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RE 7.5" LA installed, few problems/questions

T

TheSandman

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Richmond, VA
I finally installed my RE LA kit last week, but I'm having a few small problems and need some help. First off, the rear is sitting too high for my liking. I know I could put isolator's up front to level it out, but it's already high enough up front, so I would like to do something about the rear. I was thinking either getting smaller leafs (5.5") or taking out a leaf to lower it down some. Is there any negative's to removing a leaf? Or would it better just to get smaller leafs?


Lastely, I have an SYE installed with a new driveshaft. I was getting some highway vibs so I installed 6* shims and took care of the problem. Only problem is, I've never installed shims before, so I drilled out the hole in the shim so the leaf spring bolt fitted in the shim. Now from reading, I should have gotten a longer bolt and bolted the shim to leaf with the longer bolt.

Should I get new shims and do it the right way?

Thanks
 
yes, you should get new shims, the way you did them, the axle can shift over the place as the bolt head is not in the perch

for the rear. what you have for the shackles? as well how much inches you wish to lower the rear? that would help on how to find out what should be done for lowering the rear end
 
95' heep said:
yes, you should get new shims, the way you did them, the axle can shift over the place as the bolt head is not in the perch

for the rear. what you have for the shackles? as well how much inches you wish to lower the rear? that would help on how to find out what should be done for lowering the rear end
Click to expand...

Yeah I think I'm gonna get new shims just to be safe.

As for the rear, I think they are 6.5" packs with 1" shackle. I would like to lower the rear 1" or 2" at the most. I thought about taking out the shackles, but that would hinder my flex in the rear right?
 
i would think you should be able to call to the RE and ask them to see if they will send you the 5.5" lift leaf packs (send your 6.5" leaf packs back to them) to take care of the rake that you dont like
 
Eh, it could be worth a shot, although I doubt they'd go for it since I've driven on these.

About the shims, can you just get longer bolts and round the head off to make them fit into the leaf perch?
 
Just installed? Put your gear in the back and go flex it out. They're made to sit a little higher to make up for settling and trail weight. Flex them several times and they'll relax, likely settling even with the front. Also make sure your bolts were tightened on the ground and not while it was still in the air. Bushings can bind up and make the springs 'taller' than they're supposed to be.
 
ECKSJAY said:
Just installed? Put your gear in the back and go flex it out. They're made to sit a little higher to make up for settling and trail weight. Flex them several times and they'll relax, likely settling even with the front. Also make sure your bolts were tightened on the ground and not while it was still in the air. Bushings can bind up and make the springs 'taller' than they're supposed to be.
Click to expand...

Yeah I tightened the shackles and front leaf bolt with the weight on them.

What's your take on the shims? You think they would be ok to run for a week or so until I can get new shims and longer bolts?
 
i broke a center pin on my rear axle and one tire floated out of alignment pretty quickly so it looked like i drove at a 45 degree angle lol
 
TheSandman said:
Yeah I tightened the shackles and front leaf bolt with the weight on them.

What's your take on the shims? You think they would be ok to run for a week or so until I can get new shims and longer bolts?
Click to expand...

Keep your ubolts tight (they break in, too, and you have to check them regularly after install) and as long as the head of the center pin goes through the shim and into the perch, you should be fine. Have been running my own and installing them that way for years... The only broken/shifted ones I've seen resulted from people not re-torquing the ubolts after install.
 
Ya it sounds like the leafsprings need to be broken in. I'd say throw a ton of weight in there and drive around like that for a while, they will start to settle.

I agree with Ecksjay, as long as the center pin goes through your shim and into the spring perch you'll be fine. I've had shims on mine like this for at least 3 years and 3 different leaf packs/axles. Not one problem.
 
ECKSJAY said:
Keep your ubolts tight (they break in, too, and you have to check them regularly after install) and as long as the head of the center pin goes through the shim and into the perch, you should be fine. Have been running my own and installing them that way for years... The only broken/shifted ones I've seen resulted from people not re-torquing the ubolts after install.
Click to expand...

X2 alot of shims sold do NOT bolt to the pack.As long as the center pin protrudes thru the shim and into the perch your good to go(RE packs come with an addition center pin spacer-usually installed).
 
Just like Ecksjay said put some weight in the back drive around the springs will settle once there broken in. Its better to have the shims bolted to the bottom of the leaf pack but they also sell shims that are already drill out enough to fit over the leaf back bolt. So as long as some of the bolt or pin head sticks through also like Ecksjay said you will be okay.
 
RCP Phx said:
X2 alot of shims sold do NOT bolt to the pack.As long as the center pin protrudes thru the shim and into the perch your good to go(RE packs come with an addition center pin spacer-usually installed).
Click to expand...
Ya I was going to say, I really haven't seen any shims sold that actually bolt to the leaf packs. But then again, I only looked once when I bought mine.
 
When I installed my RE Longarm, I used the 7.5" springs in the front and the 4.5" springs in the rear w/ a RE 1.25" shackle. It's sits nice and level. Rubicon allways build their kits to sit high in the rear.
 
I actually took care it today. I noticed that the rear ended up shifting forward on one side. So I took one leaf out and the bolt ended up being long enough to work with the shim. All I did was put a washer on the leaf bolt head so it didn't fall through the shim. Jeep still sits a tad higher in the rear, but it looks a lot better I think.

I plan on holding on to the extra leaf, just in case it settles more and ends up sagging in the rear.
 
ECKSJAY said:
Just installed? Put your gear in the back and go flex it out. They're made to sit a little higher to make up for settling and trail weight. Flex them several times and they'll relax, likely settling even with the front. Also make sure your bolts were tightened on the ground and not while it was still in the air. Bushings can bind up and make the springs 'taller' than they're supposed to be.
Click to expand...


yup, if they are brand new springs they need to be driven on and flexed a little to break in. my rear sat higher than the front when i installed my kit, after a few weeks my rear now sags lower than the front. just toss your spare in the trunk with a tool box or something with some weight and drive around on it for a while, it will even out.
 
TheSandman said:
I actually took care it today. I noticed that the rear ended up shifting forward on one side. So I took one leaf out and the bolt ended up being long enough to work with the shim. All I did was put a washer on the leaf bolt head so it didn't fall through the shim. Jeep still sits a tad higher in the rear, but it looks a lot better I think.

I plan on holding on to the extra leaf, just in case it settles more and ends up sagging in the rear.
Click to expand...

That doesnt make sense and could be quite dangerous!
 
RCP Phx said:
That doesnt make sense and could be quite dangerous!
Click to expand...

I put a washer between the center leaf pack bolt head and the shim. I'm not gonna stay like that. I plan on getting new shims and a longer leaf pack bolt. It's not dangerous, everything is secure, I double checked everything so I made sure I didn't die.
 
TheSandman said:
I put a washer between the center leaf pack bolt head and the shim. I'm not gonna stay like that. I plan on getting new shims and a longer leaf pack bolt. It's not dangerous, everything is secure, I double checked everything so I made sure I didn't die.
Click to expand...
Uhhm no,a washer isnt going to provide enough stable surface on the spring perch,youll either rack the perch or cause rocking!
 
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