Got my set of front and rear Rancho 9000's delivered and will install them in the morning.
However, I've been looking them over for a while now and am wondering about the boots.
They look to me like a recipe for disaster. That is, they seal at the bottom with a zip tie, but at the top, they are rather open. There aren't any drain holes at the bottom, either.
This means that any water or abrasives (mud, sand) that get in through the top of the boot will collect at the bottom of the boot and potentially damage the plunger rod.
So I'm thinking of leaving the boots off altogether.

What do you think?

 

Leave 'em off. All they do is trap stuff and cause early shock failure. Do a google and you'll see all the off road guys ditch them. They don't serve any function, just for looks.

 

I'll take them off your hands. the boots on my rancho stabilizers are cut up from binding as a result of the center mounting plate slipping. in a horrizontal position , water is not an issue.

 

I installed them after all. Turns out the boot seals very well at the top and bottom. Darn near air tight in fact.

 

Make sure you open them and clean them out occasionally if you run in any mud or deep water and such. They're definitely not air tight and the stuff that gets in can cause corrosion and/or damage the seals. Don't ask me how I know. LOL