^^^ This!!
Billsteins With DJM Arms?
- Thread starter M Hankel
- Start date
Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.
^^^ This!!
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
Sorry guys, been busy with other things and havent got the 3/5 drop installed yet. I did get the shocks though. The eyelet needed some slight modification. The hole was just a tad too small so i drilled em out w a 1/2" bit. Then the metal insert was roughly 1/8" too wide and wouldn't slip into the mounting bracket on the DJM arm. So i busted out the hand grinder and took a bit off each side. Sounds like alot of work but it only took about 10 minutes for each shock. Looks like they fit perfect now. Just gotta find some time to install it all now. 
Mike
Mike
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
Well good news! I installed the 3/5 drop and Bilstein shocks today. Not a job I would recomend doing alone lol. Couple times I wished I hand a third arm when installing the DJM front arms. Truck is going to the alignment shop tomorrow. Once I get the stance dialed-in I'll start a new thread with pics and give a report on the Bilsteins also.
Mike
Mike
MeanGreen03
Full Access Member
Nice!!! Can't wait to see it! I know what you mean about wishing for an extra arm. lol
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
OK so initial impressions are mixed about the drop and the overall ride etc..
First, the Bilsteins seem to work amazing. Very compliant but not quite as firm as I was hoping for. Seem to be about like a stock shock, on a stock height Tahoe to be quite honest. Was hoping for a little firmer ride but these will do for now. If I get some extra coin I might opt for the re-valving option later on.
Second, the rear is way too stiff. My buddy gave me some Belltech Nitro Drops off his lowered suburban and well, they pretty much suck. It's either that or maybe because I don't have the rear hardware kit installed back there to relocate the lower arms? Not sure why but I'm not diggin it and something will change. I've got the Belltech 5305 coils which everyone says ride great so I doubt that is the issue. Free travel mod was already done so that's not it.
Third, I'm thinking I need to go lower lol... The DS front is at 33", PS front is 34" and both rears are about even at 34"-34.2". I want to crank down the keys a bit. I counted the number of turns each bolt was at when I removed them from stock, and put the same amount of turns back into them when I reinstalled. So, probably could go an inch lower in the front and cut a coil or two from the 5305's (dead coils). Got these from Alex and he mentioned they were barely used, so they might settle a bit in the next month or so. Oh yeah, running two different size tires front to back for the time being. Got 305/40/22 up front and 305/45/22 out back, so I might wait to get the matching 305/40/22 in the rear before messing with cutting the springs much, although I still have 1" spacers if I cut too much off the springs.
I'll try to get some pics up sooner or later.
Mike
First, the Bilsteins seem to work amazing. Very compliant but not quite as firm as I was hoping for. Seem to be about like a stock shock, on a stock height Tahoe to be quite honest. Was hoping for a little firmer ride but these will do for now. If I get some extra coin I might opt for the re-valving option later on.
Second, the rear is way too stiff. My buddy gave me some Belltech Nitro Drops off his lowered suburban and well, they pretty much suck. It's either that or maybe because I don't have the rear hardware kit installed back there to relocate the lower arms? Not sure why but I'm not diggin it and something will change. I've got the Belltech 5305 coils which everyone says ride great so I doubt that is the issue. Free travel mod was already done so that's not it.
Third, I'm thinking I need to go lower lol... The DS front is at 33", PS front is 34" and both rears are about even at 34"-34.2". I want to crank down the keys a bit. I counted the number of turns each bolt was at when I removed them from stock, and put the same amount of turns back into them when I reinstalled. So, probably could go an inch lower in the front and cut a coil or two from the 5305's (dead coils). Got these from Alex and he mentioned they were barely used, so they might settle a bit in the next month or so. Oh yeah, running two different size tires front to back for the time being. Got 305/40/22 up front and 305/45/22 out back, so I might wait to get the matching 305/40/22 in the rear before messing with cutting the springs much, although I still have 1" spacers if I cut too much off the springs.
I'll try to get some pics up sooner or later.
Mike
I'm glad u finally got everything installed. Sorry to hear you felt the Bilsteins were too stiff in the rear. I agree with your analysis of the BT in the rear, hehe. Do you have shock relocators on the truck? I've read that a bad shock angle can cause binding and a poor ride.
One option worth considering is the Z71 bumpstops up front. Those might help you firm up the front a little.
Just some thoughts.
One option worth considering is the Z71 bumpstops up front. Those might help you firm up the front a little.
Just some thoughts.
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
I've never ran Bilsteins in the rear but they will probably be the choice of shock that ends up back there. I cant stand these BT Nitro Drops. Not using shock extenders as they're a shorter shock for the drop.
Ive never heard of anyone referencing the Z71 bumpstops. I know where theres a wrecked one too lol... Might have to give that a shot. The front Bilsteins arent too bad if you like a stock plush ride. I kinda like a firmer ride as long as its not so jarring that it rattles the teeth lol.
NORCAL SS
SUV SUSPENSION GURU
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2009
- Posts
- 8,744
- Reaction score
- 610
The nitro Belltech hasn't been made for years. way soft this is why i use the Belltech street performance shocks with the 3/5 plus kit i sell
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
Excellent thread boys..... Seams like I will be ordering the Bilstein shox now!!! Never ending....suspension shoukd be all upgraded soon
I'm loving the Bilstiens in the front with these DJM arms. Good control and not too stiff. When I first installed them I thought I'd like them to be a bit more firm, but now that I've got a couple thousand miles on them, I'm really enjoying the plush ride.
Hoping to have some time to install the Bilstiens for the rear with DJM brackets. Probably gonna have to modify the brackets for a bit more extension though.
Mike
candyman74
Full Access Member
front and rear shocks
ok so i know the PN - 24-013284 are for the front but which ones for the rear
ok so i know the PN - 24-013284 are for the front but which ones for the rear
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
For the rear Bilstiens I got these: 24-143806, but I dont think they would work if you're really low in the back. At my ride height (in sig pic with Belltech 5305), the shock dimension sitting still was 17" without the DJM shock relocation brackets These Billstiens fully compressed were 16". The DJM brackets will add 2" of extension to the shock so that would only leave 3" of suspension compression before the shock bottomed out. I fabbed up some custom extensions and modified the DJM shock brackets so that I now have 5" of usable shock compression. Basically I wanted the axle to hit the frame before the shock bottomed out.
If I were to do it again I would go with a stiffer front Bilstien for the DJM arms and a shorter version of this same shock for the rear. I will say that these rear Bilstiens ride AMAZING!!!!!! Can not stress enough how much better these rear Bilstiens are than the Belltech Nitro shocks I replaced.
Mike
If I were to do it again I would go with a stiffer front Bilstien for the DJM arms and a shorter version of this same shock for the rear. I will say that these rear Bilstiens ride AMAZING!!!!!! Can not stress enough how much better these rear Bilstiens are than the Belltech Nitro shocks I replaced.
Mike
Any pics of these custom extenders?
I'm running the same shock w/ the belltech TB spring and I have enough travel before the shock bottoms out. I have 2" extenders too. I've been told my shocks are too long but I'm not worried. When the $$ is right, I'm getting some King shocks front and rear. BTW, these bilsteins are great for the price and they ride excellent.
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
I didnt take any pics but they'll be coming off this weekend for a coat of paint. Wanted to make sure there wouldnt be any issues before painting them in case I had cut/ weld again lol... I made them with several different bolt hole locations so I could run just about any style/length of shocks. Also picked up a vertical milling machine a couple weeks ago and have been having way too much fun with that lol...
Mike
Also picked up a vertical milling machine a couple weeks ago and have been having way too much fun with that lol...Mike
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
Alex, here's the pics I made for the rear shocks.
I started by cutting off the new relocation tabs from the DJM shock relocation brackets. Then I made the new tabs with several different hole locations for different shock lengths. Once those were made, I mocked them up to the bracket with them mounted to the Tahoe and tacked welded them in place. I chose to weld the plates on the outsides of the DJM bracket to allow for side to side movement of the shock when the axle gets crossed up in relation to the body, like driving at an angle over a steep driveway approach etc.. This required making some spacers to go between the new shock bracket hole and the shock itself.
I could have welded the plates on the inside of the DJM bracket and they would have been a perfect width for the shock eyelet hole. But, the bracket would have been practically touching the shock body and would have put a strain against the shock and possibly prevented the axle from moving freely at extreme angles.
So here is the finished results after painting them today. I now have an adjustment range from stock location to, 2", 3" 4" and 5". As the Bilstiens are now, mounted at the bottom location and suspension fully dropped (chassis supported on jackstands), the Belltech springs will not fall out and I have up to 5" of shock compression before the shock bottoms. Way more than needed but at least I know these shocks will last, even if I go quite a bit lower.
Mike
I started by cutting off the new relocation tabs from the DJM shock relocation brackets. Then I made the new tabs with several different hole locations for different shock lengths. Once those were made, I mocked them up to the bracket with them mounted to the Tahoe and tacked welded them in place. I chose to weld the plates on the outsides of the DJM bracket to allow for side to side movement of the shock when the axle gets crossed up in relation to the body, like driving at an angle over a steep driveway approach etc.. This required making some spacers to go between the new shock bracket hole and the shock itself.
I could have welded the plates on the inside of the DJM bracket and they would have been a perfect width for the shock eyelet hole. But, the bracket would have been practically touching the shock body and would have put a strain against the shock and possibly prevented the axle from moving freely at extreme angles.
So here is the finished results after painting them today. I now have an adjustment range from stock location to, 2", 3" 4" and 5". As the Bilstiens are now, mounted at the bottom location and suspension fully dropped (chassis supported on jackstands), the Belltech springs will not fall out and I have up to 5" of shock compression before the shock bottoms. Way more than needed but at least I know these shocks will last, even if I go quite a bit lower.
Mike
candyman74
Full Access Member
yeah after going out an looking at my truck i dont think those brackets will work with the djm rear hardware kit. is there a shorter shock that can be used? i still have some 2in shock extenders laying around so maybe a 3in shorter shock and the extenders would work?
Last edited:
OP
OP
M Hankel
Full Access Member
A shorter shock would be the better setup IMO. I would like to find this same Bilstien shock in a shorter version. Not sure if they make them though and haven't had much interest in researching it since I already had the shocks and the brackets.
Mike
Nickleahy23
Full Access Member
Just did the Bilsteins on my truck yesterday. I had to bend the tabs of the DJM arms wider to fit the wider sleeve of the new shocks. Had to buy new bolts as well, went with 2.5" x 7/16" and they worked perfect.
Other then that it was straight foward. They definatly ride better then the djm shocks ive had. After 1.5 years they were completely blown and the bushings completely gone on one side. It still doesnt ride GREAT, but its definatly better and much more stable on the highway..I dont get the ****** side to side on bumps, which im guessing was from the missing bushings on the djm shocks. They have much better rebound than the new djm shocks as well.
Other then that it was straight foward. They definatly ride better then the djm shocks ive had. After 1.5 years they were completely blown and the bushings completely gone on one side. It still doesnt ride GREAT, but its definatly better and much more stable on the highway..I dont get the ****** side to side on bumps, which im guessing was from the missing bushings on the djm shocks. They have much better rebound than the new djm shocks as well.
Last edited:
