I had them on and took them off in favor of Bilsteins to go with the Rancho's in the back. My thought was that the gas shock would provide a better ride than the non gas Rancho's. I think it worked. We spend a lot of time in Mexico and the roads are much rougher than US so with the leaf spring front end anything helps. Some say the KYB's have better handling with a load, I have no comment. We many times only average 40-45mph due to the rough, narrow roads and any ride improvement helps.
There's really no reason to put an adjustable shock on the front axle. The front axle weight doesn't change much between empty and fully loaded.
The rear axle does benefit from an adjustable shock, since the empty versus loaded axle weight can be an increase of anywhere from 2000 to 5000 lbs, depending on the truck, whereas the front axle only changes maybe 100 to 500 lbs with the same load in the truck.
When I had my camper, I ran Bilsteins in the front and Ranchos in the rear. After I added the 4000 lb utility body, it was too much weight for the Ranchos and they were a few years old and probly needed replacing anyways, so I put Bilsteins on the rear this time. They've been alright, do the job fine. Maybe next time I'll try the KYB Monomax. It will be a few years till the Bills wear out and need replacing though.
I have them front and rear. Once loaded with the TC I adjust the front also even though the weight transfer is minimum to the front. It still helps to dampen/lessen the sway overall. I have tried it with and without adjustment and it did dampen more noticeably turned up to 7, while 3 is what is rides at unloaded. Since shocks are for dampening the suspension movement, the weight loading on or the difference between the front and rear axle loading really doesn’t factor. It’s the ability to decrease the cyclic motion by increasing resistance of the shock for heavier loads or varying road conditions.
2000 F-350 7.3L PSD Super Cab 4x4 SB SRW 2006 Lance 861
(Slideout, Solar, Gen, etc.)
Air Bags/In Cab Cntl, XL 9000's,
Roadmaster Sway Bar, Rickson's
B-n-B wrote: Since shocks are for dampening the suspension movement, the weight loading on or the difference between the front and rear axle loading really doesn’t factor. It’s the ability to decrease the cyclic motion by increasing resistance of the shock for heavier loads or varying road conditions.
It's the load weight and spring strength that decide the need for stiffer damping from the shocks. A light vehicle with soft springs = soft shocks. Heavy vehicle with stiff springs = stiff shocks. Precisely why the rear axle benefits from adjustable shocks and the front axle doesn't need them, just needs shocks that are stiff enough for the front axle weight, which is virtually the same whether loaded or unloaded.
I have adjustable Rancho 9000s with the in-cab controller. My TC adds about 200 pounds of weight to the front axle. Several times, I have left the front shocks set at my preferred no TC loaded setting, and loaded the TC. Without a doubt, I can tell the difference. On some cement highways, I get the porpose effect. When I adjust the front shocks to a stiffer setting, the truck has no porpose issues. In some roads, the weight from front to rear is constantly changing.
I prefer the adjustable Rancho shocks, and they definitely improve the handling. I am sure each vehicle will react differently. A different TC center of gravity, TC weight spring rates, wheelbase, and tires can change the way shocks react. My suggestion is to find someone with a truck like yours, preferably with the same TC, and then you are more likely to get a more valuable opinion.
I have to agree with RD as I travel over wash board roads quite often I can tell the difference. I also do not get the porpoising on the highway that several folks complain about. The difference with my rig maybe because I have a winch hanging out there which would add more weight when the front is oscillating over ruff roadways.
There imo is the fact that there are different setups for the big three, Cheby has the torque bars which give a softer ride, Ford and Dodge have different set ups also, that might make a difference.
I might be wrong in my assessment as I am not an injineer or a serious off road-er. Even though I have stayed at Holiday Inns on occasions.
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