To bumpstop or not...that is the question

I am in my final stages of waking up in the middle of the night worried that I don't have everything for my suspension upgrade. OCD is strong with this one. I'm putting on the Bilstein 6112 set at 10/8, and the 5160s in the rear along with the ICON RXT leaf pack. RXT will initially be set at stage 2 (may go to 3 later once I get my aluminum canopy and RTT installed later this summer, and especially when putting 2 dirt bikes on a hitch carrier). I do not do any high speed off roading or jumping. My use is primarily public road and fire roads to get to BLM camping spots / dirt biking / moutain biking. Are upgraded bumpstops truly needed for this use, or is it overkill? If I need them, do I need both front and rear, or just rear? I'm starting this project this weekend, and the more I read and learn here causes an increase in time and $$ - which isn't necessarily bad if it's helping me get smarter and avoid failures in the future. I'll spend the extra $200 - $400 on bumpstops if it's necessary, just wanted to ask one last question before getting greasy...

 

Necessary? No. One of the main reasons for upgrade bumpstops when changing shocks, are different/longer compressed lengths. The compressed length of those shocks are comparable to the stock ones.
Another reason is comfort. Which is subjective.A lot of aftermarket bumpstops are made of softer materials which translates into smoother/softer engagement.
Personally, with the weight you’re planning on in the rear, I’d upgrade the rears.

 

Pretty much the only time I hit bumpstop is hitting something unavoidable at speed like a frost heaved culvert, minor washout, big pothole, etc

If you have the right leaf pack for the load you're carrying and dont really drive that fast over rough terrain Id say save the cash. You can always upgrade down the road, its really pretty easy to get in there and change them out. You will absolutely know when you do hit the OEM bump so you can judge it over time

 

This place is awesome. Thanks all for the quick thoughts and replies.

 

I see aftermarket bump stops as a bandaid fix. If you are hitting your bump stops on a regular basis, you should change your shocks, shock tuning and/or springs so that you don’t hit your bump stops.

 

i hit my bump stops all the time there is just not alot of space between the stop and the big block that comes with the toytec lift. I'm in the process of switching to perryparts bump stops but have to figure out if i should remove the block extension or not. If i don't i think it will be riding on the stop alot.

 

The space between seems small with that spacer

 

What kit is this exactly?

 

Stock bumps are 2.5" and sit atop the frame, held in place by the axle to frame ubolts.
Stock leaf gap is about 5.5" without load. Which leaves about 3" of up travel before engaging the bump. Any up travel less than 3" is going to become more and more annoying as rear load increases and progressive aftermarket bumps will only lessen the blow. Ideally, you get stronger leaf springs which have more arc, which increase up travel beyond 3" or at least maintain it.

 

ToyTec Aluma Boss 3" Lift Kit.

 

I bought the truck with this on it. I think i'm going to take the block off when I go to put the PerryParts bump stop on.

 

Those blocks on the frame are mostly to keep large tires from hitting the fender. But my guess would be, thats not an issue. What size tires are you running?

 

just 285\70\R17

 

Yep, pull those frame blocks and gain that 2" more up travel.

 

thanks for the advice I do appreciate it

 

Maximizing rear shock travel and analyzing bump stop length is easiest when the rear shock shafts point down into the lower shock mount, without a dust boot on. Then you can visually compare the gap of exposed shock shaft to bump stop gap in line. To do this however, the rear lift amount has to be set first by the chosen leafs or block/AAL.

The shock gap to bump gap comparison can be visualized at ride height, at full extension (unbolt lower shock mount to compare leaf droop to shock extension), and even near full compression by using high cross ramps/ corner travel index, which will force one rear wheel up. The bump should engage before shock full compression. Now, so long as your tires can tuck up into the fender well, the bump stock length can be shortened thereby increasing the amount of up travel.

This process and how often your use maxes out flex-compression and droop, is how you custom fit rear shock sizes rather than just go by manufacturer recommendations by lift amount range.

Rear shocks cannot act as bump stops, so build in some safety bump length, but generally, they can act as limit straps.

 

blocks are off and new bumps are on what a difference.

 

I have Durobump fronts and mine compressed an inch yesterday. They are a hell of a cushion versus near dead stop stock bumps. 1.87" reported stock length and 2.5" Durobumps.

 

Cool. On lightweight rears, bump space is everything-there is no engine weight to compress the bump stop top.