Shock mount/ Lower ride height mod

[RustyTaco]

Think a few others have done this as well by now, but not sure if theres specific info on an easy way to do it...heres my take on it.

Wanted a lower ride height but still keep the same amount of travel/stock shocks.

I used these HR shock mounts (the rings and a few of the bolts won't be used)

for this project you will be flipping them upside down, for the front mounts I chopped off the top hole so the hood will be able to close.

Other additional parts you will need (for the front) are some M3x22mm bolts and nuts to mount up the shocks. For the rear the provided bolts with the HR mount kit will work. And you will need some small shock spacers. And some loctite.

step 1: Cut/dremmel out holes in front for the shock mounts...The HR front shock mount has a step that you want it to sit flush on top of the 3 holes, so make sure you square up that edge next to the cross brace, also use caution here as not to remove too much material.


(side view of hole)Make sure to remove all material from underneath the frame bar to allow room for the bolt...but do not remove any material from the frame itself


should now look like this...You will be using the 2 holes on the HR shock mounts and bolting them up to the Capra's shock holes, with the holes for the shock positions facing upwards...you can see the top hole has been chopped off the mounts to make room for the hood to close, and the small spacers added between shocks and mounts.



you can see its a real tight fit, but using this hole provides a great lowered ride height with easy access to the bolt. there are additional holes higher up on the shock mount that can be used if you want to slam the ride height even lower, but to use those holes the frame gets in the way and you will have to insert the bolt from the engine side and squeeze a nut between the frame and shock to tighten.

For the rear mounts there is no cutting involved, simply remove the case and tighten the M3 button bolts from the inside...should look like this


Its a tight fit but works perfect.


When mounting up the shocks its a little easier if you screw down the preload rings a bit to get them out of the way then put them back after you have them mounted up.



Before an after shots of the ride height...This mod will lower your rig 3/8 (9.53mm) or potentially even lower if using top hole of 5/8 (15.88mm) lower (while still retaining the stock shock travel setup.)

I'll probably be adding some cross braces to the mounts at some point but not sure its overly necessary....FYI my rig is strictly a crawler, so if your bashing around and such can't guarantee the durability of this kind of setup ;)

[hatchgreenchile]

Looks like a good mod.

You have any interference with the suspension travel upward? ie servo to frame, driveshafts, etc...?

[RustyTaco]

no interference, ...think the next thing I'll be doing is the flat belly skid plate to get some ground clearance back.

[RustyTaco]

Spare Time Hobbies high clearance skid plate installed...thanks for making a quality product, installation was super easy!





**If you plan on doing the above shock tower mod AND have(or plan to install) a high clearance skid plate you will need to trim some of the frame above the rear driveshaft for clearance to maintain full travel....with the stock shocks and stock skid plate there are no clearance issues.



maybe some high clearance links in the near future