spring over axles or spring under axles

[JDKing]

first off i will be installing a additional 4'' lift on my jeep to get 36's under it, i was thinking about doing an axle flip as well but was wondering the pros and cons for or against it.

one of the pros is you get 4+ inches of lift. hmmm 38's

one of the cons is you will get spring wrap, but thats an easy fix... a little pipe and welder...

any others???

JK "91 YJ"

i know about the other things i will need for going this high, rear axles,SYE...

 

[Utah_jeepster]

Longer brake lines, longer "e" brake cable.
Drop pitman arm

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

4" springs coupled with SOA is a LOT of lift, close to 10" total. Depending on what drivetrain you have it will be difficult getting the rear driveline angles to work, and to keep the pinion low enough for the pinion bearing to receive lube.

If you go SOA, stick with a modest 2.5" spring for about 8" total lift. Too much lift can be a bad thing in more ways than one.

 

[jeep90]

as bounty hunter said, that would be too much lift just to run 36's or 38's. think about running wagoneer springs over axle for alot of flex, and a modest lift keeping your center of gravity a little lower.

 

[JDKing]

Jeep 90 if I go your route could i still get 38''s under it if i wanted to go that far? if I did go theat route (thinking outloud) with say 2.5'' wagoneer lift SOA swap, then i could get rid of the 3'' body lift and maybe drop to 1'' or 2'' of body lift. am i on the right track? or just stick to the 4'' lift and leave that till later??!!

thanks for the quick replies!

JK

 

[currupt4130]

im doing my soa end of the summer, look into some rubicon express spring over springs, theyre reverse eyed for great flex plus an inch and a half of lift so tahts 7 inches there, then if you wanted, shackles and body lift, im going to do extended shock mounts and relocate my shock brackets on top too, check with rubicon express rwww.ubiconexpress.com and moountain offroad enterprises, (www.mountainoffroad.com) ebay usually has sye's for like 150 or so, save some money there and if you have the money, go high pinion, you can get one out of an old bronco with a dana 44 if you can find it, currie also makes one

 

[Snitty]

The "spring over" springs are no better than normal springs... actually stiffer... so flex is limited more... its just a way for them to say "hey, if you're doing this, might as well buy the springs with 'spring over' right in their name"

 

[JDKing]

got ya, thanks smitty

JK

 

[currupt4130]

i severely beg to differ, i know many people that run the "spring over" springs and they have all told me the same thing, they are great, little bit stiffer becasue of more arch, but they flex better then a lift spring with the same arch because of the way the eye is turned.

 

[Junkpile]

The RE springs don't flex easier than a factory pack or 1" lift spring, but they do flex MORE before they become reversed. They can flex further and last longer. The reversed eyes just lower the lift from 2.5" to 1.5", they don't increase flex. The eyes are the trick here, but if you don't have anything against lifting a little higher, you can have the same results with their regular 2.5" spring.
Factory springs are useless little pieces of junk with a SOA. Sure, flex is great......but if you actually use the Jeep for anything other than riding around town, they will be shot within a few months if that long. Then you can hinder it further by adding AALs.

 

[Snitty]

i'm keeping my current springs with my soa... but the only stock leaf in each pack is the main... so i'll see how that does... i plan on getting some 2" or so lift springs to put in later...

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

Don't forget the option of installing TJ flares or simply cutting the fenders more to fit larger tires. It's better to minimize lift while maximizing tire clearance, this will help keep you off your lid

 

[Junkpile]

Good point Bounty, TJ flares are a great way to gain clearance on a YJ or CJ.