is the valving important or the actual shock?

[RiPPiNiTuP7]

i've kinda been wondering about this for a while and finally decided to ask about it. lets say you bought a set of pep zps shocks from mark baldwin, or maybe a set of tcs shocks straight from the company, then you gained a few pounds and now need them revalved. would these shocks perform just like the shocks you first bought if you had joey at your local shop revalve them for your weight? what im really trying to ask is...is it the shock that you own that makes it the shock it is, or is it the guy that did all the valving to that shock that makes it important? OR....is it both?

[yamaha1470]

Personally I feel the valving is the whole shock. Some shock companies use some cheaper parts, some use very expensive parts, but the guy valving it will still make it a better or worse shock. I hate when kids say I bought Axis had Joe Smoe around the corner revalve them and Axis suck when indeed it is not Axis' fault. If some one else revalves them they are no longer Axis, PEP, TCS, Elka, they become Quadshop, DeResi, Joe Smoes or who ever else revalved the shocks ( this doesn't have to be a bad thing if you go to a reputable place). Even if you have PEP, Axis or Works and get them rebuilt by Elka, they are no longer PEP, Axis or Work's, they should be considered Elka's. Parts do play some role in this but not that much. The better parts will last longer and you will have less problems like bent shafts, blown seals, etc but no aftermarket company out there is using such cheap parts where you would need to worry. I am just using all these names as examples not saying one is better then the other. Just my .02

[cdalejef]

Thats not totally true, for instance if someone sends us shock that they got off ebay or something and they want us to set them up for their weight and riding style, we have Elka's valving charts that we use to reset the shocks. So it is just like if you had sent them back to Elka to get them serviced.

[yamaha1470]

OK then thats an exception. I was basically talking about going through different companies all with different valving techniques but yes if you go though Quadshop it is like going through Elka. Thanks for clearing that up.

[cdalejef]

I think there are other companies that do this as well.