What type shocks do you use?

[IsheeM]

I am interested in what brand shocks you guys use. Also do you guys usually get double adjustable shocks (i dont think we will be able to afford these) or single adjustable? I know a lot of teams use Fox Vanilla shocks but I am interested in teams using other shocks, more specifically for race CARS. Thanks for any help you guys can provide. I have been searching for some information on penske shocks but i havent recieved any replies or help from the company.

Michael

[IsheeM]

I am interested in what brand shocks you guys use. Also do you guys usually get double adjustable shocks (i dont think we will be able to afford these) or single adjustable? I know a lot of teams use Fox Vanilla shocks but I am interested in teams using other shocks, more specifically for race CARS. Thanks for any help you guys can provide. I have been searching for some information on penske shocks but i havent recieved any replies or help from the company.

Michael

[RaID]

We'll be using Penske shocks this year

they have released a shock for a 1/4 size speedway car
which are pretty much ideal for our application

doesnt look like we will get any external adjustability
we will just get them revalved how we want

[Vector006]

Risse Racing makes shocks a little more suited to FSAE cars than Fox. They'll give you the stuff to reshim them, and they can be 3-way adjustable to dial in more suitable damping ratios. They give FSAE teams 50% discount ($200-300/each). Im not sayin that mountain bike shocks are up to the task, but these are affordable, and work pretty good.

-jer

[RacingManiac]

The problem we have with Risses this year was just they can't seem to get the spec right and the manufacturing quality is inconsistant.....so far we've had to send one shock back twice to get it done right, and in the end the spec is still not as we specified.....

[IsheeM]

What about some of you other guys? Anyone using Ohlin or Koni shocks. I have a Koni in mind which I wouldnt mind using but it is only single adjustable and I would at least like to get a double adjustable.

Yeah I had heard someone mention those 1/4 midget shocks but if you cant externally adjust them, I dont think that would be a good option for our team.

Michael
Mississippi State Motorsports (http://www.msstate.edu/org/sae)

[Mike Shaw]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by RacingManiac:
The problem we have with Risses this year was just they can't seem to get the spec right and the manufacturing quality is inconsistant.....so far we've had to send one shock back twice to get it done right, and in the end the spec is still not as we specified..... <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

we used Risse in '02 and after putting them on the shock dyno, found major manufacturing inconsistencies also. we liked Rock Shox the best (used in '00 and '01), but they stopped making coilovers metal spring shocks. we used Fox Vanilla RC last year and had good luck with them. the penske and ohlins were cost 3 times as much, weigh more, and used bigger mounting hardware. as a result, we went with the mountain bick shox.

and if you can find a dealer that will give you the shox at cost, they only end up running around $230 a peice.

Mike Shaw
Texas A&M University FSAE
Team Suspension

[RaID]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by IsheeM:
Yeah I had heard someone mention those 1/4 midget shocks but if you cant externally adjust them, I dont think that would be a good option for our team.

Michael
http://www.msstate.edu/org/sae <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

You can get a single external on the 1/4 midget penske shocks
rebound or compression (im not a 100% sure if compression is an option)
obviously the external adjustemnt increases the price

[ftc_elvis]

Micheal,

In the past we have used Fox Vanilla RCs like many other teams. This year however we have managed to get together a little extra cash and made the switch over to "real" dampers. We have selected a set of Penske 8100 Series dampers, full external adjustability in compression, and rebound. They cost quite a bit more than most mountain bike shocks but not as much as you might think, when you factor in the time and cost of re-valving to get your low-speed damping right the difference was about $200 (Canadian) per damper. Another bonus for us was Penske's willingnes to help with an initial valving based on our specs. And like some of the other teams have noted the consistency for most mountain bike shocks just isn't there, unlike a set of high quality race dampers. Good luck with your selection.

Matthew
Suspension Design
UAlberta FSAE 2004

[Garbo]

We've used Fox in the past with mixed success... even blown a few up in the process.

We've switched to SPAX from the UK this year... about $250 canadian per corner and not much bigger than the MTB shocks, single adjustable but with quite heavy mounting hardware. They're not the easiest compant to deal with, though.

garbo

[IsheeM]

ftc_elvis
Check your PM

[jack]

we made our shocks, including valves.
easier said than done...

[ftc_elvis]

Michael,

Sorry I haven't used the forum much so I'm not sure what you mean by "Check your PM".

Matthew
Suspension Design
UAlberta FSAE 2004

[IsheeM]

Matthew (ftc_elvis),
Could you provide me with your contact info for Penske? As you can see in a previous post, I have had a horrible time trying to get in touch with them. I hope this isnt a sign of their customer service. Also could you give me an idea of about how much you guys paid for the 8100 series shocks.
Thanks,
Michael

[Frank]

ftc_elvis

top left of screen

go&gt;my space&gt;private messaging

[ftc_elvis]

Thanks I got it figured out now.

Matthew

[yossarian]

Has anybody tried mountain bike air shocks? They're much lighter than coilovers, and are much easier to adjust for spring rate.

[Denny Trimble]

Yes, we used the Cane Creek air-sprung (and air-damped; that's another story) mountain bike shocks in '98 and '99. They're very light and very inexpensive. There are more options available now for air-sprung MTB shocks as well.

Take a look at force (pressure) vs. displacement (adiabatic volume reduction) for a given initial air volume and initial pressure. Increasing initial pressure is more analogous to ride height adjustment (screwing the spring perch) than changing the spring rate; Decreasing the initial air volume (chamber size) changes the shape of the force vs. displacement curve similar to changing a steel spring rate, except the air spring curve is inherently rising-rate.

Also, watch out for seal friction, it was high enough to cause hysteresis problems with the Cane Creeks.