Hotchkis or Bilstein shocks

I wouldn't say that the Bilsteins are wasted money. On anything less than a 1.06" torsion bar I think they'd be absolutely great. The Hotchkis shocks just do a better job with the larger torsion bars. Even with the Bilsteins on my Duster with 1.12" bars they ride wasn't bad, it was still light years ahead of just about anything else. But the Hotchkis shocks are better for my 1.12" bars, that's also for sure.
^^^ You are likley best matching the spring rate to the shock rate this way.