About to hit 100k miles. Noticed a little more bounce than normal so going to replace the shocks. Truck is not lifted (I did take the blocks out of the rear). Based on this forum, appears the 4600 Bilstein's is the shock of choice. Any other recs out there? Also, any thing in particular I should know about replacing them?

 

Just replaced mine with 4600's. Noticed no difference. I'm right at 100k. Replaced them in my garage without lifting the truck off the ground or removing any tires. Pretty simple.

 

who is recommending 4600s?? You are going from monotube to monotube... there isn't going to be a difference from the low bidder factory suspension trash. Especially if you tow or carry heavy payloads.
If you want "real" suspension, which can be rebuilt, contains quality valving, shock bodies & components, and better handling characteristics then you should be prepared to spend some money.
If you want disposable trash... lots of $40 DIY options. For a real eye opener... ask for a ride in a Raptor with the Gen 3 Live Valve Foxes and then blitz some speed bumps at 40mph. Keep in mind those aren't very high end components.

 

Guess what? Some people don't care about all of that. Some people just need their truck to get from A to B and don't want to spend thousands on their shocks.

 

4600s should work well for a daily driver.

 

If you just want a stock ride, about anything off RockAuto will be perfectly fine. If you want something a little firmer, Bilsteins.

 

Are those the same folks recommending 4600s?? Why even change them then?? Enlighten me please.
What about the people that have heavy payloads or like to tow??

 

application....application....application

 

A raptor has a bit more to the suspension than just the shocks. Also, not every highway cruiser needs Kings or Fox 3.0's. Hell I could obtain some King 4.5's from a friend of a friend, imagine the speeds I could hit speed bumps at with those!

The 4600's are a noticeable change in ride compared to factory, speaking as someone who has swapped them into two trucks. Nobody is recommending them because they're the end all, be all defacto choice, they're a well priced replacement that is better than factory, period.

I'll also say while I'm not hauling huge travel trailers my 4600's have been more than fine with what I tow

 

I put some 4600s rear shocks on last fall. I have the front struts I need to do still. My truck had the I believe original Motorcraft struts/shocks. The rear shocks still had pressure in them. I got done hauling about 1000 lbs recently with only new rear shocks. This showed my how I need to replace the front struts.

I am probably going to get new OE springs and all the parts to put the struts together before I pull my old struts off. I also need to make sure everything is OK on ball joints/bushings. I might just buy new A arms to freshen everything up.

I think the 4600 are a reasonable upgrade vs higher end shocks. I decided I was not going to do the lifting/modify suspension route. So the 4600s made sense.

Bilstein 4600 vs 5100 Shocks: Key Differences Explained