rear spring?

hey do you guys think that i could use cj springs in the rear of my xj to get some lift (dich blocks )?

Last I knew CJ springs were 2" wide. XJ springs are 2-1/2" wide.

Why don't you try the Dakota spring conversion?

Front CJ springs are 2" wide

REAR CJ springs are 2.5" wide.

Not sure about length, bushing size and potential ride height. I can measure my CJ springs tonight and compare them to my XJ.

dakota are hard to find just like s-10 rear springs looking for alternitive i just need 3-4" lift any other ideas on springs that might work

DARKFLY said:

dakota are hard to find just like s-10 rear springs looking for alternitive i just need 3-4" lift any other ideas on springs that might work

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waggy springs, ford, chevy, etc. Any 2.5" springs will do and then cut them and stack them up until you get the height you need. its a trial and error thing. you have to build the pack and then trial fit it to see how much lift you get. If its not enough or too much add another leaf or remove a leaf. can you find any other MJ or XJ leaves where you are? Good place to start. Don't forget sliders or teflon paint between the leafs for ultimate flex!

i think i can find some xj or mj leafs can you get lift from these? if so do you know about what you get? the reason for the cj's is i know some one with them (free) i also have a set of 86 4runner leafs i just dont know if that will give me what i need.

DARKFLY said:

i think i can find some xj or mj leafs can you get lift from these? if so do you know about what you get?

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its different on different vehicles, but from my experience, anywhere from 3/4" to 1.5" per leaf added in. A large stack of leaves will flex well, but will ride rougher than stock. This is why i said trial and error. you can also get a spring shop to roll your leaves to give a higher arch. but again, trial and error. one one of my xj's i have eight leaves on the drivers side and nine on the passengers to account for how the xj sat on level ground. it took a while to mix and match. some were from a scout (i think, maybe an old chev? don't remember), and the rest were from an old xj pack. it rode, rattled and squeaked like a mouse on a skateboard at first until i rebuilt it with full length poly sliders. it rides way better now and flexes better too. i had to remove a leaf when i put in the sliders though to account for the added height that 6 sliders give. sorry about teh verbal diarrhea...

When bastardizing a spring pack from different donor leaves do you guys worry about the different arches and different spring rates of the different springs? Or do you clamp 'em together and call 'em good?

karstic said:

When bastardizing a spring pack from different donor leaves do you guys worry about the different arches and different spring rates of the different springs? Or do you clamp 'em together and call 'em good?

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some people might worry!
youre right though, there are all kinds of other factors in there including length and thickness of leaf, arches, spring rates, etc. i got around the bastardizing downsides by using pairs of leaves. one per side matching lengths and placement in the pack. Also, important to consider: you can cut springs to length cold, but don't torch them off and cool them in water, that's a great way to reallly mess with the spring rates. I just tried different combinations until i got it where i liked it. maybe not the best way to go insofar as spending lots of time to get it right, but it was cheaporama.

I have had the best results with the most arched leaves at the top and the flatter springs on the bottom. You can't expect these packs to last as long as a true lift pack but, I can build bastard packs for free all day and thats why I just continually tune the packs until I find a combination I am happy with.

Go to junk yard. I went to 2 j-yards yesterday and both had at least 2 Dakota's there. I paid $70 for the pair.

DARKFLY said:

dakota are hard to find just like s-10 rear springs looking for alternitive i just need 3-4" lift any other ideas on springs that might work

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last dakota i found was 150 pair and chev 125 pair i picked up the cj pack last night and it looks like it will work.it came off a scrambler 6 leaf pack ill let you guys know how it went on mon.

ok i put the pack in on saturday (the bottom 5 leafs) it gave me 3.5" lift in the rear. the ride is great they seem to flex good too we will have to see if they sag any more or if there going to hold up i'll try to keep u informed on the other possabilitys.

What kind of material do you guys use for sliders, and where did you get it? Getting ready to do my frankenstein packs, and want to have everything in place to get'er done this weekend. Thanks.

cyberbackpacker said:

What kind of material do you guys use for sliders, and where did you get it? Getting ready to do my frankenstein packs, and want to have everything in place to get'er done this weekend. Thanks.

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I bought stuff very similar to this at my local auto parts store. 12.95 CDN per roll for flat liner.
Beej.