lift indecision 2006

i'm looking for a lift for my 1983 cj5 that's good on and off road i don't do any serious offroading yet but i do some expressway driving. the springs that are on now are flat and kinda arcing the other way. the axle bump stops are less than an inch from the axels :? . I just got some brand new got 31 10.50 bf at's and the ride is already a lot better if i could only quit hitting the axles on every bump. the lift i'm looking at is the superlift 2.5 i got good rancho shocks so i don't need them and with the money i saved i'm gunna get some small lift shackles.Does that sound good? any ideas ? how hard is the lift/ shackles to install?

 

I replaced the shackles, shocks and leafsprings in about 6-7 hours at a moderate pace and stopping for snacks. I had to grind off a couple of old bolts, rather than spend a million years tweaking them off. I used a scissor jack and a bottle jack for my jacking needs, rather than trying to just move one jack around. A little dishwashing soap helped push bushings where they needed to be. It was easy.

 

I would also clean the bore in the spring eyes(paint) and shackle mounts(rust) w/ a wheel cylinder hone. Put the bushings in the freezer overnight and be sure and lube as said before. I used my vice for the spring eye bushings and a 6" C-clamp for the shackle mounts. Very easy. From what I've heard about shackle lifts, I would stay away from them. They change the pinion angle and can cause driveshaft vibration. It can be remedied with angled shims, but just do the springs first and see where you're at. You may not want the lift shackles.:v6:

 

Live axles depend on the springs to stay in alignment with the frame and provide proper suspension geometry. Wobbly long shackles can't help that, and I'd expect them to worsen the steering precision and steering response, and maybe worse. IMO the better setup would be to get the lift you want from the springs, and go with stock length shackles. Then have an alignment shop check your front suspension geometry, and set it to factory specs (toe-in, and caster shims if needed).

 

Superlift springs are notoriously stiff. Rancho shocks are a little harsh to me for Jeep applications too, but hey you got 'em, use 'em. Old Man Emu (OME) makes a kit designed for what you want and can be tailored to your ride. I would stay away from a shackle lift as well as a body lift.