Icon, OME, Fox or Kings?

Great leaf pack. I gonna look at archive garage, Eric is a good dude and great customer service..

 

Thirding Elka as being worth a look. I have the 2.5 adjustables and they own bones. Super smooth ride off road, if a little on the firm side for on road.

 

Id say ADS, then king. Fox is quality but it is also made in Taiwan. Some people have an issue with that. I do. I'd rather spend my money for american made products. Just my .2

 

Sometimes the best advice will come from actual users...thank you for sharing.. Many of you did not like icons...many rate the Kings to be better...and many say Fox shocks..the better of either one mention..
Some also mention bilsteins shocks...it reputation is consider as one of best makers of shocks absorbers in the world... many car companies promote Bilstein shocks as a. High end up grades..( is represent as superior brand)

Nice to hear from actual users...and their experiences...I am sure these’s post will help us make better choices..after reading here..
It did did for me ...
Aloha,

 

Kings

 

why?

 

Speak of the Devil.....

 

buy once, cry once - KINGS

 

Speaking of that, @nobo_taco , Kings have a 3 month warranty(that's right, 90 days). ARB give you 3 years on the BP-51s.

 

Hyundai and Kia have the best warranties in the business - that's because they need them. I wouldn't own one if it was free.

Not saying ARB does, in fact some of their products I own and love.

Just don't play the warranty card - its a flawed argument. Engineers are sometimes told to design something to last x amount of time and then the bean counters say....let's make the warranty period ± 6 months of that time. As an engineer myself, I can attest to this 100%.

Getting back to the question at hand. Kings have built a reputation for durability, reliability, and performance. Baja, Mint 400, etc.

ICON has built a reputation for poor quality, poor reliability, and awful customer service. Although some people have no complaints.

ARB (old man emu) has a great reputation all around but they do much more than shocks and springs.

Kings do shocks and springs - thats it. They do them well.

I have said my peace

 

Touchy.

You wont hear me say anything bad about Kings, but I'll keep buying products from companies who stand behind their products.

 

Also, OME just does shocks too, ARB is the parent company now (since 1988) but Old Man Emu has just been doing shocks and suspension since 1976, so let's not use "flawed arguments"

Edit: if you were curious, King opened their doors 20 years after OME, in 1996.

 

Not to nit-pick, but this is not logical whatsoever. Warranties are used in exactly the opposite way you describe. Companies put a long warranty on a product because they don't expect the customer to have to use it.

 

Some of their mainstream fox mtn bicycle shocks are made there . I think the off road shocks for UTVs , trucks buggies are made right in my neck of the woods (santee ,CA). I used to showup at that office/ factory and annoy the crap out of them for free shims , shock shafts and nitrogen recharging , they would always accommodate me. I even did the same thing at the old bilstein usa warehouse/off road racing headquarters in poway CA(like 15min away).

yeah so I’m not sure if you’re much into off-road racing or using your truck off road , but if you have ever been to a race (score, mdr, , king of hammers ...). I think most every vehicle with wheels has either fox /king /bilstein and some odd balls run their sponsored ADS or ICon stuff. the 700hp trucks doing 130mph... fox shocks. The ultra 4 cars bouncing off boulders and each other ? Yup you guessed it , fox shocks again.


So anyways as far as reputable brands , people who stand by and believe in their product and proven products ....I think fox might fall in that category?


Another point to keep in mind is realizing what you are buying. You are all talk about performance, rebuildable off-road shocks. All of these shocks must be maintained, and rebuilt at the recommended service intervals. The nature of use will see your seals fail , shocks leak and shafts become pitted with use . If you guys are actually using these shocks as intended they will cycle from room temperature to 300 degrees plus ! That’s why they are designed the way they are. If you want something “reliable” and stress free this is absolutely not the sport/ hobby for you.

 

sure, I am not doubting the performance of fox, icon, king etc. Maybe its a military thing for me? I would rather just buy American, and support mom and pop shops, Sure, ADS isn't as big as king or fox. I am a small town dude, I just like returning the favor. I do realize that most if not all products are out sourced, and thus reduces cost etc. I love my country, my sister and I both serve together, I have a cousin who serves. I am just a proud American who would be happier at the end of the day for buying American made products . That is all I am saying. Everyone has the right to buy which ever brand they choose for their build needs.

 

I just clarified they ARE usa built. Ironically they also built shocks for the military...
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/growth-development/sdut-fox-racing-shox-moves-el-cajon-2012jun06-story.html?_amp=true



also this is a Toyota truck forum .Toyota is a Japanese car manufacturer which sources Parts and final assembly from all over the world.

 

The Polaris side by sides used by the military are equipped with Fox, Used by Tier 1 units.

 

Can we not bring the military into this discussion as if that indicates quality?

 

Lol

 

I get your point but you’ll likely have to use that warranty. The BP-51s are known for leaking and bent shafts (their shafts are fair but smaller than King/Fox/etc). So it’s good you have the warranty with them. As I mentioned earlier, I really liked my BP-51s but after having Kings I realized the BP-51s aren’t near the value.