Shim Stack Engineering

Shim Stack Engineering

Calculate, construct and validate damping valves for forks and shocks.

Understand what each shim does—and calculate what happens when you change it.

Written by Craig Dixon of Mountain Race Shop™, this specialist textbook takes you from the basics of oil flow and pressure through to designing shim stacks and checking their performance on a suspension dyno.

The book combines advanced engineering with plain-language explanations, defined symbols, numbered equations and worked examples. It starts with the foundations, then builds towards the calculations needed to make informed decisions about fork and shock damping.

What you will learn

• Calculate oil flow, pressure differences and damping forces.
• Understand the damping produced by bleed holes, piston ports and valve blocks.
• Calculate shim bending and assess changes in shim diameter, thickness, number and arrangement.
• Balance damping between fork base valves and mid-valves.
• Understand traditional spring and trampoline mid-valves, including how to choose float.
• Assess gas pressure and internal compensation spring (ICS) requirements to help control cavitation.
• Account for oil viscosity, temperature, wheel rate and suspension linkage ratio.
• Turn the motorcycle, riding conditions and rider’s needs into measurable damping targets.
• Compare calculated results with dyno measurements and use the findings to refine a design.
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Built for learning and workshop reference

Includes numbered equations, step-by-step worked examples, diagrams, a guide to reading the mathematics, a glossary, equation and subject indexes, and Harvard-style references.

Suitable for suspension technicians, race mechanics, engineering students and riders who want a deeper understanding of damping design. No previous shim-stack design experience is assumed; the later chapters build on the earlier explanations.

Calculations provide a starting point for design. Measurement, careful assembly and dyno testing remain part of confirming how a particular valve performs.

Digital PDF edition — AUD $99



A complete textbook to read on screen or print for personal workshop reference. This listing is for the digital edition; no physical book is supplied.