Xj88

Im at 3 inches (closer to 3.5) with a rustys aal kit. Well I found a 4.5 inch RC kit with full packs, coils and shocks for a killer deal so I decided to go for it. I havent picked the kit up yet so right now im just needing to prepare for it. I had a hell of a time with my 3 inch kit (primarily with squeezing the coils in), but managed to do it myself in my driveway. I know im going to need an adj trac bar which will be coming soon and ill be on stock arms for a few weeks till I get new uppers and lowers. Got under the jeep today and decided id see how bad the leaf bolts are stuck. Well this is what we got:
Driver side: Frame mount = Stuck Shackle bolt = easily removed
Passenger side: Frame Mount= Movable Shackle Bolt = stuck

Can i expect that after soaking these daily in PB that they will come loose with my 1/2 inch drive socket? It also may be important to note that I didnt break a SINGLE bolt on my 3 inch kit...not even upper shock bolts.

Xj88

How bad will it be with stock arms for a month or so till i get new uppers and lowers? Also how bad will it be with a re-drilled track bar for maybe a week till i get an adj one?

huntingman2706217

Trac bar will be fine if redrilled... Stock control arms arnt gonna happen... I got 5in on my comanche with 3in lower arms and I still had to cut the bracket above the lower arms so the axle would rotate enough to get the upper arms rebolted in... 3in really is max for stock arms... If your running 3.5in already then your killin it...

Xj88

Damn that sucks. I was hoping to get away with stock arms just till my buddy sells his.

Xj88

So im guessing the 130 bucks i was gonna use on a track bar is gonna go to fixed lca's from rustys. What about uppers? will they survive at 4.5 for a while?

Xj88

Ended up buying the rustys adj track bar. Supposed to be getting uppers and lowers from a friend this week

huntingman2706217

ReSearch rustys trac bar... Think they revised them but peoples had problems... Personally not a fan of him...

Xj88

I bought a rustys today and the quality seems pretty decent compared to the rc one that they had. I dont do crazy wheeling, mostly crawling. Im satisified with the track bar espicially for the price. I would upload all the pics i took of the stock one (which seemed worn to hell) compared to the new one but my camera is a dslr and the size of the pics is too big.

huntingman2706217

Im pretty sure they revised them so u may have got a new one... Lol

sthon

at 4.5" you are going to need more than just arms and a track bar. Do you have an SYE? Are you planning to do a TC drop? If you don't do an SYE you'll need axle shims. It's hard to say what degree, as all XJ's seem to be different with that. Thankfully shims are cheap. I ended up needing 4* shims with my RE 4.5" superflex, but I also ended up with over 5.5" in the rear... SYE is obviously the best way to go. 3" - 4.5" you might also need new shocks depending on your current shocks.

Xj88

Kit has shocks for the specific height. Im going with a tc drop or a cross member from a manual (which has a built in 1 in drop). Couple of buds are at 5 with minimal vibes. Eventually ill do a hack n tap but right now im going with a cheap get me by. And huntingman...ill upload pics later so you can see the track bar.

sthon

Should be good then. I did the same with the TC drop. Still debating about pulling the np231 out of my parts heep to replace my np242 or just going with a h&t.

Really don't need the full time 4x4 anymore, but not sure if I want to take the time to rebuild the np231 with 300k on it vs my np242 with 207k on it...

bnkk

save yourself from being stuck without them and go to rockauto.com and get the bolts for the springs and shackles.

Xj88

What are you referring to Haha

sthon

Leaf spring bolts...