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Old 05-03-2022, 09:17 PM   #21
hankpage
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MotownJG View Post
Buying parts for your vehicle or trailer are always a compromise between what you can afford vs what you see as the next best thing available online.

I ordered Bilstein 4600 series shocks off Amazon to replace the OEM originals on my used 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 diesel.Total $320.

For me, the Bilsteins were the best thing I ever did on my 2WD Dodge Ram diesel truck which tows my Keystone Cougar 5th wheel. I'd buy Bilsteins again.

So keep researching, asking questions. Only you can decide what you can afford, and make a decision that's best for you. Was it a bad choice? A good one? You'll never know until you choose one way or the other.
Our trucks are fairly similar and I was not impressed with the ride from Bilsteins so I changed to KYBs and have been happy with them for many years now. I had Ranchos on my old '94 and did not care for them either. Replaced them with Monroes and liked the ride better. ( in case it matters, Monroes are now made in China) What it boils down for me is each persons pocket book and seat of their pants feel is different . So as others have so eloquently said in the past, YMMV.
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Old 05-04-2022, 12:29 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MotownJG View Post
Buying parts for your vehicle or trailer are always a compromise between what you can afford vs what you see as the next best thing available online.

I ordered Bilstein 4600 series shocks off Amazon to replace the OEM originals on my used 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 diesel.Total $320.

For me, the Bilsteins were the best thing I ever did on my 2WD Dodge Ram diesel truck which tows my Keystone Cougar 5th wheel. I'd buy Bilsteins again.

So keep researching, asking questions. Only you can decide what you can afford, and make a decision that's best for you. Was it a bad choice? A good one? You'll never know until you choose one way or the other.

I replaced the factory shocks on day one on my 2021 F350 DRW. Factory shocks are junk. Push shock down and it wouldn't spring back out . I replaced with the Bilstein including the steering stabilizer shock, however after a year, I had to replace the steering stabilizer shock because it leaked. I replaced it with a dual shock setup using Fox Shocks.
I did notice a significant difference from the factory junk shocks to the Bilstein.
When replacing shocks, I'll be replacing with the FOX shocks.
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Old 05-08-2022, 07:22 AM   #23
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I can’t keep a pair of shocks lasting longer than a year on the front of my 12 Cummins 2500. I’ve been through 2 pairs of Monroes and two pair of ranchos in four years. I’m averaging 15k miles a year, towing every other weekend for 10 months and 5k miles on gravel, forest service. That being said, we are thinking I’m hard on shocks and heat buildup is killing them. I will be figuring out which remote reservoir shocks to slap on the truck before September as I think I need more oil to keep them cooler when working them so hard.
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Old 05-08-2022, 07:31 AM   #24
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Originally Posted by 92xj View Post
I can’t keep a pair of shocks lasting longer than a year on the front of my 12 Cummins 2500. I’ve been through 2 pairs of Monroes and two pair of ranchos in four years. I’m averaging 15k miles a year, towing every other weekend for 10 months and 5k miles on gravel, forest service. That being said, we are thinking I’m hard on shocks and heat buildup is killing them. I will be figuring out which remote reservoir shocks to slap on the truck before September as I think I need more oil to keep them cooler when working them so hard.
If your truck is OK and your driving habits are causing that much premature wear on the truck have you checked the trailer suspension?
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Old 05-08-2022, 07:43 AM   #25
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Every trip the trailer suspension gets checked over. Most of the gravel and forest service running is done after the trailer is disconnected, though it does get dragged down some horrible washboarded “roads”, or independent of the trailer all together when I’m backpacking in. One of the biggest issues is running, not towing, 6-10 hours at highway speeds, then hitting gravel or dirt mountain roads for 2 hours before stopping. That’s a lot of heat build up in a single days time.
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Old 05-08-2022, 08:00 AM   #26
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I supposed it depends on what you want. IMO, a stock rig works well with OEM parts. I figure that they engineered all that out. My current truck (Ram 3500 dually) currently has Bilsteins on it simply because the PO put them on it. When they go out I’m not sure what I’ll replace them with. Bilsteins and KYB are definitely stiffer (some say firmer, so say harsher) than stock. If a person is happy with the ride, stick with stock/Monroes. If they prefer a little firmer, I’d so go with Bilsteins. KYBs are firmer than stock, but some say that they feel harsher than Bilsteins, something to do with the valving on them.

But having said all that, I think that when my current set up needs replacing, I’ll probably give stock ones a try - maybe then the truck won’t ride so stiff/harsh when not pulling/hauling with it.
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Old 05-08-2022, 12:37 PM   #27
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Our 2004 Chevy 2500 hd 4x was "rough" @ 200k when we got it
No service records available since it was an "auction special"
Turned out to be an at&t managers truck & everything seemed well cared for?
Had the shocks replaced with oem's even though we'd used Koni & Bilstein's when we raced in the past
OEM's were a little stiffer on cordory back country road, but the same on highways.
Finally crawled underneath.
Oh my. All 4 body mounts were down to 0.00".
Still looking for good body mounts that are softer.
No can find except OEM.
So looking to double up OEM body mounts to relieve DW's back since mine has already been carved on for the 4th time.

As others have said " unless damaged" shocks seem to last. Maybe not forever but w/56k. New miles on these OEM's & no noticable difference (except memory faults) we'll probably just get a new TV & see what's different.
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Old 05-08-2022, 12:45 PM   #28
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Life-in-Him View Post
Our 2004 Chevy 2500 hd 4x was "rough" @ 200k when we got it
No service records available since it was an "auction special"
Turned out to be an at&t managers truck & everything seemed well cared for?
Had the shocks replaced with oem's even though we'd used Koni & Bilstein's when we raced in the past
OEM's were a little stiffer on cordory back country road, but the same on highways.
Finally crawled underneath.
Oh my. All 4 body mounts were down to 0.00".
Still looking for good body mounts that are softer.
No can find except OEM.
So looking to double up OEM body mounts to relieve DW's back since mine has already been carved on for the 4th time.

As others have said " unless damaged" shocks seem to last. Maybe not forever but w/56k. New miles on these OEM's & no noticable difference (except memory faults) we'll probably just get a new TV & see what's different.

I don't know where you would get anything softer than the OEM body mount bushings. All the ones I used to get/use were poly and they were plenty hard...but they didn't "squash" like OE.
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Old 05-08-2022, 04:46 PM   #29
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That's what I'm finding.
OEM's are the softest.
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Old 05-16-2022, 04:03 PM   #30
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The stock body mounts on a 2006 F350 appear to have been made out of angel food cake. Mine were SHOT and mostly not there anymore. I replaced them with poly and these squeak some but the ride was greatly improved. To follow up, only had two Rancho shocks (no reservoir or adjustment) and two UI. The Monroe shocks I purchased from Amazon ride much better. I ended up buying Monroe 34525 & 34526 Gas-Magnum shocks. The rear shocks may have been original and had a hard life but can't say for sure; no writing and nasty.
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Old 05-16-2022, 05:37 PM   #31
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I believe Monroe builds Rancho. Try Geno's Garage out of Georgia.
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