Hey guys whats the differance between nitro and hydro shocks? And advantages of both? thanks Scott

 

Are you referring to a certain brand shock?,
Sound more like a marketing ploy
Nitro, Nitrogen is a gas most all decent shocks have in them and Hydro is more than likely referring to hydraulic since most all shocks have Oil flow through them.
NITRO and HYDRO sounds a lot better than the Hay here is a standard shock painted a different color....

 

Nitrogen (Nitro) filled shocks are under constant air pressure. The shock is always pushing outward, which helps keep tires on the ground. Nitrogen performs well under heavy use and don't tend to fade. They will, but you have to be running very hard to do it

Hydraulic (Hydro) shocks are filled with fluid. The fluid being forced through a restriction causes the dampening effect. They generally rely on the vehicle springs to pull them open. When hydro shocks are under heavy use they tend to fade because the springs become less effective. The road ride on a hydro shock is generally considered smoother than Nitro filled.

I have OME nitro shocks and could not be happier. They ride on the highway like a Cadillac and they are awesome off-road. They achieve a good road ride by having dual pistons and various sizes of valves. When compressed quickly they resist hard, which helps keep all 4 tires on the trail.

OME Shock Diagram

 

LOL

So your "Nitro" shocks have no oil in them, just nitrogen?


Its a plain old twin tube hydraulic shock...with some low pressure gas in there to help reduce foaming, cavitation, etc.

Its MOSTLY hydraulic oil in there btw.

That doesn't mean it doesn't work, but the first explanation was really correct....its a marketing gimmick/euphemistic way of saying its a plain old fashion twin tube shock....and add the word "Giant" to each part label to make it sound more impressive.



Your shocks have twin TUBES (For the oil you thought you didn't have), not twin pistons, and they work EXACTLY like the "Hydro" shocks you described, with resistance via the OIL forced through the little restrictor plates, etc (Valves)

Again, a good old fashioned twin tube shock filled with oil can work very well, as you've experienced, and I am not addressing that aspect, merely clarifying that the REASONS described are completely and utterly mistaken.

 

Good info. Thank you,

 

Nicely put!

This is the bloody thruth!