best shocks!?

[Hondaboy93]

im back again asking about some shocks
i need some opinions about what shocks are the "best" for mx racing
pep,fox,elka,gt thunder etc, i wanna hear your opinions
thanks

Well from what I've read Motowoz seems to be taking the cake... I have no personal experience with them yet... :D I'm stuck deciding between Fox and Motowoz.

[XBLASTERRACERX]

For me I think custom axis is the best they are always coming out with new stuff like the plush ride system and holeshot device.

Originally posted by XBLASTERRACERX
For me I think custom axis is the best they are always coming out with new stuff like the plush ride system and holeshot device.

I've riden the Axis and I must I'm not impressed... Fox fronts are better IMO.

[Colby@C&DRacing]

These are always like ford vs chevy. Find a shock that is made of quality materials and if they are setup correctly you will be happy. Setup is the key to suspension performance. There are only a few inferior shock designs but even they can be made to work pretty well. Of course this is just my opinion :)

[400exrider707]

Originally posted by Colby@C&DRacing
Setup is the key to suspension performance.


Exactly.

The builder of the shock is far more important than the name on the outside of the shock.

Obviously starting with a quality shock is important too, but like Colby said, you can make almost any of them work very well.

PEP/AXIS/FOX... all good shocks.

For OEM rebuilds, C&D, GT Thunder, Santo Derisi, all good ones. (some of these have better customer service than others though... do some searching.)

[jimmyjames1700]

Don't forget about Clark Jones at Noleen J6. Very nice aftermarket shocks and one of the best at rebuilding stockers.

[Hondaboy93]

Yea right now i have stock honda 450 shocks..weve rebuilt them..but didnt do anything special to them. they are alright..but i need better! ha

[shiftyfofiddy]

go take a look at jet suspension here is there website http://www.jet-motorsports.com/index.html

nick there is one of the nicest guys i have taked to in a long time and he has had every shock in his shop so he knows what works and doesnt work but every shock has it ups and downs. iff you call him tell him chris from oregon told you to call

[TBD]

Originally posted by Colby@C&DRacing
These are always like ford vs chevy. Find a shock that is made of quality materials and if they are setup correctly you will be happy. Setup is the key to suspension performance. There are only a few inferior shock designs but even they can be made to work pretty well. Of course this is just my opinion :)

Your right on the money with this post. I agree 100 percent.

[Dylan227]

Elka Elites

[m_mcgranahan]

FWIW, I really love my Custom Axis TI with X-link :-) Such a huge, huge upgrade from my old WOrks Preformance shocks! I have never ridden Fox evols, so I can't comment on those.

[Kovatch]

If you ever go to the Nationals it's PEP or Fox. A good split amongst the Pros. Not a lot of Axis or Elkas as there used to be. Motowoz is growing in popularity because they are a little cheaper than PEP or FOX, but not by much. The new PEP PB-1s are awesome and growing in popularity as well.

The best is for you to determine your budget (if any): the most limiting factor. You want top of the line you will drop a ton ($3000+) on just shocks. Add in a linkage... price goes up. Do any of your friends ride PEP, Fox, etc? Can you get a few laps on someone's quad that has them? That allows YOU to get a feel for the shocks, what you like, etc

I've have PEP and ridden Elka quad rate, Axis, and Fox all on the race track. I like PEP the best. Fox allow too much roll in the turns. Elka's just seem stiff even after adjusting. Axis were in the middle. It's an opinionated selection: ford, chevy, or dodge; big block or diesel...?

Call Baldwin Motorsports & get a set of PEPs. There's a reason why he is the east coast distributor & Wayne [PEP] works out of his trailer at the races: he is damn good!!

[SpasticR450]

Motowaz

[joel janssen]

The elka stage 5 are working great for us.

[legitLT]

pep

[SixRB6]

By far you go with PEP PB1s. However unlike other posts here if you want them done right and perfect you send them to Seth at SF Racing. Call him at 30920848774.


You will get top notch service and you will have someone to help you set them up. The other guys will not bother.

[trompen542]

MOTOWOZ by far we have had fox, and elka factory, and the motowoz is what we will be back on for 2012

[sexysilverado45]

Yup Motowoz is the way to go Jim builds the best quality shocks. They are set up ready to ride when you get them. They ride similar to pep but are cheaper.

[SpasticR450]

motowaz

[SixRB6]

Bro look at the pro am class. The top contenders run PEP. Motowoz are junk.

There is a reason no one runs them at the Nationals

[sexysilverado45]

Wow really junk "bro." Do you have any examples. My Motowoz have out performed my buddies pb1 s at a fraction of the cost 1365 compared to close to 2000 for the front pb1s. Even in the 115 degree heat they didnt fade where as the peps were fading and bottoming out in a few laps. Also Motowoz is an up and coming company unlike pep who is established already.

[SpasticR450]

Originally posted by SixRB6
Bro look at the pro am class. The top contenders run PEP. Motowoz are junk.

There is a reason no one runs them at the Nationals

Maybe that's because motowaz don't want to sponser? The pros run shocks that sponsers hand out to them thats why you see elka so much it's not because the shocks are good it's because elka has the cash to hand out shocks left and right so every one thinks "omg them must be good shocks all the pros have them" when elka is the most complained shock i heard of by real life people un sponserd.

And I went from pep zps to motowaz and motowaz was better just so ya know "bro".

[legitLT]

i have 3 quads one with works, one with elka, and one with pep. deffinatly would pick pep over anything

[chronicsmoke]

I'd be interested to see how Stadium would stack up. They are used tons up here, but they are a Canadian company and thus not known throughout the US..


http://stadiumsuspension.com/en/vtt_detail.html

I recently picked up the 740PII LT fronts, they work pretty good.. they are Quad rate, Rebound adj., H + L Speed Comp adj...Their service is amazing too, they like seeing/helping guys that are using their stuff at events.

[legitLT]

ive heard of em and actually alomost bought a pair but never actually rode them so idk how good they are. heard alot of good things about them tho

[jacobw]

Originally posted by SixRB6
Bro look at the pro am class. The top contenders run PEP. Motowoz are junk.

There is a reason no one runs them at the Nationals

Since PEP uses all works shock components, all they are is a over priced works shock, works makes the bodies for him, so why 2k for a set a works????

They even look like works with the red, white and blue color scheme??? Not matter how you wrap it the contents are still the same

[Kovatch]

If you think PEPs are over priced Works, I urge you to buy a set of both and ride and give us a full report how the Works shocks held up.

Just curious to see your thoughts. I guess if Works were top-of-the-line for $600-800 everyone would have them....

Valving & shock bodies on the PB-1s are entirely different than the Works. You may be thinking of the older ZPS PEPs, pre-PB-1s.

[jacobw]

Originally posted by Kovatch
If you think PEPs are over priced Works, I urge you to buy a set of both and ride and give us a full report how the Works shocks held up.

Just curious to see your thoughts. I guess if Works were top-of-the-line for $600-800 everyone would have them....

Valving & shock bodies on the PB-1s are entirely different than the Works. You may be thinking of the older ZPS PEPs, pre-PB-1s.

He gets his parts from works......you also notice the only form of racing where pep has a stronghold is mx, all gncc and works riders got smart and are either riding fox, exit, or rebuilds from gt thunder or jet.

[hondarider110]

ive rode on most of the major shocks and i have to say motowoz is the best by far, they have great customer service and gets their stuff done in a timely matter, and if you think they are junk they won 7 national championships last season, also in 2010 totaling 64 wins..


and no pros run them because they want money, and motowoz is still small as a company.

[phreak]

Originally posted by SixRB6
Bro look at the pro am class. The top contenders run PEP. Motowoz are junk.

There is a reason no one runs them at the Nationals actually... the top contenders run fox.

idiot...

[Zryder85]

Has anybody made the switch from PEP PB1 to motowoz??

[legitLT]

hell no

[chronicsmoke]

I've got _________ and had stock before, but _______ are the best. Everything else but _______ are junk :cool:

If you haven't tried the shock you're bashing, dont bash them :)

90% of the riders on this site don't see the benifits from say PEP - factory Elka anyway. Most of which bought used setups and base their opinions from a setup built for somebody else.

Im tired of reading people bashing a product they know jack **** about. (A few posters and Motowaz to be specific)

[sexysilverado45]

Ive hopped off my buddies quad to mine if that counts. Motowoz are great shocks if you get the chance try a set out. Dont rag on them cause they're not the most popular and dont cost 3000 for the whole setup.

[ZBlaster]

I've ridden Fox, Exit, Motowoz, Elka, GTT revalves, DeRisi revalves, and HLS over the years.

My order goes:
1. Motowoz
2. Exit
3. Fox
4. Ohlins TTX
5. DeRisi Revalves
6. HLS
7. Elka
8. GTT Revalves

Here is the reasons why:
My Motowoz I'm running currently where GREAT out of the box, a few small changes on setup and they perform AMAZING. Super plush, never fade even running a Pro class XC pace for 2 hours. Super easy to setup, and customer service is great.

My Exit's worked great, never faded, but took a little more tuning out of the box to get them how I liked. They are EXCELLENT shocks, and when setup they are about equal in performance to my Motowoz.

My Float EVOL X/Podium X setup was great WHEN it was properly setup. Very hard to get setup properly IMO. I had Santo and Norris Quinn help me get mine working properly and once they where they felt great, but honestly too much time in setup and too difficult setup to rank any higher.

Ohlins TTX's worked GREAT on my Yamaha. Had some minor setup issues, and Ohlins was the only ones who would work on them at the time is the only reason they are down this far.

Simplest setup that worked great was the DeRisi revalves. Out of the box they where perfect, rode great, and never had any issues. Didn't feel as smooth as the top 3 in the really rough stuff, but still being a stock bodied standard travel shock they where top notch.

HLS Elites where impressive. Smooth, no fade, easy setup... but not as good as the top 3 IMO. They where VERY good shocks, but I feel they could be improved in some ways. Also hard to find someone to service/work on them other than GTT and Greg's ATV.

Elka Elites where eh. Took ALOT of small changes out of the box to get them how I liked them. Seemed to fade during races, and if not serviced every other round or so I would notice one sticking a little lower than the other on front.

GTT Revalves were a nightmare. I typically tell people to take this as a grain of salt because I was some of the first XC LT-R shocks they did though. Took 4 or 5 trips back to GTT to get them to work decent, then a full day with Norris Quinn to get them to feel noticeably better than stock. ALOT of people have good luck with them, just left a bad taste in my mouth.


Others I haven't ridden but receive high remarks:
1. Greg's ATV Revalves- He used to do shock work for GTT IIRC, and ALOT of the top GNCC guys are running his shocks.
2. Jet Suspension- Heard nothing but great things about their shocks and Nick's customer service. Plus Donnie O's setup looks silky smooth.
3. Rocket Ron Racing- ALOT of good things from the KTM guys.

[Zryder85]

Nice post ZBlaster.

[godzilla]

Originally posted by SpasticR450
Maybe that's because motowaz don't want to sponser? The pros run shocks that sponsers hand out to them thats why you see elka so much it's not because the shocks are good it's because elka has the cash to hand out shocks left and right so every one thinks "omg them must be good shocks all the pros have them" when elka is the most complained shock i heard of by real life people un sponserd.

And I went from pep zps to motowaz and motowaz was better just so ya know "bro".

wow, just read this. Talk about knowing so little about how the industry works, but pretending you do to try and look cool on a forum.

[eastside 400]

any shock that is setup specially for you and your setup will work best. The reason Elka has a bad rap is not due to the actual shock, its the valving, they used a general valving setup and just throw different spring rates on and ship them. If you have a shop valve them for you and your setup they will feel night and day better. Just watch your budget and get whatever you can afford to. check into buying them from a suspension tuning company like jet or ****tech because they can set them up for you before you get them

[legitLT]

zblaster have you never tried pep??

[ZBlaster]

Originally posted by legitLT
zblaster have you never tried pep??


Not yet. I'm an XC guy and you don't see many XC guys running PEP.

[legitLT]

well there an amazing ride and defianitly at the top of my list

[chronicsmoke]

Originally posted by legitLT
well there an amazing ride and defianitly at the top of my list

What else have you tried? How do the PB1's stack up?

[legitLT]

i currently have 3 bikes. one with pep, one with elka, and one with works. My long travel yamaha rhino i run fox. i like pep the best. i think elkas are a little stouter and can take more and go through more and the works are lets just say better than stock but yeah pep the best all around shock that ive tried and the foxs on the rhino i dont have any complaints

[mikey726]

Originally posted by ZBlaster
Not yet. I'm an XC guy and you don't see many XC guys running PEP.
I'm an XC guy running PEP, and I love them. I started racing XC on my 400EX that was set up for MX and all I did was raise the ride height and turn down the compression a little. And even my second year when I switched from +2 to +1 a-arms they still worked perfectly. And now on my 450R, I run LT PEPs all around. The only issue i've had with them was because I didn't have the ride height set properly. I've never ridden anything else to compare them to, but they work awesome for me.

[ZBlaster]

Originally posted by mikey726
I'm an XC guy running PEP, and I love them. I started racing XC on my 400EX that was set up for MX and all I did was raise the ride height and turn down the compression a little. And even my second year when I switched from +2 to +1 a-arms they still worked perfectly. And now on my 450R, I run LT PEPs all around. The only issue i've had with them was because I didn't have the ride height set properly. I've never ridden anything else to compare them to, but they work awesome for me.


Yeah I've seen a few people running them for XC, but not many. Never heard any first hand experience with them either. Who knows, I may order a set to play with soon.

[Zryder85]

I just recently bought the JB ltr arms for my trx. In the rear I have my stock 2007 swinger with a Lsr Dc6 linkage. I'm thinking I'm gonna go with PEP PB1 and the zps big bottle rear. Looks like the set up works well.