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pros and cons of body and shackle lifts.

4K views 14 replies 4 participants last post by  Jeeper99xj 
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#1 ·
i put in a post earlier today about a body lift without much reply, so can someone tell me which would be better, easier and/or cheaper. just your basic pros and cons between the two. thanks. still looking to get those 31's under the jeep without rubbing on the cheap$$$$$.

89 YJ,TR upgrade.
 
#2 ·
Well, pro's of a body lift are, obviously, added tire clearance. You can also tuck your drivetain up higher to get more ground clearance. The con's of a body lift are huge, UGLY gaps between the frame and body. And I mean UGLY! It's not bad at all with a 1". But 2-3" is just HIDEOUS in my opinion. But you gotta do what you gotta do to tuck the meats. I've also heard of wearing out the body mounts on the tub from the added stress a body lift creates.

As for lift shackles, pro's would be, once again, added lift. I've also heard that a little longer shackle will help you flex better. But I've also heard that a longer shackle adds strain to suspension components. That would be a con. Another con would be the adjust in your caster and pinion angles. Things like that can possibly be taken care of with degree shims. Hope I've helped.

 
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#3 ·
are degree shims something that i can do or do i need to get it done at a shop? if at a shop what is the cost? as far as ease of installation which would be the easier to do right?


89 YJ,TR upgrade.
 
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#4 ·
The hightest body lift, 3", requires lengthening your gas fill hose. Easy, we just cut it and set a section of plastic pipe in the middle with hose clamps. Also requires rerouting your emergency brake cable slightly at the front so it will reach the pedal. Again, no big deal and no cost. The highest lift shackles, 1 3/4", on the other hand require replacing shocks and brake lines and sway bar links. Gets expensive real quick. I know, we got caught in the trap of trying to get off cheap by using shackles instead of lift springs. Also, as mentioned, the longer shackles will necessitate shimming the front axle to maintain caster. Not hard to do and shims cost about $15. Like everything else though it snowballs. You will need longer center bolts for the springs and hsve to come up with a way to get the heads to reach thru the shims and still protrude into the perch on the axle. I can tell you how if you end up doing this. You will find, if you haven't already, that nothing associated with JEEP is CHEAP! One thing always seems to lead to another.

 
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#5 ·
Take it from me as someone who just removed a shackle lift body is the way to go for cheaper lift. Let me run down some of the cons to a shackle lift, keep in mind these are all my opinion.
1. Changes caster angle and causes Jeep to wander (more than it already does)
2. Creates more stress on the springs causing them to sag.
3. Give springs more leverage on shakle mounts and causes them to break, trust me a have reweld both of mine back on at one point or another.
4. Hang down real far in the front and decreases approach angle.
5. Only get half the amount of length(ie. if the shackles are 2" longer than stock you only get 1" of lift)

As you can see I dont like shackle lifts.

I do have a 2" body lift which I love. The gaps arent that bad, I covered the one in the rear with diamond plating, made new inner fender skirts for the front and rear wheel wells and my winch hides the gap in the front, no problems. Gives more clearance for tires, does affect handle that much, doesnt cause problems with steering, all in all a very nice setup. The radiator needs lowered but that is pretty much it, I would definietly go with a body lift over a shackle lift, if you cover your gaps its hard to even tell there is a body lify one it.

Kris

I do the same thing every weekend, its just the location where I do it that changes!
 
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#6 ·
Didn't lower our radiator. Didn't have a shroud to begin with. So far no ill consequences. Watch the lower hose clearance with the power steering belt. One other thing, my transfer case lever was hitting the floor pan and not letting me get into 4H. I bent the lever forward to solve that, but then it hit the radio in 4L. Sooo, I put another bend in the very top. Clears all now and goes in all the gears. Take it off to do it, it isn't hard to remove. You will need acetylene, propane won't get it done. Sand and paint satin black and it looks good as new.

 
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#8 ·
This is one of those topics for which search engines can do wonders. Run a search on the topic and you will find all the info without needing to post anything.

That said, body lifts add tons of stress to relatively weak body mounts. Anything over 3" is asking for trouble. 3" is pushing it. 2" is more reasonable.

I Jeep, therefore I am.
 
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#9 ·
I have a 1.25" shackle lift, and in my opinion there is nothing wrong with them. I don't really care that my Jeep wanders a little bit. It's not that noticable at all from when I had stock shackles. I'm also not worried about drivetrain angles or any of that stuff. It's just a daily driver and I never do anything serious with it. It depends on how you're using the Jeep. If it's just a highway/street Jeep like mine, I honestly think that everything will be fine with a shackle lift or body lift.

Blake
93 YJ/4.0L/33x12.50s/3" Rough Country suspension/1.25" shackles
 
#10 ·
When I started out building my Jeep, I had put on a 1.25" shackle lift (2.5" longer than stock) and the time that it showed up the worst was on the street, so the "just a daily driver" approach doesn't float. Gassing it even a little bit from a stop, my drivehsaft angles were so mismatched that you could feel the vibrations in the Jeep. Not good. Also, the front of the front spring was so close to the ground that it kills your approach angle.

Now, sure, you can correct the rear angle so your driveshaft angles aren't so bad - unbolt the axle, deal with degree shims, etc. Now all of a sudden though the simple installation of shackles isn't so simple. Plus it looks really dumb.

Body lifts -- if you go too high, you will add stress to the body mounts. Really, any height at all adds stress to the body mounts, as you are cantilevering the body off of the frame. 1" adds a little. 3" adds a lot. And 3" body lifts look dumb too.

So, my approach? Modify each portion of the jeep a little bit. A little shackle lift, a little body lift, a little suspension lift. This makes a nicely balanced Jeep.

I have the JKS 1.25" body lift. (right in the middle of the road between nothing and a 2 or 3")

I have 1" longer shackles for a 1/2" lift at the axles. (again, right in the middle of nothing and a really long shackle.)

I have a 3" suspension lift. (you guessed it, right in the middle of nothing and a 4.5" or higher. I still even run the slip yoke. /wwwthreads_images/icons/blush.gif

I also have TJ flares, which gives you more room. This is a simple trim job - nothing extreme.



I can flex 33s nicely on the trail without rubbing a single bit. I could run 35s on the street if I wanted to. There's plenty of room. I may be able to flex 35s with a bit of rub -- haven't tried.

Bottom line, modify each part of the jeep a little, and you will likely be ok. Modify any one part a lot, and you will be getting into more difficulty.

High body lifts are a hassle, and not good for the jeep.
High suspension lifts don't flex as much with a high arched spring.
High shackle lifts aren't good for your angles, or for vibrations without correcting the situation.

Just my $0.02
Pete

"Don't fall into the traps laid by society" -- Henry Lee Summer.
 
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#11 ·
thanks for the input guys, i think i like the little of everything approach as stated by Pete. and yes i did a search and didnt get much of anything in return. maybe i wasnt using the correct wording but i did do a search under "shackle lift"

89 YJ,TR upgrade.
 
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#12 ·
just so im clear on this. if i go with a 1" shackle lift i wont need to shim or get new brake lines, correct? and with a 1.25" body lift i wont run into the ugly body gap or the fuel line and tran shifter problems? if this is right could someone please give me a confirmation. that sounds like the best way, if i am correct on the above assumption. Thanks, Thom

89 YJ,TR upgrade.
 
#13 ·
Another option, Full length "add-a-leaf" overload springs, inexpenive, 1.5" to 2" suspension lift. The ride is firmer but still flexs and none of the bad points of a shackle or body lift. If your still running the original springs, they are most likely soft and sagging anyway(13 years of flexing).

Wayne @ Big Island RockCrawlers
"PYRO" The Rock Crawler
Web Site: http://www.members.tripod.com/surfmac/Index.html
 
#14 ·
A 1" shackle lift "should" be fine. It's difficult to say, as all jeeps seem to be different. Some say their Jeep has vibrations from the factory. My Jeep was fine with the 1" longer shackles, but the 2.5" longer ones gave me a vibration.

My 1.25" body lift presented no problems at all. I did have to adjust the linkage on my automatic tranny - easy. If you've got a standard, you may have to trim the tub around your shifter if you can't get into a particular gear. I could still get into 4-low with mine with no problems, but again, if you happen to have problems getting into 4-low because your shifer hits the tub, you may have to do a little trimming.

I had no problems with any fuel lines or exhaust or anything like that.

I did have to relocate the fan shroud by drilling a few new holes and dropping it about 1". Not difficult.

As for the ugly body gap, my winch in front hides the gap, and in the rear the lip under the tub is about 1" or so, so it doesn't look like a gap much at all. The JKS body lift also includes the little rubber things on the sides of the grill (longer ones than stock), so you just intall those. I guess some lifts don't include that. (?)

If you're anywhere near MA you're welcome to check it out.

Good luck
Pete

"Don't fall into the traps laid by society" -- Henry Lee Summer.
 
#15 ·
I'd say do a 1/2" lift (1" longer) shackle lift and a 1" body lift to clear 31's. Then if you still want more clearance throw on some TJ flares. You can make both the shackle and body lifts your self. For the shackles I'd order greasable bushings. Only tools required would be something to cut metal w/ and a drill press (or hand drill of you can drill really straight by hand). For the body lift you could either use extruded aluminum or some type of polly plastic and for the shackles i think 1/4" or 3/16" steel would work for the shackles you really wouldn't need a cross brace but if you wanted on you could just put a bolt through the middle and then add washers in the middle. For the body lift you would need new grade 5 or 8 bolts about an inch longer. This combo method is probably the best way to go to run 31's I'd avoid a lift to save cash and it's kinda overkill, it's kida funny to see a jeep w/ a 3" suspension, 2" Body, 1" shackle and 31's. That's most likely way too much lift that some fender trimming could solve.

BarrelRoll

97 TJ

Wheel it or drive a minny van

 
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