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It is a good idea to have an assortment of di;erent weight shock fluid to fine-tune your damping.

BASIC ADJUSTMENTS

;e two basic shock adjustments are shock fluid weight and the size of the holes in the shock piston. Increasing the weight of the shock fluid will make it harder to move the piston in the shock and will make it slower. Similarly, decreasing the hole size of pistons will also make the shocks slower. Typically, changing the piston hole sizes will be a bigger change in overall shock sti;ness. ;e pressure in the shock is more greatly a;ected by the area of the piston holes than by the density of the shock fluid.

Assess your track or your bashing spot and pay close attention to how the truck feels over bumps, jumps, and during transitions.

MOTION RATIO

Motion ratio is an often overlooked shock adjustment. ;e motion ratio is the amount the shock piston moves relative to the amount the wheel moves. Since SC T shocks are mounted inboard of the wheels, the shocks will always move less than the wheels. Typical motion ratios are in the . 4 to . 6 range. ;e lower the motion ratio, the slower the piston will move inside the shock. ;e slower the piston moves, the softer the shocks will feel. ;e motion ration can be changed by moving the location of the bottom mount of the shock. Moving the bottom of the shock inboard will decrease the motion ratio and soften the shock and vice versa. ;e tricky part to moving the shock mount location is that it also changes how the spring loads, so this change is not just a shock change. Typically, the shock mounting location is moved to make the spring more or less progressive, not to change the shock characteristics. However, the shock may need to be readjusted with a di;erent oil or piston to reestablish the correct shock sti;ness. For example, if the shock is moved farther outboard to get a more progressive spring rate, then heavier shock oil or smaller piston holes may need to be used to sti;en the shock back up to its original rate before the change.

LARGE VS. SMALL BORE

Large bore shocks have become popular in many forms of o;-road vehicles and SC Ts are no exception. For 1/10-scale SC Ts, the standard bore is approximately 10mm, and large bore shocks are usually 12-13mm depending on the brand. ;e time to switch from standard to large bore shocks is when the loads from cornering or jumping are causing the standard shocks to bottom out and cause handling problems. ;e larger the bore of the shock, the sti;er the shock will be ... assuming the bleed holes are the same number and size. ;e larger pistons mean more shock oil has to get through the holes in the same amount of time. ;is means the oil moves faster through the holes and generates higher forces, which makes them sti;er. Large bore shocks are primarily for use on 4WD and heavier SCTs because they experience much greater forces when landing jumps and during cornering. On 2 WD SC Ts, large bore shocks can be helpful if your track has big jumps that make the truck bottom out. Sometimes large bore shocks will make a truck more consistent because the shocks will move less, resulting in less body roll and camber change.

Large bore shocks are a great upgrade for heavier trucks like 4WDs.

WRAP-UP Shock tuning may seem daunting, but is much easier once the basics are understood and the reasons for adjusting shocks are known. Assess your track or your bashing spot and pay close attention to how the truck feels over bumps, jumps, and during transitions. If your truck is having problems in any of these areas, it may be time to rethink your shock package.