DG's Custom Koni's or JIC FLT A2

[rabenne]

So, im down to two choices for the replacement of my shocks/springs. I have read over and over that Koni is an awesome damper, and after reading DG's custom koni coilover guide, I know this is the best way to use them. I also have read a lot of great things about the JIC FLTA2's. The full setup for either one doesnt vary in price that much. Having custom pieces made makes DG's setup nearly the same cost to build. So when it comes down to it, who makes the better shock?

Koni right? I will be driving this car in autocross and open track days here in Birmingham. Please give me your opinion.

 

[snowborder714]

I would pick the DG setup as the upper mount is one plus to that kit over the JIC's.

I can't speak to the better shock though.

 

[rabenne]

why is the upper mount in DG's kit better? The JIC has full spherical bearing mounting plates. I dont know of any difference in the two designs so any help would be appritiated. Thank you

 

[rx7ttlm]

The jic is over damped, while the 3-10in/sec range is fine the low speed damping is pretty silly. The car ends up feeling planted, but it ratchets down the shock over a series of bumps if they are in rapid succession. Rather than having less low speed control and netting more mechanical grip and letting the car move a little. Watch the Risi Competizione Ferrari's at sebring, the car doesn't follow every bump, it sort of floats over them. But it eats up everyone else in the corners. Also the jic has less consistent damping, on a dyno it shows up as hysteresis.

Get the koni setup.

 

[snowborder714]

The JIC has full spherical bearing mounting plates.

That I didn't know. Thanks for the info.

 

[rabenne]

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But you sure know how to enforce the site rules with no regard to the intention of the rules. no problem. I am not sure if their setup is different from the RRE top spring mounts/plates (besides RRE's being for 2.5" springs instead of 2.25" like DG's and the JIC's.) DG states in his write up that the spherical bearing plates are more important than the shocks themselves. If either JIC or DG's setup has any advantages over the other id like to know.

So far, from other sources, Im hearing the JIC shocks arent as good as konis. Does anyone know why sperical bearing plates would be required in the rear? I thought it was necessary to keep the spring from bending while the steering wheel its turned and the shocks/springs pivot around. I cant imagine why it would be as crutial in the rear, but hopefully someone can clear this up

 

[greengoblin]

The rear wheels also moves in more than one plane so bearing back there are best too.

I also believe that the DG upper plate design gives us a little bit more suspension travel over others . I could be wrong though since I have not personally measured them against each other.


Kevin

 

[rabenne]

well I suppose if you put the snap ring groove for the coilover collars in the right place the koni setup should have the correct suspension travel. The jic shock body is threaded end to end, allowing you to set the lower spring height and lower mount height anywhere you want. I know that with all the range of adjustablitity, only a small window is useful, but it leads me to believe that you could match the JIC flta2 suspension travel exactly to where DG has his recommended setup at.

If there arent really any outstanding differences between the two kits, besides the damper quality and weight than I would think that DG's setup would be better (better shocks). While the JIC setup is likely the lighter of the two. The shock is threaded instead of sticking a sleeve over a koni. less parts, less weight.. the difference in weight probably doesnt justify going with a lower quality damper. Maybe there is a way to thread a koni, end to end. But im guessing if DG didnt do it that way it was because the spring perches and lock rings of such a thread diameter and pitch are not readily available. The cost to fab custom ones would be too great for the minor weight savings. At least this is true on my "toy" that sees mostly street time with track time when possible.

I didnt think about the pivoting of the lower shock mount when the suspension travels up and down. it seems as though the range of motion wouldnt be enought to bind the spring (giving you inconsistent spring rates) but it must be worth doing if both the JIC and DG's setup use them on the rear. Thanks for your input.



I just spoke with a member here that built his own setup. I am ready to all but rule the konis out, as it cost the guy $1400 just to have the custom parts machined. A total cost of $2800 for the whole setup. I was estimating a few hundred for the fab work.

I will likely buy the new JIC flt a2s rather than reman and still come out way ahead.

 

[snowborder714]

I just spoke with a member here that built his own setup. I am ready to all but rule the konis out, as it cost the guy $1400 just to have the custom parts machined. A total cost of $2800 for the whole setup. I was estimating a few hundred for the fab work.

That is just insane. The guy obviously didn't do any shopping around. When I started the group buy I ran, I asked at least a half dozen places/people for pricing on the parts. You will be able to find someone who will do it for your price range. PM me if you want more info.

 

[greengoblin]

I didn't pay near that to have my upper hats made.

 

[eclipsh]

rabenne, the other benefit to the spherical bearing is that it allows the shock to react more quickly. The OEM rubber has some spring to it which has to be overcome before the shock can do it's job damping the motion. While the steel ball and aluminum hat technically have some spring to them it is small enough to be essentially rigid so the shock can start damping more quickly and for smaller movements of the wheel.

 

[rabenne]

thanks guys. I have also been looking at teins upper pillowballs? they dont seem to allow the shock rod to sit up as high on the fender but with a properly sized standoff, they could be a reasonable, cheap alternative to finding someone to do cheap machine work for a yankee in alabama... for an "import" no less.

 

[rabenne]

Well, as chance would have it a phone call to JIC USA led to my purchasing a set of the FLT A2s. While I may seem like a dick for asking for advice and then ignoring it, I did take the advice into careful consideration.

Believe it or not the deciding factor was COST! I estimated the DG coilover kit to run right in the $1500-$1700 range. Thats $493 for konis, $300 for hypercoils, $80 for hypercoil helpers, $250 for koni sleeves, $50 for torrington bearings/races, $100 for spherical bearings, plus $200-$300 for custom made parts.

I got a remanufactured flt a2 kit directly from JIC-USA. The kit includes 4 new springs (8kg,7kg - "box kit rates"), all new lock rings and spring perches, new boots, 4 replaced spherical bearings in top mounts, 2 brand new front "upgraded" shocks, 2 rebuilt rear shocks and they have been refinished as well. JIC told me they are as good as new, and I get the full 90 day warranty, as if the kit were new.

 

[snowborder714]

So did you really just buy them and list them for sale 2 days later? Did you get a good deal on them and are now flipping them? Or am I just confused between that statement and your classified ad?

 

[rabenne]

I got a good enough deal to see if I could make some money flipping them. Not my first choice, they were just that good of a deal.