best shocks for the price

[tar]

what do you think the best shocks for duning, jumping, and trails would be best maybe even shocks a-arms combo

for rec riding, by far the Elka rec series, if you want to do a combo i would look into houser or roll a-arms to go with the elka shocks, you can also add ressies later if you would like to :macho

[JOEX]

Originally posted by tar
what do you think the best shocks for duning, jumping, and trails would be best maybe even shocks a-arms combo
DEpends on how much you are willing to spend and what you want from your suspension.

A set of Works on stock or a set of the less expensive arms may be good enough.

[Out_Sider]

Originally posted by Yurik Norton
for rec riding, by far the Elka rec series, if you want to do a combo i would look into houser or roll a-arms to go with the elka shocks, you can also add ressies later if you would like to :macho

Lonestar said that Elka has been doing alot of testing with them now as well.

[tar]

how much do elkas w/o rezzies cost and what are good but cheap a-arms

[hondardr4life]

I would say that for shocks the order goes

Works- decent

Elka/TCS- good

PEP, Custom Axis- best money can buy

[quaddy87]

i'm sick of people cutting down elkas saying peps and axis are better... at most peoples level of riding and racing you cant even tell the difference between all of these, unless ur a top of the line racer, dont worry about whats the best, they will all do a great job.

[ACEwrench]

well...ummm, they are better. Axis isnt what it used to be now that Penske owns them, alot of racers have gone away from them because of the lack of support(unless your name is Ballance)...some of the former axis guys a rumored to be working with Ohlins now, so that could bring their ATV shocks to a new level.

you are correct however...unless you are a serious racer, elkas are the way to go.

Originally posted by ACEwrench
well...ummm, they are better. Axis isnt what it used to be now that Penske owns them, alot of racers have gone away from them because of the lack of support(unless your name is Ballance)...some of the former axis guys a rumored to be working with Ohlins now, so that could bring their ATV shocks to a new level.

you are correct however...unless you are a serious racer, elkas are the way to go.

im a serious racer...and still elkas are the way 2 go ;)

[quaddy87]

LOL, thats what i like to hear!

[hondardr4life]

A lot of it is personal preferance also. I sure as hell like my PEP quadrate ZPS's. They're the best shocks I have ever rode on, IMO. But a lot of it is personal opinion.

[Lonestar_R]

Hondardr just how many different aftermarket shocks have you ridden....

I would stay as far away from works as possible.....never rode PEP or Axis.....if you are gonna ride motocross I would recommend either of those......if you are gonna ride cross country I would say TCS, Elka, or Axis, but it how much your gonna spend too......so that factors in a whole need set of questions.....I have TCS and I love them.....and ride 99% XC......

[Racing Rice]

I agree with JoeX. Buy what you can afford. Any of the aftermarket stuff is going to be better then stock for a Rec rider. It just depends on how deep your pocket book is. The Alba/Elka combo looks decent if you have about $1000 to spend. You get brake lines and all.

What kind of budget are you working on?

[ACEwrench]

right again, it is personal preference...i just dont like them, they did a very good job advertising them to the public by throwing money @ top pros. the buisness end of selling shocks they have down to a science. none of the internal parts on the pro's shocks were elka, only the shock bodies and the stickers... THATS why i dont like them....they sold an inferior shock by clever advertising. (God bless America)

to each his/her own... again, these are MY ramblings, enjoy what ever your shock preference turns out to be....

[moto440ex]

Well hell I have Elka's on the way right now, and im a B class rider. I hope they dont turn out to be bad like alot of people on here say? Cuz they were pretty expensive!

[Racing Rice]

Originally posted by moto440ex
Well hell I have Elka's on the way right now, and im a B class rider. I hope they dont turn out to be bad like alot of people on here say? Cuz they were pretty expensive!

I wouldn't worry about it to much. I know a lot of people that run them and love them.

I just installed a rear Elka shock on my Raptor myself.

[ACEwrench]

hey, dont worry about it man..youll probably like them a bunch

[moto440ex]

Yea im not gonna worry bout it, Cuz i know even if they arent the best, they are a huge improvement over stock.

[ACEwrench]

you are exactly right:D

everyone has an opinion, just run what u got, if you dont like it u can get them revalved or sent back or whatever, i feel elka is a better shock, while others feel axis or pep or ohlins is better, its all personal preference, but like i said, i would buy an elka over any of these other shocks any day

[Old Head]

Axis isnt what it used to be now that Penske owns them

Um didn't penske always own axis, and don't forget penske is into nascar where shocks are a big deal also. Elka recs are good for the money and can always be converted over to rezzies.

[xx3003xrdrxx]

Originally posted by Lonestar_R
Hondardr just how many different aftermarket shocks have you ridden....

I would stay as far away from works as possible.....never rode PEP or Axis.....if you are gonna ride motocross I would recommend either of those......if you are gonna ride cross country I would say TCS, Elka, or Axis, but it how much your gonna spend too......so that factors in a whole need set of questions.....I have TCS and I love them.....and ride 99% XC......

some banshee works on his 300 , and stock :rolleyes: TCS zps are just as good as any limited mass PEP is gonna be. IF your looking for longtravel though I would go with the PEPs .

[ACEwrench]

nope, Axis was a private company based in cali...now its headquartered in PA

what i meant was penske is new to ATV shocks i know they have a long history in NASCAR but the market is different, racer support is different, ect. their shocks are still great, but its not the same axis.

[ACEwrench]

in addition you are right penske has owned them for a while i dont know exactly how many years its been(not that many) but some of the original employees of axis still worked there until last year and the whole shebang got moved back east.

[j_cyrus3]

Originally posted by ACEwrench
well...ummm, they are better. Axis isnt what it used to be now that Penske owns them, alot of racers have gone away from them because of the lack of support(unless your name is Ballance)...some of the former axis guys a rumored to be working with Ohlins now, so that could bring their ATV shocks to a new level.

you are correct however...unless you are a serious racer, elkas are the way to go.


Rumor has it Ballance isn't running Axis... I have heard he is running Ohlins this upcoming year, but it might be next year..not sure..I do know for sure that he ran the Ohlins in Alabama at the mid-south, my bro in law talked to him and Ballance said he WAS testing for Ohlins...Yamaha and Ohlins have some sort of relationship though, so I wouldn't be suprised to see Ballance on Ohlins...Bill is just fast though, you could put him on a set of stock shocks and he would still outrun just about anyone :ermm:

Originally posted by j_cyrus3
Rumor has it Ballance isn't running Axis... I have heard he is running Ohlins this upcoming year, but it might be next year..not sure..I do know for sure that he ran the Ohlins in Alabama at the mid-south, my bro in law talked to him and Ballance said he WAS testing for Ohlins...Yamaha and Ohlins have some sort of relationship though, so I wouldn't be suprised to see Ballance on Ohlins...Bill is just fast though, you could put him on a set of stock shocks and he would still outrun just about anyone :ermm:

i think he is runnin them for this season

[hondardr4life]

Originally posted by xx3003xrdrxx
some banshee works on his 300 , and stock :rolleyes: TCS zps are just as good as any limited mass PEP is gonna be. IF your looking for longtravel though I would go with the PEPs .

Like I said, stay away from works. The only shocks I have never ridden are axis, and ohlins. You gotta remember I ride with all those kids from prospect/ seneca, they all have different types of shocks. And do you realize that you just said that PEP's are better than TCS's. Because you said that zps tcs are just as good as limited mass pep's. BUT zps pep's are a lot better than limited mass pep's.

[j_cyrus3]

Originally posted by Yurik Norton
i think he is runnin them for this season


Once you see Bill on Ohlins everyone will hop on the bandwagon :rolleyes:

[xx3003xrdrxx]

Originally posted by hondardr4life
Like I said, stay away from works. The only shocks I have never ridden are axis, and ohlins. You gotta remember I ride with all those kids from prospect/ seneca, they all have different types of shocks. And do you realize that you just said that PEP's are better than TCS's. Because you said that zps tcs are just as good as limited mass pep's. BUT zps pep's are a lot better than limited mass pep's.

Whos bike have you rode that had tcs ? What about elka ?????

[hondardr4life]

Nick and Travis from seneca. Nick had a 440ex with Elka triple rates on it, and Travis had 416ex with tcs triple rates with remote rezzies.

[Racing Rice]

Originally posted by hondardr4life
Nick and Travis from seneca. Nick had a 440ex with Elka triple rates on it, and Travis had 416ex with tcs triple rates with remote rezzies.

I'm not trying to start anything here, but I have to ask. Those quads you rode, are all you guys the same size? Are they all valved the same way? Did you dial the suspension in for your liking?

It's hard to just jump on some's quad without fine tuning the suspension and get 100% comfortable on it. Everyone likes thier suspension setup a little different, and what works for you may not work for someone else. Do you see what I'm getting at?

I've ridden on quads with expensive suspension setups that did not feel right to me. They either weren't valved correctly to match me and my riding style, or they were tuned differently.

[FHKracingZ]

At the ameatur level the shock company isnt as important as having the shocks setup right for your weight and having them dialed in..If your on a budget Elka is the way to go. You can get a long travel front end from LSR for $1,500 with shocks and a-arms, thats a steal..... Even if you do have unlimited exspenses dont look by elka. They make great products and you have to sacrifice. They do mass produce shocks to keep up with customer demand, and if you ask me any company that walks around the pits of GNCC and GNC races and sees a customer with elkas and helps them setup there shocks is DEFFINATLY worthy for anybody.. PEP, Axis , TCS , and the Ohlins are great shocks... I wouldnt have PEP's if i didnt get them really cheap , other wise i would still be riding Elka... and i wouldnt have a complaint.

[hondardr4life]

Originally posted by Racing Rice
I'm not trying to start anything here, but I have to ask. Those quads you rode, are all you guys the same size? Are they all valved the same way? Did you dial the suspension in for your liking?

It's hard to just jump on some's quad without fine tuning the suspension and get 100% comfortable on it. Everyone likes thier suspension setup a little different, and what works for you may not work for someone else. Do you see what I'm getting at?

I've ridden on quads with expensive suspension setups that did not feel right to me. They either weren't valved correctly to match me and my riding style, or they were tuned differently.

The Elka's were set up for 190. I'm 185, so they were pretty close to my weight. The TCS's were for 175lb. I didn't mess with their setting, because thye had them dialed in for the way they like it. I never said that Elka or TCS are bad in any way. For the money you guys are all right, you can't go wrong with elka. Plus I am talking MX, not XC. Just IMO PEP's are the best shocks you can get. But for the money, go with elka.

[Racing Rice]

I was not trying to call you out or anything, I was just wanting a little more data about your comparision. Thanks.

[ACEwrench]

i was told yamaha owns part of Ohlins and since Ballance is factory Yamaha, it stands to reason...hmmm, ive seen Ellis on the Ohlins, i guess it makes sense...learn sumthin new every day...:ermm:

[tar]

thanks for all the help

[hondardr4life]

Originally posted by Racing Rice
I was not trying to call you out or anything, I was just wanting a little more data about your comparision. Thanks.

Oh yea, I understand. No problem.

[bmf400ex]

Originally posted by ACEwrench
i was told yamaha owns part of Ohlins and since Ballance is factory Yamaha, it stands to reason...hmmm, ive seen Ellis on the Ohlins, i guess it makes sense...learn sumthin new every day...:ermm:

not part, yami own all of ohlins. ohlins makes some damn fine shocks(for street bikes) anyway, but they are $$$

[QuadRacer041]

Originally posted by j_cyrus3
Once you see Bill on Ohlins everyone will hop on the bandwagon :rolleyes:


so true...everybody likes to jump on a new band wagon

[frank mb]

here in europe I swear by Intrax, people who have ridden elka elites changed them for intrax and they said it was way better than the elka's

[440bigborekit]

if you want to go with long travel and still have a sweet setup you cen get a pep/lsr front end from dana creech racing.com( its not spaced but i couldent post it) and the front end will be like 1750 but thats with big can peps w/ comp adj. and lsr dc-4 arms thats what i call a steal

[400grl]

I have a TCS / Rated X Motorsports front end.....longtravel.....set up for MX, but I have raced WORCS and desert without even touching my settings and this setup works awesome in all those environments......the clearance with the RXM arms is VERY nice.....as I have seen a rock coming up more than once and cringed for the hit.....but it never came! :) RXM arms are about $699 retail and the TCS longtravel, zero preload, triple rate shocks with rezzies are around $1000 retail (I think a little cheaper maybe?)......

Todd at TCS is the MAN when it comes to valving and setting your shocks up right.......great shock for the money.........very little wait time.....excellent customer service. :)

[chad cavagnaro]

naw...they will be a great improvement over stock. i also have some elkas on order and ordered remote rezzies and was wondering what to use for a clean rezzie mount? i want to do it rite with all the protection that can be for them. any suggestions?
front and rears.