Spooler

Ditto on the Bilsteins. Love them. When towing or empty they are awesome.

stumpjumper

to offer my advice on the bucking problem of your fifth... i had a similar problem, i almost bought the fifth airborne pinbox...i want to say they were about $1200-1500 from camping world. from the testimonials this box REALLY smooths out the bucking. I think the website is www.fifthairborne.com.....when i went out to camping world in valencia they recommended accurate trailer hitch and welding... i think they guys name is sal... he told me to try lowering my hitch into the bed and lowering the mounting holes of the pinbox on the trailer. On my rig is was a simple unbolt pinbox and put it in the lower holes... what hitch do you have.. I have the reese 16k slider... lowering the hitch into the bed takes leverage away from the trailer.. Just make sure you have enough clearance at the top of the bedrails when done... I have seven inches of clearance at the bedrails.....hope this helps.............

Bikepatrol

Ill try that. I have a Husky 26K slider and 10'' of clearance as it sits. I'll let you know what happens. Thanks

stumpjumper

does your trailer sit relatively even with that much clearance at your bedrails?????????????? or is it nosehigh?????????

stumpjumper

oh yeah...... bilsteins on order..................

Grocery Getter

I was told conflicting things by salesman at 4-wheel parts. One guy at the 800# told me that any shock will not lessen the bouncing or bucking of the rear. Its due to the high spring rate.

Another guy at the Van Nuys, CA store told me... Bilstein is a good shock, but the 5100 is not adjustable. He suggested the Rancho 9000 or MX 6 Procomp. This way you could soften the shock (I guess compression rate? Not rebound?) while empty and stiffen while loaded.

Any thoughts?????

Festus

Get a hold of Sean at Lorenz Industries, order the 5100's from him, install them, and enjoy!

That is the only thought I can give you - compared to Rancho....well there's no comparison.

ozob nospej

Some shocks offer compression dampening adjustments but you must usually pay extra for that feature. Most adjustments are only rebound. If you are lofting the front end of the trailer I would think the last thing you would want to do is increase the compression dampening. Rather you would need all the rebound you could get short of "pumping down". IMO

Bikepatrol

Nope, not nose high at all. You can see below that it's fairly level. Also, the picture is with no air in the air bags which shows the sag on factory suspension. Also, it's not quite at 10''. I hooked up today for a trip to the wash and checked it at closer to 8.5'', sorry.

I went in circles for a while between the standard Bilsteins, the 5100's and the Rancho 9000's. After four different discussions that included, "My Rancho's rusted pretty fast", I decided against them. A couple of salesmen told me that the standard Bilstein shock was specifically valved for the my vehicle and the location that it was being mounted rather than the 5100's which are all exactly the same valving regardless of 3/4 ton vehicle. Spring rate makes sense too but I notice a difference. A dealer rep who sold both brands also advised against the Rancho's?? Don't really know what the best is, but, I tow heavy, I hated what I had, I love what I have. To each his own.

Oh, and when you get the Bilsteins and compare them side by side with stock, you'll wonder how they could mount such crap on the truck at the factory. I could compress the stockers between my hands with little effort. Good luck with whatever you decide to put on. Anything is better than stock.