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Installed the 3" rough country spring lift in my 89 GW - got it all in - sits nice - looks good - level stance - wheels centered.
Rear axle has the factory brackets welded on it with the holes that align with the springs so the positioning of the springs and axle is correct to my knowledge.
I used the the extensions for the stabilizer bars from BJ's and they mounted fine.
Everything looks great - Except - when I went to put the drive shaft back in I am about an inch short after its extended.
Called RC - poor support - from what I can see everything is set but I will need to extend my drive shaft a bit - everything I read says you should not have to do this with just a 3" lift.
I have put 6" lifts on without extending the rear shaft. Front typically is what needs work.
Does the rear tire look centered in the wheel well? I have had one friend that when he put his lift on, the centering pin on the springs actually ended up in the hole to the front of where it should actually go. So the axle ended up being farther back than it should.
Also, its possible that the shaft has never had to extend that far, and is just hanging up on a wear spot or something inside. You may have to pull on it some.
ok - dug in a bit deeper - see pics - pulled the driveshaft all the way far enough to see the spline - still need an inch. The differential is pretty much parallel to the ground - almost looks like it should point up a bit towards the transfer case yoke more. The pin is in the hole - see pic. Next..check out the bottom wedge on the leaf spring - is it the wrong way? The thick part of the wedge faces the front of the jeep. It is part of the spring so it may have been put in backwards wherever RC gets them - I think it said Indonesia or something. If I turn that wedge will it bring the angle up and fix my issue? How should that wedge be in there? (The wedge in the spring pack not on the axle plate)
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Last edited by barkleyw on Tue Jun 11, 2019 7:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I think I figured it out.....right from rough country - appears the shim or wedge is my issue.....
"Which direction should the shims on my leaf springs face?
On vehicles with leaf springs mounted over the axles, the fat or tall part of the shim should face towards the bumper (i.e. the tall part of the shim on the rear leaf spring should face the rear bumper and vice versa for the front.) On vehicles with the leaf springs mounted under the axle, the fat or tall part of the shim should face towards the center of the vehicle."
Your shim are in backwards, as I can see in the photos. That will help some, although not sure if it will help enough.
And, the tire does look a bit far back in the wheel well. Normally Wagoneers have the tire closer to the front fender lip. Its not uncommon to have to trim the bottom corner of the front to fit a larger tire.
You know what, I just looked at my rear setup and the fat part is facing the center of the frame. I thought something was wrong because the rear parking brake cables are about 1/2 inch too short and RC said once there's weight on the frame (I'm doing a frame off rebuild right now) the lines will reach. I've got a shot of the parking brake lines to show you what I mean. I'll take some shots of the blocks in a minute.
1978 Cherokee Chief WT in a thousand pieces
Previous Jeep: 2001 Grand Cherokee
Have not done the rear springs before, but when I did my front springs I found the centering pin was not centered in the spring. Not sure if even the factory one was or not, but something to check is if the springs are installed the right way.
ghcoe wrote:Have not done the rear springs before, but when I did my front springs I found the centering pin was not centered in the spring. Not sure if even the factory one was or not, but something to check is if the springs are installed the right way.
This was factory for 74+ FSJ's. 73 and older Wagoneers had a shorter spring that did use a centered pin.
What transfer case do you have? If someone swapped the 229 our for a 208 your driveshaft will be way short, IIRC there is about a 4" difference in length 229/228/219 vs 208.
MReno wrote: ↑Tue Dec 03, 2019 7:51 am
Barkleyw, when you installed the rear axle lift blocks, did they get installed on top of the factory lift blocks?
No FSJ had a factory lift block. If you have a lift block now somebody added it.
A bit off topic but related question...Is anyone adding bump stop extensions?
I've done some math and I think the axle at full articulation with the stock bump stops there's a good chance the shackles would 'flip' and get stuck. Happened to a buddy with a '80s Land Cruiser. He bought some 'anti-reverse' shackles so that wouldn't happen but I figure adding bump stop extensions would work the same. On newer Jeeps with lifts, most kits come with extensions.
1978 Cherokee Chief WT in a thousand pieces
Previous Jeep: 2001 Grand Cherokee
Stuka, on a second check, what I thought was a lift block in actually part of the plate on the axle that the leaf spring mounts too. So the lift blocks with my kit must sit on top of that to level the rear with the front.
1989 Jeep Grand Wagoneer
Newbee to owing an old classic that needs some work, but she runs!
irondawg wrote: ↑Wed Dec 04, 2019 8:54 am
A bit off topic but related question...Is anyone adding bump stop extensions?
I've done some math and I think the axle at full articulation with the stock bump stops there's a good chance the shackles would 'flip' and get stuck. Happened to a buddy with a '80s Land Cruiser. He bought some 'anti-reverse' shackles so that wouldn't happen but I figure adding bump stop extensions would work the same. On newer Jeeps with lifts, most kits come with extensions.
Nobody makes pre-made bump stop extensions specifically for our vehicles. But there are universal ones that can work.