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Rear Shock Mount help

ron0429

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September 28, 2013
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City, State
Cape May County, NJ
Year, Model & Trim Level
1993 Ford Explorer XLT
hey guys, so before i did an axle over swap as u probably know, the shocks were mounted to the plates on the bottom of the leafs. I went and got this lift and saw that the peson who had it before me was not running sway bars in the rear. He had them mounted on brackets where the sway bars are mounted, and he just eliminated the sway bar altogether. I'd like to keep my sway bar i dont like body roll haha any ideas or help guys, its greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Ron

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Once you go SOA, the rear sway bar is just something that hangs up and limits travel off road.

The only real reason to keep it would be if it's a pavement-only rig and the lift was just for looks.

Sure, it DOES still function and reduce some body roll - BUT with the vehicle now raised up that high, the way it does it isn't really what you want.

For a vehicle lifted that much, it's better to keep the FRONT sway bar and make quick disconnects for it, remove the rear sway bar, and get REALLY GOOD shocks for all four corners. It also makes it MUCH easier to mount shocks (especially longer ones).


If you must keep the rear sway bar, you should get longer end links for it. Using the stock length links as pictured will eventually bend/break the bolts holding the links to the frame or the links to the rear bar as it's beyond it's limit of travel with the lift.

Even with the sway bar, you can use the stock length rear shocks and just make brackets for the lower shock eye that attach to the upper hole of the rear sway bar brackets in the rear axle. Just use a Grade 8 bolt, nut, and washers instead of the smaller bolt and retainer clip.

A better solution might be to fab up something that bolts to the old leaf spring plate on the bottom.
 






Get a set of superlift or skyjacker SOA swap brackets.they have shock mounts made into them..what soa brackets are you using now??as mentioned your need longer links and look into getting a second gen sway bar.its thicker..

And as far as having a sway bar is ""pavement only-rig"" is BS..I run one on mine and it DEFINITELY helps for a lifted truck..forget quick disconnect, wasted of money..its two bolts to disconnect but having a bar makes for a MUCH safer ride to and from the trail...of course that is if its not a ""trailer queen"" non-pavement driver...;)
 






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this is my daily driver haha i like how u used "trailer queen" rig. How do i find that bracket you got in that picture jd, im having a little trouble i think that might be what i need
 
























Those are weld on obviously. Since he is doing SOA swap anyways he might as well just get the right brackets to begine with.saves you time and hassle.he would also then need longer links if he went with weld on tabs still

From what I see in the OP's pics... He already has a spring perch welded onto the axle so either those have to be cut off and the kind with a shock mount has to be welded on, or tabs need to be welded onto the axle tube..

I don't see any other solutions besides those. That is also assuming that the shocks will clear the sway bar links once the shocks end are moved to a mount on the perch or onto the tube.

~Mark
 






From what I see in the OP's pics... He already has a spring perch welded onto the axle so either those have to be cut off and the kind with a shock mount has to be welded on, or tabs need to be welded onto the axle tube..

I don't see any other solutions besides those. That is also assuming that the shocks will clear the sway bar links once the shocks end are moved to a mount on the perch or onto the tube.

~Mark
I was assuming that wasn't his pictures as he said he had shocks where the sway bar was.but I dont know, I asked in first post what type of soa he was using now but didnt get a answer. .

But yea if they are welded on then he will have to weld shock tabs on and still needs longer sway bar end links
 












Thank you man this is what i was looking for and im not too sure on what SOA it is everything else i got with the kit seemed to be DickCepek so id assume that brand.

Is the picture in your first post your setup?? Or have you not installed it yet? Is it a separate piece of a kit or is it welded onto a axle you got?
 






Is the picture in your first post your setup?? Or have you not installed it yet? Is it a separate piece of a kit or is it welded onto a axle you got?

that picture is my exact setup i took it this morning.the axle is an 8.8 if that helps
 






That picture has the soa perches welded to the tube.the link I posted wont work unless you cut the old soa perches off.or you can get a set of weld on brackets for the shocks and weld them on.but as mentioned the may not clear your sway way.you also need longer sway bar end links, they are about maxed out in the picture
 


















That picture has the soa perches welded to the tube.the link I posted wont work unless you cut the old soa perches off.or you can get a set of weld on brackets for the shocks and weld them on.but as mentioned the may not clear your sway way.you also need longer sway bar end links, they are about maxed out in the picture

ok thank you for the help buddy:thumbsup:
 






ok thank you for the help buddy:thumbsup:

Me personally I would order that soa kit from summit and break out a grinder and cut off the mounts you have now.least this way you know 100% your shocks will work and clear plus you get the end links you need..

Seems easier than buying shock tabs, then end links and having to weld the tabs on and risk they might not even clear.to me they would have to be welder almost ontop or on backside of the axle, both wouldnt work very well
 






Except the Superlift mounts are weaker than what he has. They are not weld on, they sit on top of the axle using the bottom of the old spring perches to keep them centered. They put pressure on the old perches in the opposite direction they were designed to handle. They also shift around on the top of the axle.
I have those, so I know. Mine bent the original perches down and one collapsed while on the first off road trip since installed. Got a new set under warranty from Superlift. Ended up grinding them down so they did not put pressure on the original perches, then welding them onto the axle. They cost a lot for what you get, especially since you already have perches welded to the axle.

I removed the sway bar and used the axle mount for a shock mount. Has worked great for over ten years. It also allows you to use longer shocks.
 



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Except the Superlift mounts are weaker than what he has. They are not weld on, they sit on top of the axle using the bottom of the old spring perches to keep them centered. They put pressure on the old perches in the opposite direction they were designed to handle. They also shift around on the top of the axle.
I have those, so I know. Mine bent the original perches down and one collapsed while on the first off road trip since installed. Got a new set under warranty from Superlift. Ended up grinding them down so they did not put pressure on the original perches, then welding them onto the axle. They cost a lot for what you get, especially since you already have perches welded to the axle.

I removed the sway bar and used the axle mount for a shock mount. Has worked great for over ten years. It also allows you to use longer shocks.

They should be tack welded in..pretty sure the instructions state that.
 






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