Helllo, restoring a 1986 HJ60 long term project. Bought 2-3 inch heavy lift kit from Cruiser Outfitters 13 months ago, then had spinal fusion operation. Just getting back to working in the shop. Installed suspension kit on body off frame. Rear shocks are too short, cannot put on unless I load the springs. Is this normal? even with body back on, I am concerned that shocks will be maxxed out and destroy themselves. Haven't asked C.O. as yet, I am in Ontario. Don't know if these are one size only shock or various lengths depending on the lift. Thanks for any response and Merry Christmas to all!
Old Man Emu suspension shocks too short? (1 Viewer)
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Shoot us an email with your invoice number and the part number stamped on the side of the shocks. We can verify everything is good to go. The shocks are by design the limiting factor in droop for many Land Cruiser applications.
g-man
SILVER Star
This is what I love about Cruiser Outfitters. They know there stuff and will support you all the way. I had different sized shock mount for my build year but they were able to quickly get me the right bushings.
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Thank you Kurt. I will do that. Have a great Christmas!
Like Kurt says, the shocks on Land cruisers are what limits downtravel, otherwise the axles will droop until either the shackles invert or your
u-joints on the driveshaft bind. Bound up u-joints can break a pinion shaft. It's always good to suspend a truck with the axles at full droop
and spin the drive shaft by hand making sure the ujoints rotate freely
u-joints on the driveshaft bind. Bound up u-joints can break a pinion shaft. It's always good to suspend a truck with the axles at full droop
and spin the drive shaft by hand making sure the ujoints rotate freely
Are the shocks built different than normal? Atleast I’m my jeep days having your shocks be a limiter was a great way to destroy shocks. Perhaps that was overly cautious to put limit straps/bump stops?
That was pretty much a quasi-myth. Every production vehicle uses the shocks as a limiter unless you can think of a truck that came factory with limiting straps.
There's enough resistance in a spring to slow the motion of travel, up or down, that will prevent, in most cases, pulling a shock apart. Compression, on the other hand,
will destroy a shock if the shock is too long. Engineers knew this when they put limiters on compression, known as bump stops. A springs resistance to pull past rest is about the same as compressing past rest. The difference being only the weight of the axle and it's momentum is pulling the spring down past rest. In compression you have the weight of the truck plus momentum to drive the spring past rest
The aftermarket shocks aren't built vehicle+suspension specific. One shock will cover multiple applications none, perhaps, being absolutely perfect for any of those.
For example, the shock body Tenneco ( Rancho, Monroe, Ohlin, Marzocchi and more) uses for the FJ40 rear is the same body used on about a dozen each GMC and Chevy truck applications plus Scout, Isuzu truck, a half dozen Dodges, Jeep CJs, acouple Nissans and Mitsubishi trucks. The fact that all the applications are all truck rather than a car tells you that the valving is more suited for heavy use. For liability purposes the recommendations are generally conservative. They'd rather go a hair short and prevent damage that too long. If you are concerned about getting the absolute maximum travel you'll have to do that on an individual basis. That requires running the suspension through full wheel travel and using straps at the maximum droop point where no drivetrain damage occurs. If no shock fits that absolute criteria you go a little long and use straps. With leaf springs that usually involves pulling apart the leaf pack , mounting the main leaf by itself so you can fully compress and extend the leaf in both directions.
It's work, so compromise is usually easier. The manufacturers giveyou compromise
An excellent and thorough response to my late night pondering. Much appreciated
Suspension design is fun but just figure whatever comes in a box, mass produced will be a compromise. Springs are soft enough to sell but stiff enough to add longevity.
Spring steel has a life cycle. The more responsive and comfortable the ride the more cycles of flex it will go through in a shorter amount of time. If you want a spring to last 30 years, you make it very stiff and limit it's motion. If you want the best riding spring make it soft with a fast response time. It will be the flame that burns twice as bright.
Manufacturers want what the public, in general, wants, which is a perceived value for their money. No manufacturers wants an excess of warranty issues and no consumer
wants to buy a spring last needs replacing every few years due to sag. I build my own 60 springs to my spec , which gives 80 coils a serious run for their money. I do not
expect them to last five years with the same performance with my driving style. They will articulate 12.5" at the shock but I like to limit the droop at about ten to control
body roll on those Colorado mining roads that have that crazy lean into a 100 ft abyss. I'm too old to be peeing my pants
