OME springs and shocks - medium or heavy duty??

[Nev]

I know there are a lot of threads on this topic and i have done a lot of reading on the matter which is why ive decided to go for OME springs but have some more specific questions...

I want to replace my old king springs with 2" lifted OME springs on my LWB. I rang ARB to get prices today and thought i would get the medium duties coz all i have in the back is a tool box (no rear seats). The bloke said that if the car gets used for fairly "extreme" off road which he explained as more than just beach and fire trails (so under this description i do "extreme" work) then i should definitely go the heavy duties. What are your thoughts and experiences on this matter? Is he just trying to get more money from me for the heavy duties or is this the way i should go?

Also on a separate note, i want to get new shocks to improve the ride of my car. At the moment mine rides ok on road but is rough as guts on corrugated roads and the rear gets air off pot holes running too big a bore lovells which i no would contribute to the bad ride and in the rear is tjm series 2000 oil shocks. I've driven in a mates sierra with koni shocks and the ride is fantastic. What price do koni's go for? I want thoughts on how the old man emu nitrochargers (much cheaper) would compare to both koni and rancho in terms of ride quality? Are the OME's specially tuned to the lighter weight of the sierra? Are the recommended OME shocks long enough for a 2" lift...i seem to remember a thread that said the shocks they stated for a 2 " lift were too short?

All opinions much appreciated. John.

[christover1]

The lwb has a 12" overhang, this puts more leverage on the springs, especially if you carry a lot.

On mine I had med duty at first, but with hard top, wifes wheelchair etc, I had to update to heavy duty.

When I removed fibre glass hard top, and got divorced, and turned it into a ute, I removed the extra spring, back to light duty.
This was much better off road. Then I cut the overhang off anyway.

I now have heavy duty rear right, as this helps prevent torque twist from driveline bending the spring, and picking up left front...climbs much better.

fuel tank, spare tyre and driver are all on the right, too.

I believe the harsh ride you have now is because of the stiff springs, any decent shock with the ome springs will be great.

My ome is over 10 years old and is still great ride

christover

[josh9465]

i have put in old man emu springs. i went for the medium duty not the heavy duty. i also use old man shocks. but i had to choose different front shocks as the ones arb have in their book are obsolete.

my set up is great over corrugated roads, but still harsh over bumps. but i guess thats normal for a sierra.

[christover1]

Mine took a while to soften up, now they are perfect.

christover

[Nev]

ok thanks very much for the experienced input guys. Chris, are the heavy duties exactly the same as the mediums except for the one extra spring? ie. i could spend the few extra dollars and if i find it too harsh remove the leaf and have medium duties? Also do you have any probs with the recommended ome shocks not having enough travel or is this crap...im presuming so because im sure an experienced company like arb would have this sorted by now.

[christover1]

ok thanks very much for the experienced input guys. Chris, are the heavy duties exactly the same as the mediums except for the one extra spring? ie. i could spend the few extra dollars and if i find it too harsh remove the leaf and have medium duties? Also do you have any probs with the recommended ome shocks not having enough travel or is this crap...im presuming so because im sure an experienced company like arb would have this sorted by now.

In my case, yes, the heavy duty was 1 extra leaf, and thats what I pulled out again. You have to make sure there is enough thread on the u bolts.
I believe todays ome springs for sierras are actually made by a different manufacturer Dakar??? so something may be different???
My shox were fine, but now I'm a little more extreme, I modded the front shock mounts a bees dick, but still happy with the ome stock shox.

christover

[joshnz1]

nev if u want a soft ride and to flex good,get soft shocks on it and light duty springs,i only use to run 3 leafs all round on mine and sometimes i had a fair bit of weight in it and it went good

jmo

[christover1]

nev if u want a soft ride and to flex good,get soft shocks on it and light duty springs,i only use to run 3 leafs all round on mine and sometimes i had a fair bit of weight in it and it went good

jmo

this is very true.

But more flex = less stability, so you need to find the balance that suits your needs.

christover

[joshnz1]

how can more flex be more unstable?

[christover1]

how can more flex be more unstable?

The softer spring can compress more easily with the weight of the car, so on side angles you can tip more easily, and on steep climbs, the rear squashes down more easily, thus lifting the front.
I guess the softness is more the problem than the flex, but most people get flex from softeness.
But good shox can slow the compression, giving better balance.

All factors depend on intended use, nothing is right or wrong, just different.

Hope that explains what I'm thinking

christover

[Drover_Pete]

Nev
I have OME medium in the rear and OME heavy in the front due to the heavier motor. Works fine and has been in there for about 5 years.
Pete

[jtraf]

HD rears have a full length secondary.

I am running these all round on my new LWB and have removed the two bottom springs at the moment to soften them up. If still too hard will remove another short leaf.

Better to have two full length leaves as far as I am concerned.

James

[Nev]

fair enough, it seems everyone mods the spring packs a lot to suit their needs. I think i will start with the heavy duties and work with them a bit. Personally i rather have a slightly firmer spring over a real flexy spring coz i just find it climbs so much better and having the rear locked makes up for flex a lot of the time though both would be ideal but impossible so it is a compromise.

Anyone know if the new dakar springs (only ones now available) are much different in ride to the old ones coz their about half the prices they used to be.

Josh...when you say a soft shock im just presuming you mean one that is valved for the light weight of the zook? Which brands valve their shocks specifically for lighter models and im talking realistic prices not full custom valving. The ome's are valved to suit are they not?

Plus anyone know a rough price for koni's? My mates car was running the same springs as my current ones (kings) and the ride was 10 times better. Was it in the shocks or others. How much difference do bushes make coz mine are nackered (broken bits off them) and will be replaced with the springs. Thanks.

[joshnz1]

all brands have different valving,comm shocks for the front would be good,or adj rancho's all round set on soft,or go to a sus shop tell them what u want and they will give u it,4wd trekmaster on pickering street enogroa he knows me tell him i sent u and that he would no best,i can get some really good prices off him aswell

[Mr Emu]

I was given the spiel by arb that the dakar springs are made from the same materials, same moulds but are just now produced in a different country. So the product should be fairly similar but just cheaper. Dunno how true it is? Ive had myne on for about a year and there great, i started with the heavy duty packs and pulled and addded leaves till it was feeling right. I figured it would be cheaper to get the heavy duties straight out than need to purchase more leaves later.

[Nev]

this seems like the way ill go Mr emu...so do people recommend their shocks too...am i likely to be disappointed with the ride or flex?

[christover1]

this seems like the way ill go Mr emu...so do people recommend their shocks too...am i likely to be disappointed with the ride or flex?

I'm happy with my ome shox.

flex is a complex issue involving much more than shock length and/or softness.

I like the remote cannister ome nitro shocks think n76 may be the name?
But not cheap. Shocks and springs as a matching set can be wise.

christover

[Nev]

thanks chris. yeh think i will stick with matching shock/spring combo as i spose they are designed for each other. i think the remote canister ones are the LTR's and the N76 are the softer offroad racing shocks?? but they may be remote canister too. I was told the LTR's are not available for the sierra but outta my price range anyway.

[christover1]

thanks chris. yeh think i will stick with matching shock/spring combo as i spose they are designed for each other. i think the remote canister ones are the LTR's and the N76 are the softer offroad racing shocks?? but they may be remote canister too. I was told the LTR's are not available for the sierra but outta my price range anyway.

ARB won't recommend anything outside of the official vehicle list, they can't really.
They also can't gurantee anything used in non standard way, or if thier parts get modified, which is fair enuff.

If you ain't good at fab work, thier recommended kit will be fine.

Mines stock ome for Sierra, with slightly longer shackles. It werks ok.
You can change thingz over time if needed.

But give them a bit of time to bed in.

christover