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WHEN to use compression adjusters?

Discussion in 'Suspension' started by AccuTune Offroad, Jun 24, 2025.

  1. Jun 24, 2025 at 9:12 AM
    #1
    AccuTune Offroad

    AccuTune Offroad [OP] Well-Known Member Vendor

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    El Cajon, CA
    [​IMG]

    Compression adjusters can be a great feature to have, but when should you make changes to them? Check out our newest Tech Article that explains more about compression adjusters and when you may want to make changes. Feel free to post up questions below!

    Enjoy
     
    th3clara and Saskabush like this.
  2. Jun 25, 2025 at 7:42 AM
    #2
    Saskabush

    Saskabush Well-Known Member

    Joined:
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    First Name:
    Adam
    Saskatchewan, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2013 TRD Sport
    Elka 2.5" DSC w/ Deaver Stage 1, Archive Hammer Hangers, SPC UCAs, Timbren bumps, TRD baja wheels, 265/75r16 Wildpeak AT4W, Greenlane Sliders, Warn slimline bumper, N-Fab spare tire box mount.
    One of things I discovered with adjustable shocks is it makes it much harder to tell if your main piston is properly valved or not. You can kinda adjust to compensate for less than ideal valving, so a lot of times you just assume that you haven't got the compression settings dialed in properly yet. I did this for months with my Elka's before realizing that I probably needed the main pistons re-valved, which ended up making a huge difference. But still not perfect and now it's ever harder to tell what changes to the valving would improve the ride.

    Do you have any tips to help determine when it's just a compression setting that needs tweaking vs the main piston valving being the culprit?
     
  3. Jun 25, 2025 at 9:16 AM
    #3
    AccuTune Offroad

    AccuTune Offroad [OP] Well-Known Member Vendor

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    El Cajon, CA
    The best way to determine if your shock's main piston needs revalving when dealing with adjustable shocks is to start with neutral settings. Set all adjusters to the recommended baseline, or fully open, and test the shock across a variety of terrain types (chop, g-outs, etc.).

    If you can’t dial in the performance or ride quality you’re looking for , even after running through the full range of adjuster settings, the main piston valving may need to be re-valved.
     
  4. Jun 25, 2025 at 10:24 AM
    #4
    th3clara

    th3clara Well-Known Member

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    Trevor
    Portland, OR
    Vehicle:
    2020 TRD Pro - Army Green
    RIDE Shocks 255/85r16
    In regards to Fox, King & Ride, do any of these compression adjusters affect rebound?

    Dobinson MMR & Bilstein DSA Zone Control have a 3rd knob to adjust rebound, any insight into why most other brands only have compression adjusters?
     
  5. Jun 25, 2025 at 12:16 PM
    #5
    Imageoguy

    Imageoguy Well-Known Member

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    Gatineau, Qc, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2012 DCLB SR5
    Full OME suspension (885 front springs, Dakar leaf pack + OME shocks) + D29XL extra leaf + 3 deg. shim + RideRite airbags
    Curious about this as well. OME BP-51's also have compressions and rebound adjusters, as well as bypass. Adjusters for those are a pain in the a$$ to access. It would be interesting to have a chart with available shocks and features for the Taco. Yes, I'm too lazy to make one, not to mention I barely know what a shock does.
     
  6. Jun 25, 2025 at 1:36 PM
    #6
    AccuTune Offroad

    AccuTune Offroad [OP] Well-Known Member Vendor

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    Rebound adjustments really matter if your spring rate changes often, like on dirt bikes, SxS, or anything running airbags. But for most trucks and SUVs, where spring rates stay consistent, you usually don’t need to mess with rebound much. In our world, compression is the main thing to dial in, and we set rebound based on whatever spring rate we’re pairing with.
     
    th3clara[QUOTED] likes this.

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