My thoughts on a 4" SOA flip.

[little x]

What exactly is the problem with leaving it sprung under and adding 4" lift springs?

Ground clearance under the rear axle.

 

[LBarr2002]

Ground clearance under the rear axle.

Its not the clearance under the axle... its the clearance under the spring pads / shock mounts under the axle. I was catching my spring perches on EVERYTHING! So I went spring over, which got the truck too high for my 33's. Current owner is running 35's on it and it still towers them...

 

[little x]

Its not the clearance under the axle... its the clearance under the spring pads / shock mounts under the axle. I was catching my spring perches on EVERYTHING! So I went spring over, which got the truck too high for my 33's. Current owner is running 35's on it and it still towers them...

Right. . . the spring pads and shock mounts are under the axle, moving them on top creates more clearance under the axle, just like I said.

 

[tweakedlogic]

I ended up working late then polishing my lenses, couldn't see a damn thing at night.
needless to say I didn't get the truck on the rack to take some measurements. Tomorrow looks better.

 

[Welshdragon79]

Ok, hear me out I've had an idea for a 4" SOA for awhile: french the forward spring mounts into the frame, then you'll use a set of fiberglass composite leaves from a GMC Safari which are 1 leaf. They are about 2 and a half to 3 inchs wide but you can make some custom mounts and shackles to adjust the ride height in the rear.

 

[damarble]

then you'll use a set of fiberglass composite leaves from a GMC Safari which are 1 leaf.

Are not these what some Exy Sports have?

The frenching may be the way to go. Here's some pics stolen from PBB.

 

[tweakedlogic]

that looks like what I'm going to do. I really like those mounts. Much better than what I was envisioning.

I don't know what PBB is. can you clarify.

I did poke around under my truck to see what could go where. Without relocating my fuel tank i can't use the Bronco mounts. so I think I'm going to use some thing like above mounted a little farther forward. That should do the trick.

My welder just got buried with more work than he can handle with the crew he has. So my project is now pushed back a couple of weeks. Which doesn't really hurt my feelings too much since work for me has slowed down a little. That gives me time to collect funds with out the wife getting frustrated.

 

[damarble]

PBB = pirate4x4.com

Here's the page of the thread I pulled them from, with more pics.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=644588&page=25

 

[Welshdragon79]

Yeah damarble I think you and I are about on the same page. My Expo Sport has a 3 leaf setup. The Safari is a straight single leaf fiberglass unit. I think if they're frenched like your're doing and throw on some dog leg shackles like the Heep you'd end up with a trick 4" SOA, superior ground clearance and much better CG.
I see you also have a 3.9 diesel going in; is that the 4BT?! You might be building my truck before I do! I'll have to PM you to avoid pirating the thread.

 

[damarble]

Yeah damarble I think you and I are about on the same page. My Expo Sport has a 3 leaf setup. The Safari is a straight single leaf fiberglass unit. I think if they're frenched like your're doing and throw on some dog leg shackles like the Heep you'd end up with a trick 4" SOA, superior ground clearance and much better CG.
I see you also have a 3.9 diesel going in; is that the 4BT?! You might be building my truck before I do! I'll have to PM you to avoid pirating the thread.

My Sport came with a 3 leaf pack too but I could swear some guys here have a fiberglass monoleaf.

No 4BT for me, I don't want my teeth rattling out! It's a much more refined Isuzu motor. The 4BT would be cheaper to adapt but the ultra low NVH levels of the Isuzu vs Cummins will be worth it.

 

[zjrog]

A friend and I were discussing the ways to effect a simple 2" lift. And the primary thought was to move the shackle mount below the frame and make a shackle to match the lift I want. We want to clear 32s for a basic expedition type rig... Oh, for our 94 Ex...

 

[Welshdragon79]

A friend and I were discussing the ways to effect a simple 2" lift. And the primary thought was to move the shackle mount below the frame and make a shackle to match the lift I want. We want to clear 32s for a basic expedition type rig... Oh, for our 94 Ex...

I assume when you say below the frame you mean inboard or outboard of the frame. Outboard would be much like the Ranger setup and I believe the issue with the Explorer is the a lack of clearance between the frame and rear tire to mount the setup. Having the setup inboard would seem to increase stress on the components. More of your lateral forces would be focused toward the center of the vehicle effectivly rasing the vehicles CG without actual lifting the truck because of where you have placed your lever.....
This is why the idea of frenching the forward spring perch into the frame was floated. It would lower the vehicle, however, you would add lift and ground clearance by moving the springs above the axle.

 

[damarble]

I assume when you say below the frame you mean inboard or outboard of the frame.

It sounds to me like he just wants to drop the shackle attachment point to under the frame instead of through it. It would gain some lift, but the same thing could be done with just longer shackles.

 

[Welshdragon79]

Oh, got what your saying now. I'm actually running longer shackles on mine for a simple two inch and my only gripe would be that it decreases your departure angle.

 

[zjrog]

I think either method would decrease departure, but I'm not a big fan of really long shackles either. To get the 2" lift from shackles, I would need them to be 4" longer than they are now. Going under the frame, I can use shackles for less lift and still the 2-3" I really desire. Besides, dropping the mount under the frame gives me options for setting shackle angle and such.

 

[Makahveli]

this is old, but what ever happened with this? Wish I'd a seen this before I would have simply said get an AAL for a F-150 and some warrior shackles and that will get you 3-4"s of lift in the rear....and if you need another inch or a half get the rear leaf packs from a 4-door explorer......

 

[Nedwreck]

I thought maybe factory 2wd springs were a lower ride height than the 4x4s. My 92 sat lower than either of my 4x4's anyway. Soa and 2wd springs would be ~4" lift??? idk....

 

[mounty71]

this is old, but what ever happened with this? Wish I'd a seen this before I would have simply said get an AAL for a F-150 and some warrior shackles and that will get you 3-4"s of lift in the rear....and if you need another inch or a half get the rear leaf packs from a 4-door explorer......

Gaining 4" of lift was never the problem. The problem was getting ONLY 4" while going SOA.

And I know this is an old thread, but...whoever suggested putting the leafs inboard of the frame...you do realize that the OP wants the minimum amount of lift with SOA to decrease instability right? Putting the leafs inboard would increase instability tenfold compared to an extra 1 or 2" of lift. Not to mention that would be a ridiculous amount of work.

Frenching the front leaf mounts and going with a monoleaf would be the way to go IMO.

 

[tweakedlogic]

Thanks for reviving my old thread guys.
I had almost given up on this mod because it seemed too much trouble. Although I still think it would be my best option. I still haven't lifted my truck past the 2.5" I had a year ago. My welder friend ended up having many personal problems and pushed me off to deal with it. So it's just me with a 110 MIG.
Then I was given a pair of 64" Chevy leaf packs. I thought I might use those for better flex and payload even though I would have to stay underslung, but I haven't done anything with those either. I keep getting distracted with other projects. Too many motorcycle builds at once, plus my Rx7 always needs attention.

I would still love to do this. Just last weekend I got hung up on the driver's side shock mount, then later stuck on the passenger side. I could probably just toss on some 35s for extra ground clearance (after more lift), but I really like the 32s and 33s. While it may help some, 35s are only one more inch clearance from 33s.

I think it will help if I simply put the shock mounts on top of the spring pack. It won't be as good as an SOA though.

The fiberglass leaf looks like it may work, though it would take some sweat. But I like the idea of maybe the 2wd Ex is lower than the 4wd. I'll have to look into that. But maybe a combination of frenched front mount, flat spring perch and shorter shackle will be the way to go. I think it might be easier or at least only slightly more work than a standard SOA.

But thanks for getting me thinking of this again. It's too bad I have to be difficult and not want a 6" lift.

 

[unclemeat]

Just dont do what damarble did. I am wearing my engineers hat, cutting the frame like that is going to lower the entire rear end alright, cause it is going to fail and break the frame, and may even kill somebody.