Finished installing my new springs today. The stock springs were fairly flat and the bushings were cracked. After installing the winch and bumper on the front she was a little nose low and I only had 1-2" between the axle and the rubber bump stop. 2-3" in the back. I installed a set of old man emu springs that are supposed to give a two to three inch lift. I ended up with two and a half to three inches of lift.
I planned on reusing the stock shackles but upon removal they were pitted and gouged badly under the bushings. I fabricated some new shackles and they are exactly 1 inch longer than the original. I wanted a little bit longer shackle to give the spring the movement to flex outward with the extra Arch it has. I wish I had ordered shackles with the springs. It cost almost as much to fabricate the shackles as it does to buy them ready-made. I chose to fabricate so I didn't have to wait for the shackles to come in. I welded a plate in between the shackles to prevent inversion, brace them, and hold the width the same as factory to avoid over tightening..... I did not realize beforehand that tractor supply company has 5/8 to 3/4 bushings that are 1.62" long. Two of these bushings are the exact width needed between the shackle plates and if placed over the shackle bolts would work perfectly enabling you to crank down on the bolts without worry of over-tightening. I was going to do this on the rear end but they only had three of these bushings on the shelf, so I continued on with the welded plates in between to hold width and brace.
I also made a quick release sway bar link for the driver side. I can undo a bolt and disconnect this prior to off-roading for greater articulation and ride comfort.
All bearing surfaces on the suspension are coated with spray paint, then graphite-based dry lube paint, and greased prior to assembly.
The ride with the new springs is phenomenally better. The jarring and bottoming out is gone. Most of the road vibration and noise is gone. if I had known it was going to be this good I never would have gone with suspension seats I would have just replace springs from the get-go.
I planned on reusing the stock shackles but upon removal they were pitted and gouged badly under the bushings. I fabricated some new shackles and they are exactly 1 inch longer than the original. I wanted a little bit longer shackle to give the spring the movement to flex outward with the extra Arch it has. I wish I had ordered shackles with the springs. It cost almost as much to fabricate the shackles as it does to buy them ready-made. I chose to fabricate so I didn't have to wait for the shackles to come in. I welded a plate in between the shackles to prevent inversion, brace them, and hold the width the same as factory to avoid over tightening..... I did not realize beforehand that tractor supply company has 5/8 to 3/4 bushings that are 1.62" long. Two of these bushings are the exact width needed between the shackle plates and if placed over the shackle bolts would work perfectly enabling you to crank down on the bolts without worry of over-tightening. I was going to do this on the rear end but they only had three of these bushings on the shelf, so I continued on with the welded plates in between to hold width and brace.
I also made a quick release sway bar link for the driver side. I can undo a bolt and disconnect this prior to off-roading for greater articulation and ride comfort.
All bearing surfaces on the suspension are coated with spray paint, then graphite-based dry lube paint, and greased prior to assembly.
The ride with the new springs is phenomenally better. The jarring and bottoming out is gone. Most of the road vibration and noise is gone. if I had known it was going to be this good I never would have gone with suspension seats I would have just replace springs from the get-go.
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