Okay, it's time to order camber plates. I am about sick of researching this, as every turn asks more questions than it answers. I feel I have it narrowed down and I would like some recommendations. Feel free to tell me why you like your choice, and don't hesitate to offer a supplier for your recommendation. Below are some that I am considering:

Ground Control/Mazdaspeed
Cusco
HKS
ISC Racing
SpeedSource - can't find anything on their site.

NOTE: Must fit Koni Shocks w/ 5/8 shaft.

Pics or anything of any benefit is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

 

k2rd, its like an updated ground control and its steel so it wont snap

mike

 

I run ground control (I believe thats what they are). Odd thing is you see some people running them inside (below) the shock tower while others grind the edge on top and top mount them.

 

what spings are you using? coil overs or "stock" ones.

 

Scott,

My car will have 2.5" coilover springs with Koni Adjustables all around (SA up front, and DA out back).

I forgot about k2rd.com, but the last time I visited their site I couldn't find anything. Are they set up for the stock struts, or do they fit a Koni?

Jason, your pic looks exactly like Silk's set-up (IIRC).

I don't have a preference for steel over aluminum, or top mount vs. bottom mount for that matter. The set that was given to me didn't use any of the stock mounting holes. It used 8 little holes with 1/4" bolts and mounted on the top. What I didn't like is that once the new holes are drilled, they would be very close to the edge of the opening. Bad.

I like the look of the HKS and Mazdaspeed pieces, but couldn't find any pics of the Cusco unit. The ISC piece is $300, steel, top mount and incorporates forward-facing brackets to attach a strut bar to.

This is a bit harder than I thought. What makes it worse is that I thought I had the deal taken care of with some free camber plates. Now I have to do all of the research and then pay for them as well. Sucks.

Keep the info coming, guys. It really does help.

 

I use the GC/MS plates. Top quality pieces but I have two reservations. First, the holes don't line up perfectly. They "work" but the bolts kind of need to be tweeked into place. Second, top mount would be preferred. The reason is that with a stock bodied strut on a car lowered to the extent of a track car you eat up alot of suspension travel. Moving the upper spring perch up into the fender another 1/2" certainly wouldn't hurt. Bottom line is that the GC plates are good enough and you probably won't beat the price through Mazdaspeed.

Chris

 

if you are running coil overs then get the GC ones... the k2rd are made for the AGX. smaller shaft. the cusco ones are made for "stock" springs. they probably wouldn't even hold the coil overs. the HKS are probably the same way.

 

Wait you guys have GC ones and they fit the konis? I have koni yellows and they wont fit the GC camberplater. The instructions say I need to machine the sturt to fit. Where the hell do I goto machine the strut. Local machine shops have no clue what to do.
Hope you can help. These plates have been sitting for a while,

 

Well, don't take this the wrong way, but find a machine shop. Done plenty of them but I've found a great local machine shop. Just need to look around and ask around. If all else fails contact GC. I'm sure they'll put you in touch with someone.

Chris

 

I run the ones from Mazdacomp, same as Silkworms. I thought they were not GC but from AWR. On a side note, I only ran one track day so far with these and noticed a little rubbing on the top plate by one of the hold down bolts. Anyone else have this problem?

 

I'm not sure about the other brands, but the Mazdaspeed plates are supposed to mount under the shock tower so that the load is on the tower, not the fasteners. Yes, I have seen many people mount them incorrectly.

 

Tein camber plates/pillow ball mounts!!! beautiful pieces, work terrifically, inexpensive...and made by Tein

search for pics of my car on the site, u can see pics o the engine bay and spot them...

 

the k2rd/ gc camber plates use a slaave to adapt to the shock, so if you want k2rd camber plates for a koni, or a 1st gen its a matter of changing sleeves. give k2rd a call they can make anything you want

mike

 

Thanks for all the great advice, guys!

As it stands, I am ruling out the HKS plates and the Cuscos. Of those that remain, here are the +/-:

Mazdaspeed
PROS: Quality, fitment, aluminum (weight), additional caster, stock mounting holes.
CONS: Aluminum (strength), limits strut travel.

Ground Control
PROS: Same as above.
CONS: A bit pricey.

ISC Racing
PROS: Steel construction, additional strut bar mount, top mount for extra travel, uses stock mounting holes (I think).
CONS: A bit pricey for their construction.

K2RD
PROS: Steel construction, fits Konis, adds caster, stock mounting holes.
CONS: under tower mounting, coilover kit looks like it requires shorter springs than I have.

*Note - Can't seem to find any info on Tein and SpeedSource. If someone has a vendor for Tein I could check out, please let me know.

 

I have a new set of Teins I'll sell for 225 shipped

 

I can't find any pics/info online about the Tein plates. Got any pics or links?

Thanks.

Chris

 

Sorry they were Tanabe front plates

 

Dude, that was fast! Thanks for the pic, I'll add them to the list for consideration. Do you know if they use a COM-10 bearing to fit the Koni?

 

There is an extra set of inserts with them.

 

Thanks, I'll let you know. I appreciate the prompt info.

Chris

 

Well, the search continues.

I was mistaken earlier in that my Koni struts are based on the OEM strut shaft size, not the 5/8" shaft of the universal racing strut insert that Mazdaspeed sells.

K2RD plates do indeed use a COM-10 (5/8") monoball, but they are out of the plates, and don't anticipate having them ready before mid-January at the earliest. Too bad, because they were a front runner to get my money.

ISC Racing has the plates in stock and they use the same monoball as K2RD. However, Mike at ISC suggests that I machine down the first step of the shaft from 11/16" to 5/8" and mount the strut on the step, whereas K2RD says to mount the strut on the threaded portion and even includes the bushing to do so.

What has everyone else done? By machining the strut, I would gain another half inch of stroke because the shaft would sit higher in the tower. But if I go with the ISC camber plates I may not need the extra travel, because they are a top-mount unit.

Decisions, decisions.

 

Send me pics when you make up your mind. I'm liking your line of thinking.

Chris