Clayton Suspension with falcon shocks.

[EP_Nic]

I have been running a clayton suspension with falcon sp2 3.3 and this suspension is way too tough to dial in. I don't know if my springs are too stiff or if the shocks are too stiff but I am only getting about an inch of travel on my shocks from daily driving. I also have a crazy bump steer and a shimmy in my steering wheel at 50-55. I am new to this stuff, and have been checking torque specs on everything, even had my tires rebalanced and aligned. If any body has advice on where I should look next I really just want a smoother ride. I was thinking about buying the synergy track bar support and relocation bracket next. Any help is appreciated.

Sponsored

 

[STL Gladiator]

I have been running a clayton suspension with falcon sp2 3.3 and this suspension is way too tough to dial in. I don't know if my springs are too stiff or if the shocks are too stiff but I am only getting about an inch of travel on my shocks from daily driving. I also have a crazy bump steer and a shimmy in my steering wheel at 50-55. I am new to this stuff, and have been checking torque specs on everything, even had my tires rebalanced and aligned. If any body has advice on where I should look next I really just want a smoother ride. I was thinking about buying the synergy track bar support and relocation bracket next. Any help is appreciated.

Hi friend, did you try setting the shocks shafts to cold/soft mode? Turning the shock shaft to soft/cold...and leave it there for good, that’s the advice I got from everyone on here who has the Falcon SP2s. I am currently doing my lift and setting up the 3.3s also.

Reach out to @darkhorse13, ...John is good guy and has the Falcon 3.3s and wealth of experience. His JT is loaded up, heavy weight and has no complaints on rude quality.

 

[darkhorse13]

Hi friend, did you try setting the shocks shafts to cold/soft mode? Turning the shock shaft to soft/cold...and leave it there for good, that’s the advice I got from everyone on here who has the Falcon SP2s. I am currently doing my lift and setting up the 3.3s also.

Reach out to @darkhorse13, ...John is good guy and has the Falcon 3.3s and wealth of experience. His JT is loaded up, heavy weight and has no complaints on rude quality.

Yes, rotate the shaft to "soft" and leave it. No bump steer here and the ride is firm on road. It's not a secret that Clayton does have probably the highest spring rates on the market. That's not a bad thing but it will yield a stiffer ride on the road but a more controlled ride on the dirt IMO.

Did you tighten your control arms with the weight of the vehicle on the ground? Maybe something is bound up? 1/2" of travel is not normal. I'll put some zip ties around my shock shaft and see how much travel I net out during normal driving.

John

 

[FLUndertaker]

Love my COR overland plus with Falcon Shocks. Ride is fantastic, much better than stock. Hope you get it dialed in. It’s not the kit, must be the install and tuning IMHO.

 

[EP_Nic]

Yes, rotate the shaft to "soft" and leave it. No bump steer here and the ride is firm on road. It's not a secret that Clayton does have probably the highest spring rates on the market. That's not a bad thing but it will yield a stiffer ride on the road but a more controlled ride on the dirt IMO.

Did you tighten your control arms with the weight of the vehicle on the ground? Maybe something is bound up? 1/2" of travel is not normal. I'll put some zip ties around my shock shaft and see how much travel I net out during normal driving.

John

How can I check if things are bound up thats exactly what it feels like.

 

[darkhorse13]

How can I check if things are bound up thats exactly what it feels like.

I would recommend to loosen all (8) control arm bolts in front (and rear) as well as both track bar bolts. Bounce it up and down to see if that helped then tighten everything back to the proper torque spec. Not sure who installed your lift but if it was a shop that cranked everything on the lift then that could be your problem.

Also, this is assuming that you are either running OEM arms or some type of "rubber" bushing end. If you're running metal Johnny joints then disregard as those can be torqued in an unloaded situation.

 

[Clayton Off Road]

Sorry to hear you're having some trouble, 1/2" of shock travel is definitely not normal and sounds to me like the shocks are set too stiff for your vehicle's needs! We do use higher spring rates than other manufacturers out there, so if you're running something like the Falcon shocks which tend to be a little bit stiffer and not planning on loading the vehicle up with a ton of extra heavyweight, than we would highly recommend keeping the shocks on some of their softer settings - especially for on-road use. However as another forum member mentioned, it could also be that there were some issues during install and the suspension itself is getting bound up, if you feel like this might be the case definitely give us a call and we can work with you to help figure out what's going on and a solution! The systems we offer are meant to be the best riding suspension options on the market both on and off-road so rest assured we'll make sure we help you figure this issue out. Phone number to the shop is (203) 691 8593.

 

[STL Gladiator]

How can I check if things are bound up thats exactly what it feels like.

Did you torque everything while on the ground or did you do it while up on stands? Should have been done with weight if Jeep on the ground with tires or weight of Jeep on axles resting stands.
What about the track bar...is it setup right and torqued correct?

Did you reach out to Clayton those guys can help and they are pretty responsive!

 

[EP_Nic]

Sorry to hear you're having some trouble, 1/2" of shock travel is definitely not normal and sounds to me like the shocks are set too stiff for your vehicle's needs! We do use higher spring rates than other manufacturers out there, so if you're running something like the Falcon shocks which tend to be a little bit stiffer and not planning on loading the vehicle up with a ton of extra heavyweight, than we would highly recommend keeping the shocks on some of their softer settings - especially for on-road use. However as another forum member mentioned, it could also be that there were some issues during install and the suspension itself is getting bound up, if you feel like this might be the case definitely give us a call and we can work with you to help figure out what's going on and a solution! The systems we offer are meant to be the best riding suspension options on the market both on and off-road so rest assured we'll make sure we help you figure this issue out. Phone number to the shop is (203) 691 8593.

I will definitely call here in a little bit. I will attach some pictures of things that might help. I did torque everything on the ground I even bounced on the front end to try and set it, Ive really just been struggling to find the lingering culprit. Ive noticed one of my front springs looks bound up but i dont know if that would be the issue, Im also still using a stock tierod is that something that could help improve the feel.

 

[STL Gladiator]

I will definitely call here in a little bit. I will attach some pictures of things that might help. I did torque everything on the ground I even bounced on the front end to try and set it, Ive really just been struggling to find the lingering culprit. Ive noticed one of my front springs looks bound up but i dont know if that would be the issue, Im also still using a stock tierod is that something that could help improve the feel.

that one spring looks funky. Not certain how that plays into your issue but it doesn’t look right. Should be straight like the other. I wonder if it’s seated correctly.

I have the same setup as you or close to it and ride fantastic.

 

[EP_Nic]

Update Fixed the spring issue yesterday one of the little rubber nipples didnt want to go in its home which was causing the bowing. When I took the swaybar endlink off I noticed there was a lot of pressure on that side almost as if that endlink was a little longer than the other side would this binding be enough to cause a vibration in my steering wheel or would it not make a difference at all.

 

[Clayton Off Road]

Update Fixed the spring issue yesterday one of the little rubber nipples didnt want to go in its home which was causing the bowing. When I took the swaybar endlink off I noticed there was a lot of pressure on that side almost as if that endlink was a little longer than the other side would this binding be enough to cause a vibration in my steering wheel or would it not make a difference at all.

That's great, those coils can be tricky on the JT's, most of the time it not sitting correctly in the perch is what causes bowing issues on these vehicles. As far as the end link goes, I doubt it was causing too much of an issue as the end links are adjustable and it shouldn't have been too far off from the other side. If the suspension feels like it's bound up it's most likely stemming from an issue with the control arms being installed incorrectly.

 

[Rubiwoo]

So how does it ride now? The swaybar endlink looks short

 

[EP_Nic]

So how does it ride now? The swaybar endlink looks short

Definitely rides alot better now Ive gone through and loosened the track bars and shocks and re torqued everything. still have the slightest amount of bumpsteer, But i think that is just because i need to adjust the length of the front track bar.

Sponsored