this week (month's) Faq (1 Viewer)

[bad_religion_au]

same deal as before guys, what type of lift, details on ease of installation, and positives and negatives. personal experience, not hearsay, and hopefully no brand bashing, or bashing of other's comments, not that you guys do that often. you guys are a great bunch to moderate (if i ever got to do anything as a mod )

things to think about.

Type/ year of cruiser (25 /40/45/55/60/62)
cost,
ease of installation/ completeness of kit.
ride quality.
handling improvements/ detractors
amount of lift gained compared with what stated.
any notice in increase/ decrease amounts of travel
whether you'd recommend doing other stuff in conjunction (extended shackles/ greasable shackles/ braided brake lines/ new shocks etc)
and if you want to, what size rubber did your particular lift alow (with or without trimming, whatever you did) (ie. OME 2.5 inch lift allows 33's or whatever)

ohh, and with SOA, cost, did you do your own labour, what type of springs did you use, did you shackle reverse?, how much lift approx, and what size rubber did you get up to?

Thanks guys, and FAQ is still open to suggestions. for all those that i haven't moved on, i'll get onto it for sure in a couple of weeks (project proposal and lit review time)



Bad_relig.

 

[esh]

OME heavy/heavy into a 1981 BJ42.

Lessee...

- kit from Mudrak, came complete save for Rancho RS9000s ordered locally
- easy to install- air tools help, extra jacks/jackstands, torch for old bushings
- used greasable pins
- hhhhhhhahahahandling was rrrrrrough! (no top, not much extra weight on cruiser) Removed heavy leafs and gave it time to break-in (leaving it flexed overnight would have been a brillian idea!). Ride is nice now.
- did not measure old/new lift height change
- travel not drastically improved (truck not used for crawling or severe articulation situations)
- allows 33x12.5x15s without cutting
- great for crappy, long gravel roads

DO NOT GO HEAVY/HEAVY unless you are really loaded down! med/light would probably have been the best choice for me.

I rate it :birf: :birf: :birf: of 5. If I were to do it again, would probably have springs made. No real-world experience to compare against other solutions. All my trucks have come stock.

SOA is in the works for the next evolution. -Ken

 

[Cruiserdrew]

FJ40-
-4 inch lift Alcan Springs custom made for increased load 8 leaves in spring pack
-Ordered direct from Alcan
-Ranch0 9000 shocks
-$200 per spring, roughly
-good ride
-honest 4 inch lift
-used 1 inch extended anti-inversion shackles, greasable pins
-35 inch tires rear wells cut
-Extended brake lines mandatory
-3rd suspension in 4 years: Rancho, Skyjacker now Alcans
-Havn't really tested flex yet-will post after Rubithon.
-Since this was my 5th suspension install, not a big deal-2 , 0 :bust2:


FJ60
-Full OME kit
-Bought from FJ60.com
-medium/heavy
-3 install due to the frozen frame bushings
-Used extended brake lines, sway bar extensions
-2.5 inch lift in front, 3 in rear
-First time through, I mixed up right and left rear springs and had huge cruiser lean. No lean when put on correctly.
-I run 33 x 12.5's with no rubbing and no cut metal.
-excellent ride and handling after initial break in.
-would use same kit again, but would consider custom Alcansfor about the same $.

 

[Romer]

1977 FJ40

4 inch Skyjacker
Greasable shackles and pins
One inch extension greasable shackles on back
Skyjacker Hydro shocks
Like the ride
Installed it my self. Great excuse to buy airtools. Took me 3 days because I had never done one.

Figured out using a propane torch, chisel and crowbar great way to remove rusted pins. Took a while to figure that out.

Great learning experiance. Took me a while to figure out how to get the bushing in the shock. No instructions, then it was easy after I figured out the first one.

Found this site very helpful with photos and advice:

http://www.englandhouseplans.com/fj55/fj40.htm

Springs and shocks a about $600 at 4wheel parts. I went there and negotiated the price.

Greasable shackles, bushings and pins were about $150 at Rocky Mountain Cruisers. The rears have a 1 inch extension.

Had 33's on there before with cut wheel wells. Could run something bigger, but I have no plans. Here is a photo

After and Before

 

[haystax]

Vehicle - '76 FJ 40

SOA
- Butch Built perches
- Revolver shackles and shackle reversal w/ stock mount
- no cut, turn
- kept military wrap with solid mount = extended w.b.
- DIDN'T DRILL SPRING PACKS, DON'T DO IT ON YOURS!!
- used angle finder to line up frot d.s. flanges
- stock Ford superduty rear shocks all around, free takeoffs
- Ford shock towers ~ $15 ea
- local machine shop lengthened stock frnt d.s.~ $20
- rotated rear pinion up, in process of using mini CV
- Downey spring bushings and built my new front mounts
- extended brake hoses, part numbers from FAQ here
- Did PS mod with Butch Built braces, plates at same time
- Junkyard steering box, pump and made my own pitman

Should have done
- RDB while axle was out of truck on the bench
- Trac bar while it was up in the air and axle on bench
- Hy Steer and been completely done with the thing 8)

Pretty straight forward mods if you have a lot of tools and time. I have a lot of respect for the guys who wrench in their garages after work, with few power tools, no 18k forklifts, no shop hoist, air arc, 250 amp MIG......etc, that takes a lot of dedication and gritting of teeth. With a fully stocked shop it is much easier i am sure, but still a tough chore. :birf::birf::birf:

Certainly worth it in the end no matter what.

Best mod so far - POWER STEERING!!!
2nd best - RDB!!!
3rd place - SOA ride quality, it's great but PS still rules

With stock flat leaves, taking out bottom leaf, only got enough lift to clear 33's. Probably 4" I guess, the Ford shocks are surprisingly soft, usually can get for free since everyone lifts their SuperDuty's, and have ~13" of travel. Rovolvers have crazy flex but are probably just for show, wouldn't run them without SR and custom mounts and perch angles, seem fine on the highway and no noticeable side effects with my setup though. SOA ride with worn out stock springs is almost amazing.

Sorry no pic's, that would have saved a lot of typing. This tech section really kicks ass! The guys on the Landcruiser boards also kick ass, there's an unbeleivable amount of knowledge here and all comments will be appreciated. Thanks for all the help!

 

[73lndcrsr]

73 Fj40
overall about 5" lift from stock
The ride/articulation is decent, it would be better if I could get better shackle angles.
The springs are not broken in yet, but they are getting better.
I have 13" travel Doetstech shocks.

4" BDS springs flipped front and rear for 97" wheel base. (BDS springs have military wrap on both ends)
2.5" extended shackles
Ford shock towers.
36 swampers with front and rear fenders trimed

I bought the BDS kit without shocks so I could get a more accurate measurement when I had everything installed.

Installation was not difficult at all. My bushing were so worn out they just fell out, the spring bolts were not rusted and the u-bolts came out without a fight.

The whole thing was done in about 6 hours.
The BDS kit was appealing for the warranty and the price was not very bad either. I got my kit for $625 shipped to my door and shocks were $120 from Summit.

Air tools are a must for this type of project.

 

[beanz2]

SOA

Mudrak SOA (done in house)

75 FJ40
> cost $3000 + parts. Saginaw PS and shackle reversal were already done by P.O.
> easy installation, just drove it in, drove it out
> ride improved 100% from Rancho 2.5" lift springs before. Tracks nice and straight with much better steering feel than before SOA.
> lift gained about 4-5" (no amount was promised)
> other stuff recommended done: Paul Decker anti wrap bar, Butch Built frame extensions, F&R spring perches and rear spring mount reinforcements, RS9000's, OME bushings and shackles, All Pro Hy Steer arms, Mudrak's own pitman arm and 1" relay and tie rods . Went back to stock Toyota springs. Re-tubed both driveshafts.
> SOA allowed 37" tires after with minor tub trimming in the front corners of wheelwells.
Positive: everything. I'd do it again if I were building a cruiser to wheel.
Negative: rear springs sagged in about a year, replaced with Alcans.

Dave

 

[fergus]

84 FJ60
SOA w/OME Med(F)/Heavy(R)
Shackle Reversal
Work completed by myself,wasn't in a huge hurry so finished the SOA in bout 2 weeks.
All-Pro Steering and shock hoops added $450.00
Spring perches,Driveshaft mods,Shocks,brake lines aprox.$900.00
SOA provided 6-8" lift!Ran 36" and the front would rub when compressed and turned.Rear would rub on inner wheel well when compressed.Now I'm running 38.5/14.5 with less back spacing.Trimmed 3" from front fenders,slight rubbing when compressed and rear just rubs customized by rust wheel well.
Oh yes and a traction bar I made with jonnie-joints $180.00
I wouldn't change a thing,drove it daily for almost 2 years with SOA.I don't like to trim good cruiser sheet metal but this metal was swiss cheese.

 

[lovetoski]

87 fj60
- MAF 2.5" Safari lift kit, with OME shocks, greasable shackles, steering damper, sway bar extensions, included brake line extensions.
- I'd never done this before, and it took two days. Hardest part by far was getting the old steering damper off. Broke two pullers (thankyou Craftsman warrenty).
- As others have said, bushings were a bear to remove, but heat, and sweat prevailed.
- No instructions with kit.
- Ordered med shocks. Got light. Didn't exchange, as I was too eager to install the lift. Shoulda gone for the med's.
- Installation was hard physical work, but mechanically straightforward.
- Got 6" increase in the rear (had a bit'o sag...), about 4" in front.
- Performance was great in every way, except that steering wandered. After consultation, I added 4degree shims, and it now steers very straight.
- All around handling is vastly improved. Rides like a lifted truck though, with a bit of front to rear bobbing. My squishy butt friends think it rides harsh. I call it firm.
- I use 33X9.50's and have no rubbing.
- Rough gravel road performance is amazing - tempting to go really fast.
- Don't do a lot of really twisted up stuff, but what I've done the MAF setup works great.
- Would go for the OME kit next time. Sounds like it's better engineered.
- Cost was $1200 for the kit. $15 for shims.

 

[The Dude]

88 HJ61

50mm Belton (Australian kit) complete kit, springs, greasable shackles, bushings, shocks, u-bolts, steering stabiliser

Took about 4 hours for install, this will all depend on what the old stuff comes off like.

no instructions springs are PS,DS, shackles are anti-inversion plus different front and rear, it would have been nice to see for sure which way they all went....

Ride was harsh with low fuel and no winch on the front. After about two weeks of wheeling this drastically changed, ride is now great.

Front anti-sway limits articulation, it was removed. The back was removed and then replaced with quick connects.

Longer brake lines where needed in my case.

After adding an ARB up front slight rubbing on 255/85R16 trxus on factory split rims

Great kit so far.

 

[lowtideride]

82 fj60
SOA
-stock leaf packs
-2 inch lift anit inversion shackles (man-a-fre)
-new bushings(man-a-fre),longer brake lines (napa)
-add-a-leafs....removed two leafs from rear pack (man-a-fre)
-spring perches (summit)
-bent up arms from (W) hysteer baby
-cinder blocks and 26 jack stands
-1 high lift jack and a garage that is a 1/2inch taller than my rig
-3 weeks with nothin to do after work cause your new in town

tools
-17mm 19mm, breaker bar the size of florida ( hi-lift handle works good) welder and band-aids, sledge hammer sledge hammer sledge hammer...

pros
-cheap compaired to other lifts
-lil over 6inchs of lift
-no rub with 35's
-better ride on road and off...
-looks like hot sex
-super super fun to drive

cons
-wheels/tires cost a lot
-sooner or later youll break a u-joint (if ya take it off the road, and ya better!)
-a lot more time looking at your rig, girlfriends get mad

*side note... its not that hard if ya research it... and dont jump the gun before ya know every bolt.. the only time i needed help was lifting up on the jack stands.. thanks to the meathead that lives next store....oh yeah 60s dont need a cut ~n~ turn

what are you waiting for?? get up off your ass

 

[CruisinGA]

74 FJ40
4" Skyjacker with Hydro 7000 shocks (included)
Costed me $610 at www.4wheelparts.com (free shipping weekend)
took me a long day to install.
What I bought other than the kit itself-
2 degree brass shims for the front -Napa (extended head spring pins too)
8 frame-side factory bushings from TPI
rear extended braided SS line Skyjacker from 4wheelparts
anti-inversion greasable shackles from SOR

I'm running 33x12.5 Radial TSL's on 15x8 black rockcrawler rims.
I have cut rear fender wheels. 35's would fit no prob, some rubbing. 33's have zero rub on anything, even at full articulation.

The rid is much more controlled than before, stiff but very very well dampened. None of the bouncyness than sometimes occurs with the SOR lifts.
For what it is, the skyjacker is very hard to beat, SOA is still in plans (can't fit 38's on a 4" lift )

 

[Enigma]

vehicle, 1982 fj45

Purchased new suspension kit (springs, bushings ubolts, shocks etc) 'IronMan' brand. Cant remember exact price, but was about 1400 CA.

Installation was a bit of a pain, the springs are actually a little to short. The shackles have to lean back the wrong way a little bit in order for them to fit.
The springs themselves..well they suck. The seemed to be exactly the same springs as the piles of crap I was replacing. The call them ironman for a reason I guess...you need an ironbutt.

they come highly UNrecommended.

 

[PabloCruise]

1978 FJ40

Just got some Downey 4" springs - not installed yet.
Plan on doing some Doetsch Techs - prob 8000's?
F250 shock mounts
Extend wheelbase w/ rear spring pack, so some custom shock mount, probably on rear side of crossmember.

 

[bustanutley]

70 fj40

SOA with fj60 axles SR done by my lonesome

- WB extended to 104"
- XJ rear springs with 2 leafs added $40 junkyard
- FJ40 Stock Front springs flipped
- Dodge D60 Perches $8 a box
- FJ60 axles $400
- Marlin Hysteer ~$500
- Mini master and booster and brake lines $33 junkyard
- Wagineer Pitmit arm $3 Junkyard


Not yet completed but I believe is going to work really well
Xj springs are perfect with 2 leafs added to them from another xj pack, good rate and going to flex like CRAZY.

 

[Jetboy]

74 FJ40/79disc front axle

-SOA with OME 2.5" lift springs
-Procomp 14" travel front shocks in stock location, rear rancho shocks (not sure of length, built for 4" lift) in stock location with spring plates on opposite sides and reversed.
-Cut and turn 24*
-about 9" lift,
-easily clears 38.5's with bumpstops would clear 44's without would still clear 39.5's
-a little too tall for 38.5 tsl's

costs
springs + fornt axle $800 (found a broke down cruiser cheap with OME springs front discs and a soft top)
Shocks $80
Front knuckle rebuild kit (cruiseroutfitters) $95
wheels + tires $1700
Gearing + lockers $2,000
All work was performed by me in fathers welding shop for free
Total cost about $4k

Future plans
SBC Hopefully vortec, sm465, np203, adapter to 4spd tc.
Longfield super axle kit.

Dreams
-mog axles
-49" irocs
-8.1L vortec

 

[tojons]

OME Dakkar

69 FJ40

Purchased 2.5 OME Dakkar deluxe kit with 4 springs, anti-inversion greasable shackles, greasable pins, poly shackle and poly pin bushings, poly upper shackle pin bushings, and 4 OME Nitrocharger shocks for $1200

Also purchased U-Bolt flip kits for both axles - $250

Lift installed 3/13/05

Install took 12-14 hours. But there were a couple 's thrown in too that sucked up some time. PO had removed everything and replaced stock bushings with poly bushings sometime in the last 5 years so removing the old gear was not nearly as haard as it could have been. I didn't need a torch, I didn't need to cut anything. But I didn't know that going in so I was prepared for the worst based on the horror stories I've read here and other places. In the end, all I needed was an impact wrench and the occasional BFH.

It should have gone alot quicker, but this was my first suspension install and I wasn't entirely familiar with the dynamics of everything so I went slow and made sure it was right. If I had to do it again tomorrow, I could do it in half the time.

I did soak everything in liquid wrench the night before. Getting the old gear off was easy - it really surpised me - but like I said the PO had done the hard work sometime in the recent past.. And once I figured out how everything worked, getting the new gear in was pretty easy too. But it took some head scratching for a while in terms of how to place the jack stands, and what the sequence should be. It seems like everything I read said to do things in a little different order. You can really make this a lot harder than it has to be by jacking and / or supporting in the wrong place.

I haven't driven it much since the lift, but did make a quick run to the store. It really rode, steered and handled significantly better than before. It's a different feel altogether - on the pavement at least. Money well spent. Hopefully, I'll be able to get it offroad this weekend to break things in a bit and see how it performs. But for now I'm pretty happy with everything. I have heard nothing but positive things about the Dakkar springs so far.

I measured everything before and after. The lift resulted in an additonal 2 inches in the front suspension, and 3 inches in the rear. I guess my rear springs were pretty well worked.

Very happy with everything so far. The flip kits are really slick too. Here's a before and after...

 

[bad_religion_au]

i'll get mine up here. Stock fronts, 55 series rear, reset so the truck was level front and back, 2 inches higher than the stockfronts... longer shocks, front shocks still too short. rear springs are too soft, front springs are uneven, due to perch positioning, and weight bias over the front drivers side.

flexes well (especially with no front shocks). 33's easy, 35's with trim/ power steering.

 

[Lucy_FJ55]

1970 FJ55- Man-a-fre 4" Safari lift kit

- 4" Safari springs
- OME shocks/steering stab
- Anti-inversion greaseable shackles
- SS extended brake lines
- U-bolt flip kit
- Had to lengthen rear drive shaft and added a 7' slip to the front drive shaft
- Moved rear shock mounts...so they were high and above the axle

All work had been done by a local shop, no experiences to relate for ya'all...Swaped to 4.56 r&p gears along with new 33" tires and 15x8 wheels.

The ride was a bit rough at first but I have gotten used to it or it has softened some. I beleive a bit of both is true. Seems to work real well for the mild wheeling and crawling I get into. It had been used as a daily driver and works better on road than the orig springs had. Less top heavy and unstable feeling than I expected. With the new lift I can maintain higher cornering speeds. Truck feels way more solid/secure while driving and allows for better clearance and good enough flex off road. I dig the kit. I got what I paid for basically.

 

[Ian Rogers]

FJ 40/ 3-1969
$800 shipped
Parabolic lift from Rock Mountain
Ease to install because I had all ready done the bushings early in the year./ kit came with springs and shocks.
Much better ride its has great flex I love it. The stock shackles are way to short and need longer ones so I put longer ones.
2.5” before shackles about 3” now.
Huge flex and travel
I have 30x9.5 that are why to small, It will fit 34x9.5