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Rear leaf sliders - Install

Creeper2012

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Hanover, IN
It all started last summer when i grenaded the TruTrac in my D44 (rear). Found out the hard way just how much wheel hop is "too much." Luckily all of my shafts held up so I was able to limp 'er out in FWD under her own power.

So, this winter entails the repairs and upgrades that are needed/wanted before our off-road group's big annual Memorial Day outing. The first step was rebuilding the rear axle and replacing the shrapnel with a full spool, which meant the axle needed to come out... mainly since I've got the time and floor space to do it, but then I discovered the wollered-out bolt holes how bad the rust had gotten...
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After some research, I decided to bite the bullet and try out some of Liquid Iron's XJ leaf sliders...
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Back under the Jeep, my original intentions were to simply cut out the bad, replace what was necessary and weld in the sliders. But the bad just kept getting worse, as far as rust removal...
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Already got the outside wall of the unibody frame cut out and some wire wheeling done in this pic. At some point, I held the slider in place for some eye-balling and to make sure I wasn't moving in the wrong direction when I discovered I didn't like how low they were gonna be in relation to my back bumper if I were to put 'em where they're supposed to go (bolted to the factory shackle box and nut strips). I felt they would've really hurt my departure angle.

That was when it hit the fan...
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Got some new metal in, here. Things progressed and I got one of the sliders pretty well welded in... when a light bulb came on in my head. I thought, "Hey, I should probably measure and see if I'm putting this in the right spot."

I wasn't. I was off to the driver's side by about an inch! So, back to cutting.

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Here, I've got it tacked back in place. This time, I measured the inside diameter of my leaf spring bushings (which was exactly 40", still installed on the axle), divided that by 2, found the center of the Jeep (a square hole in the sheet metal right under my hatch latch pin), measured over to the driver's side and made a mark at 20". That's where the inside edge of the inboard slider rail needed to land. I'd also already measured the total length of my springs to make sure they wouldn't "bottom out" the sliders at full compression given the (current) location of the front spring mounts. Got the green light!
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Got everything re-connected. With this setup, I wasn't gonna be able to completely box in the bottom of the sub-frame without interfering with the slider bolt, so I cut a strip to fill in as much gap as I could, which would also add some lateral strength to that side of the new sub-frame. By the way, I'm using 3"x3/16" flat bar from the local Tractor Supply.
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The 3" material isn't the full width of the sub-frame, so I had to ramp it down to meet up with the factory metal
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Then I re-installed the plate on top for the extra roll cage tie-in and the side pieces that extend forward from my bumper
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A "before and after" I made of the driver's side
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Now on to the passenger side. This time, I knew more about where to cut and measure so the process went much smoother!
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I did run into a frame straight-ness issue, but it was nothing a ratchet strap and a port-a-power couldn't fix.
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When tacking the slider boxes to the bumper metal, I took special care to not only make sure it was the correct distance from the center of the rig, but also to make sure it was lined up correctly with the front spring mount. Thus, to avoid unnecessary spring bind since they'd have to twist to account for differences in width from one box to the other.
 
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Sliders are in! Job still isn't quite finished though. I'm gonna remove the rear seat back and relocate the fuel cell to the area behind the drivers seat... after more rust- and spring mount repair and filling in the big hole in my floor where it was with sheet metal.

#brickwall

Haven't seen any write-ups on custom slider installs, so here's my $0.02. I know it isn't perfect, but I'm sure it'll do the job just fine. I didn't note it earlier, but if you compare the installed sliders to the ones in the delivery box, I cut off the flanges and brackets that would've normally made them a bolt-in operation. Since I had so much rust repair and paper-thin metal in those areas, I just cut them off and ground them down to nice, smooth, weldable surfaces. You can get universal sliders from Liquid Iron as well and, had I known what I was in for when I ordered them, I would've got those instead. Not sure of any price difference right off hand.

Hopefully those contemplating this install find this useful. My rig is pretty heavily modified back there, so you'll obviously have to adapt a few techniques to make it work for your ride, but you should be able to get the idea.
 
That doesnt look right to me. I believe those sliders were ment to be mounted under the frame rail. And farther back. I think your going to have issues with not having enough travel on compression and youve deffinately lost lift height. They are however very protected where youve got them. Nice and tucked up. Nice work but id take some more measurements before you put the welder away.
 
I'll agree that I may lose a little bit, but I was running a small lift shackle anyway and I think LII says they're a direct bolt-in for "the original shackle," so I may be down an inch or so. Luckily, my rear rides a little higher than the front anyway, so it should help level it out some. As far as spring length, yes, they will ride rearward of center... some. However, my RE1463's don't really flex all that much and the rig sees slow, technical trails 95% of the time. Through trial and error, I can put some bump stops in if it ends up being an issue... Some great points that I forgot to cover #win!
 
Did you mount up your leaf springs and axle to verify everything fits properly? The problem I had with the LII sliders was the leaf spring made contact with slider box.

From the looks, it looks like you may loose 2-3" of lift. You mounted them VERY high.
 
I ment below not under. Those sliders are designed to bolt in using the stock shackle box. Not replace it. You will likely lose about 2" of lift.

Even with a small shackle, the rear spring eye extends beyond the upper shackle mount. You have those installed so the furthest point of the slider is about the spot of the factory upper shackle mount point. I think your going to have problems there. Id grab your springs and install them and cycle the suspension before you button it up.
 
I did some more measuring today...

The springs measure 53" with a soft tape measure along the top leaf from eye to eye (center to center). With the factory front mount location, that puts the slider bolt practically touching the leading edge of the rear crossmember, which is about a half to 3/4" beyond its travel. Bad scenario with the spring at full compression, i.e. completely flat.

Springs measure 49" in a straight line from eye to eye while completely relaxed. That's installed on the axle with no weight on them at all. On the jeep, that puts the slider bolt at about 2/3's of the way back in its channel.

All installed and supporting the jeep, at this point, I can only assume they'll slide back about an inch or so and leave very little room for compression. Figure in cargo and weight transfer while climbing hills... gonna hafta change something.

With as solid as it's welded in, how satisfied I am with their location (high and tight), and the pending repairs needed for the front mounts as well (the drivers side ended up trying to come up through the floor at some point), my current thoughts are to relocate the front mounts just a tad forward to compensate. Yeah, I'll lose some wheelbase and departure angle. However, I really haven't had any issues with departure angle to date and the shorter wheelbase may assist my turning radius, given the full spool that just got installed...

Thoughts?
 
Before I did any more work, I would sling the axle back under it and see exactly how it will sit on its own weight. I still believe you will lose several inches of height as well. Being as you will need to move the front forward and you will need to gain back some lift I would build a bastard back using a chevy 52" main. They have 0 offset at the center pin effectively moving the axle back where you would want it as the xj springs have a 2.5" forward offset.
 
I feel the lift loss can be dealt with via some blocks under the springs, so that can be remedied pretty easily, imo.

Will the Chevy 52" be the same width (fit inside the sliders)?

May be a silly question, but I've heard of people being able to weld on leaf springs, I've just never seen it done in person. Is it feasible to cut out a section of the main leaf and put it back together to get the shorter length if I take my time and make a solid weld?

The remnants of the front mount will be coming off soon for rust repair. Still working on fixing the floor above it in the meantime...
 
Yeah you can remedy lost lift with blocks easily.






And in the process destroy your leafs ujoints and shocks with axle wrap. Not a good plan.

Not trying to be an ass but the only real remedy is more arched spring. And that will only amplify the spring eye travel issue you have now.
 
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Chevy 52" springs are 2.5" wide just like the xj. Welding spring steel will change the spring rate and weaken the springs. If I broke one on the trail and needed a temporary fix I wouldn't hesitate, as far as doing it to shorten a set of leaves, no way. You already stated that you need to rebuild the front hangers, so move them forward and make it work or relocate the sliders more toward the rear.
 
Chevy 52" springs are 2.5" wide just like the xj. Welding spring steel will change the spring rate and weaken the springs. If I broke one on the trail and needed a temporary fix I wouldn't hesitate, as far as doing it to shorten a set of leaves, no way. You already stated that you need to rebuild the front hangers, so move them forward and make it work or relocate the sliders more toward the rear.
Quick search says '73-'87 1/2-ton pickups have those springs...

Does that sound right?
 
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