i was thinking the same thing. But I'm having a hard time finding a shorter leaf pack with a decent spring rate. OME makes a 2" but it's an add a leaf. Plus I've been really happy with my Rusty's pack. I was thinking about taking a leaf out and running a long shackle but the spring rate worries me. I tow my tiny camper with my jeep quite a bit, so a long *** shackle probably isn't the best option anyway.

I found a 1" lift shackle from Zone. 1/4" wall. Might go with that. I'll check out the IRO too

 

Ok so I'm stoked! I found IRO adjustable shackles that go from 0"-.75". Exactly what I was looking for. they also sell those fancy zinc plated u bolts.

anyone remember who makes those bump stops that mount on top of the u bolt plates?

edit* dirtbound makes those plates.

 

Dirtbound and you're welcome on the IRO shackles lol. My friend got some upcountry leafs off amazon and they netted him about a 2-2.5" lift.

 

Thanks Bomb, lol.

So I just ordered Rusty's 3.5" leafs, HDOR no lift brackets, IRO shackles, IRO zinc plated U bolts, dirt bound u bolt brackets with the bumpstop mounts and some nut strips from XJWonders

So this just sucked up about 1/3 of my regear budget for something i wasn't planning, but at least I'll have the rear suspension taken care of for a while.

 

NICE! Keep us updated on how the setup works and the overall lift you get.

 

After you install, please post pics and measurements! Your setup seem exactly like what I need.

 

Alright so here's the update. Took me a full day Friday and a full day Saturday to finish everything. Had some help for some of the time, but did a lot of work by myself. I PB blasted a few times the week prior and crossed my fingers. Broke lower shock bolt threads off and nearly ruined the weld nut on the passenger front leaf hanger. Bolt froze to the bushing. Thought I snapped the weld nut so I cut open the little pocket but turns out the bolt was just spinning inside on the threads. Boogered them up pretty bad. New bolt wouldn't catch at all. Drilled out the metal gunk on the first 2 threads and magically the bolt bit. Those were the only real headaches other than the general *** kicking that doing the rear suspension on jacks stands will give you. i didn't take too many pictures but I'll share what I have.

Heres the final shackle angle in the bracket.


That silver circle is anti seize from trying the stock length hole.

 

In the shorter position the shackle hit the brackets about 15 degrees past vertical. Not good. So I moved it to the longer position. This gave me the angle in the picture above. But here's the part I wasn't expecting. The hole it's in is the only hole that the shackle will mount in. It's super beefy and gets wide very fast, so it would contact the brackets in just about any position.

I did all this work 280 miles from my house at my dads farm. At this point I needed to get back home so I rolled with it in this setup. But it's not ideal. I haven't done a full uptravrel check yet, but I'm pretty sure I need to grind some of the shackle box and maybe a tiny bit of the shackle to have enough travel for the tire to hit the fender. This was very frustrating to find after all the headaches the hours before had given me. I'm still considering changing shackles at this point. But we'll see.

As as far as lift goes, i think I gained at most a half inch. I didn't measure before I got the jeep on stands like a dummy. But I don't have any extra vibes and it looks right. I had a slight rakr before, still do now.

Ride quality feels better than before. More cushy for sure. The lack of swaybar felt odd at first but it's pretty much not noticeable now. I'll snap a few pics tomorrow to show you guys those beefy dirtbound u bolt plates. They're nice. Sorry for the novel. Hope this helps

 

 

Just an update, pulled the IRO shackles and replaced with these from core 4x4. No more clearance issues and tons of adjustability. Not to mention this thing droops like crazy.

 

Well I like your update except for one thing. You just made me spend more money. So just to make sure I am getting this right, here is what I need.

- HD Offroad no lift brackets
- Core 4x4 shackles
- Dirtbound u-bolt plates (I know these are optional but I need them anyways)

Anything I am missing to clone your setup?

 

Just find some flat stock laying around and weld up your own from your existing perches??

Cheap and serves the same purpose.

 

Ya I could do that for sure. But I am looking to start fresh. My current ones have a slight bend to them and I need to open up the holes for the monster u-bolts I got. For $45 its hard to beat for new thicker and better brackets. And I dont have to do any work to them.

 

Valid points. Time is money, sometimes I tend to be cheap and want it done ASAP.

 

I am with you on that. Certain things I have no problem making and saving some $ and getting it done on the spot. Other things I dont want to waste my time with. This is one of them haha