Mounting REAR shocks - Boot UP or DOWN?

NAMoulton1 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2014 7:01 pm **Posts:** 1054

tjtkj, how are the 7100 series compared to the 5100/25s? I keep wanting to upgrade but the extra money is what keeps putting a damper on it haha. Are they worth the upgrade and money?

Bmxer524 · **Posted:** Tue Mar 24, 2015 11:07 pm

NAMoulton1 wrote:

tjtkj, how are the 7100 series compared to the 5100/25s? I keep wanting to upgrade but the extra money is what keeps putting a damper on it haha. Are they worth the upgrade and money?

I always thought the difference was just the remote reservoir... If that is the case, then they stay cooler and resist fade under extreme conditions and extended use.

NAMoulton1 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2014 7:01 pm **Posts:** 1054

Bmxer524 wrote:

NAMoulton1 wrote:

tjtkj, how are the 7100 series compared to the 5100/25s? I keep wanting to upgrade but the extra money is what keeps putting a damper on it haha. Are they worth the upgrade and money?

I always thought the difference was just the remote reservoir... If that is the case, then they stay cooler and resist fade under extreme conditions and extended use.

If that was the case then why do they make 7100s without a reservoir?

Bmxer524 · **Posted:** Wed Mar 25, 2015 12:25 am

Looked it up. 7100s are rebuildable, 5100s are not(obviously lol).

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Thu Mar 26, 2015 8:58 am

NAMoulton1 wrote:

tjtkj, how are the 7100 series compared to the 5100/25s? I keep wanting to upgrade but the extra money is what keeps putting a damper on it haha. Are they worth the upgrade and money?

Rebuildable and you get your choice of 6 valving options.If the KK's use the same length rear shocks as the KJ then the 12" short body 7100 series shock is what you want,good for 3"-4" of lift.

I picked mine up from ORW and if you time it right they have a sale and can get them pretty cheap.These are also custom build shocks(built to order) so expect a 2-4 week ship time.

NAMoulton1 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2014 7:01 pm **Posts:** 1054

tjkj2002 wrote:

NAMoulton1 wrote:

tjtkj, how are the 7100 series compared to the 5100/25s? I keep wanting to upgrade but the extra money is what keeps putting a damper on it haha. Are they worth the upgrade and money?

Rebuildable and you get your choice of 6 valving options.If the KK's use the same length rear shocks as the KJ then the 12" short body 7100 series shock is what you want,good for 3"-4" of lift.

I picked mine up from ORW and if you time it right they have a sale and can get them pretty cheap.These are also custom build shocks(built to order) so expect a 2-4 week ship time.

What is a good valving for a KK then? Right now I have 255/70 with my 5125s and I feel satisfied with it, but also feel I could get more out of it.

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Thu Mar 26, 2015 4:09 pm

NAMoulton1 wrote:

tjkj2002 wrote:

NAMoulton1 wrote:

tjtkj, how are the 7100 series compared to the 5100/25s? I keep wanting to upgrade but the extra money is what keeps putting a damper on it haha. Are they worth the upgrade and money?

Rebuildable and you get your choice of 6 valving options.If the KK's use the same length rear shocks as the KJ then the 12" short body 7100 series shock is what you want,good for 3"-4" of lift.

I picked mine up from ORW and if you time it right they have a sale and can get them pretty cheap.These are also custom build shocks(built to order) so expect a 2-4 week ship time.

What is a good valving for a KK then? Right now I have 255/70 with my 5125s and I feel satisfied with it, but also feel I could get more out of it.

If you like the 255/70 valving that is the middle option for the 7100 series,I ran that but was on the soft side so I also have a set with 275/78 valving but again just a tad soft for my liking(granted much better then 255/70).Not sure if I want to try the stiffest valving which is like 360/80 or something like that.

NAMoulton1 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2014 7:01 pm **Posts:** 1054

tjkj2002 wrote:

If you like the 255/70 valving that is the middle option for the 7100 series,I ran that but was on the soft side so I also have a set with 275/78 valving but again just a tad soft for my liking(granted much better then 255/70).Not sure if I want to try the stiffest valving which is like 360/80 or something like that.

I guess I'll have to look up their valving charts haha. I plan on doing much more wheelin' this summer so I'd like to get her a little stiffer. She's too soft with these and no sway bar though.

WhiteRider · **Posted:** Fri Mar 27, 2015 4:02 pm

...When I asked this question while installing the first set of rear Bilstein 5125's, I don't remember there being this much discussion. :dizzy:

Its been almost two weeks since putting these new shocks on (boot down, opposite way from the first time), and I'm not noticing any immediate differences in how the KK rides. When I started to install this 2nd set, I ended up only finding enough time to do the left rear and installed it boot up. Only a few days later I got around to swapping the right side. I inspected my install of the left, and found the boot FULL of dirty water - thus prompting me to switch the left side and install them both boot down.

Doesn't make sense now to me though, why a factory install would be any different? Even with boots removed, wouldn't the "laws of gravity" allow for foreign particles to work their way into the shock if they are installed boot up? Have you seen how much dirt and grit gets trapped on top of your suspension during/after wheeling? I do a pretty thorough job of cleaning under there, but I still find dirt on top of dirt whenever I remove the wheels. I think my skid plates lose about 20 lbs. whenever they come off!

Maybe I'm thinking about this too hard, but I guess I'd just like to know the "science" behind why we do things the way we do.

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Fri Mar 27, 2015 10:31 pm

WhiteRider wrote:

...When I asked this question while installing the first set of rear Bilstein 5125's, I don't remember there being this much discussion. :dizzy:

Its been almost two weeks since putting these new shocks on (boot down, opposite way from the first time), and I'm not noticing any immediate differences in how the KK rides. When I started to install this 2nd set, I ended up only finding enough time to do the left rear and installed it boot up. Only a few days later I got around to swapping the right side. I inspected my install of the left, and found the boot FULL of dirty water - thus prompting me to switch the left side and install them both boot down.

Doesn't make sense now to me though, why a factory install would be any different? Even with boots removed, wouldn't the "laws of gravity" allow for foreign particles to work their way into the shock if they are installed boot up? Have you seen how much dirt and grit gets trapped on top of your suspension during/after wheeling? I do a pretty thorough job of cleaning under there, but I still find dirt on top of dirt whenever I remove the wheels. I think my skid plates lose about 20 lbs. whenever they come off!

Maybe I'm thinking about this too hard, but I guess I'd just like to know the "science" behind why we do things the way we do.

The ones actually installed at the factory have a hard cover boot.

nFodzy · **Joined:** Sun Oct 06, 2013 1:30 pm **Posts:** 389

So just making this clear, although my Bilstein's are installed boot up which is correct it's okay to remove the boot anyway that way nothing builds up in there?

Bmxer524 · **Posted:** Wed Apr 22, 2015 8:14 pm

nFodzy wrote:

So just making this clear, although my Bilstein's are installed boot up which is correct it's okay to remove the boot anyway that way nothing builds up in there?

Yea you can remove/cut the boot off if you want.

Mounting REAR shocks - Boot UP or DOWN?

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