King Shock rebuild, pic heavy, get beer(s).

A long time ago I told the good people of Tundras.com that I would do a little thread on shock rebuilding. Better late than never right?

The shocks being rebuilt are King 2.5 14" remote reservoir shocks. The 7/8" shaft needs to be replaced due to nicks and other stupid things I did around my shocks (weld splatter). I am also doing a re-valve and adding a flutter stack.

If possible, wash the vehicle before starting this job, but most likely you will still be cleaning them up after removal.

Be safe, use jack stands. I have to use a Hi-Lift jack to flex out my junk. This is also a great time to see if my limit straps need adjusting.




Straps still stop the shock from topping out with just the tire off the ground, but it could use a little adjustment. Not sure if the strap would stop the shock under a big shock load. I aim for 1/4" left of travel before shock tops out.




While flexed out, might as well take all the preload out.





Once shock is out, wash time. Nobody likes working on oily shocks.



Bench work:



Pull coil plate off, remove springs and coil slider. Inspect the springs for excessive wear, mainly inside. Normal wear is fine like paint missing...etc.




Time to break into the shock. Place in vice and bleed off N2 pressure. I did this part on the bench for the sake of taking pictures.

Loosen the lock down for the wiper cap. Then use spanner wrench to loosen wiper cap. Around half way, push down to drop the seal cap down to expose the shock cylinder c-clip. Unscrew all the way by hand and slide up the seal cap. Now you can remove the c-clip. This is what holds the shock together. Some don't believe in limit straps, but I do.






Now you are ready to separate the shock body from the internals. This is best done in the vise.

Pull straight up evenly and the internals will pop out. Lay the assembly on a clean rag.

At this point I sliced my finger wide open, forgetting that these are machined surfaces...so I didn't get a picture of the assembly coming out. I will post links to other websites to satisfy the visual need for guys.

I will give you some helpful pointers though.

1) some surfaces are razors...yeah.
2) With the shock body still in the vise, put a little air into the reservoir (25 lbs), and get the reservoir piston all the way to the end. This also helps see if the reservoir needs a re-seal as well. If you see bubbles coming up in the oil, you have a leak. Then re-seal the reservoir.
On Fox shocks, you have an added step right here to set the reservoir piston depth. Not a big deal and easy to do.



Now I wanted to show you why my shock was leaking:



The welding slag was my fault, and the nick in the shaft...no idea.

Next was to check my valving to what was ordered. .015" on compression and .012" on rebound. This is an image of the valve shims and piston. Notice the gap between the last two shims....this is called a flutter stack. Please read on....


Notice the two sides are different. One is compression and the other is rebound. Don't get this messed up.



Instead of trying to explain a flutter stack, shock valving/tuning, I would rather give the information so everyone can read and understand.

https://www.crawlpedia.com/shock_tuning.htm

This is not just a normal rebuild since my shaft needed to be replaced. This can be a real PITA, but I will give you some tips to get it done like a pro. Removing the rod end can be frustrating.

First, go inside and start boiling some water.

Second, remove the c-clips and bearing.



Take your shaft with the rod end and place it in the boiling water for 10-15 minuets. Women love when you do this.



I like doing this over using a torch. A torch will remove the finish of the rod end, uneven heating, etc. To each their own though. If a torch is what you want to use, knock yourself out. All you are trying to accomplish is breaking free the lock tight.

After your required time in the boil, take the shaft and clamp it in the vise (and hopefully you purchased the aluminum shaft clamp). Remove rod end, install on new shaft with some lock tight. Reinstall bearing and c-clips.

Time for seals, o-rings, and putting this all back together.

Place shock body in bench vise, and fill up body until about 1" away from the shock cylinder c-clip grove. Place a rag or something over the body so dirt, bug, diaper, or whatever doesn't get inside. On an emulsion shock (no remote reservoir), there is a specific measurement of shock oil to use. On a 2.5 14" shock, it would be 900cc of oil. Another reason the RR shocks kick ass.

Install all seals & o-rings and discard old ones. You will have extra seals unless doing a triple bypass shock. Not a big deal, save them for the trail. Never know who you might run into with a seal issue.

Re-install all parts in the exact reverse order on the shaft. This is the easy part. If doing a re-valve, write all sizing on shims for future use.

Very easily, start working the piston back into the valve body. Oil will overflow and this is normal. This is getting all the air out. Work in the seal cap. You may have to pull out and put the shaft into the oil more (spill some out), push seal cap in, and pull shaft out of oil. This will draw the seal cap into the body. Little trick if you put to much oil in the body. Push the seal cap below the c-clip grove in the body. Install c-clip. Screw on dust cap and tighten set screw.

I usually take out the schrader valve core at this point.

Next, push the shaft all the way down into the body. Replace schrader valve core and hook up N2 fill kit.





I usually step up the pressure and put 50-75-100 psi of N2 into the shock and watch the shaft come up and listen/watch for leaks. After that is done, I charge the shock to manufacturer recommended psi, disconnect N2 line. (2” shock 125-150 psi, 2.5” shock 150-200 psi)

You now have a rebuilt and tested shock.

Install spring(s), coil slider if applicable, coil plate and adjust coil adjustment cap until snug. Then you can set preload. I have my fronts at ~1" preload and rears at 2-2.5". Tighten down cap and you are ready for install.



And this is how you blow a few hours of your day rebuilding a coil over shock.

http://www.kingshocks.com/products/parts/replacement-parts/
https://www.crawlpedia.com/shock_rebuild.htm
https://www.crawlpedia.com/shock_tuning.htm
https://downsouthmotorsports.com
https://www.filthymotorsports.com
https://www.schmidtyracing.com/product-p/n-reg-uni400-8r-w-.htm


So how much does this cost you ask?

The charge kit, when all said and done was around 300.00. I have used this so much and has paid for itself. Others may not ever pay this off if only using it every 2-3 years. We do a few shocks between the fellas (and ORI's)
Shock rebuild kits 22.00
1 Gallon of shock oil 32.00 (will do two of my large shocks).
Shaft was 60.00, but this is not a normal replacement part. My fault.

So after 4 years of ice cream runs and easy trails, this repair cost me 98.00. If it wasn't for the shaft, this simple rebuild would have cost me 38.00. Shipping alone on most shocks will cost more than that for a private party that doesn't get bulk shipping rates.

Hope this helps some of you out when making decisions on rebuilding shocks. As always, if you have questions or comments, feel free to add them or PM me.

 

Already linked in the post.

 

I will update the original post.

 

That is a fact. Probably ruined the seals rather quickly.

I didn’t post this, but a comparison between old oil vs new oil.



This is why I always wash my shocks well after removing. Only time I have my shocks discharged is shipping or in the rebuilding stage.

 

I pull up on the shaft to ensure the seal head is seated against the c-clip before putting pressure to the shock, but there is always that one time! Good tips.

Keep them coming people.

 

Good call on the MAP gas selection. I have actually seen people get aluminum so hot it deforms. Lol. This is usually why I suggest the boiling water.

Doing rebuilds without shaft clamps is just wrong. I have actually rebuilt a 2.0 King on top of an old clothes washer as a bench. My buddy had just returned from a short deployment to Africa and decided to get this done over beers. Lol. Timing is everything I guess.

Glad you liked the thread and thank you for your input and advice.

 

Funny, I just noticed a gun in one of the pics....

See if you can find it....

 

Are you pointing at my member? Lol

Try again.

 

That’s a razor knife.

Big hint. First picture.

 

19.

G17 wasn’t far though.

 

Oh......

 

Shoot me a PM with details.

See what I did there?