Greetings all.
Well I finally got around to lifting the darn thing.. I installed 3.5" Rubicon Express rear leafs (new) and a pair of used Zone 3" coils. I thought I would be ok. Got 3" give or take a fuzz up front. BUT looks like 5" at the rear.. The flares are long gone. So no measuring there. Total from where the back end was to where it is now is 6" so I had some sag. I have dug around and found that stock height measured from the top of the axle tube to the bottom of the frame at the axle snubber is 6" stock. Well after the RE springs I got 11" there now. And after 500 miles still got 11". So looks like 5 inches of lift. I reused the stock shackles which seems lucky. Most aftermarket ones supply some additional lift. I added 4 degree shims and 1" transfer case drop kit and still got vibes coming and going. So I added another 3/8" worth of washers to the drop kit and that calmed the vibes considerably. I know this is a bastard kit as it is assembled from parts that were on sale when I had money for them. The shocks are Skyjacker 7000. I know a kit would have been cheaper but to get the money in one place at one time can be tricky. Especially if you want to add some larger tires at the same time. So i got things piecemeal.
Is it normal for this from Rubicon Express? Or have I maybe jacked up the measurement somehow? I have had to order some coil spring spacers as the jeep is raked to the front now by almost 2 inches. I do not like that and intend to pull the stock spacers and install the RE 1.75" spacers. A half inch or such of rake is ok as far as i am concerned, just not 2". How well will the shocks deal with the added height as the Skyjackers I got are for 1 to 3 inches of lift? The rears will maybe be ok? I used the sway bar brackets as bar pin eliminators so I gained about an inch there but will still be, what an inch too much front and rear for the shocks? I thought I was doing fine here till I got way too much lift in the rear. How long does it take for the new leaf springs to "settle"?
Do not get me wrong here, I am not complaining about getting 1 1/2" more than I expected. I am just having to figure out how to deal with it. And I am wondering if maybe I screwed something up some how. Of course now the 31's i got will look a little small but I will run them till I can maybe get some 33's. (i am still running the 28's that have been on it for some time. they look like toys under this jeep now. I plan to wait to install the 31's till I get done replacing suspension components and get an alignment.)
Any insight would be helpful
Thanks
Hapdad

 

As far as lifting the rear goes, it depends on what you consider stock. Most of our rigs are old enough to wear out the rear springs and so the rear settles. You can measure the center of the axle to the crease in the fender above and subtract 22". So if you had stock height, which is probably about 1.5 - 2" more than you started with, then you probably ended up with 3" above show room floor height. As far as drive line angles go, the pinion angle and tcase output need to be parallel or within 4°. I would suggest getting a slip yoke eliminator as soon as you can. Check the radiator fan clearance on the shroud. You might be getting close

 

Here is what it looks like now at the rear. That is a 235 75r 15 tire under there. Measuring from the axle center to the body line is 30". So if 22" is stock then I got 8" which I do not think is accurate. I measured 17 inches to the sheet metal from the axle center before lift and 23 inches after. I have found several times that the measurement from the top of the axle tube to the bottom of the frame at the axle snubber should read about 6" stock.I have 11" so that is what leads me to think that somehow I ended up with 5" That and the fact that the front gained 3 inches from where it started out and measures about 9 3/4" from the top of the tube to the bottom of the frame up front, minus 6 3/4" for stock height is about 3 inches. Judging by the fact that the rear is sitting much higher than the front I am sure that I got much more than 3 inches at the rear. I am only just starting to research what mods are needed for 5 inches of lift.. Slip yoke eliminator for sure or hack n tap at minimum. lower control arms, adjustable track bar and not sure what all else.

 

Actually, I think you got more than 5" out of that. It looks tall in the back. buyt as I say, it depends on what you consider stock height to start with

 

RE always gives more lift than advertised without added weight of bumpers, rack, tire carrier etc. Their coils are the same. 4.5 coils gave 5.5 of lift for me. No-lift shackle relocation and shackles positioned ~45* will drop it about an inch and ride 10x better.

 

Did you tighten the leaf spring mounting bolts before you set the Jeep on the ground?

 

My 3.5 RE leafs did the same. I ended up pulling out one of the leafs out of the pack and it dropped it a bit and rode a whole lot better.

 

Greetings all
Thanks for the info. I have been nursing a pulled muscle in my back for the last couple days but feel some better today. I will loosen and re-torque the bolts on the leaf springs. See if maybe I did make the mistake of tightening them before setting the weight of the jeep on them. I am sure that I had the jeep sitting on jack stands under the axles. BUT given how much of a fight the shackles made lining up with the springs I may have been somewhat aggravated with the thing and made a mistake. The whole process of installing the lift involved some several adult beverages and some colorful language. I would rate installing a lift as "R" for language and 6-12 beers.
No lift shackle relocations brackets my be the ticket here. I will have to look into those.

Thanks
Hapdad

 

Loosen them up, front and rear, and take it for a ride on a bumpy road if you can. Then, without jacking it up, tighten the bolts.