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Bigalforsyth
Samba Member
Joined: November 08, 2020
Posts: 7
Location: Cartersville, ga
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 Posted: Fri Dec 03, 2021 8:19 am Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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| TDCTDI wrote: |
While ordering parts, I tripped across the Monroe air bag shocks, since they were stupid cheap, and this project needed shocks anyway, I decided to score a set so I could join the cool kids with air ride. 
Upon the first trial fit, I found that not only was the lower eyelet was too small a diameter to fit over the stud on the lower trailing arm, but to was also too long.
Well, I remedied this by pressing the lower collar out of the old shocks...
And stuffing them into the new ones.
I was then able to install the shocks onto the trailing arms but I then found that the shock bodies were too large in diameter & were fouling against the upper arms.
After a bit of research in the late model Beetle forums, I found that this was a common occurrence & that quite a few grind away on the upper control arm to gain the necessary clearance. This has got to be the stupidest fucking idea ever.
Knowing that there had to be a better way, I came up with my own solution.
With a bit of adjusting, I determined that the shock needed to be moved inboard roughly 1/2 and the hole in the beam needed to be opened up about 1/4 and the shock body would just clear the upper trailing arm. However, there is not enough length on the lower stud to slip enough washers on before there arent enough threads to install the nut, so I made a longer lower shock collar that was also the nut.
First, I welded a nut to a washer...
removed a collar from another old shock, slipped it onto the trailing arm, tightened a nut against it & welded them together.
Not having a lathe, I threaded a stud into the collar & chucked it into the drill & turned the weld & nut down with a die grinder.
Once it was ground down to size, I then welded the other side of the washer to the pared down nut & turned it down too.
After applying a bit of SilGlyde, I then pressed it into the shock.
Then, using a carbide burr on the die grinder, I opened up the hole on the beam a bit to the rear & towards the inside & after mounting the shock in place, I checked for any clearance issues throughout the range of motion.
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i'm slow...but i just don't understand how welding nut to the end extends the shock away from the original too short to space lower shock mount. The pics don't show it installed. Any help appreciated as i'm having this issue now.
_________________
1974 standard beetle
2 narrow beam
17x7 Klassik Rader wheels
195/40-17 fronts
205/45-17 rears |
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blinger
Samba Member
Joined: November 29, 2004
Posts: 12
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
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| Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2022 8:51 pm Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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i too am having an issue similar to others here... putting 120psi in the front (MA756) and the thing barely moves. Lifts up and stays there if I get out and pull up on the front.
My pressure switch shuts off at 145psi and the shocks fill to 120psi. Wondering if I just need a different pressure switch that allows for more air in the tank?
Still some rubbing common arm rubbing/clearance issues that I need to figure out which could be the source. Also wondering if maybe I have the thru rod nuts too tight which is preventing the arms from traveling freely |
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Mike-O-Rama
Banned
Joined: August 12, 2019
Posts: 37
Location: Roseville CA
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| Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2022 3:01 pm Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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| blinger wrote: |
i too am having an issue similar to others here... putting 120psi in the front (MA756) and the thing barely moves. Lifts up and stays there if I get out and pull up on the front.
My pressure switch shuts off at 145psi and the shocks fill to 120psi. Wondering if I just need a different pressure switch that allows for more air in the tank?
Still some rubbing common arm rubbing/clearance issues that I need to figure out which could be the source. Also wondering if maybe I have the thru rod nuts too tight which is preventing the arms from traveling freely |
Make sure your tank can handle a higher pressure, some are rated at 150 PSI max, others can support 200 PSI
I also have trouble getting the air shocks to lift from the all the way slammed position. One of the guys at our local bug meet recommended extended lower shock mounts, to change the pivot point and ease the stress on the shock
https://limebug.com/product/t1-1947-65-beetle-ghia-link-pin-lower-shock-relocators/
These say link pin, but list 68-79 beetle in the keywords ?
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JustBuggy
Samba Member
Joined: August 01, 2010
Posts: 849
Location: SF Bay Area, Ca.
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| Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2022 10:13 am Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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| Mike-O-Rama wrote: |
| blinger wrote: |
i too am having an issue similar to others here... putting 120psi in the front (MA756) and the thing barely moves. Lifts up and stays there if I get out and pull up on the front.
.......
Still some rubbing common arm rubbing/clearance issues that I need to figure out which could be the source. Also wondering if maybe I have the thru rod nuts too tight which is preventing the arms from traveling freely |
Make sure your tank can handle a higher pressure, some are rated at 150 PSI max, others can support 200 PSI
I also have trouble getting the air shocks to lift from the all the way slammed position. One of the guys at our local bug meet recommended extended lower shock mounts, to change the pivot point and ease the stress on the shock
https://limebug.com/product/t1-1947-65-beetle-ghia-link-pin-lower-shock-relocators/
These say link pin, but list 68-79 beetle in the keywords ?
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Well those are interesting! Looks like the lower mounting is slightly outboard of the original mount as well. They might help with a bit of the clearancing issues that I originally had as well. |
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BushwhackDave
Samba Member
Joined: January 15, 2006
Posts: 6
Location: Los Angeles
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2022 9:08 am Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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Hey Guys - will a dead stock 68 Ball Joint front Beam get any drop at all with MA 756's? I'm after 1-2" just for stance not slammed. No Beam Adjusters-stock beam -will it move up & down at all?
_________________
59 Beetle
67 21 Window Samba Van
73 Super Beetle Convertible
69 Meyers Towd
68 Bay Window Double Door Van
68 Bushwhacker Dune Buggy Red (STOLEN)
68 Bushwhacker Dune Buggy Green
68 Custom Dune Buggy |
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TDCTDI
Samba Advocatus Diaboli
Joined: August 31, 2013
Posts: 12850
Location: North Carolina
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2022 11:22 am Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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| BushwhackDave wrote: |
| Hey Guys - will a dead stock 68 Ball Joint front Beam get any drop at all with MA 756's? I'm after 1-2" just for stance not slammed. No Beam Adjusters-stock beam -will it move up & down at all? |
No. The only thing that you will accomplish is raising it, & then lowering it down to where it rests now.
_________________
Everybody born before 1975 has a story, good, bad, or indifferent, about a VW.
GOFUNDYOURSELF, quit asking everyone to do it for you!
An air cooled VW will make you a hoarder.
Do something, anything, to your project every day, and you will eventually complete it. |
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runamoc 
Samba Member
Joined: June 19, 2006
Posts: 5600
Location: 37.5N 77.1W
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2022 1:36 pm Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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| BushwhackDave wrote: |
| Hey Guys - will a dead stock 68 Ball Joint front Beam get any drop at all with MA 756's? I'm after 1-2" just for stance not slammed. No Beam Adjusters-stock beam -will it move up & down at all? |
Replace spare tire with bag of sand. Take out/add til you get the lowering you want. 
_________________
Daily driver: '69 Baja owned 44 yrs - Plan B: '81 Rabbit Diesel LS Deluxe - Plan C: '72 Ghia
Yard Art: 2 Sandrails
Outback: '69 Ghia - '68,'69,'70,'72 Beetle - '84 Scirocco, GTI - Pair of '02 Golfs-
VW Wiring = It's just wires |
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CNSRANCH
Samba Member
Joined: March 15, 2017
Posts: 126
Location: United States
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| Posted: Mon Aug 14, 2023 8:25 am Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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I know this is an older thread, but I could use some guidance.
First of all, '68 front end. Manx-style buggy with tires that extend out beyond the fenders. My sprung weight on the front end is only about 350 lb. Upper torsion bar has been thru-rodded. Don't know if lower springs are shot or not, but without shocks on, I can push the front end down with no spring back.
Measuring from the shock tower to the bottom shock mount the shock needs to be extended to 15.5" to get the right height that I want. Because of the geometry of the trailing arms, my body hits the tire when the measurement from the shock tower to the shock mount is 14 and 1/4 inches. You guys are using Monroe's ma 756 which has a compressed length of 10 and 1/4 inches, and an extended length of 16.25". My question is this... if I raise my front end from the 10 and a quarter inch compressed length to 15 in, do I have to worry about bottoming out the body on the tire? Also, do I need to worry about maxing out the extended length of the shock due to it being at 15 and 1/2 in? My other alternative is to use a Monroe air shock that has a compressed length of 14 and 1/4 inches. The danger of course is that if I bottom the shock out I can blow the shock. Your input is really appreciated. |
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DerrickfromNC1
Samba Member
Joined: October 24, 2008
Posts: 1300
Location: North Carolina
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| Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2023 9:27 am Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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Trying to decide which air shocks I should buy. I have a 2 beam which has adjusters installed. My spindles are the CBPerf 2 dropped versions. From what I can tell the adjusters where positioned on the beam such that at the highest adjustment my ride height is still too low with my current wheel/tire combo 2 dropped spindles. I actually only need about 1 additional ride height to have adequate clearance and still maintain the look.
As it sits now without any shocks installed I measures about 11.75 from the underside of the shock tower to the lower shock mount. The air shocks I purchase would probably not need much air pressure to give me a 1-2 lift.
Here are a few of the Monroe air shocks Im considering and their specs:
MA756
.10.250compressed
.16.375 fully extended
MA711
.11.875
19.625
MA777
.12.500
20.500
I dont see any specs on the dia. of the shock body and from the pics they all look the same but if there is a difference I would prefer the one with the smallest dia. to ensure I dont recreate a clearance issue between the shock body and lower trailing arm.
Which would you recommend or perhaps there is another air shock I should consider.
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Mike-O-Rama
Banned
Joined: August 12, 2019
Posts: 37
Location: Roseville CA
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| Posted: Fri Nov 24, 2023 2:48 pm Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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| DerrickfromNC1 wrote: |
| Trying to decide which air shocks I should buy. I have a 2 beam which has adjusters installed. My spindles are the CBPerf 2 dropped versions. From what I can tell the adjusters where positioned on the beam such that at the highest adjustment my ride height is still too low with my current wheel/tire combo 2 dropped spindles. I actually only need about 1 additional ride height to have adequate clearance and still maintain the look. |
Nice Bug !
There are two versions of EMPI 2 inch narrowed beams, one for standard height spindles, and one for dropped spindles. As you've found out, its tough to use the standard with dropped spindles, it might not adjust high enough
The monroe air shock are not really a performance oriented shock. If you're out of options and need the clearance, the 756's are a good choice, you can space the bottom shock mount out to gain clearance away from the arms. But based on the photos of your bug, you might not be happy with the performance. |
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DerrickfromNC1
Samba Member
Joined: October 24, 2008
Posts: 1300
Location: North Carolina
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2024 7:26 pm Post subject: Re: Monroe Air Shocks |
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From reading this thread it seems like the go to air shock is the Monroe MA756.
A friend of mine has been running the MA709 for about 5 years without any problems.
The MA709 is actually constructed in the reverse(upside down) compared to the MA756. He has some very slight rubbing on one of the shocks against the trailing arm to the point where I dont think any action(grinding on trailing arm) would be required. At rest there is a 1/4 gap but at some point while driving it just barely contacts.
Is anyone else using the Monroe MA709? |
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