Suspension upgrade for the extra weight

I'm sure its out there somewhere but I can't find it, so here i am.

Came here for some advice. Ive got a stock 2017 sr5, with a 50 lb roof rack, 180 lbs for my rock sliders, and the bed of my truck is carrying at least 200-300 lbs at all times, if not more when I go camping.
I plan on adding front and rear bumpers at some point, and a topper.

4 wheel parts recommended ARB old man emu because of the weight I always carry. They have a heavy load kit that includes everything for a full suspension upgrade and 2" lift. Anyone have experience with this brand ? Other ones I should look into?

 

Kings ext. travel with adjusters on 650 lbs springs, and RXT stage 3 leafs in rear. This is what I run, and it’s a phenomenal set up. I have roughly 450 lbs constant in the rear. If you can find Deavers, run their stage 3 leafs..but they will run twice as much, and imo, are not twice as good as the Icons.

 

Curious… why you went with kings ext, vs fox ext. Or even the OP mentioned OME?

 

because after months of research, and speaking with several shops and friends with different set ups, kings fit the bill.

 

I hear you. I was hoping for a little more detail and the why it fit your bill. It would help the OP as well. I’ve done research (reading) and still go back and forth between kings and fox. I don’t know much about the OME.

 

you already run Fox, why are you going back and forth?

 

You are extremely helpful. Im not planning on changing. I commented for two reasons. (1) I think it would help the OP if you explained why kings were better than the OME that was suggested. (2) I would like to know why people think king is better than fox or why they went one direction over another, since there are other options.

 

Rear-Deaver U402 Stg3
Front-Bilstein 6112 w/Whatever spring you need for the weight you're going to add.

 

i am about to do suspension i also heard the OME was great but i see a LOT of trucks with King and this conversation sparked my interest. . hearing ones experience and why one is better then the other for them would be nice.

 

I suggest going on YouTube and finding out about OME systems to include the BP 51.
Kings are the top end for doing the extreme off-road such as rock crawling.
You sound like you're going to be doing over landing and street.
I think the Kings would be overkill And for the money you would probably never use them to their full potential. Especially with all that weight.

 

The thread sparked my interests because when I had my 2010 I always wanted to lift it and do different things. I think the final answer comes down to a few factors: how much money do you want to spend, what are you going to use your truck for, and what do you want it to look like? For me, it always came down to how much money to spend. It has been mentioned that king is top tier and I agree from what I have seen. But there are other companies that are top notch like Fox for high performance. But let us say you want to spend less. There are lots of options, just like the Old Man Emu that have been suggested. If you start adding lots of weight to your rig then you will probably need some heavier springs (front and back leaf) than stock to account for the extra weight. Then it comes down to size of shock, travel, etc. I try really hard not to worry about what others think about the gear on my truck, life is too short. Do what makes you feel happy, if that means you want high end, blue colored shocks that allow you to do all the off road you want, do those. If you want different shocks that is ok as well.

Getting the correct spring rates for your extra weight will be important no matter what type of shocks you get (OME, King, Fox, Bilstein, Radflo, Eibach, Dobinsons, etc).

 

Kings aren’t designed specifically for rock crawling…and full potential is a fallacy. Do any of us use our sliders, front bumpers, full skids to their max potential? But it’s nice to have when you need them. I don’t rock crawl, but I do hit some technical trails when I’m camping and I like the ability to soften my shocks and drop tire pressure in the teens for a plush ride, and run full firm for highway/higher speed travel as well. Kings are reliable, serviceable, tuneable and affordable. Did I mention their excellent customer service as well?

 

I have Toytec alum 2.5. It provides 700 lbs rate spring.

 

Could argue this all day long and it has been all over TW.

Kings are overkill for most Tacoma enthusiast applications. I would argue there are better shocks for the casual enthusiast.

 

So in your eyes, 90% of Taco owners should just run 5100, AAL and no armor or sliders because anything more is just overkill? I love when people try to not only convince but justify how someone else should build their rigs and spend their money. I had 5100s on my 4R and they were ok…i run Kings on my Taco now and even though my usage is the same (camping, trails, 4 season capability), there is no comparison and I couldn’t be happier.

 

This is all pretty helpful reading, I have some more research to do. Theres also the beilstien 5100s recommended to me. But I think the OME is better for weight. And when I think about it, I'm hardly ever off roading without a load in the back.
Whats the set up on the off road and pro trucks? I want to be better than that if im upgrading.

 

I can't speak towards the off road package (3rd gen). I went Bilstein for my 2010. My pro has Fox 2.5" diameter shocks front and back (no external reservoirs up front, no adjustment front or back). I like the suspension so far. Much better than the Bilstiens I had on my 2010. If I was to get a new suspension for the pro it would be either a fox 2.5" diameter with external reservoirs and adjustment or King 2.5" diameter with external reservoirs and adjustments. There are other manufactures that do similar shocks to the fox and king but I don't have any experience with them. You would have to ask around about those.

My buddy went 5100s for his 2nd gen off road. They do off road stuff, he has wheeled around and it works. But they are not as smooth or comfortable as the fox shocks in my pro, just my opinion.

 

An Old Man Emu replacement suspension fits the needs for most people, budget friendly.

 

It’s unclear to me what your goals are. You don’t have to upgrade your suspension simply because you added weight to your truck. It’s a truck after all. It was designed to carry payload and tow stuff. You aren’t exceeding the capacities Toyota has published. What problem are you trying to solve?

 

I've been doing some good reading as well and with my past experiences as far of what I've been doing with the truck.
I was happy with my set up. Still have the Fox TRD pro 2.0 shocks with a Westcott lift and served me well doing some light to moderate trails, and black diamond trails (picking the right lines) here in NorCal. I run 33s, full skids and sliders, steel front with winch and rear bumpers, regeared to 5.29, and upgraded leafsprings installed to Deaver stage 3 with Rago shackle hangers.. Next would be the suspensions. With all that weight RTT, camping gears and recovery gears, when on the trails for long trip. Taking my time with this and would like to do it right. Suspension must be able to handle 650/700 springs front and long travel since I'm doing all these adventures. But a few years back I thought I wouldn't need it. Now all that changes because of the experiences I had.

Just recently did some snowruns in the winter using all my recovery gears winching, tracks, to help me out of deep snow and washed out trails. Recently came back from DV (death valley) trip and was able to the trails we passed through. It was all doable with the stock Fox 2.0 pro shocks.
I'll be changing my suspension soon, and reading up this thread and looks like we're all in the same boat but different needs.
As the saying goes, cry once buy once.. YOLO!! haha