81 FC Koni Shock Adjustment Results

[mrdonut12]

Jeff,
That's the theory, only remove the bottom of the shock
and adjust it on the bus.
The reality is, the bushings are so stiff, I can't get it
to flex enough to get one end off without getting the other so
close to off I may as well take the whole thing off to do the
adjustment.
I put mine in a vice, as per instructions, then used masking
tape for an index as to how many twists were in the shock.
The instructions said there would be 5 half-turns, but my
index marks showed I only got 4.1 half turns. I set mine in the
middle, at 2.05 half turns. LOL
There was so much difference between my first setting of
"full tight, then backed off a half turn", to the current "full
tight, backed off a full turn", that leads me to believe the
adjustment is critical to get exactly right. I wouldn't trust
myself to get it that close to right laying under the bus.
That's with new shocks. In the future, I'd be comfortable
that if the bushings got softer with age and I wanted to move the
shock another quarter turn and I could get the bottom loose,
I could do that on the bus.
FWIW, the 2 shocks weren't set the same out of the box. If
installing new ones, I'd be sure to index them prior to installation.

George Witt
81 FC 35
Lincoln, Nebraska


--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Jeff Miller"
wrote:
> It might already have been mentioned, but you only need to take the
> bottom of the shock loose to adjust.
>
> - Jeff Miller
>
>
> --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "geez_al" wrote:
> > I have a question for you. I'm on the road full time right now and
> a bit
> > hesitant to get into anything at an RV Park, but my ride is a bit
> too stiff
> > as well on the firmest setting. I had my shocks installed with a
> bunch of
> > other stuff so I'm wondering.. How long did it take you? Can you
> adjust them
> > w/o taking off the tire? Was it hard to recompress? Oh, and do you
> remember
> > what size wrench it was? I only have the bare minimum tools with me
> and
> > might have to pick up a wrench at the store.
> >
> >
> >
> > As I head east, the roads seem to be getting a bit rough so I'd
> like to
> > soften things up a bit.
> >
> >
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Al S.
> >
> > 1981 31'