Tough Dog Adjustable - Opinions

If you were happy with the OME why change. if they worked before, stick with em.

having had adjustable shocks, they are good offroad, but they dont last.

Have not tried Tough Dog.

Have tried the rancho 9000, but found the adjustment increases bump and rebound, and the first 2 or 3 settings are way too soft.
On the highest setting, way too stiff on bump but Ok on rebound.

Have gone to Konis, and are happy with them only adjusting rebound. Only hassle is the ones I have you need to take them off to adjust them.

Did use Gabriel adjustables many years ago, as well as Spax, and found those good on road cars.

Found airbags and heavier springs in the rear help with towing. After all, the shocks really should be only controlling the spring.

Hi Topend

I fitted a set to my 80s two years ago and they are great, I also have air bags in the coils and both are adjustable from inside on the fly.

If you try to use the shocks by themselves to correct a suspension setup it will kill them, mine are as good as the day I had them fitted and have done over 20,000 heavy touring and hard playing.

When I play on the weekends I take my sway bars off and set them on 9 and it drives flat and I have a 5" lift, but do not fit them if you are not going to put the incab kit in as the novelty wears off real quick and you end up leaving them set on 4.

Have fun

When they are working they are great but the reliability can often be poor when given a pounding on outback corrugations. They would be a slight improvement over an OME but wouldn't (IMHO) perform as well as a Bilstein or last as long as a Koni. A bit over priced for what they are.
Tough Dog????? More of a Poodle than a Rottweiler ;-)

Cheers Craig............
HZJ105 Vic
Koni / Lovells

Hi Topend- I have had a full tough-dog setup on my GU TD42T now for 2yrs/ 30,000kms (4 inch lift) and have not had a problem. Truck handles great on-road (usually have shocks on 8) and offroad many passengers have remarked- "this is the softest off-road ride I've ever had"... and I drive hard (usually run at about 4-5 offroad with washouts and about 3 on badly corrugated roads). PS- the comment about the in-cab kit is spot on- you quickly get sick of getting covered in mud each time you go under a guard to change the dials- the in-cab kit rocks!

Having just read through the replies to date, I find it strange that nobody has asked (or commented) about the fact that Tough Dog make 2 VERY different adjustable shocks. The "ordinary" ones are about the same size as a OME or Koni. The ones I'd be fitting (if I decide to go that way) are the ones they call their "BIG-BORE ADJUSTABLES". These are $275- each (compared to the normal adjustables @ around $198- as far as I know). The Big Bore units are VERY BIG with a 70mm outer case and a 45mm piston diameter.

Sooooo, which ones is everybody talking about? I get the impression that those who are saying they are not all-that-flash are probably referring to the smaller ones. I'd be surprised if anybody who is using the big suckers is experiencing any issues...... Could I ask all those who have responded to date, to please clarify which style you are referring to please??

Cheers

Roachie

Tough Dog big bore or change the springs to heavry ones and use the Ralph shocks.

But take note as to what's already been said, don't rely just on the shocks to do all the work - you may need to change the rear springs to carry the 3000kg boat - otherwise there will be too much strain on the shock mounts trying to hold up the boat weight.

I have a similar problem withi my LC100 - I carry a variety of loads and if I set the suspension up for a heavy load I get pummeled when there is no load in the back. Adjustable shocks by themselves will not solve the whole issue - you have to look at the springs too, and the only solution that I can see is that there is some sort of airbag either within the spring or a spring replacement airbag setup - which is what I am doing at the moment (with Tough Dog shocks). Get some advicce from a spring expert (Lovells in Sydney is who I am using) .

Shockies by themselves will not solve the varyng weight issues...

/viz