I have a friend near me that has a suspension business and he rebuilds shocks for all kinds of things. Many of his shocks and suspension setups are on race bikes and such, but he said he most likely rebuild our shocks. This would most likely be of interest to Koni, but he can do what ever you want and can custom valve them to fit your ride.

A few questions:

1- Anyone interested?

2- Any recommended price points?

3- Any cores out there that people want to ship for a looksie?

I hope to be hanging out with him tonight and can forward info to and from. He could be a good resource for our group, I hope.

DEK Performance is the company he is partnered in.

If I can find a cheap set of cores at Hershey I would be interested in this. Need to get rid of the KYBs.
Zach

I have a set of original front and rear Koni for a 914, the quote from the Koni authorised rebuilder was almost as much as new shocks. I would love to have them rebuilt but not any where near the price I was quoted.

Koni charge you a fee to test the shocks which you get back if you go ahead and have them rebuilt. They did say that could be more is they opened them up and then they needed extra parts.

What can your mate do them for?

Zack - I have a set of cores that I can bring to Hershey. Im pretty sure they are koni's. I'll check tonight. - $n/c

Here is a reference Doc.
For Bilsteins - 100$ per shock for rebuild. 200$ per shock for custom valving.
He also tests and gives you a printout on a shock machine.

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...bernie++stewart

I'd be interested. I've got a set of Koni Reds with what I think are 140lb springs. I was going to just buy new ones. I can't find anything but Yellows and 180lb springs, tho.

Bullitt, why just Bilsteins??

Thanks for the input fellas. I thought Koni because charging people almost full price to rebuild is stupid. My friend will most definitely be able to beat that price. By how much? I will need a set to see. Custom valving is his specialty. I will try to get more info tonight.

Definitely interested, especially if he can do a Shea-like restore with repaint and factory correct decals. I have a set of rear adjustables with a 1970 date code (GT stuff).

I'm not sure if he does others? I suspect he does. He did a set of Bilsteins for me.

Ken,

I am do not think he is set up for the pretty stuff, but that does not mean ha can not be. I will see. That will of course cost more.


Maybe I should reach out to the 911 crowd

I didn't pay but $125 for new Bilsteins.

IMHO Bilstiens are as good or better than Konis ( except for the adjustables ) and as Dondolingo said


http://www.pmbperformance.com/catalog/item...565/1478247.htm


AND they're pretty

I've got a stack of 912 front shocks. All Koni. I can send a set or two that I don't care if I get back or not (in case they don't work out).

These things probably belong on a GT restoration or clone. I am building a driver, so their date code means nothing to me. However, if I can get them restored and sell them, they might be worth something to somebody.

I also have a set of Koni front inserts, so I could have a matching set.

I'm interested. I've got a set of front Koni reds I could send for a look see. LMK

I have a set of Koni Red rears that I would be interested in rebuilding... Don't know about needing re-valving but im interested?

Can he clean an repaint them the cool Koni Red so they look brand new?

Thanks,

Steve

It looks like we have enough interest. I would hate to waste his and everyone's time.

I hope to see him tomorrow. I got busy after work with house stuff, so today was a bust.

What is the ball park expected per pair of rebuilt? How about re-valved? This info will help him see if it is worth pursuing.

Thats a good price! The inserts are higher @180$ So more cost effective to rebuild.

I'm interested too, and perfect timing. I have a set of Konis that look exactly like Old Yella's pics above and was weighing having them rebuilt versus new. I'd like to know how much a rebuild would be, not sure I need the repainting but if it's included just to protect it from any existing bare metal areas I would do it. I

I believe Koni's take a different machine to rebuild than Bilstein. They are two different designs of shocks.

Most Bilstein "rebuilders" send them back to Bilstein to be done. They all go to Poway - Charlotte doesn't do them anymore.

front bilstien struts, usually from a 911 are a bit stiff for us.. re-valved would be good.. Since mine is not a driver yet, big surprise, I'm not sure but would be interested.

Further conversations have yielded the following parameters for cost figureing:
- Parts cost (duh)
- Oil cost (dino, syn, how much)
- Labor

Once he gets his hands on some cores to mess with, he can source the right parts, and get the data for valving, and get a price figured out more specifically.

I've got these Koni red cores he can mess with. Where do I send them?

Click to view attachment

Hung with him tonight. He still feels confident that this will be a win for all. I will give him links here so he can get an idea what is up and go from there. Stay tuned.

I have a set of Billies if he is interested.

Do you think he can use these? I'll ship them if he can, just let me know where to send them

Hell yes! Those are a good start. I will PM you my info.

any update I have some Carrera brand shocks I need rebuilt. ready now to send.

Shuie has a set he is sending and will be the first to be parted and inspected. Once he has them evaluated I can let you know more.

Alright. Shocks arrived last week and I took them to my friend, Dave. I am not the suspension expert so if something I say seems amiss, let me know. I do not know if all shocks for our cars are pressurized, but the Koni are. This adds some complexity and if the Bilsteins are not pressurized that may be why more people rebuild them. Now, pressurization of the Koni after rebuild is not impossible, but there are several ways to accomplish this, per my friend.
1. Add a schrader valve to the body of the shock - super easy
2. Add a hidden rubber valve in the cap that can be filled with a needle. This is done with some shocks.
3. Build a pressure vessel to assemble the shocks in. Hardest way to go about it.

Oh ya, are the fronts pressurized, too?

The Koni front cartridges that I have used in 911s and my 914 (like the ones in KELTY360s pic above) are pressurized. I've never taken a rear 914 strut assembly apart. Go for it with the ones I sent. No worries if they can't be rebuilt. Im kinda curious to see whats inside them.

Cool. He is sure he can replace the wearable items in the shock, it is only the method of re-pressurization that is in question. He mentioned that some folks/companies use a measured amount of dry ice to get the pressure that is desired. They seal it in the shock and it melts and charges the system. Cant do that with nitrogen, though. It would have to be way too cold. I see me helping design and build a pressure vessel in the future that can do the 200psi that will likely be needed to bring these up to stock spec.

We will also explore blasting, powder coating to factory, and new stickers for a fully restored look (more money, of course).