3" OME Lift -Did I screw something up?

[clinelab]

Newb here. So just starting in on my new 96 project. Suspension first then wheels and tires. I selected the 2850J springs for the front and the 2863J for the rear. I know I bought the truck with that heavy cheap front bumper, but it seems a bit overly raked (stink-bug) to me? Is this just to be expected with weight in the front and nothing in the rear? Seem like everyone else is quite level. Any suggestions / recommendation is greatly appreciated.

PS: I also did the CA77B caster kit and the an3050 front adj track bar.

 

[COYS]

There’s more work to do.

You need legit caster correction. Your driveshaft angles are f’ed if stock. You’re gonna want sway bar drops. You need to first figure out what’s going to weigh it down.

That thing has gotta drive like dog sht right now. Lol

Part of the fun.

Gl!

 

[clinelab]

There’s more work to do.

You need legit caster correction. Your driveshaft angles are f’ed if stock. You’re gonna want sway bar drops. You need to first figure out what’s going to weigh it down.

That thing has gotta drive like dog sht right now. Lol

Part of the fun.

Gl!

Okay so more than just the OME suggested caster correction kit? (its bushings only) It actually drive really nice (not stock) but very clean. Thanks for the input

 

[COYS]

Okay so more than just the OME suggested caster correction kit? (its bushings only) It actually drive really nice (not stock) but very clean. Thanks for the input

Your idea of real nice/clean is very likely different than mine.

Caster corr bushings are a joke.

 

[ERG80]

Normal for 863j’s. They’re tall and are rated for an additional 250lbs in back. Can you trade the 863j’s for some 863 springs? That would level your stance some.

 

[bhsdriller]

get some weight in the back or swap springs

 

[clinelab]

Your idea of real nice/clean is very likely different than mine.

Caster corr bushings are a joke.

Okay, so then what is your suggested approach to castor correction? Plates, new arm?

 

[clinelab]

Normal for 863j’s. They’re tall and are rated for an additional 250lbs in back. Can you trade the 863j’s for some 863 springs? That would level your stance some.

Thank you, Ill check on that

 

[ERG80]

Thank you, Ill check on that

I like @bhsdriller’s idea of more weight. Use this as an excuse to get a rear bumper and drawers in back.

If you haven’t already you’ll also need to lengthen the brake lines, drop the sway bars and ebrake cable in back.

 

[clinelab]

I like @bhsdriller’s idea of more weight. Use this as an excuse to get a rear bumper and drawers in back.

If you haven’t already you’ll also need to lengthen the brake lines, drop the sway bars and ebrake cable in back.

so your sayin I should tell the wife a rear bumper is required for performance????. That's just the amo I needed. Thank you!

 

[leonard_nemoy]

Swap the rear springs than get an alignment. Once you know what your caster is with the current bushings installed you can make a caster decision. If your going to run a 35" tire you should aim for a minimum of 3+ for caster. If your only running a 33" tire you could get away with 2+ caster.

If your not planning on doing any heavy wheeling and lots of flexing the bushings could work just fine especially for forest service roads and such. But if your going to do a lot of flexing and rock crawling type stuff than the bushings will get destroyed.

Other caster correction methods include trunnion bearings, eimkeith ram drop brackets, aftermarket arms, and plates.

If you need more caster after swapping the rear springs and getting an alignment and you need a knuckle job than I would recommend using the trunnion bearings for additional caster.

You might also want to consider an adjustable front pan hard and a rear pan hard drop bracket.

Goodluck

 

[clinelab]

Swap the rear springs than get an alignment. Once you know what your caster is with the current bushings installed you can make a caster decision. If your going to run a 35" tire you should aim for a minimum of 3+ for caster. If your only running a 33" tire you could get away with 2+ caster.

If your not planning on doing any heavy wheeling and lots of flexing the bushings could work just fine especially for forest service roads and such. But if your going to do a lot of flexing and rock crawling type stuff than the bushings will get destroyed.

Other caster correction methods include trunnion bearings, eimkeith ram drop brackets, aftermarket arms, and plates.

If you need more caster after swapping the rear springs and getting an alignment and you need a knuckle job than I would recommend using the trunnion bearings for additional caster.

You might also want to consider an adjustable front pan hard and a rear pan hard drop bracket.

Goodluck

This is super helpful. Thank you!

 

[COYS]

Swap the rear springs than get an alignment. Once you know what your caster is with the current bushings installed you can make a caster decision. If your going to run a 35" tire you should aim for a minimum of 3+ for caster. If your only running a 33" tire you could get away with 2+ caster.

If your not planning on doing any heavy wheeling and lots of flexing the bushings could work just fine especially for forest service roads and such. But if your going to do a lot of flexing and rock crawling type stuff than the bushings will get destroyed.

Other caster correction methods include trunnion bearings, eimkeith ram drop brackets, aftermarket arms, and plates.

If you need more caster after swapping the rear springs and getting an alignment and you need a knuckle job than I would recommend using the trunnion bearings for additional caster.

You might also want to consider an adjustable front pan hard and a rear pan hard drop bracket.

Goodluck

What’s your caster spec? Lmao

 

[dallen341]

If you tend to carry a lot of stuff, the rears may be fine as is. If not, Leonard Nemoy's suggestion of swapping the J's to non-J spring in the rear is a pretty good way to go.

After that, align and see where you are on caster.

I'd suggest drive it a bit (unless she handles unsafely) and see what you dont like about how she handles. There are plenty of additional steps in hardware that you can add if your wallet allows like Delta radius arms up from and the rear panhard drop kit (Eimkeith I believe) that make a huge difference in how she handles.

I drove my 80 35's for several years with panhard extensions and caster correction bushing and it was just fine. Having said that, after switching radius arms and getting the rear panhard level my eyes were opened to how much better the cruiser could handle over what I thought was "just fine".

Good luck