DON'T USE OPEN TOP LEVEL SPACERS

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hodge-xj

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Now that i have your attention, save yourself the trouble of chasing down noises and constant ride quality issues only to have to replace everything on your struts.

The previous owner had installed these and since the day I brought it home I had a terrible squeak, and it generally rode like ****. I knew I was getting rid of them so I just ignored it until I installed my new setup.

The problem is, our strut top hats are not solid and don't support the center bushing, that's done by the actual frame mount itself. Hsving an open center allows the shock shaft to travel through the spacer until it hits something to stop it. Mine had been on long enough it wore through the spacers almost all the way, and the center shock shaft wore a groove into both frame mounts. So do yourself a favor and spend money on a properly engineered leveling suspension.

Pics of the damage:
4482513f5d33f599caf593b92be10816.jpg06639d285a60f350b0d4afa7ab003e34.jpg84cc20b6bff67c01ee5c7878028b6383.jpgea65b73824f1f7827a13db558bb6b2c7.jpga07c1360d177f9ce9dba9b9927f123c9.jpg79882b7b8e34d1db67826f3756e08341.jpg10c4d37b13989782c7625163ce731669.jpg

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McBroom

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Now that i have your attention, save yourself the trouble of chasing down noises and constant ride quality issues only to have to replace everything on your struts.

The previous owner had installed these and since the day I brought it home I had a terrible squeak, and it generally rode like ****. I knew I was getting rid of them so I just ignored it until I installed my new setup.

The problem is, our strut top hats are not solid and don't support the center bushing, that's done by the actual frame mount itself. Hsving an open center allows the shock shaft to travel through the spacer until it hits something to stop it. Mine had been on long enough it wore through the spacers almost all the way, and the center shock shaft wore a groove into both frame mounts. So do yourself a favor and spend money on a properly engineered leveling suspension.

Pics of the damage:
4482513f5d33f599caf593b92be10816.jpg06639d285a60f350b0d4afa7ab003e34.jpg84cc20b6bff67c01ee5c7878028b6383.jpgea65b73824f1f7827a13db558bb6b2c7.jpga07c1360d177f9ce9dba9b9927f123c9.jpg79882b7b8e34d1db67826f3756e08341.jpg10c4d37b13989782c7625163ce731669.jpg

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Damn somebody don’t know **** about mechanics.
I’m glad you found the problem.


I love my truck!
Blue Mule 18 Ram 2500 4x4 C/C Off Road.
 

ram1500rsm

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Ouch, Thanks for sharing Hodge, just another reason why top spacers are the biggest POS you can do to your precious truck or vehicle, i know people get lured by their prices and everything, but they're not worth the price, nor the time to install them, dump those suckers out and burn them to hell, lol.
 
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hodge-xj

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This is a perfect example of why they're junk, cheap, not thought out and potentially dangerous. The strut was mangled. I'm not trying to be dramatic but the wear it was causing was getting borderline dangerous in places. Had it not been audible I may not have replaced these quite as quickly which could have been bad.

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hodge-xj

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Dang that’s terrible
No wonder my ride was so bad. The shaft literally has a 2" dead spot where it had to travel up before it would stop free floating and actually engage the shock shaft. And these were nice looking aluminum spacers too. LIES....THEY ARE JUNK

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DILLIGAF

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I also made the mistake of buying those POS spacers. But like most I didnt want to spend teh cash on a proper lift. What a waste of money...

16602614_10155029157903552_5522397144620554573_n.jpg
 
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hodge-xj

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I also made the mistake of buying those POS spacers. But like most I didnt want to spend teh cash on a proper lift. What a waste of money...

16602614_10155029157903552_5522397144620554573_n.jpg

Pic didn't work. It's unfortunate because the spacers get pushed like they are worth the savings. 5100s are worth the low cost for their performance. Spacers aren't. Not saying all spacers will damage the strut like mine, this was an extreme example and I have no idea the overall mileage on it. But I do know, if the spacer has an open center/top, this WILL happen.

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BJSwizzle

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Wow, what great info, looks like I’m in the same boat, this describes almost exactly what’s going on with me
 

FlaSeadude

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I’m really glad I decided to go with the Bilsteins!

I believe if anyone does their research (and reads horror stories like this), the Bilsteins will always be the obvious choice.
 
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hodge-xj

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I’m really glad I decided to go with the Bilsteins!

I believe if anyone does their research (and reads horror stories like this), the Bilsteins will always be the obvious choice.
Unfortunately these came already on my truck so I just ran with it. I knew the squeak was a precursor to an issue, but the extent of what a poor design ended up damaging was super surprising. Thankfully I wasn't planning on reusing my strut hardware, but if someone was planning to upgrade from a spacer to bilsteins it would have been a bit so good surprise, and an expensive lesson.

Not all spacers will have this issue, and I understand their place in the market, but open center spacers are dangerous and I stand by that.

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30stones

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Any idea what brand @hodge-xj ?

Curious as I bought my truck with the zone 3.5 combo kit already installed (2in spacer with 1.5 body lift). After upgrading from the stock 17's to 20's with 295/60/20 I have the squeak over bumps. I am upgrading but like you I'm just rolling with it for the moment as I don't drive the truck daily maybe once or twice week.
 
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hodge-xj

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Any idea what brand @hodge-xj ?

Curious as I bought my truck with the zone 3.5 combo kit already installed (2in spacer with 1.5 body lift). After upgrading from the stock 17's to 20's with 295/60/20 I have the squeak over bumps. I am upgrading but like you I'm just rolling with it for the moment as I don't drive the truck daily maybe once or twice week.
I honestly have no idea. It was a fleet truck so I can only assume it's a cheap Amazon one. There are no markings indicating brand on the spacers. Cheap knock offs I'll assume.

The spacers seem to throw the angle of the strut off compared to the way that the spacers intended them to center over the strut, so after a while it seems they start to rub in weird places and make crazy noises. Just a lousy design overall

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30stones

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I honestly have no idea. It was a fleet truck so I can only assume it's a cheap Amazon one. There are no markings indicating brand on the spacers. Cheap knock offs I'll assume.

The spacers seem to throw the angle of the strut off compared to the way that the spacers intended them to center over the strut, so after a while it seems they start to rub in weird places and make crazy noises. Just a lousy design overall

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I agree!
 

Tim Garceau

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Undertorqued, not sure what a hole has to do with anything. Same concept goes with your wheels and the hub. The nice thing about my 1-1/8” thick, 6061 billet-machined puck is the strut top hat will dig into the softer material and create a concentric mate.

With any aftermarket modification that will endure stress, I suggest torquing to spec and periodically verifying torque for a few thousand miles. Bolts(OEM grade) are designed to slightly yield.
 
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hodge-xj

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Undertorqued, not sure what a hole has to do with anything. Same concept goes with your wheels and the hub. The nice thing about my 1-1/8” thick, 6061 billet-machined puck is the strut top hat will dig into the softer material and create a concentric mate.

With any aftermarket modification that will endure stress, I suggest torquing to spec and periodically verifying torque for a few thousand miles. Bolts(OEM grade) are designed to slightly yield.
The design of the strut relies on the center of the strut top to be supported by the frame mount in oem configuration. There needs to be a small hole for the strut stud to protrude through but the upper bushing sits against a solid mount or the shocks shaft free floats inside the mounts until it hits something. Seems like it takes a bit to squeak because the rubber isolates the metal bits for a while until the rubber finally wears off. Look at the top of the strut mount, same thing, small hole in the center, but the strut bushing sits against a solid mount.

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load97

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Does it also sound like a metal popping sound sometimes as well? I've been wondering if it has been my swaybar end links that sometimes make a noise, but the strut top does make me wonder.
 
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hodge-xj

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Does it also sound like a metal popping sound sometimes as well? I've been wondering if it has been my swaybar end links that sometimes make a noise, but the strut top does make me wonder.
It very well could be, it's hard to test which sucks. Mine was hiding a large amount of damage, which after swapping out cured all my mystery noises. When does it pop on your truck? Turning? Bumps?

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madtrucker2016

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Ouch, Thanks for sharing Hodge, just another reason why top spacers are the biggest POS you can do to your precious truck or vehicle, i know people get lured by their prices and everything, but they're not worth the price, nor the time to install them, dump those suckers out and burn them to hell, lol.

yep and the rain runs off your truck better Lol
 

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