OME J/L Combo vs 2.5" Heavy Lift

[DuManchu]

Ok, I did a search and all it did was confuse me more.

What is the difference between the OME J spring/L shock Lift and the 2.5" Heavy Lift?

I know absolutely nothing about springs and lifts because I can't decipher any of the threads I read on the topic (836J, 850J, 864, 2.5" heavy... its making me cross-eyed ). I thougt I knew, but I don't.

If someone could clarify this for a hopeless newbie it would be much appreciated.

Thanks,
-Andrew

 

[e9999]

the heavy is 850/863, IIRC gives about 3" in front and 4" in back with stock unloaded, more like 2.5" and 3" when loaded per ARB specs.
the J springs are about 1" longer.
the L shocks are used with the J springs

(somebody check this)

 

[DuManchu]

Perfect, thank you. Looks like a J/L combo is in my near future .

On a side note, what other hardware is needed for the J/L combo? I mean drop brackets etc..

 

[OGBeno]

On a side note, what other hardware is needed for the J/L combo? I mean drop brackets etc..

A lot of that will depend on your truck and it's overall health at this point. Some have lifted their trucks with no problems and have done nothing but doing some small caster correction bushing up front in the control arms.

Others, though, have lifted and everything has gone awry (I'm one of these folks). I went with the OME Heavy lift and, soon, horrible vibrations, weird steering, sounds, etc. Basically, the lift accentuated any weak links I already had in my rig ( in my case, ubolt damage on two drive shafts).

So, with the J's you'll probably (at the very minimum) have to go with either the caster bushings up front or the Slee custom plates up front. You'll probably also needed extended brake lines front/rear, as well as sway bar drop brackets front and rear. Panhards might be a good idea too.

I just went ahead and got everything to return suspension as much as possible back to OEM: front and rear adjustable panhards/OME Caster bushings/rebuilt driveshafts with OEM parts/front and rear sway drop brackets/extended brake lines/adjustable upper rear control arms/heavy duty lower control arms with new OEM bushings...

So, lots will depend on how your truck takes the lift, so to speak.

Good luck and cheers.
-onur
Akron, OH

 

[DuManchu]

Hmmm, that makes me a bit nervous, I don't want this to turn into a huge money drain. I'll be getting the brake lines and caster correction bushings, but now it looks like I'll need to at least get the front and rear sway bar drop brackets. I just hope things work out right on this so I don't end up spending a ton of money on a used lift.

 

[OGBeno]

Hmmm, that makes me a bit nervous, I don't want this to turn into a huge money drain. I'll be getting the brake lines and caster correction bushings, but now it looks like I'll need to at least get the front and rear sway bar drop brackets. I just hope things work out right on this so I don't end up spending a ton of money on a used lift.

I think your list is adequate to start with--and hopefully for the long run.

Let us know how it goes.

-o-

 

[e9999]

I decided to stick with non-Js because of the much greater chance that most of the "other" stuff won't be needed...

 

[DuManchu]

I decided to stick with non-Js because of the much greater chance that most of the "other" stuff won't be needed...

And that's the rub. The lift, right now, is a good deal, but I could see it quickly getting above the cost of the 2.5" Heavy Lift if there are other parts needed, which I should just assume.

Decisions, decisions.

 

[stevezero]

Hey beno, I'll swap ya my stock stuff for your non-stock stuff if youre interested. we can try to work somethin out in PM if you want. if not, no big deal.

 

[Hayes]

From what I've gathered, most of the trouble happens up front. Seems like you would be more likely to have success sticking with the 850/863 rather than the J's? Of course, nothing is guaranteed.

The rake from the 850/863 combo really isn't that significant, at least on my truck--and I've only got the stock rear bumper. It also feels good knowing that I can load up my truck for a trip and not have saggy butt.

Hayes

 

[NorCalDoug]

Hmmm, that makes me a bit nervous, I don't want this to turn into a huge money drain. I'll be getting the brake lines and caster correction bushings, but now it looks like I'll need to at least get the front and rear sway bar drop brackets. I just hope things work out right on this so I don't end up spending a ton of money on a used lift.

It's a pay to play world we live in.

If you go with the J springs and L shocks, you'll need to install the extended brake lines (so you don't bust or pull out your brake lines in full droop or max flex.

The sway bar drops should be done. Bump stop blocks should be installed.

With the non-j springs and non-l shocks, you don't need to do any of this...but you should get the castor correction bushings installed.

The castor plates sold by Slee are for 4" lifts and not necessarily recommended for anything less than 4 inches.


Once you install the drops and blocks and brake lines and CC bushings, you should be done. Not many people have had issues (driveline) with the J springs.

 

[OGBeno]

Hey beno, I'll swap ya my stock stuff for your non-stock stuff if youre interested. we can try to work somethin out in PM if you want. if not, no big deal.

Sorry, I don't think I was clear in my previous post....

Not going back to OEM height/equipment.

I was trying to make the point that after my lift, lots of driveline and suspension anomalies started appearing which induced me into getting all the stuff for bringing my geometries back into OEM specs. via adjustable links/drops/ etc.

You're the second person that asked me for my junk....

No go Jose!!

Cheers.
-onur

 

[yep]

What Doug said + the following comments (although your results may differ):

Without a full load up front (and maybe even with it) you will want (not need) Slee's caster plates with J springs so that you don't get the wander affect. I also recommend 1" spacers up front ($20) to help level things out.

Front Control arms will probably need to be ground down about 1/8".

Panards may be needed, but you wont know until you meassure once you lift it.

Driveline changes will be an unknown until you lift it and drive it.

 

[DuManchu]

Well, the truck will eventually be armored up, don't know how long that's going to take though. Still not sure what I want to do, its basically about which one will be cheaper for me right now.

Once I think I have it all figured out someone comes in and mentions something and makes me unsure.

I really don't know, again, leaning back toward the 2.5" heavy lift.

 

[stevezero]

well, it was worth a shot.....I think im going to go with the heavy lift if/when I get around to it.

I wonder how much stiffer the 864s would be than the 863's? The 864s are the super heavy duty rears. Unloaded isnt a problem for me, cause i carry around more crap than i should.....

 

[ShottsUZJ100]

With the non-j springs and non-l shocks, you don't need to do any of this...but you should get the castor correction bushings installed.

The castor plates sold by Slee are for 4" lifts and not necessarily recommended for anything less than 4 inches.

Hey Doug....do you think I got the added vibes on my LX because I didn't use CC bushings with the J's? I used the Slee plates.

 

[Jerome3]

i have the J spring and L shock setup, i used slee sway bar drop brackets/blocks front and rear, as well as ss extended brake lines and OME caster bushings. i have recently noticed minor driveline vibrations on the highway upon deceleration around 65-75 mph nothing major though. i highly recommend the 1-1.25 in spacers especially if you are going to add an arb, mine unloaded has quite the stinkbug stance, the future for me holds an arb and some front spacers to level it out, i wish i had done the spacers with the springs though, it would have been less of a hassle.
good luck,
Jerome

 

[NorCalSam]

KC

Think long and hard about this one. Remember that the j do not come with a lift system in the US. If I understand this correctly this is because they are intended to be used with deisel cruisers. I have also heard that they sag over time. Have seen cruisers that ride good on J's but have also read about ones that don't or have probs.
I understand that the j's give you more lift but not much at lest over time but what still doesn't add up to me is it you are going to run 33's and you install J's and longs to get more travel and you must install bigger bump stops to use them; then how can you be getting more travel then the 2.5HDs. I just don't see it.

I have some sag with my 2.5HD because of my freinds, family, cargo, gear, and heavy armor. I am planning to use 1/2" and 1/4" triml pacers to correct this but I am waiting to drop the winch and aux fuel tank in. I think that I may be able to run long shocks with custom spring keepers too.
good hunting

 

[Tools R Us]

....I have also heard that they sag over time...

I have been beating on mine for a year and zero sag. More travel comes from longer shocks, I ran the L rear shocks with the heavy springs before going to the Js, that setup worked well.

 

[landtank]

I'll save everyone from my usual response but would like to add this.

Right after my initial lift 5 years ago which was OME medium with CC bushings, I had a groan in the drive line that would only happen when the truck was warmed up. It would appear when shifting from reverse to drive or vice versa. I did post about this back on the SOR board and while people attempted to help me identify it, I couldn't locate it within the drive train and just excepted it as now normal.

Well recently I installed the Slee joint on the front pan-hard and the MAF drop bracket on the rear to center the axles and low and behold the groan is gone. Still don't know what it was from as both driveshafts had been replaced and that didn't change things. I suspect the VC was getting a tad warm for some reason and not slipping properly but that's just a guess.

While the low lifts are a safer bet to avoid problems each truck has it's own personality when moved from the factory height and be prepared for spending some cash.