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Aldan vs Q-A1 shocks ?
My rear Aldan shocks need rebuilt as the seals have failed. Before I think about sending them in, I'm wanting to ask about them verse's the QA-1 ?
I know of one Cobra manufacture that say's when they changed from Aldan's to QA-1's, the ride was greatly improved. Also, who has the best price, Summit, Jeg's ect. or even a replica company ? Any opinions, advise or votes, will be appreciated. Aldan's ? QA-1 ? Thank you, Kevin |
We've seen the same problems with Aldan's on several Hot Rods. I'd recommend the QA1's.
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Aldan Eagles
Guys,
Disappointed with the Aldans. I have had mine rebuillt twice, less than 1000 miles on them so far. I was doing some suspension work and removed the springs and discovered the nitrogen (gas) was gone (both times). You could compress them all way down and they would not rebound! I am looking at upgrading next year. |
I just bought a set of QA1's and springs for my build from a guy on ebay. Best prices anywhere and quick shipping from the factory.
I'll try to find his ad again. Found it- http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/QA1-P...spagenameZWDVW His price at the top of the ad is for a pair of single adjustable shocks. His springs are priced the same way. Bob |
Venum- I was very surprised when I removed the springs and and I could move the shocks with just a couple of fingers !
Bob- I'll check the seller on ebay, and thank you. Which shocks # and what lbs. springs and # did you buy ? How did you decide on these particular number shocks ? (said for drag race on the ebay site) Summit & Jeg's are $169 (I believe) http://www.racingjunk.com/post/64522...ver-Shock.html -$145 |
I got the DR 4855B and DR 7855B (single adjustable) for my build, but you'll need to check your car for what length shock you need and check his list for which will work for you. Just measure the length from eye to eye on your present shocks with the car at ride height.
Same for the springs, you'll need to do some calculations to see what is the best size for your car. After doing the calcs on the QA1 website and checking with a few buddies with FFR cars, I went with 500 lb front springs and 550 lb rear springs. I won't know if I got it right for a bit as the car isn't finished yet. Bob |
I was just curious.
I took the rear shocks off and replaced them with a length of steel tubing with heim joints to get the ride height I want. (worked great) I will scale (friend has portable scale's for his Late Model racer) the car next on all four corners, the measure the height of the springs I have now. So far, your guy on ebay is the cheapest. |
I replaced my leaking Aldans with the QA1 Proma Stars last year. One of the best things I have done to the car. I used the DR 4855B. They gave me about 3/4" more travel than my Aldans. I bought them from the same EBay vendor as Three Peaks. I would buy from them again.
Sydney |
I too can recommend that Ebay seller - They shipped to Australia at a great price, and were terrific to deal with. Havent tested my QA1's in anger yet though.
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I ran the QA-1s on my Cobra for years with no problems and I did run it hard many times. I had the 12 way adjustable rebound on mine. Once I got the ride height set, I never touched them again except to change the rebound rate at times and that is just a small nut that I could reach in and turn so many clicks by hand.
Ron :) |
Had my suspension professionally calculated. Replaced my Aldan Ultimates coilover (dual adjustable)/Hypercoil springs with Koni 8212 with new lighter Hypercoil springs. The Koni's have a lot more adjustments that really work, but very expensive. Highly recommend the Koni's. http://www.koniracing.com/rrproduct.cfm
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I just replaced my coil overs with QA-1. I ran the bearing type in the rear and the bushing type in the front. I selected the Promastar single adjustable. I will try them in anger this Friday at Portland IR. Based on my test drives they are much more quiet then what I had before. No squeaks.
Another option is the Varishock which is made in Sacromento, CA. They are a little more expensive then the QA-1 but you get a little extra for it. They have more space around the mounting eyes which will help mounting to the rear end on your lonestar. They are also 100% american made. The springs on my QA-1 say made in china. |
I went with Gordon Levy's single adjustable Konis and Eibach springs replacing Bilstein coil overs.
Night and day difference. But very expensive. Worth every penny. |
I have yet to make up my mind. "Speedway Motors" is local to me. In the catalog, the QA-1 do not have a name like "Proma Star" and the counter guy's did not know either. It just Say's, "12 position, adjustable street rod coil over shocks" So, I have no idea if their the Proma Star. The good thing is, if I pick the wrong springs, I can take them back for a different pair. They are $400 + tax.
I would appreciate you guy's that use these to look at them on-line, or if you have the catalog, and see if their the same shock you have. http://www.speedwaymotors.com/GmSear...itleDescr=True Thanks, Kev |
Kevin,
Those look like the same units. They use part of the QA1 numbers to identify their UPR item as per 721485 seems to be the 4855, 721785 seems to be the 7855, etc... Just be sure you can order them with the bushings or bearings as you need. On the ebay site, you can order them either way by adding the right letter- 4855B is the bearing mount, 4855R? is the rubber bushing mount. Looks like with the Speedway free shipping, the price is about a wash. The part number from QA1 (4855, etc....) is stamped on the top of the shock body so you can be sure if you got the right unit. Also, check out the mounting tips for deciding on your spring rates for your car. Bob |
Sounds great. Two friends of mine are not only the best friends a guy could have but, fantastic mechanics. They went to a suspension seminar and even the instructor said that most everyone, uses way to stiff of springs on their car. Racing is different of course. With our very light Cobra's, (2,400 lbs.) the springs on the Aldan's were tested at 230 lbs. My buddy's said to use maybe 140 lbs. That may seem very low but I'll tell you, these guy's know what the @ell their doing. Again, with Speedway Motors, I can play around with rates a little.
With the Aldan's at 230 lbs, the car was very stiff. How is you ride with the stiffer 550 lb. spring ? As a note, we changed all the heim's in the rear and moved the 4-bars so their parallel to each other. We believe they were binding up the suspension. That should give me more travel and free up the suspension. What will that do to my spring selection, we'll find out. Thank you for your help. |
From what I can determine, IRS springs need to be calculated differently from live axle coil-over springs. Determining the motion ratio and the angle ratio of the shock determines the spring weight.
After doing the calculations front and back, I checked with several people with Factory Five cars which have approximately the same suspension set up and they are using the same spring weights as I came up with after my calculations. So, I'll give them a try and see how they work out and go from there. My car isn't finished yet, so I won't know for a while yet how they are. I will be doing some open track days and autocross events as they become available, so I went a bit over the street recommended weights on the springs to help with cornering handling. In addition, I added sway bars front and back so I hope I'll be set for awhile once I'm on the road. Bob |
Sounds like a good plan. How do you like the carbon fiber body by now and
is he building any more of them? Send me pics when you can. |
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