Parabolix

If the list to port is only at the rear, I'd check the chassis very, very carefully! ;-) Seriously though, replace them as a set of 4 due to the different characteristics, it could make the vehicle unstable (relative!) to drive. Badger.

I think just replacing one set would give it a ride like a kangaroo. Change all 4

Alex

Oh I know my chassis intimately and all the patches :)

The shockers are truly shocking, they might as well not be there, if this were any other car I had ever had before they would have been replaced as it is they are nought but the image of what you might find if you go diving for the titanic :)

In times past my limo had air suspension, realy neat. You might think a landie is the ultimate tow vehicle but it aint.

As I feared mucho expenso :(

Why not just use standard springs? Tuppence each... I reckon most people who get parabolics and think 'wow' would be almost as happy with new standard springs as the old ones are invariably rusted solid.

Doesn't sound like anyone here has actually tried it, so i challenge you to do it and give us a first-hand account of the pros and cons. i can't really see it as being all that much of an issue. if you did put parabolics on one end though, make absolutely certain that you put new shocks in that end, as rusty old springs can, to a certian degree, double as shocks. whereas shiny new parabolics have almost no absorbing properties.

try it out first on some slow trips, then give it a crack.

Sam.

Well no, I havn't tried it with parabolics, but I've got a SII 109" which somebody decided to fit mis-matched spring sets to, and the ride is apalling.

Alex

and id do your homework on parabolics as well,

paddocks are selling them dirt cheap, but take a look at tic engineering ( something like that, im sure someone will correct me and put the correct web site up for me) They sell a kit and its 2/ 3 times what paddocks charge,

i spoke to them the other week and they said that there stuff is far far supperior and cannot be compared to paddocks.

i was gunna go the parra way, but decided coil rides what im after so coil suspension it is.

not all parabolics do the same!!!!!!!!!!!

regards

andy

My mate put a set of the cheap paddocks parabolics on the rear of his

2A and left the front alone on its tired original springs.

He never had any problems with the landy after this! I dont see why you should.

The springs wear differently anyway. rear ones seem to get more worn since they take the brunt of any heavy loads! With his new set on, the landy was a lot better and it made it a lot more confortable and stopped the tyres rubbing on the underside of the tub!.

however..

I've got a set of 'proper' parabolics (rocky mountain ones). I say 'proper' because mine have had a completely different effect to the cheap paddocks ones that my mate got!

Between my landy owning mates, weve done (all on SWB 2A's and 3's):

- rocky mountain parabolics with gas shocks

- chris perfects parabolics (TIC?) not sure what he did with the shocks!

- paddocks cheap parabolics on the back only with gas shocks.

- new normal spec springs with new standard shocks

my opionins on each:

new standard shocks and springs are the cheapest option. Didnt make that much difference to the ride of the landy except get rid of the unevenness/sag of the old springs. Still as rattly and bone jarring ove bumps as ever! Had started visibly sagging again at the back within a year or so.

paddocks cheap parabolics and cheap gas shocks: improved the landy over the old springs and meant we could put stuff in the back again!. They wont really take any more weight that the standard springs do though, so it still didnt like having a lot of crap in the back when we went away for the week and he got all the groups kit in there. A lot softer and less jearring than the new standard springs! well worth considering over putting new normal springs on (since it wasnt _that_ much more costly) I'd consider these as being better than normal springs but not as good as the more expensive parabolic springs.

The proper rocky mountain and chris perfect springs are a fair bit more pricey - but you can see why!. My rocky mountain ones gave my landy an extra couple of inches of height - which is still there 4 years later! wheras normal ones will sag again pretty speedily.

They can also take an awful lot more weight! I filled my landy floor to ceiling with bricks and hardcore and there was still some suspension left at the back. Doesnt seem to notice most loads!

Once the springs softened up and wore in a bit (took 6 months!) the ride became much nicer than the paddocks springs.

With a bit of weight in the back my landy rides almost as nicely as a coil sprung one! You have a camper conversion in the back of yours dont you? - so i think these springs would be well suited for it.

If i were doing it all again now!-

I wouldnt even bother considering new standard springs and shocks as it seems a waste of time. If you are on a budget go for the cheap paddocks ones with the cheap gas shocks - consider heavy duty rear's too. If you have a bit more cash spare get a proper set of springs (doesnt seem much in it between the different brands). Get the cheap gas shocks too. You will then have more capacity to load the landy up and get an even nicer ride which will last longer.

Hope that helps you larry!

Hmm, wheels grounding on the tub, I wondered what the noise was when I go round corners too quick :)

The reason I reckon a decent set of parabolix is necessary is indeed the extra weight due to the conversion to a camper, which is not helping a set of springs that were sagging to begin with.

I used to have air shocks(the pump up kind) on my limo along with coils big enough for a truck. Air suspension was fun, you could raise the back considerably which was useful when wading fords (don't ask)

As I said in the post, the shockers look as if they have never been replaced in 30 years so there is no way I would change the springs without seeing to them as well.

Problem is of course the expence as I can't afford anything that is not strictly necessary at the moment, but it is something in mind for the future.

(along with a new engine)

just look under there and see if there is a shiny patch - if there is then theyve been rubbing!

make sure you look at the heavy duty parabolics then (they mostly come in 2 flavours - normal and heavy duty)

You could fit them air helper thingys between the springs and the chassis on the back. I've seen it done on a 101.

You may have to change the shocks too. normal shocks wouldnt fit on with my springs due to the increase in height!

On or around Tue, 28 Jun 2005 20:37:38 +0100, Tom Woods enlightened us thusly:

Chris Perfect who was selling spanish ones (now I suspect from somewhere else, in fact - they changed somewhere along the line) had several kinds of rear springs, from a 2-leaf for light use and trialling on SWB through

2+helper, 3-leaf, 3+helper and 4 leaf, maybe not all simultaneously. The 4-leaf were super-heavy-duty for heavy 109s.