AFCO Shocks Review
In the racing world, shocks are a key component to traction and handling. Every seasoned racer knows that shocks are the key to winning or losing the race. However, shocks are commonly an overlooked component. You’ll often hear racers say things like, “I used this shock on this track before with this setting and it worked great," but they just can’t seem to figure out why it’s not working this time. Track conditions can change from week to week, so you want your shocks to be able to be adjusted to accommodate this change.
AFCO is a common shock brand in the racing community, but did you know that AFCO also makes shocks for drag racing? These AFCO Coil-Over Shocks are a great example of an AFCO drag racing shock, a single adjustable shock with adjustable rebound in a five-inch stroke. In drag racing, the rebound adjustment is the most critical in tuning. This adjustment allows the tuner to dial in the "unloading action" of the chassis and keep the tires planted during the critical first sixty feet down the track. The key component behind a good pair of shocks is the rebound. The longer you can keep the weight transferred to the rear tires, the more traction you will have. More traction sustained throughout the entire track means more power put to the ground and faster times, which is the main goal behind drag racing.
Another important component to a shock while drag racing is compression. While not as critical as rebound, it can cause a few headaches if not carefully considered. If you have too soft of a compression it can cause the car to squat too much and feel squirrely. It may even bottom out the shock causing the shock to be damaged. If you have too hard of a compression, it would not allow the shocks to compress very much or even at all. This would result in no traction, also known as knocking the tires off, due to the fact that no weight transfer can take place. Speaking of weight transfer, weight transfer is one subject that is the most overlooked, as most people think it comes naturally when setting up a car. This is why scaling a car on a set of scales such as this Computer Scales Kit can be the difference between winning and losing a race. Another component that needs to be considered is weight transfer to the right rear tire and the torque of the engine that naturally causes more weight to be moved to this side. So, a higher compression shock may be needed on the right rear compared to the left rear.
The advantage of using AFCO shocks over other brands is that we regularly stock or dropship all new AFCO shocks and our highly trained shock department are able to service or rebuild your existing AFCO shocks. On my 1972 Chevy Nova, I used this Coil-Over Shocks which has the single adjustable rebound, so as I test and tune I can adjust my settings to improve my times. My car is a back halved with ladder bar suspension, so it took me a while to choose the correct shock for my setup. A nice feature about this particular shock is they use a one half inch eyelet on both sides so they can be mounted in an inverted position if needed. Here at Speedway Motors, we also sell springs to fit these shocks, such as these Coil-Over Springs. These are a 2.63 id or 2 5/8 with a twelve inch free height.
