Adjustable shock absorber

A shock absorber assembly comprising:

• a first cylinder having an outer wall with a thickness defined by a constant outer diameter and a variable inner diameter;
• a second cylinder mounted within said first cylinder and having an inner wall enclosing a chamber and spaced apart from said outer wall to define a gap extending longitudinally between said first and second cylinders;
• a damping mechanism mounted within said second cylinder to separate said chamber into a rebound side and a compression side wherein said damping mechanism moves longitudinally relative to said inner wall for damping vibrations;
• and
• a plurality of ports formed within said inner wall to define a fluid path wherein fluid flows bi-directionally within said gap and into and out of said rebound and compression sides of said chamber via said ports as said first cylinder is moved relative to said second cylinder to selectively adjust damping by varying gap size.

A method for adjusting damping force in a shock absorber comprising the steps of:

• (a) mounting a first cylinder having an inner wall defining a chamber within a second cylinder having a solid outer wall with a variable thickness defined by a constant outer diameter and a variable inner diameter by spacing the outer wall apart from the inner wall to define a gap extending longitudinally between said first and second cylinders;
• (b) mounting a damping mechanism within the chamber of the first cylinder to define a compression side and a rebound side with the damping mechanism moving longitudinally relative to the inner wall for damping vibrations;
• and
• (c) moving the second cylinder with respect to the first cylinder to adjust the size of the gap to selectively change the damping force.

A shock absorber assembly comprising:

• a first cylinder having a solid outer wall with a thickness defined by a constant outer diameter and a variable inner diameter;
• a second cylinder mounted within said first cylinder and having an inner wall enclosing a chamber, said inner wall being spaced apart from said outer wall to define a gap extending longitudinally between said first and second cylinders;
• a piston mounted within said second cylinder to separate said chamber into a rebound chamber and a compression chamber, said piston being longitudinally movable relative to said inner wall to dampen vibrations;
• a plurality of longitudinally spaced ports formed within said inner wall to define a fluid path wherein fluid flows bi-directionally within said gap and into and out of said rebound and compression chambers via said ports in response to said piston moving back and forth within said chamber;
• and
• an actuator for selectively adjusting the damping force by moving said inner and outer walls relative to each other to vary the size of said gap.