer the ride with the 650s.

My experience with Radflo is limited to [MENTION=82154]GSPRunner[/MENTION]'s old shocks (2.5" body with a 2" piggyback) and I did not care for them at all. Paired with his King coilovers up front, they sure as hell were lacking.

As for reservoirs... What kind of wheeling are you into? I got them because I like to do more of the "go fast" type stuff and with my 4Runner weighing around 6000lbs when loaded for a trip, I knew I would probably want that extra fluid capacity in order to avoid shock fade.

What do you mean King doesn't have adjustable valving? I am not familiar with ADS, but I have seen adjustable Kings with my own two eyes =)

EDIT**

Really though, if you're not drastically changing your vehicle's weight, the adjustable valving is more of a luxury than anything. I stiffen mine up when I have the tent on top, heavy ass cooler, dogs, wife, etc. Soften it up when daily driving or when too lazy to air down lol.
 
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So I added all the armor to my 99(Full Shrockworks treatment), and Radflo 2.0 no longer cuts the mustard. I know I need at a minimum a 2.5, with a 650# spring. I have and in the back of my mind am considering a 700# spring. Here is the nitty gritty, I wanted ADS, or King adjustable valving. Apparently that doesn't sound like it's an option, neither even have the remote resivoir CO. Is it worth it to have the Resi? Or should I just avoid the pain of having the Resi? I'd like some solid insight on the pros and cons. I'm going change out the rear shocks too in the next 6 months as well.

I have the Radflo 2.5 Resi on my '00 and found the resi's were a bit of a challenge to mount, and I ended up re-mounting the rear ones twice and the front ones 3 times. I'm glad I have the resis but I wish the Radflo resi setup was a bit more put-together like the Icon which has vehicle-specific brackets designed to mount the reservoirs instead of universal brackets.

Overall I'm glad I have the resis for the peace of mind as I know I will have no worries of my shocks fading or overheating. So if you have the finances I'd say go for it. If your budget is tight I'd say they're not totally necessary and your rig will still function capably without them.

You could also send your shocks back to Radflo and they could add resis to your 2.0's.
 
I have the Radflo 2.5 Resi on my '00 and found the resi's were a bit of a challenge to mount, and I ended up re-mounting the rear ones twice and the front ones 3 times. I'm glad I have the resis but I wish the Radflo resi setup was a bit more put-together like the Icon which has vehicle-specific brackets designed to mount the reservoirs instead of universal brackets.

Overall I'm glad I have the resis for the peace of mind as I know I will have no worries of my shocks fading or overheating. So if you have the finances I'd say go for it. If your budget is tight I'd say they're not totally necessary and your rig will still function capably without them.

You could also send your shocks back to Radflo and they could add resis to your 2.0's.

I imagine Icon would sell you some brackets for a very, very steep mark up haha.

Are you running Radflo coilovers too? I wonder how their "linear" valving would feel up front.
 
I have nearly 3" of preload on my 650lb springs to get me 2.5" of lift. My coils aren't hitting each other yet, so I am not "springing" for the 700lb springs yet.:mullet: I had them on my old coilovers and I much prefer the ride with the 650s.

My experience with Radflo is limited to [MENTION=82154]GSPRunner[/MENTION]'s old shocks (2.5" body with a 2" piggyback) and I did not care for them at all. Paired with his King coilovers up front, they sure as hell were lacking.

As for reservoirs... What kind of wheeling are you into? I got them because I like to do more of the "go fast" type stuff and with my 4Runner weighing around 6000lbs when loaded for a trip, I knew I would probably want that extra fluid capacity in order to avoid shock fade.

What do you mean King doesn't have adjustable valving? I am not familiar with ADS, but I have seen adjustable Kings with my own two eyes =)

EDIT**

Really though, if you're not drastically changing your vehicle's weight, the adjustable valving is more of a luxury than anything. I stiffen mine up when I have the tent on top, heavy ass cooler, dogs, wife, etc. Soften it up when daily driving or when too lazy to air down lol.

I do a lot of camping, I use it to get around hunting, I daily drive my rig a lot, and I do find myself going probably faster than I should through so fire breaks, dirt roads, stuff like that. I did not spend the money initially to get what I wanted, I went cheap with the Radflo option. It was great while it didn't have any armor on it, but as soon as I added that, I am back to my 265/75/16 rubbing on occasion now. I just want it to be right now. I want it to be fully functional, no longer rubbing. I would really like to feel like I can wheel my truck again without compressing the bejesus out of my current coilover. When I go out and wheel, I am like you, my better half, me, 2 dogs, cooler, and everything.

I have checked the King site, and they don't have the adjustable valving for the fronts that I have seen. I know they have it for the rears. I am ok with the stiffer ride that the 700# spring will provide. I am hoping it will help decrease the amount of preload that I need as well, since its so much stiffer.
 
I have the Radflo 2.5 Resi on my '00 and found the resi's were a bit of a challenge to mount, and I ended up re-mounting the rear ones twice and the front ones 3 times. I'm glad I have the resis but I wish the Radflo resi setup was a bit more put-together like the Icon which has vehicle-specific brackets designed to mount the reservoirs instead of universal brackets.

Overall I'm glad I have the resis for the peace of mind as I know I will have no worries of my shocks fading or overheating. So if you have the finances I'd say go for it. If your budget is tight I'd say they're not totally necessary and your rig will still function capably without them.

You could also send your shocks back to Radflo and they could add resis to your 2.0's.

The 2.0's that I have only have a 550# spring. It needs to go up to at least 650, and if I am going to spend the money to up grade that spring. I might as well just buy new COs. My experience with Radflo has not been the best. The coils were a giant PITA to adjust from the beginning, the adjustment wrench I bought from them tore up the adjusting collars on top. They were good enough for what I needed before all the extra stuff, now they just aren't enough.
 
well having 2.5 resi adjustable kings with 700lb springs fronts and 2.5 resi adjustable rears with ome 861.
felt like i need it all beefed up components with all the steel placed on the truck. i.e. shrockwork, cbi and budbuilts.
My rig is more of a expo rig, not quite crawler set up but it does really well. its awesome if your daily driving or driving hours 4+ to get to trails. It works great on trail and crawling,it pretty much out performs my willingness to push it that far both on speed and crawling since most trips are solo.

fronts mounted with access to the adjustors
IMG_4596_zpsbi3cbzeo.jpg~original


rears compared to 5100. unit mounts so the adjustors are pretty easy to get to
IMG_4600_zpsvsoatztn.jpg~original
 
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well having 2.5 resi adjustable kings with 700lb springs fronts and 2.5 resi adjustable rears with ome 861.
felt like i need it all beefed up components with all the steel placed on the truck. i.e. shrockwork, cbi and budbuilts.
My rig is more of a expo rig, not quite crawler set up but it does really well. its awesome if your daily driving or driving hours 4+ to get to trails. It works great on trail and crawling,it pretty much out performs my willingness to push it that far both on speed and crawling since most trips are solo.

IMG_4596_zpsbi3cbzeo.jpg~original

What part number are those coils? Are they actually the Taco coils that fit our rigs? How's the ride with the 700s?
 
So I added all the armor to my 99(Full Shrockworks treatment), and Radflo 2.0 no longer cuts the mustard. I know I need at a minimum a 2.5, with a 650# spring. I have and in the back of my mind am considering a 700# spring. Here is the nitty gritty, I wanted ADS, or King adjustable valving. Apparently that doesn't sound like it's an option, neither even have the remote resivoir CO. Is it worth it to have the Resi? Or should I just avoid the pain of having the Resi? I'd like some solid insight on the pros and cons. I'm going change out the rear shocks too in the next 6 months as well.

what headache are to talking for the resi? i to just installed icon 2.5 cdc ( adjustable dampening ) with 650lbs. I have full armor plus winch. Im not worried at all!

quick question, how do you measure your coilovers properly to know how much lift you have ?
 
what headache are to talking for the resi? i to just installed icon 2.5 cdc ( adjustable dampening ) with 650lbs. I have full armor plus winch. Im not worried at all!

quick question, how do you measure your coilovers properly to know how much lift you have ?

I measured my lift going from the ground to the center of the wheel well. The headache with the Resi I was talking about is the hose getting in the way sometimes.
 
I measured my lift going from the ground to the center of the wheel well. The headache with the Resi I was talking about is the hose getting in the way sometimes.

If you get the proper length hose or right shock made. You'll be fine. I just mounted my front coilovers with resi. And right away though, I noticed it will be impossible to do oil change because the resi blocks the oil filter lol!

I understand measuring from center hub to fender. But if I remember correctly you can measure the gal between the plate you twist and top of shock ? Just not 100%o

Actually just found a great video

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rKUUmbhUrpg
 
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What part number are those coils? Are they actually the Taco coils that fit our rigs? How's the ride with the 700s?

[MENTION=110387]jstim[/MENTION] , just give King a call and tell them you would like to add resis to a set of their Performance OEM coilovers and they should be able to take it from there. :cheers:

What would need to happen would be they would have to send you a modified top cap or they could install it there at King before they leave if you haven't ordered any yet.

What I am getting at is that there probably isn't a part number for this listed on their sites.
 
[MENTION=110387]jstim[/MENTION] , just give King a call and tell them you would like to add resis to a set of their Performance OEM coilovers and they should be able to take it from there. :cheers:

What would need to happen would be they would have to send you a modified top cap or they could install it there at King before they leave if you haven't ordered any yet.

What I am getting at is that there probably isn't a part number for this listed on their sites.

I might just try that, see what they tell me.
 
If its within budget... I would opt for a resi with external adjusters...

If I didn't, I would end up just being curious about what it would have felt like anyways and would feel I missed out on any potential fine tuning not having the adjusters.

I think this is probably even more important on a multi-use rig... and you will probably develop a preference overtime and for different terrains.

Suspension is also one of those items that you can grow into, and even if you dont, you have some additional headroom when off-road which can play into a saftey/performance argument.
 
well having 2.5 resi adjustable kings with 700lb springs fronts and 2.5 resi adjustable rears with ome 861.
felt like i need it all beefed up components with all the steel placed on the truck. i.e. shrockwork, cbi and budbuilts.
My rig is more of a expo rig, not quite crawler set up but it does really well. its awesome if your daily driving or driving hours 4+ to get to trails. It works great on trail and crawling,it pretty much out performs my willingness to push it that far both on speed and crawling since most trips are solo.

fronts mounted with access to the adjustors
IMG_4596_zpsbi3cbzeo.jpg~original


rears compared to 5100. unit mounts so the adjustors are pretty easy to get to
IMG_4600_zpsvsoatztn.jpg~original


Just curious but can you adjust the height of that front King coilover when it still on the truck?
 
Well the fronts are based off the Tacoma but custom, extended travel, resi and adjustor. Supposedly they can be set up to work with long travel with a change in mounting stud at the lca, if that's a future plan
The rears were 4th gen 4Runner and custom, extended travel, resi and adjustor. Depends on where you want to mount the resi you might want to order longer hose so you can mount on frame to have easy access to the adjustor. The clamp resi to the shock body is nice but puts the adjustor in a tough location and needs to get sprayed off and siliconed once in a while

4gen 4Runner rear gave a little more travel, to match the front of long travel is in the future, kind of have to be careful since there might be to much down travel without limiting straps and what springs your running.
And the Tacoma based front custom reasoning is I can convert them to work with total chaos long travel later on.

Pay more up front to save money long term planing, incase long travel is in the future
Buy what suits your needs and future plans.
Kings had a great reputation, super workable and will spend time helping with tech Letting you make the best decision, and rebuildable.
I would say fox shocks is the same way but ultimately kings won out because of a prior experience
 
Absolutely [MENTION=110387]jstim[/MENTION], they won't steer you wrong. They'll get you squared away for sure.

I'm about to install to their 2.5'' coilover system in front and their resi compression adj shocks out back over the holidays. I can't wait to get it all put together and get it back on the road.
 
I've got ADS resis in front and ADS piggies in the rear. Try and get u a picture. Neither are adjustable though. I heard ADS wasn't going to be making them adjustable anymore also.
 

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