As hot rodders many of us are constantly messing with our cars, swapping induction systems, wheels, and so on ... because they're never really finished, right? So why is it some components fall into the fit-and-forget category? One of the biggest offenders here is the humble shock absorber, which is a little odd considering what an impact it has on a car's handling. You may have owned your car for a few years, and when it's not being used it probably just sits in the garage, right? Or you may have bought the car already built and not know how old the components are. Apart from checking fluids and maybe changing tires when they wear, your hot rod or custom may not get the regular servicing your daily driver probably enjoys, and those shock absorbers are just there. They don't appear to be wearing out and you can't really feel them getting worse, but they do wear out, and the difference a new set makes can be dramatic.
While the springs absorb the jarring motion caused when a car travels over rough ground, the shock absorbers dampen the motion, preventing the springs from continuing to move up and down. Old shocks that no longer offer this damping reduce the contact area the tire has on the road, adversely affecting handling and braking. However, new shock absorbers won't cure excessive wheel hop or skittish handling on their own. Check to make sure that your spring rates are a match for your car's weight before selecting new shock absorbers. Many hot rods are light, especially on the rearend, and if you're running a transverse spring you may find removing a few leaves will improve the ride first. You can check how hard your suspension is by putting a zip tie on the shaft of your shocks where it enters the body (or use plumber's pipe insulation or rollcage padding on the body of a shielded shock where it enters the shield) then take a quick drive and check how far the zip tie or foam has moved. Less than 1 inch of movement will confirm the springs are too stiff. You may also want to check the spring shackles to make sure they're not binding too, as this won't let the spring do its job properly.
OK, back to shock absorbers. A simple test of whether they're working correctly is to push down on the bumper or body. If it rebounds and stops moving quickly the shocks are good, but if it continues to bounce, they'll need replacing. Alternatively, remove them from the vehicle, and if they don't return to full length after you compress them, they're worn out and are effectively doing nothing to damp the suspension movement. This was the situation we found with Pete Chapouris' father's T roadster when we paid a visit to SO-CAL Speed Shop recently. Having just released their New Traditionalist line of steel Speedshocks, the T proved an ideal testbed for this feature, as it is typical of many hot rods in that it gets driven, and driven hard, but infrequently, and receives little maintenance between times. Everyone involved was surprised at just how bad the old shocks were, and what a difference fitting new ones made to the rod's handling.
The T is a very lightweight car, with a V-6 up front and virtually no weight over the rearend. Handed the keys for a testdrive, we went out and found some bumpy roads as well as a few curves to test road holding, body roll, and wheel hop. The first two weren't so bad, given that this is a beam axle-equipped rod, though body roll could've been slightly better, but braking hard on a bumpy road surface found the rear wheels skipping and the tires chirping. Back at the shop, the T went up on the rack, and all four shocks were changed for New Traditionalist chrome shocks, using the new belled cover design on the rear. Out on the road again, body roll was improved, but braking hard on the same section of road as before found no noise coming from the tires. Our conclusion from this not-so-highly scientific test was that the new shocks were doing their job, damping the suspension over the bumps and keeping the tires in contact with the road, in turn improving the handling and making the car safer.
Of course not all rods and customs use tube shocks. While some lightweight rods, such as Model Ts and even As, use friction shocks, a greater number still use lever arm shocks, which after all were original equipment until the late-'40s on Fords. We covered swapping from lever arm to tube shocks on a '36 Ford in our March '08 issue, as well as looking at how stock lever arm shocks were rebuilt back in December '07, both of which will offer the same improvement in ride quality and road holding as fitting new tube shocks. There's little doubt that tube shocks offer the best handling, especially given the availability of adjustable or variable rate versions, both manual and electronically controlled, as well as the patented rising-rate valving available in Bilstein shock absorbers. But sometimes, lever arm shocks are more suitable for the build style of a car, the choice coming down to personal preference. Whichever style appeals to you, now may be the time to take a look at your shock absorbers.

Before removing the front...

Before removing the front shocks they were marked at their ride-height position.

The New Traditionalist Speedshocks...

The New Traditionalist Speedshocks from SO-CAL Speed Shop are nitrogen-filled gas shocks engineered for hot rod applications, available in the standard length of 9 1/4 inches (closed) and 14 1/4 inches (open) as well as a short version measuring 7 7/8 inches (closed) and 11 1/4 inches (open). Available with or without the "bell-bottomed" dust covers they have replaceable 5/8-inch ID and 7/16-inch ID lower and upper neoprene rubber bushings respectively and are finished in red or chrome.

Also before removal, the eye-to-eye...

Also before removal, the eye-to-eye length at ride height was measured; in this case 12 1/2 inches.

Here's why we marked the shock...

Here's why we marked the shock at the beginning. The mark shows that the majority of suspension travel is about 1 inch in either direction. The shiny worn section of the shaft would indicate these shocks have seen a lot of use!

Speedshocks are also available...

Speedshocks are also available in 6061 aluminum (above), as a direct replacement for SO-CAL hot rod shocks, and can be ordered polished or brush finished.

While the shocks had been...

While the shocks had been on the car for a while, we were surprised to find one of the lower inner sleeves had rusted to the bolt, and came out with it. Just one example of why you might want to perform routine maintenance on your hobby car.

Here's the old shock next...

Here's the old shock next to the new, as well as a shorty version. The reason for measuring the shock before removal was to see if the shorter shock would better suit the application, but it did not.

Here's the new shock in place....

Here's the new shock in place. It was hoped the dust cover-equipped version could be used, but the top mount in this case wouldn't allow enough clearance for the top of the dust cover.

A rack sure makes the job...

A rack sure makes the job easier, but this is nothing that couldn't be tackled with a floorjack and stands on your driveway in an afternoon.

A pair of old Pete & Jakes...

A pair of old Pete & Jakes shocks was removed from the rear of the T, but the reason for showing this picture is to demonstrate how worn the old shocks were. Compressed, it should have returned to its full length, but didn't budge. The rearend received a pair of chrome shocks with dust covers.

With the new shocks fitted,...

With the new shocks fitted, we road-tested the T again. As mentioned in the text, wheelhop over bumps during braking was eliminated and body roll was reduced. While the old shocks weren't leaking and showed no sign of being worn until they were removed, this simple change improved the ride immensely.

Speedway Motors offers two...

Speedway Motors offers two styles of friction shocks: the Nostalgia version shown at the bottom, zinc-plated steel with an arm measuring 5 1/2 inches center to center, and the Mr. Roadster aluminum versions that can be ordered plain or polished, with 5 7/8 inch arms. Both styles bolt to the chassis and require linkages to attach them to axles.

Prior to fitment, heavy-duty...

Prior to fitment, heavy-duty silicone lubricant was sprayed on the rubber bushings to eliminate squeaking.

Crafty-B offers these cast...

Crafty-B offers these cast aluminum friction shocks. Oiled bronze bushings guide the 3/4-inch-diameter center shaft and pressure plate. Pressure is applied with stainless steel springs to both halves of the shock. With a 6 inch long arm, the body is approximately 5 inches in diameter.

Model A owners can benefit...

Model A owners can benefit from a call to Five Points Classic Auto Shocks since they can rebuild their stock units. These also work well on light hot rods, like Modifieds, owing to their compact size.

Before and after on a rebuild...

Before and after on a rebuild of '41-47 Ford lever arm shocks. If you followed our story two years ago you'll know that Five Points restore these to at least as good as new, helping restorers as well as rodders seeking period correctness regain some road manners to their rides.

Before and after a tube shock...

Before and after a tube shock conversion by Circle City Hot Rods on a '36 Ford, originally equipped with lever arm shocks.

While a pair of new tube shocks...

While a pair of new tube shocks will undoubtedly be cheaper than restoring a pair of lever arm versions, you will have to fabricate bracketry if a kit isn't available for your car.