I trimmed my dust boot down to about 2".
and yeah, like I said, the bump stops should have been cut in half.

if they weren't cut then that could explain why your car feels like it's bottoming out. you might be riding on the bump stops instead of the springs.

 

is there an easyway to get to the bump stop so i can cut it to length or even so i can see them?

 

not really, you'd have to pull the whole assembly out.

where is the spring perch sitting? can you see the multiple grooves for the snap ring?

 

honestly i dont even see one. i may just try and take it apart myself and see whats going on in there. if that doesnt work out then i'll take it somewhere. thanks so much for your help mxs, i followed your DIY on painting calipers last week and it was cake. keep up the great work.