S10 Suspension help

[Z06killinSBF]

I have a 97 S10 reg cab with a 4cyl. I had it lowered using 2" drop spindles and 3" drop springs up front. All stock rubber bushings, ball joints, etc. I was using the Summit brand Sport Truck shocks. The ride seemed to be very harsh and like I could feel EVERY pebble in the road. Right now it's back stock but I want to lower it again with out the harsh ride. Any ideas? I just don't see how these trucks are so popular to lower if they all ride so badly. My Mustang has 620lb springs on it with low profile tires and it is as smooth as can be.

[Bryce]

Buy the best shocks you can afford and make sure you have at least an 1" of travel before hitting the bump stop. It will still be a harsh ride if you hit a huge bump in the road.

This is from experience with lowered cars and trucks not particularly S10s.

[SS PUNISHER]

Those shocks are more than likely what made the ride so harsh. Spindles won't affect ride but springs will. I have cut springs from my old gta in my 01 blazer and it dropped it 4inches and still rides good with NO shocks other than being bouncy. I need to get some on there soon though. Supposidly those shocks are stiffer on the bound side than most others, at least that's what I heard somewhere

[speedy79]

I have a 99 s10 ZQ8. It is 2 inches factory lowered with springs and leaf springs from the factory. I lowered it an additional 2 inches using BellTech Spindles and 2 inch lowering blocks. It rode harsh over bigger bumps until I pulled the rear bump stops of the frame. It now rides great. I know the ZQ8 comes with a higher end shock then the regular S10's and factory front and rear sway bar. I have seen people selling their Zq8 stuff before, might be a viable option.

[rentedmule]

The stock spring rates for S10s are all 700 lbs+ for some reason. The ZQ8 coils are softer than the normal ones but the shocks on that package make up the difference. Most cheaper shocks are gas charged and add to the spring rate as well. QA1 stocker stars can be setup to give a decent ride and they're not crazy expensive. The best combo I had for ride quality was definitely with ZQ8 coils and the stocker stars.