Top plate spacer or bump up 5100s? Need slightly more front lift

[blairracd]

Current stanceI need (want) a little bit more lift in the front. Should I do top plate spacers or bump up the 5100s a notch?

 

[Cree]

I did a spacer. I like the ride on the second notch vs the third.

 

[blairracd]

I did a spacer. I like the ride on the second notch vs the third.

So you’ve got spacer and bumped up? I’m still on the lowest setting on the shocks.

 

[octanejunkie]

What springs do you have front and rear?

Are you trying to level the truck out?

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[WeakSauz]

I am anti-spacer, but I still did a 1/4" polyurethane spacer on the top hat. 1/4" isnt going to hurt anything, and it will preserve ride quality vs. moving a notch IMO

 

[blairracd]

What springs do you have front and rear?

Are you trying to level the truck out?

Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using Tapatalk

880 and 890. Not necessarily; I enjoy the rake, I just want a little more lift in the front.

 

[phattyduck]

You can do a 1/4" top plate spacer with stock length top hat studs. That should be fine for shock length in the front, even with stock arms. That would be ~1/2" lift.

-Charlie

 

[Spiker Engineering]

Current stanceI need (want) a little bit more lift in the front. Should I do top plate spacers or bump up the 5100s a notch?

What would be the advantage of a spacer lift over bumping it up a notch, if you already have adjustable shocks? Unless you want to move it up just a smidgen, in between the discrete notches.

 

[octanejunkie]

What would be the advantage of a spacer lift over bumping it up a notch, if you already have adjustable shocks? Unless you want to move it up just a smidgen, in between the discrete notches.

You don't have to compress the spring and disassemble the strut to add a 1/4" top hat spacer

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[Spiker Engineering]

You don't have to compress the spring and disassemble the strut to add a 1/4" top hat spacer

Fair enough, always good to avoid the hassle factor .

 

[Cree]

So you’ve got spacer and bumped up? I’m still on the lowest setting on the shocks.

Yeah. I think so. Now you have me wondering. Fairly certain I have them on the second. Guess I'll look tomorrow. I am on TRD springs vs 880's, so if you're trying to compare height it won't be apples.

Fair enough, always good to avoid the hassle factor .

Not only that, but you avoid increasing the pre-load on the springs.

 

[Spiker Engineering]

Not only that, but you avoid increasing the pre-load on the springs.

I never understood the preload concern. Raising the perch won't change the load in the spring once the truck is on the ground. The spring will compress to the height at which the internal force is equal to the truck's weight acting on that wheel, which is independent of the perch position.

Unless of course the spring becomes squished so much that the preload exceeds the truck's weight on the strut. But that is not likely to happen by going from the lowest perch to the second.

 

[Cree]

I never understood the preload concern. Raising the perch won't change the load in the spring once the truck is on the ground. The spring will compress to the height at which the internal force is equal to the truck's weight acting on that wheel, which is independent of the perch position.

Unless of course the spring becomes squished so much that the preload exceeds the truck's weight on the strut. But that is not likely to happen by going from the lowest perch to the second.

It all depends on if you're using a progressive rate or fixed rate spring. You'll see the difference on the progressives much more than on a fixed. I've ran my springs from the bottom to the third notch and can feel the difference, less on bumps and more on turns.

 

[Spiker Engineering]

It all depends on if you're using a progressive rate or fixed rate spring. You'll see the difference on the progressives much more than on a fixed. I've ran my springs from the bottom to the third notch and can feel the difference, less on bumps and more on turns.

Yes, there is that effect with progressive springs. But not with the linear springs like 880's, not until you compress the coils so much that the number of "active" coils changes.

 

[Bad Luck]

Just gonna leave this here for anyone that wants to see a good explanation of the effects of spring perch height: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1tTelhdEiM

 

[blairracd]

Thanks for all the info guys. I think I'm just going to add the top plate spacer. I'm going with a 3/8" spacer...just need a little bit more.

 

[Spiker Engineering]

Thanks for all the info guys. I think I'm just going to add the top plate spacer. I'm going with a 3/8" spacer...just need a little bit more.

The 3/8" spacer will require longer studs (unless you already have those), which means compressing the spring - might as well change the notch if you're doing that?

 

[blairracd]

The 3/8" spacer will require longer studs (unless you already have those), which means compressing the spring - might as well change the notch if you're doing that?

......I thought that video literally just said that top plate spacers don't compress.....

 

[Spiker Engineering]

......I thought that video literally just said that top plate spacers don't compress.....

I meant you have to compress the spring to disassemble the strut to put in the longer studs for the 3/8" top plate spacer - if you go through all that, why not just move the seat up one perch?

 

[phattyduck]

What would be the advantage of a spacer lift over bumping it up a notch, if you already have adjustable shocks? Unless you want to move it up just a smidgen, in between the discrete notches.

You get extra droop travel. As long as you don't go farther than the ball joints, axles and shock travel allow, it nets more total suspension travel.

-Charlie