ORI help/advice needed

McCracken

McCracken

Logan Can't See This
Joined
Jul 9, 2005
Location
With your mom at a nice seafood dinner
So I finally got around to mounting these things up front. So far everything seems to be working out OK. The 4-link got a little funky but I got it squared away. Anyway, I started airing up the struts. I have no baseline to start from so what's better than middle of the road. The manual said to set the lower pressure to between 100-200 psi. I set both at 150. Now, this is where it gets a little weird. I started put gas in the upper chambers to get it to ride height. I ended up putting ~475 psi in both to get it to where it needed to be with about 6 1/2" of shaft showing. From what I researched, I've not seen anyone put that much in.

I bounced it a few times and I guess it seems OK. This is where I'm a little puzzled. They're not very smooth. When I bounce it up and down they seem a little stoppy/grabby (if that makes sense). Maybe when it's bouncing down the road they'll smooth out but just to pull/push the truck up and down they kind of grab. Is this normal? Secondly, it doesn't like to go down by hand. I can pull up on the bumper and bounce it down but to lean on it and try to get it to compress ain't happening.

Can someone help a noob with these things? Oh for everyone's information I have no clue what I weigh. It's a lot though. Like a miniature Titanic. Fullsize jeep, 360, 465, 203/205 and full cage. I would venture a guess around 5000-6000 lbs. The tractor wouldn't pick the front end up tonight.
 
If they're anything like coilovers, i m pretty sure you have to take all the weight off them as you pressurize or perhaps even fully extend them first.
 
I read on pirate where you set your ride height with jacks and then hit them with the gas until they slightly lift off the jacks. I used that method plus the amount of shaft showing seemed legit.
 
Normal for the "stiction" at a static rest trying to bounce. Pressures are very high. I never ran more than 100 on lowers and 275 on uppers on 4000# +/- buggy. Better to charge uppers at full extension if possible, then you need to drive around yard for quick trip and back to level surface and make adjustments from there.

Ran them almost 4 years, and this was the best method for me. Only charged from bump height in a pinch .
 
mcutler said:
Normal for the "stiction" at a static rest trying to bounce. Pressures are very high.
Click to expand...

cool. that makes me feel better. out of curiosity what's the highest upper chamber pressure you've seen?
 
Keep in mind, lower numbers gives a more supple ride while higher numbers more firmness; all the while relative to ride height- reasons for the exponential increase in pressure ratios. Plus you have more adjustment in your rebound screw. ..but i wouldn't mess with that until you get the height and ride set to your targets.
 
I am running something like 75 in the bottom and just shy of 300 up top on mine. Sprung weight on the nose is probably around 2k+. Read that book, it is long but it has a lot of good info in it. Charge the bottom chambers with the rig on bumpstops, then use a high-lift jack or the link to hike the front end up to max extension before charging the upper chambers. As mentioned above,the stiction of the shocks will make it seem "stiff" when you try to bounce it by hand, but it will drive fine.

I still need to play around with mine, I do not get enough anti-sway so I want to bump both chambers up a bit.
 
McCracken said:
I'm currently at ~475 psi. I don't know what to think but it is at ride height.
Click to expand...
Was that 475 filled from full bump on the floor or hanging at full extension?

I run 100 in my lowers and 350 on front and 300 on the rear in the uppers. The upper numbers are from full bump to ride height from off the floor, not full extension. I'm not sure what the actual upper pressures are with them hanging at full extension.

We are an ORI dealer and I talk to them fairly regular. If you have any questions, call them, super nice folks. Marks (owner) son is the tech guy there and will talk to you in detail about your set-up anytime.
 
Oliver's said:
Was that 475 filled from full bump on the floor or hanging at full extension?

I run 100 in my lowers and 350 on front and 300 on the rear in the uppers. The upper numbers are from full bump to ride height from off the floor, not full extension. I'm not sure what the actual upper pressures are with them hanging at full extension.

We are an ORI dealer and I talk to them fairly regular. If you have any questions, call them, super nice folks. Marks (owner) son is the tech guy there and will talk to you in detail about your set-up anytime.
Click to expand...
I read where you jack the truck up to your ride height and then put the gas to the upper chamber. Once the truck lifts off the jack stands then you're where you need to be. This is what I did.
 
mcutler said:
If you have the owners manual it will give you the best instruction.
Click to expand...
I read it and then I read pirate. Like I said, I'm going to start over. I just haven't had time this week. I need to grind a little off the mounting tab anyway.
 
McCracken said:
I read where you jack the truck up to your ride height and then put the gas to the upper chamber. Once the truck lifts off the jack stands then you're where you need to be. This is what I did.
Click to expand...

There are basically 3 ways to do it, like you did, hanging on a lift or off the floor, no of which is wrong.
 
Oliver's said:
There are basically 3 ways to do it, like you did, hanging on a lift or off the floor, no of which is wrong.
Click to expand...
yeah I researched it before I did it. It's not like I took one guy's word. He's just the first one I remembered. I still think 475 is high though. Then again, it might be right on target. I won't know until I can put my steering together and drive it around the house.
 
I think it is a bit high. And although your rig may weigh a lot, remember that the axles and tires are all unsprung weight so they do not count. My truck weighs a little over 6k but has something like 1800# of wheels, tires, and axles. Factor in the weight split between the front and rear and I may only have about 2400# on the front end.
 
OnlyOneDR said:
I think it is a bit high. And although your rig may weigh a lot, remember that the axles and tires are all unsprung weight so they do not count. My truck weighs a little over 6k but has something like 1800# of wheels, tires, and axles. Factor in the weight split between the front and rear and I may only have about 2400# on the front end.
Click to expand...
This is the best picture I have on my computer. More recent ones are on my phone but the point is it's a full size jeep with a cage and cast iron everything. 360, 465/203/205. The ass end is the lightest by far. I typically run 4-5 psi in the rear tires and 7 psi up front.
DSCN0158.jpg
 
Back
Top