SOA the rear only (1 Viewer)

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i'm sure this has been discussed before, but i'm not having any luck finding old threads talking about it.

anyway, i know that SOA in the rear (with stock springs) would be taller than my 4" skyjacker front, but what if i recessed the rear shackle mount into the frame? what if i opened the frame where the front (solid) spring mount is and recessed it too? i'm sure doing one or the other (or both) up into the frame could give me the ride height i want.
the front still won't flex with that stupid skyjacker, but at least the rear end would soften up.
 
i had soa in back and under in foront with 4" springs and conferr shackles and it sat even and flexed nicely
 
coolcruiserfj40 said:
i had soa in back and under in foront with 4" springs and conferr shackles and it sat even and flexed nicely
how much longer than stock are your shackles?
 
alright i've been thinking about it since i can't sleep (stupid graveyard shift).
if i recess either the front mount or the rear, it will change my pinion angle (assuming i weld the new perches on parallel to the bottom perches).
so to save myself the mess of calculating how much pinion angle would change, i would rather build front and rear frame mounts and recess them both.

so here is my theory all thought out.

1. measure the distance from the ground to the top shackle pin.
2. remove the axle, add perches on top, cut off perches on bottom.
3. reinstall axle with stock springs.
4. measure the NEW distance from the ground to the top shackle pin.
5. step5 - step1 = x-inches
6. build new frame mounts to be recessed into the frame (front and back)
7. remove spring/axle combo
8. cut off old mounts
10. cut x-inches from the bottom of the frame
11. weld in new mounts.
12. reinstall spring/axle combo
 
In my opinion the front is the important Axle to do a SOA on. It is much harder than the rear (which I still havent done) to do corectly but well worth it.

You can do one at a time but I wouldnt recess the springs beacause once you do the front it could make the truck un level again and you will just have to un-do all your hard work. You can adjust the front and rear height w/ different length shackles which is much easier than all of the 12 steps you described above.

Just do a basic rear SOA and if it is a little taller than the front it will just give you the motivation to go ahead and get the front done. Also dont forget to install a wrap bar at the same time or you will be changing rear pinions before you know it.
 
most cruisers have a Kalifornia rake. Just do SO rear, and I bet it will end up being really close to the same in the front, assuming you have a nice shackle angle. My SO cruiser is only about 4" over.
 
You could do what I did and find yourself some old 45 springs and take some of the leafs out. I mix and matched with a set of 40 springs I had laying around. You will have to hack your fenders and find yourself a drive shaft that will fit (I went with a stock front in my 77). The rear mounts are on the back bumper so they can be quite a bit higher than stock. I went with 45 spring bushings and had my machinist friend make me some steel bushings to go over the original pins. I am still SUA, but hopefully not for to long.

The 45 springs are quite a bit longer (9 inches I think) and ride MUCH smoother. They also flex well. My only complaint is the departure angle, but the SOA with stock shackles will take care of some of that.
spring hanger 001.jpg
 
i guess i forgot to explain my reasoning for this idea.
i'm on 33's, and don't want to go any bigger. if i do a full-blown
SOA i will have to go to 36's or so just to look decent, and i'm content at where
i am (because i'm now focusing on my hilux and don't want to pour money into the
40 right now).

this is why the SOA rear and not so much the front:
when im bombing down a dirt road and hit a bit of a wash, the front seems to glide right over it. i attribute this to the weight of the engine not allowing the front end to bounce...... but the rear end bounces hard, and gives my kidneys a nice shock.

overall what i want is a smoother ride (extra flex would be nice too) but no more lift than the 4" i have.

as for using longer front shackles instead of recessing my rear spring mounts:
i already have a bad shackle angle in the front, and longer shackles would make it worse. this means i would have to cut off those front shackle mounts, build new ones, and reweld them in a better place. i would rather leave the front alone and just do the extra work of recessing the rear.

this brings me to my next question..... why do we cut'n'turn the front? is it because of the extra height a SOA gives us? or is it to cope with droop from the new flexy front springs?
if i were to recess the front mounts too (so to remain at only 4" lift) would a cut'n'turn still be necessary?
 
rusmannx said:
if i were to recess the front mounts too (so to remain at only 4" lift) would a cut'n'turn still be necessary?

Most peope put in shims instead of cut and turn the front with 4". A 4" lift is usually 4"max unless there are some longer shackels than what is in the standard 4" kit. Besides 4" would be on the low side or minimum of what your going to get on a SO.

I'd say pull a leaf or two from the rear and add some good shocks. or get some custom rear springs (or longer ones)for the weight you normally have in the rear to combat the kidney busting ride in the rear..
 
wesintl said:
Most peope put in shims instead of cut and turn the front with 4". A 4" lift is usually 4"max unless there are some longer shackels than what is in the standard 4" kit. Besides 4" would be on the low side or minimum of what your going to get on a SO.

I'd say pull a leaf or two from the rear and add some good shocks. or get some custom rear springs (or longer ones)for the weight you normally have in the rear to combat the kidney busting ride in the rear..

are you saying people shim ANY 4" lift? i didn't shim my 4" skyjacker, so i don't see a reason to do so if i can mananage a 4" SOA.
 
i'm sua with 2 1/2 lift runnin 36" iroks

nothin like a cutting wheel to take care of bizzzzzzzz ;)

i'm try'n to keep my center of gravity low ;)
 
rusmannx said:
are you saying people shim ANY 4" lift? i didn't shim my 4" skyjacker, so i don't see a reason to do so if i can mananage a 4" SOA.


I'm not saying you have to or need to but it fixes caster...

If you need to cut and turn for a 6" SO.. the same assumption would apply for a 6" oeverall spring lift.
 
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rusmannx said:
this brings me to my next question..... why do we cut'n'turn the front? is it because of the extra height a SOA gives us? or is it to cope with droop from the new flexy front springs?
if i were to recess the front mounts too (so to remain at only 4" lift) would a cut'n'turn still be necessary?


It solves the caster vs. pinion angle dilema. IMO cruisers should have more than 1 deg of caster in stock form.
 
wesintl said:
I'm not saying you have to or need to but it fixes caster...

If you need to cut and turn for a 6" SO.. the same assumption would apply for a 6" oeverall spring lift.
i see.
that doesn't apply here however as i'm trying to find a way to make a SOA with only 4" total.

here's another thought, if i can make a SOA at 4" would i need any driveline mods? i know i will get better droop just because it's sprung over, but will it be enough to require longer shafts in the front or rear (assuming i 4"-SOA the whole thing)?
 
rusmannx said:
i guess i forgot to explain my reasoning for this idea.
i'm on 33's, and don't want to go any bigger. if i do a full-blown
SOA i will have to go to 36's or so just to look decent, and i'm content at where
i am (because i'm now focusing on my hilux and don't want to pour money into the
40 right now).

this is why the SOA rear and not so much the front:
when im bombing down a dirt road and hit a bit of a wash, the front seems to glide right over it. i attribute this to the weight of the engine not allowing the front end to bounce...... but the rear end bounces hard, and gives my kidneys a nice shock.

Have ya checked your shocks? If they are bottoming or limiting travel they will give you a harsh ride.

Get your spring packs modified with longer mains and maybe a longer 3rd too. That will smooth it out. Maybe some 55 springs. Any of these options are WAY easier than recessing the mounts.
 
rusmannx said:
i see.
that doesn't apply here however as i'm trying to find a way to make a SOA with only 4" total.

here's another thought, if i can make a SOA at 4" would i need any driveline mods? i know i will get better droop just because it's sprung over, but will it be enough to require longer shafts in the front or rear (assuming i 4"-SOA the whole thing)?

your not going to be able to dictate the amount of lift you get from a SO unless you get custom springs. I have/had springs about as flat as you could get in the front and 33's were a tad small. Search around I think you'll find most spring overs are netting ~6" and most folks run 35's mininum. That's why I suggest for what you want to remove a few leaves and get better shocks. The less leaves should give you better flex too.
 
wesintl said:
your not going to be able to dictate the amount of lift you get from a SO unless you get custom springs. I have/had springs about as flat as you could get in the front and 33's were a tad small. Search around I think you'll find most spring overs are netting ~6" and most folks run 35's mininum. That's why I suggest for what you want to remove a few leaves and get better shocks. The less leaves should give you better flex too.
i'll be able to dictate the amount of lift i get from a SO because i am going to recess my spring mounts in to the fame. i'll do it after i do the SO so i know how much lift over 4" (my current lift) i have gained. i'll recess the mounts that amount, so it will bring my SO back down to 4"

i know it's a lot of work, but for hell sakes think of how neato it will be if i succeed or fail. i think you guys should be rooting for me to try it just so anyone can say "hell yeah you can do it, but talk to rusmannx first cause he @&@&@&@&ed his cruiser up royaly".

or maybe if i'm lucky "yeah rusmannx did it and claims it worked great"

either way, your all bastards
321.gif
 
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