recommend up grade for 55suspension

rusviking · 10-02-09, 08:05 PM

What do people recommend for suspension up grade for the old pig, Still stock.
I want to use my pig for overland travel , back roads and such .

Thanks for the help.

Lil'John · 10-02-09, 08:46 PM

Pick a tire size then go from there.

I'm partial to 35" tires and spring over axles. But that is just me.

eventhough · 10-03-09, 06:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lil'John

Pick a tire size then go from there.

I'm partial to 35" tires and spring over axles. But that is just me.

If you want stock height then go with Alcans which are custom springs. You can order them for any amount of lift. Besides that or a good bit of fab work Pig lift options are pretty limited.

bogus one · 10-03-09, 09:49 AM

x-2 on Alcans

Love mine

LAMBCRUSHER · 10-03-09, 11:39 AM

Not sure what the old pros will think, but I like my front shackle reversal and 4" springs. Bought the springs at maf back a few years ago, I think they stopped selling them. SOR has them for close to 250 a piece. If I could go back in time.....I'd hit alcan for some 4-5" springs for sua, and try some 35 1050s. The commercial springs arent really 4", the alcans are whatever you tell them to be, price diff is neglegible for the difference in product. You get what you pay for. I am currently running the old 31s that I had b4 the lift, I think that a 33 or 34 1050 will be my max w/ current springs. Articulation is great, very comfy ride- not too bouncey or solid, manual steering not noticably effected by lift. I like my shackle reversal alot, but I wish I had about 2 more inches of springs-maybe soa is in the future, but I think the sua is the way to go on a daily driven pig.

89GASHOG · 10-03-09, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LAMBCRUSHER

SOR has them for close to 250 a piece...

No, they don't. SOR no longer carries 55 springs. You might want to check with Kurt at Cruiser Outfitters regarding his "soon to be released" 2 1/2" OME hybrid spring lift. I think he's using 70 series rear springs that require a relocation of rear spring hangars.

ridgerunner · 10-04-09, 07:41 AM

I've had alcans- plan on longer shackles and have them build them 1" longer for more flex.

Beltons are nice springs too.

LAMBCRUSHER · 10-04-09, 09:35 AM

hey guys!
where can we find a thread on sprung over or spring under piggies? I'm sure this debate can have some different nuances in regards to the 55's and 40/45s. I know that there can be a change in cog and how the pigs handle. What are the other drawbacks to spring over; I guess that the obvious downsides to the spring under are limited lift and therefore tire size and articulation. You don't have as much modification to do w/ sua. And how about a 3 or 4 link coil sprung 55? I know that all these ideas have been discussed at one point in time or another, is there a thread that encompasses all of these discussions in one place? Perhaps the best place to start answering your ? Rusviking, we need to ask you what your driving conditions will be like. You can go several different ways, and everyone with an idea thinks theirs is best. As you know, there are not many off the shelf options for the 55- and w/ all the ideas for different suspension set-ups, it will be up to you to decide how you want your rig to roll. You might look in the Hard Core Corner for different ideas regarding three and four link types of suspensions.

nat · 10-09-09, 02:40 PM

I am sprung under, with 4" lift Old Man Emu springs.

They are stiff, but that is what I like.

PabloCruise · 10-09-09, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nat

They are stiff, but that is what I like.

Someone is going to turn that into a sig file!!!

jsaltlick · 10-09-09, 05:13 PM

Currently I have SOA on the front and SUA on the rears. Going to SOA in the rears in 2 weeks. Not sure if my input will help. I'm running 35's right now. SUA sags much lower and my shackle angle is awful.

My friend got Alcans for his 45 and is very unhappy. Someone told me that National Spring is a great source. Not hatin on Alcan but I;ve heard they sag fast. Proffitts doesn't use Alcans and they are an hour or two up the road.

LAMBCRUSHER · 10-09-09, 06:29 PM

SOA is the only way to use 35's, or bigger, from what I can see, w/o cutting . I'm leaning hard that way, but will put some use/ time on these springs. It is an everyday (or is supposed to be

) driver, and that seems to be the over-ruling factor for me.....for now.

LC_Hamma · 10-09-09, 10:08 PM

Depending on what types of trails you run & how much your desired lift will be, lifting the

*requires wider axles to keep from tipping. FJ60 axles w/ wheel spacers would be a start

I run 60"+ wide axles on both my current rigs w/ mild coil/body lifts.

dieselcruiserhead · 10-09-09, 10:45 PM

Old Man Emu all the way. 70 series in a 55 application. Kurt Williams at Cruiser Outfitters is working on the part numbers for a kit. It's a relatively easy install, there are pictures in some other threads. Hands down the best option, according to me.. But they blow away Alcan and MAF any day of the week in my opinion.

Deathoncall63 · 10-10-09, 12:04 AM

Since the conversation came up on Springs. I have the front leafs from my 55 that I will be selling. They have been recently re-arched($380) by FLY-N-HI in Az last month. They have a leaf added to give it a 4inch lift. I decided to get deaver leafs made(awesome but expensive

). They are still on my Rig which is at the suspension shop so if you want to talk directly to the mechanic where its at let me know. The only thing they need is bushings. I will let them go for super cheap- borderline giving them away.

PM me if you're intrested or if you need pictures.

-Josh

archie816a · 10-10-09, 11:11 AM

Im with andre, I have 70 series springs in my 55 and I wouldn't trade them for anything. got everything through kurt, he will be able to get you what you need.

Kyle Leckey · 10-11-09, 11:07 PM

What do people recommend for suspension up grade for the old pig, Still stock.
I want to use my pig for overland travel , back roads and such .

I would think 33's with Old Man Emu would make the best cents.....

I have em and love em plus you can get medium and heavy to boot

dieselcruiserhead · 10-12-09, 10:06 AM

Kurt now has a comprehensive parts number list for OME on a 55 with the only slight complication being that you have to slightly move that rear hanger back. I would contact him directly at Cruiser Outfitters

Apparently it also appears (assuming I have this right) that Old Man Emu even even makes an aftermarket poly FJ55 bushing, which is awesome...

andre

nat · 10-12-09, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PabloCruise

Someone is going to turn that into a sig file!!!

..lol..

LAMBCRUSHER · 10-12-09, 08:29 PM

kinda lied earlier. I have the 4" springs in the back. Couldn't swing the fronts at that time. I have a slight downward slope to the front (slight). Been looking at all the threads, and thinking about increasing my wheelbase by 1.5" by adding fj40 front springs at about 1.5" lift, and flipping them (40 rear eye in front on the 55, to match the fsr). Anyone wanna pipe in on that?

crawlin cruiser · 10-13-09, 12:41 PM

when I get around to my 55 project I probably gonna use TG pick up front springs and a set of those fancy 63" chevys that the toyota guys run. should ride like a cadilac

hicruise55 · 10-15-09, 09:13 AM

My very soon to start *new* 55 is going to have FJ60 rear springs in front and the 63" chevys in the rear. My leafed 55 flexes as good as any with no links or the issues associated, but I know I can sweeten the pot some more. PLUS, I have driven my SOA'd/36"/Swampered FJ55 over 19,000 miles this calender year already! If your looking for an "easy"/"comfortable"upgrade... go SOA with stock springs. I am going longer, and a little stiffer as I haul my FJ41.25 offroad trailer with the rest of my junk quite often... best of luck- Aaron

crawlin cruiser · 10-23-09, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hicruise55

My very soon to start *new* 55 is going to have FJ60 rear springs in front and the 63" chevys in the rear. My leafed 55 flexes as good as any with no links or the issues associated, but I know I can sweeten the pot some more. PLUS, I have driven my SOA'd/36"/Swampered FJ55 over 19,000 miles this calender year already! If your looking for an "easy"/"comfortable"upgrade... go SOA with stock springs. I am going longer, and a little stiffer as I haul my FJ41.25 offroad trailer with the rest of my junk quite often... best of luck- Aaron

hmm so I was right

any pics of this set up?

Dan

SAMI188 · 11-10-09, 12:05 PM

Kurt took measurements from my pig just the other week to finish up his hybrid 55 OME lift!!

jsaltlick · 11-12-09, 06:46 AM

I got the SOA finished on mine a few weeks ago. Used 60 series springs with some metal tubes cut as inner sleeves on the eyes. Went very smoothly. Cheap too!

PabloCruise · 11-12-09, 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsaltlick

...with some metal tubes cut as inner sleeves on the eyes...

Is this to match up the bushings?

Pics?

ABQIRONPIG · 11-19-09, 01:32 PM

so what do you guys do to your stock gearing? I'm going to run 33's and a 3" lift from ALCAN...maybe Kurt now that he's got the OME stuff sorted out. BTW, I'm still running the stock 2F with a Weber 32/36.

PabloCruise · 11-19-09, 04:30 PM

4.11's should be fine unless you really want to c-r-a-w-l...