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# |
Name |
Description |
Pictures |
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1 |
Remove top
cap. |
It is only pressed on; so a big screw driver or
pry bar removes it very easily. Alternate prying at opposite
sides and it comes off after 2 or 3 cycles. |
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|
2 |
Mark strut
body. |
For Civic Si front struts, mark the strut body 1.875" (1 7/8") above lowest
part of spring perch, where the cutout on the spring perch is
located. Do not cut lower than this to ensure proper holding
of insert in housing. We always cut at this same exact
location so that our weld caps for the RACE shocks will weld in the
proper location. (Note: Civic EX/LX cut location may be
different because of lower spring perch location.) |
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|
3 |
Choose
proper cut-off tool. |
We use 2 pipe cutters for our process. The
first one (gray at right) scribes a perfectly even line around the
circumference of the strut body because it has only 1 cutter and 2
rollers to keep it straight. The second one (red at left) does 99%
of the cutting with 4 very sharp cutters and much better penetration
capability than most small pipe cutters. It can be noted that
you can do the entire job with a small pipe cutter, but it has to be
big enough for the 2.0 OD of the strut housing... and then expect to
spends some time and muscle to make it all the way through.
We've also seen many other types of cutoff tools used, including
cutoff disks, hacksaws, etc.... but nothing does a better job
than a pipe cutter. The small one pictures is about $40, but
you can get a cheap one at Harbor Freight for about $20. The
big red one is $200+, and it's worth every penny! |
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|
4 |
Scribe
line with accurate pipe cutter |
As indicated above, the smaller pipe cutter has 1
cutter and 2 rollers, which keeps it very straight for a good scribe
line. The cut-off must be very even for the Koni RACE inserts
because it makes welding much easier. The straightness of the
cut for a Sport shock is not as important, but if you ever want to
upgrade to the RACE shocks, the welder will have a much more
difficult time with it. |
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|
5 |
Cut off
top of housing on scribe line.
********
BE CAREFUL!******** |
IMPORTANT!!!! The stock strut is
gas-pressurized!!!! So, if you just cut it apart without
consideration for how the gas will escape, then you will have a
lap-full of shock oil all over you. Note that Koni's directions show
that you should de-gas the shock by drilling a small hole in the
bottom of the housing. We do it differently
in that we hold the strut at a 75 degree angle (or totally upright
with piston facing upwards) and cut the top off without first
drilling the hole at the bottom. This is ok because the
shock's oil line at full extension is about 1" under the cut line;
so we get away with it.... and it improves our efficiency. If
you are concerned about this, please do drill the small de-gassing
hole at the bottom while the shock is completely upside down as Koni
recommends before cutting the top off the strut housings off!!!!!
The amount of gas that escapes is about as much as you can hold in
your mouth with cheeks fully blown up; so it's actually not that big
of a deal. |
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|
6 |
Pour out
residual oil. |
When you remove the piston assembly, be careful
because there is lots of oil both remaining in the housing and also
in the piston you are removing. The piston assembly when you
remove it is actually 2 parts, and the actual piston can be remove
from it's piston housing (see left, bottom picture for all parts).
The piston itself won't have any oil in it, the piston housing will
have oil in it (pour it out), and the strut housing will also have
oil in it (see pouring in picture). Find a good oil pan to
hold the parts while they drain. When all is finished, the
picture at bottom right is the parts you will have in your oil pan. |
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|
7 |
Finishing
the job. |
These housings are an example of what you will
have left after you dispose of the piston, piston housing, and all
the oil. Note that the top of the cut housing have been
deburred and are very evenly cut. At this point, we drill the
appropriate 1/2"-5/8" hole in the bottom of the housing for the
anchor bolt, serrated washer, and convex washer that Koni supplies
with their 8641-1497SPORT insert. We use a
step drill bit (Unibit) because it is WAY easier, and you should
use plenty of oil for the drill bit!!!!!! If you don't have a
step drill bit, best method is to start with a small drill bit and
work your way up front there. We also use a very long shank
counterbore bit to debur the inside of the housing where we drill
this lower hole. The bolt Koni provides is 12mm; so a
perfectly centered drill hole can be just 1/2", but the convex
washer is plenty big for a 5/8" or even 3/4" drill hole if your hole
is a little off center. Be sure to torque the bolt to the
proper torque as Koni has provided. After all cutting,
drilling, and deburring is complete, we thoroughly wash the housing
with soap and water. Pre-owned housings are washed top to
bottom with some effort to remove prior road grime
This same hole is where the compression adjustment
screw is located on the Double-Adjustable RACE Koni inserts.
Both Koni RACE inserts do not use the lower anchor bolt to hold the
insert in place; rather we weld on a threaded sleeve to the top of
the housing and secure the RACE insert in place with a threaded
"nut" at the top. |
Put rubber boot on before inserting
insert!
Tightening
retaining bolt at base of Koni Sport inert.
Double-Adjustable RACE shock with
compression adjuster at the bottom. |
|
*** |
DONE IF YOU HAVE FIXED
SPRINGS |
If you have stock or fixed-type springs (like Eibach Prokit),
then you are done. |
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Rear Shocks...
A good tip |
Just one
thing to note: You have to drill out the dimpled/peened
location of the inner bushing sleeve that holds the sleeve on the
shaft. This is a pain, but some patience and oil will help you
prevail. Try not to drill into to the shock shaft, but if you
hit it slightly, it's not a big deal. |
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RedShift Coilovers continue below. |
|
| 8 |
To remove or not to remove....
that is the question? |
We recommend removing the spring perch as shown
below in steps 9+, but for those who don't want to remove the spring
perch, we provide you with an additional stainless steel ring that
extends out from the bottom of the sleeve and sits on the stock
spring perch (see picture with arrow pointing to extended stainless
steel ring). This method allows retention of the stock front
perch without requiring you to place the aluminum sleeve directly on
the perch. Placing the aluminum sleeve directly on the perch
creates stress concentrations and can lead to a cracked sleeve over
time. Removing
the stock spring perch is our preferred method of coilover assembly.
Read on and you will see why. |
Arrow
points to extended stainless steel ring used for mounting sleeve on
stock front spring perch. |
|
9 |
"Turn" off
spring perch on lathe. |
First we "turn" off the spring perch on the
lathe. "Turning" is just the lathe process term for cutting. |
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|
10 |
Remove
perch from housing. |
We make a deep enough cut in the perch weld so
that we can remove the perch with a swift blow to the bottom of the
perch with a big hammer. |
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|
11 |
Shape
perch weld area. |
This is an important step for us because we like
to ensure the coilover sleeve has an even surface to sit on.
The stock perch was welded in place at the factory, and this weld
area makes for a very secure seat for the coil sleeve.
Our RedShift Series 2 coilover sleeves is 6061-T6
aluminum and comes with a machined stainless steel ring that sits
inside the aluminum sleeve so that the weight on the aluminum sleeve
is very even and doesn't create stress concentrations in the
aluminum sleeve that can lead to cracking. |
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|
12 |
The result
of machining the weld location on the lathe... |
The result of our machining off the stock lower
spring perch and shaping the weld area is a very consistent "ledge"
on which the coilover sleeve's internal stainless steel ring will
sit. We prefer not to sit the coilover sleeve directly on the
machined well area because it is harder to control dimensions on
machining the weld; so we use it as a ledge and maintain tight
tolerances on the stainless steel sleeve insert to reduce stress
concentration into the aluminum. |
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|
13 |
Cleaning
and painting the housing. |
After all drilling, cutting, and deburring is
complete, we thoroughly clean the housing with soap and water.
We also clean the area to be painted with acetone. This way
the gloss black paint will not flake off and is actually quite
difficult to even scratch. The third picture at right is the
final result.... a beautiful rust-free housing ready for the
coilover sleeve! |
Beautiful! |
|
14 |
Assembling
the coilover sleeve to the front housing. |
At right are all parts needed to assemble the
Koni front struts. Note that when assembling the most common
8641-1497SPORT insert (the Off-The-Shelf insert), the "threaded nut"
in the bottom right of the picture is not used; rather that O.T.S.
insert has the IDENTICAL "threaded nut" already incorporated into
itself. Whether assembling the O.T.S. SPORT insert or either
RACE insert, the dimensions are the same, and that upper "threaded
nut" outer dimension is used to hold the top of the coilover sleeve
in place. The RedShift coilover sleeve is thus held in place
by steel rings on both top and bottom, a very solid mounting
strategy that will survive on the street or racetrack for as very
long time. |
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|
15 |
RedShift
coilover sleeve assembled to the housing |
As you can see, the sleeve fits onto the housing
in a very clean and solid way that will last for a very long time! |
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| 16 |
RedShift Coilovers For The
Win!!!!! |
When you think about what coilovers you want to
purchase, please consider the heritage of what you are purchasing.
Koni has won several Formula 1 World Championship and as recently as
just a couple years ago with McLaren and Lewis Hamilton!!!
Also, RedShift Motorsports has won SCCA National Championships
(owner won once and a sponsored car won once).
Most "cheap" coilover systems out there are made to
make a profit first and perform second, and the result is that they
come from "cheap" factories....many coming from the SAME cheap
factory! The "other" suspensions look good and many people
claim they are good, but the truth is that they are lesser quality
than even the stock parts you take off your Honda!!
RedShift Suspensions use Koni shocks and are
designed for best performance and are fully modular (using standard
insert lengths and spring sizes so you can upgrade anytime)!
Get a real suspension from RedShift Motorsports! |
Also shown
are are additional parts from the RedShift coilover system including
Eibach Race Springs (450F/550R standard rates... custom rates at no
additional charge), rubber dust boots and cnc aluminum top mounts
with rubber seals.
Rear of
RedShift coilover system, including Nutsert hardware to fasten the
adjustment sleeves to the chassis of the car (so they are not left
loose like on other coilovers). SPORT and DA RACE shocks
shown. |
