A shock (ing) question

gearloose

gearloose

Member
What would be the best for touring in a 1931 Tudor, modern shock kit or new original style like Bratton sells? Which will make the ride the best? I have had the car since 1960, time to make it as sweet a ride as possible.
 
We have a Sport Coupe with a completely rebuilt suspension system.

New correct shocks and springs, rebuilt front end and brakes, new Firestone tires and tubes.

Car handles like a dream, a great driving car. Ride is really nice for 90 year old technology.

I’m sure there will be many different views. Enjoy.
 
Yes, Bill Stipe Shocks, greased springs with spring covers to keep dirt and water out and a rear Panhard bar keeps our Town Sedan riding cushy. The Panhard bar really helps in a cross wind on the big car.
 
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gearloose said:
What would be the best for touring in a 1931 Tudor, modern shock kit or new original style like Bratton sells? Which will make the ride the best? I have had the car since 1960, time to make it as sweet a ride as possible.
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Answering this question can be like, "what is the best oil for my car"?
Your perception of "the best ride" can be totally different from the next guy in line.
Another big question is, how much are you willing to spend to achieve the "best ride"?
And another question is, how much time and effort are you willing to expend to get what you want?

Are you willing to take what other people say as "the last word on shocks"? (including myself)

You have an idea what you personally want for a ride.
To get there, you MIGHT be lucky and find what you want on the first try. You will have to try SOMETHING, even if it is way wrong. If you hit it wrong, it can get expensive.
Be forewarned.

I think I have done a lot more trial and error research on model A shocks than most people. For my 30 2 door, I wanted a soft "progressive" street ride. That is, very soft just cruising around on average streets including well maintained gravel roads. "Progressive" means as the road gets rougher, the suspension gets stiffer. This prevents bottoming out on chuck holes etc.
After trying stock rebuilt shocks, (done myself) as too linear, I went to tube shocks. I tried several "kits".
I did not like them. The ride was too choppy (jerky) and
there was some loss of steering traction on smooth gravel roads. At the time, I had access to a shock dyno and could have my friend check them. These kits were all 60/40, meaning they had a rating of 60 compression and 40 rebound. Just almost backward of what I ended up with after more experimentation. (30/70)
It is difficult to find out what OEM or common replacement shocks are as to compression and rebound without actually testing them so I went to used race car shocks as used on midgets and sprint cars. These are sold by their ratings.
Common sizes are 7 and 9 inch which are both compatible to model A's. I got them cheaper than new after market shocks on Ebay. They are rated by a number system usually. 1 being soft and 5 being stiff. I ended up on my car using 2/4's. (2 compression, 4 rebound)My car rides quite soft on the street but has enough extended stiffness to run in parking lot auto crosses and do fairly well. Your springs come into play on this also. You need a very soft, easy working spring.(100 lb per inch rate) The point is, if you are willing to take the time and spend the money, you can get exactly what you want for ride stiffness.
Then again, you can just bolt on what everyone else is using and wonder what you could have had.
 
If you are driving you car without shocks and it feels safe above 25 MPH then you need to think about your springs first. Either they are wore out (front spring) or not lubricated very good.

Good springs make the car very very bouncy to the point you feel like the car is going off the road. You then really need shocks just to go anywhere.

Obviously, if you do not have shocks and you drive over 25 MPH then you know you have to rebuild your springs. (more often a new front spring is likely needed)
 
Pete
That is very good info there.
Ride preference is a very personal matter.
When I was working we had experimental shocks and a 40 ft trailer full of different valving, we could mix and match, until we got what we wanted and then have the production shocks made to those specs.

Might you have a link to the sources that you used?
 
Out of all the things I've done to improve the ride of my Model A's, spring covers soaked with SAE 140 gear lube makes the most significant difference with stock wheels.

However, if ride comfort is a must have, go with later Ford V8 wire wheels and 6.50 tires.

I put original shocks rebuilt by Robert Paul on my 190A, and these shocks work very well. My 45B still has the repro shocks of the 1970s by Pete of Chicago on it, but I had to fill them with STP to compensate for wear.
 

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Bratton's also sells new tube shocks that bolt on with no drilling or mods. This is a third of the price of Stripe shocks and for touring that was what I wanted.
 
Kevin in NJ said:
If you are driving you car without shocks and it feels safe above 25 MPH then you need to think about your springs first. Either they are wore out (front spring) or not lubricated very good.

Good springs make the car very very bouncy to the point you feel like the car is going off the road. You then really need shocks just to go anywhere.

Obviously, if you do not have shocks and you drive over 25 MPH then you know you have to rebuild your springs. (more often a new front spring is likely needed)
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Now THAT is good advise, right there, and where you should start.
 
I used Armstrong shocks originally on an MGB. Bolts on to the original holes in the frame. A little tweaking of the arm to get it to line up with the ball on the front end. Welded on Balls that I bought from Snyder's. You can buy plenty of them on eBay.

 
Chris Haynes said:
I used Armstrong shocks originally on an MGB. Bolts on to the original holes in the frame. A little tweaking of the arm to get it to line up with the ball on the front end. Welded on Balls that I bought from Snyder's. You can buy plenty of them on eBay.

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Are these shocks adjustable? Or if not adjustable can heavier oil be put in to adjust dampening?
 
the large hex plug in the side of the bottom is the valve unit, they do sell "heavy duty" valves, , but not adjustable ---if the oil is too heavy , I once tried 90wt in my MG, on a hard bump it sheared the splines
 
The posts regarding the MG are good ones, I kinda forgot about those. They can be found cheaper than the Stipes and look much better than tubes.

Good restored originals are fine also, but, I think they are getting hard to find.
 
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