Shredded/Broken Shackle Mount. Something NEW!!??

Well, has anybody encountered an issue with the rear-top-inner shackle mount breaking/shredding/disinegrating? I needed to change the shackle bushings (duh now) and of course the welded nutsert broke off. Tried to access through the frame-rail but couldn't get a socket to work. Then cut a slit, with angle grinder, to access from below using an open ended 15/16's wrench, success. Then come to find what you see see in the pics, not much metal. Have not seen, heard, know of, or come across anything like this anywhere during my XJ building time...
Any ideas/thoughts/solutions for this one?

Well, I really can't see from the pics, because I can't see the pics, they are really small.

Sounds like you need some of the shackle relocation brackets from HD Offroad.

Larger sized pics can be seen at:

http://rides.webshots.com/album/574361591TeoJUU?vhost=rides

If interested...

ScottM

wow, looks to me like it was over torqued at some point.... thats the only thing i can come up with

Cant see it in the pictures but how does the outer hole in the box look?

That is what mine looked like, after letting a shop tech "helped" me change leaf springs. I should have read the "how to" on cutting the shackle in half and using heat to get the bolt unstuck. Live and learn.

So I copied these

http://naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=934581&highlight=shackle+box+thingy

But I did some things wrong. I made the sides go up too high, so welding the top bead was very hard. I made them with multi holes like BrianHo's design... I only need the forward holes and the shackle slams into the bracket when I take big hits.... I'm gonna cut alot of extra metal off when I get new shackles and just leave the forward most holes. I also drove without the rear bumper installed and the stock sheetmetal shackle box broke away from the rear cross member a bit. The bumper mount bolts hold the whole thing tight. So I had to reweld all that.... Add to all this I let some Idiot weld the thick steel to the thin unibody and he did a terrible job. I was just learning to weld and had to fix a lot of his work. Like the gaping hole he left in my frame.

Things I did right: I hammered the frame side back into shape, put a large washer on both sides of the weakened metal. Sleeved the space where the shackle would have gone, and bolted the whole thing in. The bolt is like a backup to my so-so welding skills!

This was what I made

Thx for the tips guys.
Think I'll try to have some sort of steel box fab'd for the shackle mount and relocate/lower the upper shackle mount location like your pics and the added link. I never liked the stock upper shackle mount with the nutsert in the framerail anyway... .
fiyerbirdie: Why are you using the front hole on the shackle mount? What size shackles are you using? How much lift did you gain by dropping/relocating the upper shackle mount? I'd it's dropped about 2.5" which would net about 1.25" of lift depending upon the new angle of the shackle. Any feedback regarding moving the shackle forward/backward compared to the stock location(lengthwise)?
MG200XJ: Outer shackle box hole is fine. Just the inner hole is shredded.
Thx again,
ScottM

GenXJeep said:

fiyerbirdie: Why are you using the front hole on the shackle mount?

Click to expand...

I'm not but I might if I add longer shackles. I'm currently in the second hole. The shackle was making contact with the mount. Huge CLUNK... shackles are/were getting beat up. Trimmed the mount some, need to trim more. I wish I would have made the tabs more like XJRangers and less like brianho's kit.

Here is after some trimming, not enough, still CLUNKS... not as hard and not as often but still making contact.

GenXJeep said:

What size shackles are you using?

Click to expand...

Right now, Stock. :

GenXJeep said:

How much lift did you gain by dropping/relocating the upper shackle mount? I'd say it's dropped about 2.5" which would net about 1.25" of lift depending upon the new angle of the shackle.

Click to expand...

Sounds about right, All at once I changed the hangers, and the leaves from bastard packs and long shackles to stiff RE 4.5 leafs with stock shackles..... so it's hard to say this change netted this much, and that change netted that much.

GenXJeep said:

Any feedback regarding moving the shackle forward/backward compared to the stock location(lengthwise)?

Click to expand...

With my leaves and stock location and stock shackles... no way too stiff.
If I had less lift in the leafpacks, and ran longer shackles farther forward I'd have the same lift with more flex, and softer ride.
Right now I'm in the middle ground. I should have cut higher on the stock hangar box, mounted longer shackles from tabs like XJRanger and made sure they didn't hit. I would have had same leaves, same lift, more droop and a better ride.