Ok, I put the rancho quicklift quickstruts on the front last october. I didn't do the work myself, had them put on. I have been very satisfied with them so far. I am thinking of changing the rear shocks this spring or summer and have narrowed down the choice to the rancho 9000 series or bilsteins. I actually am thinking of going with the bilsteins because I can get them a little cheaper and I know they are a good shock. I really don't care about them matching the front. Anyway, I am planning on doing the work myself for this. I guess the question is has anyone done this and have some tips for me? I see they just bolt on at the top and the bottom...as far as putting the new ones on, do they match up in length when they are extended or do I need to try to squeeze them down to get them to line up to the bolts? If so, is it hard to squeeze them down to line up?? I know that might sound really confusing, but hopefully someone will know what I am trying to say. Thanks for any help!!

Edit: I figured everyone would assume this but wanted to make sure, the truck will be jacked up and there will be no weight on the rear wheels.

 

You might want to consider the Rancho 5000 series as well. I put a set on the rear last year when I replaced the fronts with Rancho also. I did not use the Quick Lift since I already have an AutoSpring kit up front.

The ride was improved dramatically by changing them.

 

thanks for the advice. can you give me any tips on changing them out? Is it a pretty smooth procedure?

 

I've never changed shocks on a pickup, but I've done quite a few on my OTR trucks. depending on how rusted up the mounting bolts are you might have to heat them up to get them off. As far as mounting the new shocks, you might have to move the shock a little to line them up, but thats not hard to do by hand. Also, I think you probabaly don't need to jack the truck up since the springs should support the weight of the truck without the shocks on.

 

bilsteins 5100

 

Shocks are very easy to change, as long as you have a wrench to remove the blots. You can jack the truck up if you want, but the shocks don't support any weight of the truck, the job of the shock is to dampen the springs.

The new shocks will come with a band on them to keep them compressed, cut this and the shock will extend to the full length. Secure the top of the shock to its mounting point, then compress the shock by hand to get the bottom mounting point to line up, not hard to do by hand. tighten the bolts, and you are done.

 

An easier way is to secure the upper mount, then cut the band. As the shock extends, line up the lower mount and connect the shock as it slides by. It's easier than trying to compress the shock while connecting it to the lower mount.

 

thanks a lot guys. That is what I was unsure of if I could compress the shock by hand or not, you have been very helpful. Still not sure if I am going with the Bilstein or the rancho 9000 series. I am having trouble getting the exact part number on the bilsteins.

 

Bilstein - KYB - Rancho - Monroe - Edelbrock Automotive Truck Shocks and Struts - Shockwarehouse.com
This is what I went with in the rear. Nice ride and control

 

thanks t8ter. So I assume the f4-be5-a935-h0 is the correct one for a 4X4 with stock rearend height?

 

Up to 1" I think...
Hope this helps

 

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so I actually ordered the rancho 9000 series for the rear. Got to thinkin about it and I would like the rear to match the front, plus I got a good price on them from Rock auto(I love that site!!). So I got them for like 82 each. One last question on the install...does the shock body(the fat part) go on the bottom and the piston on top or vice versa?? Thanks guys, and thanks t8ter for all the info, I know the bilsteins would have been great, but I know rancho is a good brand too, and I can match the rears to the front for the same price so I went with the 9000's.

 

bigunit54, I am thinking the same way as far as which ones to install. The piston on my ProComps is mounted to top on mine. Suppose all are the same.

 

yeah I am sure I will be happy with the 9000's. I did a little searching on this forum and another I am pretty sure the shock body is supposed to be on bottom and the piston on top. I may call the rancho people before the install just to verify.