96'+ owners with Old Man Emu 3"

How many of you guys have actually needed an SYE and longer driveshaft? I'm ordering the lift in less than 2 weeks and I can't decide if I should do the 3" kit or just stick with the HD 2". I can't afford and SYE and driveshaft right now, but all of my shocks are blown and the rear is sagging badly on my 99' Classic. The ride has gotten extremely rough, the interior panels are starting to rattle, and the Jeep is starting to sway on lane changes and turns. Also, if I do decide on the 2" how badly am I going to rub on stock wheels? I'm planning on running 31's because I have an old spare that has never been used and that will save me some money. The OME website says you can run 31's but it doesn't say anything about fender trimming or rubbing...

If you disconnect the swaybars and off road it, 31s will rub with the 3" kit as well as the 2" kit. Its all about bumpstops or trimming with any tire over 30". The only thing the additional inch of lift will give you is more upward travel before the tires rub.
As far as the SYE goes. Thats more about tolerance and patience than a "need". Some people are more tolerant with vibes than others and some people take the time to get their driveline angles just right before breaking down and getting a SYE.
Me, I installed my SYE before I even had the lift all the way on because Im not tolerant or patient.

t-case drop would be fine, for your 99.

88XjLaredo said:

How many of you guys have actually needed an SYE and longer driveshaft?

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Mine didn't need the SYE or slip-shaft with the 3" HD kit, but I did put 4-degree shims in the leaf pack which probably helped.

I'm ordering the lift in less than 2 weeks and I can't decide if I should do the 3" kit or just stick with the HD 2".

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I'd say go with the 3" HD kit, add some degree shims, and see how it works out.

Also, if I do decide on the 2" how badly am I going to rub on stock wheels? I'm planning on running 31's because I have an old spare that has never been used and that will save me some money. The OME website says you can run 31's but it doesn't say anything about fender trimming or rubbing...

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You can run 31s on the 2" kit, but will pretty much certainly rub - hell, I can get rub at 3" on 31s under serious flex.

When I lifted my 94 4" I had serious vibrations. I called Rusty's Off Road ready to bite the bullet and buy slip-yoke eliminator kit, but they told me it was unnecessary, and that I could get by very well with a 1" T-case drop and 3 degree axle shims. They were right. No problems since, and it was very inexpensive and easy. They had the opportunity to sell me something very expensive on more than one occasion, but instead they sold me something more affordable that was just as effective.

By all means go with the 3 inch!

'96 with 3" lift (not Old Man Emu but still 3" plus) and 31X10.5, added 3 degree shims to rear with 1" TC drop = no vibes. 2" bump stop extensions front and rear also shimmed steering bump stops, slight lower corner triming of stock flares = no tire rubbing with stock rims.
I wheel mine every chance I get, nothing extreme mostly 3 star and a couple of 4 star rated, go with the 3" and enjoy it. :wave1:
I will get a SYE when the budget permits and suggest it strongly as preventive measures are usually cheaper than the repairs would be not to mention the inconvenience of breakage. :tears:
Hope this helps some.

Mike

On my 01 I have the 2" OME kit and I added a BB spacer/shackle to that and I sit about 4" over stock. I did bump stops to keep from rubbing. Also I some slight vibes at 35Mph, I did an RE H&T with a front shaft conversion and total cost was less then $200. I did not do shims, yet, I now have a slight vibe that starts at 75 Mph and continued as far as I pushed it.

I ran the OME 3" kit on my '98 for over a years with no SYE, t-case drop or shims and all was fine.

Running 31s it needed an extra inch of bumpstop all around, longer brakelines and a bit of trimming of plastic at the front and rear of the wheel well openings.

My 99 classic has the HD OME leaves (3"?) and a 1.5 shackle and had nasty vibes before a tcase drop. Its pretty smooth now, just waiting for $$ to do a sye and front driveshaft. Its been fine for almost a year with just the tcase drop tho.

I have the CS034RA packs on my 98(w/242) with no SYE currently, and no vibes. They net 2.5" of lift with my normal gear in the cargo area.

I have the 3" OME kit (H.D.) and it sits about 4" over stock with 31s on it. Yes, they do rub on the front pretty well...I've trimmed about 2 inches off the front and relocated the flares higher to match...no real rubbing issues (or at least not nearly as bad now). I'm putting on 4 rear TJ flares to open up the wheel wells even more...but I'm very happy with the kit. I have the SYE and driveshaft as well. Rides great though, you won't be disappointed.

I used OME 2" Medium Duty rears and was stunned by how much vibration I got. Rusty told me that no driveline mods would be needed when I bought the springs. This based on his experience, I suppose.

So I dropped the T-Case and degree shimmed the rear. The vibes got worse, and grew over a wider range of speeds.

I did an AA SYE w/Woods shaft and 2 degree shims and all is fine. Better than it was before I started. This was because my truck had established a wear pattern in the slip yoke and output shaft. Once disturbed, it vibrated like crazy.

Just do the SYE and shaft. You won't regret it.

Just my 2 cents.