2" shackle lift to run 33's? (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Oct 9, 2014
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Location
Smithers, BC, Canada
Hey guys,
I have a set of 33x10.5 BFG A/T's on 15x8 steelies from my 04 Taco that I would like to put on my 89 FJ62 in the spring. I did some sleuthing around here for pics and info, I found a few pics of a stock 62 with the exact same times on stock rims, the guy said it was driveable but I don't think he ever took it off road and it sure didn't look like there was any room for the tires to go up. Given the fact that I got this Cruiser for free because the body is so terribly rusty, and it has 297000km on the clock, I'm not sure if it is a good idea to spend $1500 on a OME kit, when the truck will probably not be worth much more than that when I go to sell it in a year or two, after I fix it up and get some enjoyment out of it. I know OME's the BEST option, but I don't know if this truck deserves the BEST option or just something to make it work. So I've been trying unsuccessfully to find the next best option, which would be an add-a-leaf, but it looks like MAF doesn't make them anymore, and I couldn't find any others, except possibly Rancho, but those are the short, harsh-riding style.
Finally I'm down to the shackles option- I see there's lots of guys running shackles AND OME springs or SOA conversions, but not too many at all running only shackles. All I want to do is run the 33's on and off road (light-to-moderate wheeling) without any tire rub. I am not opposed to doing some fender trimming since I am going to be doing a ton of body work to get rid of rust, especially around the rear arches. I was thinking a 2" shackle lift would probably be right up my alley. Any suggestions or objections?

Also, I was looking on HFS' website and they have shocks there for Cruisers with their 2.5+ spring lifts, but they say that those shocks are too long for stock-with-shackle lift. Are there some shocks out there that are recommended for a mild lift?

I also understand that I should be adding caster shims if I am doing front shackles. What is the correct shim angle to use with a 2" lift shackle?

Thanks
 
Recall that to get 2" of lift from a shackle, you need a shackle that is 4" longer than the stock shackle. I did this sort of lift on a '76 FJ55, and it worked pretty nicely and I used 2 degree caster shims. The shims were aluminum, and you have to be careful to tighten the u-bolts fully and recheck them for a while until things settle down. Ideally, you would find steel shims, rather than alumimum.

I was in the same boat with my '87 FJ60 and now with my '89 FJ62 - hard to justify a $1500 OME kit on an ancient truck, especially when you have, er, a fleet of other Toyotas begging for dollars.
 
Yeah,
Maybe just mount the 33X10.5s and see how they work. Cost = nothing
Next try some long shackles and see how they work. Cost = very cheap.

Springs that lift the vehicle about 2 inches don't require castor shims. Others may disagree, but that is my experience.
I never installed shims after putting on springs that lifted the vehicle about 2-3 inches…and that was 26 years and 250,000 miles ago. No problems in the driveline, no steering abnormalities, no vibration, no worn u-joints, everything still runs fine. I just replaced the U-joint in the drive shaft, since I wanted to clean everything up, and it was far from being worn out… could have gone a few hundred K more.

You can't go wrong with OME60009 shocks for the front with a 2" lift
& OME 60062 (light duty) or 60065 (heavy duty) shocks in the rear.
But they are expensive… and fancy shocks are not that important (IMO).
 
Thanks for the brainstorm guys...I think what I will do is probably go with the 2" lift shackles with 2* caster shims on the front, just for a touch of extra height without a huge cost penalty, and to help clear the tires on the trail. If I'm not happy with the performance after that, then I've got my eye on the Hell Creek spring lift. Someone on this forum installed it on their 60 and said the best thing you can do is add shackles to the HC lift, so the 2" lift shackles would only add to the package at that point. Cheers
 

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