Medium or Heavy OME lift?

[re_guderian]

So what's the recommended 2.5" setup for a stock truck with just Slee sliders installed?

Man, oh man, I am sure to get flamed for this, as my perusing of the board would indicate I'm the only one with this attitude.... BUT.... (Nomex on)....


I think the OME Med 865 and OME t-bars ride harsh with the setup you're describing. I have slee sliders, TJM front bumper (not really heavy), no dual batts, no winch, no rear bumper, no skid plates, no drawers, just a STOCK, EMPTY truck most of the time, and it is harsh. Not very good for daily driving. Speed humps at 40 are a blast. Manhole covers and every other imperfection in the road will rattle your kidneys at 40MPH or less. Drainage dips in the road will rattle every slightly-loose object in the cabin. I'm gonna say it again in an effort to head off flaming replies - this if for a stock, empty truck. Stock. And empty...

Sooo.... to recap...Stock truck, empty, OME, harsh. There, I said it....



Since the truck is our daily driver (OK, the 's DD), I will be experimenting this weekend with some alternatives. I will be removing the OME springs and t-bars, and replacing with stock t-bars and coils, plus 30mm spacers and Firestone Coil-Rite air bag helpers (longer than stock application) in the back. I will be keeping the OME shocks for now. Yes, I'll lose a little lift in the rear as a trade off for ride comfort. Spacers are here, springs are here, air bags to be here on Thursday, and I just washed all the crap off the undercarriage for some weekend work.

The 865 OME rear springs have 50% greater spring rate than stock. That's a LOT for an empty truck. I can't find specs for the front, but would assume similar. I am not after a sports car, riding-on-rails ride. An empty truck with OME's med makes it feel like it's literally riding on rails. The truck has Nitto TG AT's, 295, load range D, so it's not likely the tires, and I've tried one other set with no change.

For another data point, I had 8 people (Me, my daughter and 6 other teenagers) and all some gear in the back this weekend. Probably 1100 lbs or so. The ride was not significantly improved.

One other data point to prove I'm not completely insane. I did drive another '03 stock truck with stock suspension last week (thanks Topoguide!), and yes, it rolls a little in the turns (needs new shocks) but the ride difference was night and day. I'm not interested in building a Baja racer, and have no qualms about keeping it under 30 MPH off road up desert washes. The rig sees 98% + miles on pavement, and the suspension will be biased that way, with the capability for larger loads when needed via the airbags.

Once again, this only applies to an EMPTY, STOCK truck. The ride with OME's and no weight is not something you'd invite your friends in to ride with you to dinner or something if they're not used to riding in off-road rigs. "Harsh" is the only word to describe it. Sorry. I feel like I've just outed the Emporer for streaking... I'm out now, back in a week with a thread on the install, measurements and impressions...














































only for empty and stock, got it????

 

[2000UZJ]

I have an empty 100 as well. I find 866, oem torsion bars and bilstiens a awesome ride. I have an ARB upfront as well. No rear bumper, no drawers, and a spare tire that is useless. So I actually carry it for trips longer than 50 miles. So im pretty much bare in the rear. 866 ride fine

 

[re_guderian]

I have an empty 100 as well. I find 866, oem torsion bars and bilstiens a awesome ride. I have an ARB upfront as well. No rear bumper, no drawers, and a spare tire that is useless. So I actually carry it for trips longer than 50 miles. So im pretty much bare in the rear. 866 ride fine

Just curious as to whether anyone else has ridden in the back of your rig to assess the comfort of the 866's. According to the spec sheet, even the softer part of the progressive spring has a higher spring rate than the 865's... (240 lbf/in v 220 lbf/in). Your winch and ARB up front and outboard of the front axle will greatly reduce the harshness of the OME t-bars.

 

[2000UZJ]

Just curious as to whether anyone else has ridden in the back of your rig to assess the comfort of the 866's. According to the spec sheet, even the softer part of the progressive spring has a higher spring rate than the 865's... (240 lbf/in v 220 lbf/in). Your winch and ARB up front and outboard of the front axle will greatly reduce the harshness of the OME t-bars.

If and when I switch to the OME T-Bars which will be a while, I will let you know. So far the original torsion bars are holding everything up fine, over large speed bumps I'm sure it dips a little more than with the OME T-bars, but that makes the ride that much softer. If you want to trade, send me a pm
I'd be happy to take the OME's off your hand if you don't already have oem stuff

 

[re_guderian]

If and when I switch to the OME T-Bars which will be a while, I will let you know. So far the original torsion bars are holding everything up fine, over large speed bumps I'm sure it dips a little more than with the OME T-bars, but that makes the ride that much softer. If you want to trade, send me a pm
I'd be happy to take the OME's off your hand if you don't already have oem stuff

I thought you were running OME t-bars up front, not stock Toyota OEM's... my bad. The best way to describe OME F/R setup on a stock, empty truck is like my FJ60 when I put 2" add-a-leafs on it...'nuff said.

 

[ckkone]

I had 863s with a Slee rear bumper w/tire carrier, the ride was good. Recently I sold the rear bumper and it rode like s***, way to stiff. I swapped springs to the 865s and the ride is much better. My suggestion is that unless you plan to always carry 150-250 lbs in the back get the 865s.

 

[Toy Addicted]

Can you guys tell me the actual rear height gained over stock when going to a 865 or a 860 in the rear?

 

[2000UZJ]

Can you guys tell me the actual rear height gained over stock when going to a 865 or a 860 in the rear?

OME860 | 2.5" | 0-200 lbs
OME865 | 2" | 0-200 lb

 

[2000UZJ]

Just curious as to whether anyone else has ridden in the back of your rig to assess the comfort of the 866's. According to the spec sheet, even the softer part of the progressive spring has a higher spring rate than the 865's... (240 lbf/in v 220 lbf/in). Your winch and ARB up front and outboard of the front axle will greatly reduce the harshness of the OME t-bars.

Just read the first part of your post. I have not ridden back there yet, I have had several people ride back there and none complain about the ride being to stiff. My 83yr grandmother took a nap on the way home, so it must be good!

Im sure the 3rd row is a little choppy lol

 

[ad27326]

I had 863s with a Slee rear bumper w/tire carrier, the ride was good. Recently I sold the rear bumper and it rode like s***, way to stiff. I swapped springs to the 865s and the ride is much better. My suggestion is that unless you plan to always carry 150-250 lbs in the back get the 865s.

Old thread revived!! Did you have to crank the tb's? Where you running stock shocks with the 863's? Thanks!

 

[chuckscap]

I also have the Nitro Sport shocks with the OME medium lift. Experienced the same improvements in handling as mentioned above. However I was not prepared for how stiff the ride would be. With the Bilstein shocks, I had no problem drinking a cup of coffee on my commute to work. Now, with the same coffee cup on the same road, I get dribbles and splashes all over the place.

My other control experiment is the speed bumps in the parking lot at work. At 15 to 20 mph my computer used to bounce out of the passenger seat; with the new suspenion the computer doesnt budge.

Therefore my experience is that smaller bumps fell bigger and bigger bumps feel smaller. Overall, the handling is still much improved (the primary reason for the upgrade).

I have the OME 1.5" medium lift as well. I have stock tires 265/75R/16s, a full set of skid plates and sliders but no bumpers. I switched to OEM LC shocks and am very happy with the ride. I don't wheel hard though, go up some rough hunting roads with rock crawling but nothing technical.

 

[bucfl]

@re_guderian

Interested in those OME Tbars if they are mediums.

I also have 2865's and feel they are a good balance for me. I dd mine empty most times without third row and feel it rides fine. what i can FEEL are my 10ply MT tires. Especially at below 5mph, i can feel every lug

I just have sliders, but may add a winch at the end of the year. I had all rows full and it rode great!