Date:         Sat, 12 Oct 1996 23:44:14 -0700
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Austin <austins@ix.netcom.com>
Subject:      Re: KYB shock install

At 01:01 PM 10/12/96 -0500, you wrote:
>Back on the road, I notice I can feel the bumps a little more now, but it's
>not annoying.  Still a comfortable ride.  I was a little worried at first
>after reading Sami's story of a bone-jarring ride with his KYB's.  I
>couldn't tell a whole lot of difference in the way the bus handled - low
>speed cornering seems a little flatter, but freeway lane changes seem about
>the same, just a little "twitchier", I guess.
>
>Overall, the difference isn't as great as I thought it was going to be, and
>if I had it to do over again, I might have waited a little longer before
>spending the $65. 
>So why are they called Gas-A-Just?  I couldn't find any mention on the
>shocks or instructions about adjusting them.  Does anyone know if they are
>even adjustable?  The Koni shocks on the mustang are adjustable by pressing
>the shock all the way down and turning the upper part.  I tried this with
>the KYBs but couldn't tell whether or not it was doing anything.

'ROAD&TRACK' put out a special SUV issue recently that has a very good
article ref shocks - magazine is called 'OPEN ROAD' & has a picture of the
new Ford Expedition on the cover.  The shock article is on page 84, & breaks
down the different types of dampers (as they point out is technically the
correct designation for these things) - very nice cutaway drawings.  Bottom
line is:  best shocks are 'mono tube' type, as represented by Bilstein,
deCarbon, & Sachs; next down is 'twin-tube cellular' (Explorer Pro-Comp 3000
or Rancho RS5000; 3rd down is 'twin tube gas (Tokico & Monroe Sensa-Trac);
bottom would be 'twin tube hydraulic', no names mentioned.  Oddly enough,
the 'mono tubes' while being the best, are the least macho appearing ...
they're skinnier on the outside, but their design, as compared to the other
3, make them bigger on the inside, where it counts.  (no mention of Koni's,
BTB, but if I remember the one's I had on an off-road racer years ago
weren't pressurized, although they were definitely adjustable for both
jounce & rebound (push & turn for the jounce, exterior screw for the rebound).

Austin