Cherokee 4.0

i just put a lift on im measuring 35.5 from ground to fender in the rear. I have no tc case drop and dont really want to either. I dont want that lose of ground clearance. I havent really had any major vibrations, if any at all. But that doesnt mean im safe. So the question is if i get a SYE, can i use a Xj front driveshaft in the rear? and will that solve the problem? Also would a bad shock up front cause for it to sit sideways? its an 1.5 inch ddifference side to side and i noticed it after i did the front lift. Ive been driving around without rear shocks for 2 days now bc of broken upper studs. Is this bad? Any Answers or opinions advice would be appreciated! thanks

4.3L XJ

There are a couple of issues here. First, it the rear driveline is not giving you problems now, don't mess with it.

I do see one cause for concern here. You have extended your rear shackle by what, 6"? This changes the angle of the rear spring so that the rear of the spring is lower than the front. This spring is not designed to run that way. By doing that you are putting more weight on the back of the spring than on the forward part. This has probably caused the spring to bend too much in the rear part which has caused it to lose the temper in the metal. This is a classic thing that long shackles does to these types of springs as a lot of us old guys can tell you about our hot rod days. My guess is that you need to do some homework and come up with some new rear springs to correct that list you have. Since you seem to be concerned about money, use the S10 bastard pack on the rear and ditch those long shackles.

caged

i agree.

^what he said.

Cherokee 4.0

The pack in the rear is a Rough country full pack, what would happen if i throw another leaf in there? and what about running 2 overload springs on top one another? I wasnt sure about those shackles, i got to raise them up an inch and drill another hole. What is it doing to the springs?

Cherokee 4.0

Any other advice?

muddeprived

Long shackles flatten the leaf spring, which softens the ride but also damages them as they are easier inverted when you flex. They also change the pinion angle quite a bit.

The more leaves you add to your pack, the stiffer the ride is but you do gain height. This is all about the driver and his/her preferences. If you don't mind a stiff ride then do the AAL. Running two overloads will net you like an inch of lift or so. I don't see the issue with that except you may need longer u-bolts.

The lean, or "gangsta lean", isn't a result of the shocks. It's more than likely the springs. Are they installed correctly?

What is that hanging down near your transmission crossmember?

4.3L XJ

If you have ruined your rear springs with that long shackle, adding more leaves will not cure it. Improve it maybe, but not cure it. You need to ditch those shackles period. I say this with years of designing lift kits back in the day. So I am hoping you will take my word for this and do it.

Jack your Jeep up and take the weight off the springs and then measure the free arch (distance from an imaginary line between the spring eyes and center bolt. If it is different, those springs need to be sent to someone with a forge and retempered. Now if you want a little extra lift while you are at it, you can go up to to 10" free arch easily on stock shackles and 12" on a SLIGHTLY extended shackle. But no matter what you do, those long shackles will undo what you do because of how the spring is designed.

mike37

if long shackles ruin the springs then why do lift kits come with them

4.3L XJ

Good question. The extended shackles that come with kits are only about 2-3" longer. Personally I am not a fan of this type of lift. But it can be done as long as the rear of the spring is still higher than the front. The rear of the spring is longer and therefore weaker than the front because they both have the same amount and thickness of leaves. Having the rear of the spring higher equalizes the pressure on it. They do this so the rear of the spring can flex a little more and make the ride better. Detroit has been doing this since the 50s. But in this case, his shackle is long enough to move the rear of the spring below the position of the front. Now the designed geometry is backwards and the back of the spring is supporting more weight than the front. A leaf spring can only take so much flex before loosing its temper and memory. This is the classic thing that happens to add a leaves. They get bent beyond where they can retain their temper and then start to sag.

So the bottom line here is not that he has extended shackles, but they are way too long.

mike37

not to sure on the back of the spring is supporting more weight than the front part

but A leaf spring can only take so much flex before loosing its temper and memory part is true

to long of a shackle allows to much flex and damages the spring I agree with

FlyingLow

If you really wanna go the shackle route I'd get some plate and fab up drop brackets for the front of the leafs. Make sure the drop of each matches. Extend your bump stops too. Shackles MAY help flex and add lift, but will kill the leaf pack quicker.

FlyingLow

If your front end sits differently side to side, it looks like a healthy amount of lift, Are you using the stock trackbar in the stock location?

Cherokee 4.0

Ill have to check that


The lean was like that before i did the rear lift but after i did the front lift with shocks, the shocks i put on were old rough countrys that were shot

Cherokee 4.0

yes i am using the stock track bar, but i had it disconnected and then connnected it and it still did the lean

Cherokee 4.0

So you can do shackles on the front too?