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LOWEST prices on lift kits???

xL8 APEKSx

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Garden Grove, CA
Hey gang,

I'm trying to find the best prices on lifts. I've checked out jeepinoutfitters (they look to be the lowest), and 4x4groupbuy.com .

Are there any other sources to consider, or will these be the absolute cheapest? I'm looking for a 4.5" spring pack kit, and plan to run 32's. Let me know where else I should look. Thanks much! Nice meeting some of you at the OC GTG!
 
PM "FullSizeXJ" or "Dan Turner", they can give you a pretty decent price on RE stuff (i think they might be able to get other companies as well) if thats what your looking at...
 
Oy vey, I'm so confused! lol. People are trying to steer me away from Rusty's parts. I've heard a lot of back-and-forth between Rusty's and Rough Country, but they look to be comparable. I also read in a few posts that the Rusty's LCA's (I think) were quite beefy compared to the Rough Country units.

If I did end up going the "budget" route with a Rust or RC kit, what makes them such a bad idea for recreational wheeling? Are there any parts in particular that are prone to breaking? I think they would do the trick for me for the time being, and I could always upgrade later...maybe a year or so from now.

But I figure, I might only get some good wheeling in maybe 6 times a year with my current schedule. Surely the budget stuff will hold up to a handful of moderate 4x4 weekends??? The RE stuff is nice, but the $300+ difference means I could also throw in a locker or some skids if I went the budget route!

Thanks for the feedback, I just want to make the right choice for my intents and budget! :) Oh, and if you have any used parts (not used up...lol) let me know! ;)
 
ya know. Theres alot of us that will tell ya to do it right the first time. But thats hard to understand I think for most. Why spend X amount now, then in a few months to a yr spend X + 300-400$ more?

It really is a wise decission to get the right part the first time. You really will be much better off. Not saying that you need RE or better yet Currie stuff off the get. It depends on what you Truely are going for. Mall cruiser and looking cool is rusty or rouch country all the way! If you plan on very mild trails that a reg ole say f150 with mud tires can handle, then again rusty's or RC is still ok.

But if you disire to do say big bear trails and follow the leader on some trails more then a fire road type, then either wait till you can get better quality or break out the credit card and dont waste your Time and $.

IMO..
Mall / looking cool -
Rusty's
Rough country
trailmaster
or any kit under 4" without lower control arms or over 3" without new trackbar, lower control arms, shocks, full pack leafs, new coils.

true moderate trail use without worry's of breakage (usually) -
Rubicon express
Full traction
Currie
fabtech kits (thier higher $ kits)

just some brands, there are others out there.

I just dont like looking back on all the wasted $$ spent on different rigs because I was too cheap to just go the right stuff the first time.
 
well Rustys is cheap but you get what you pay for. I am finally Rusty's free except for coils and leafs but those are actually decent. If I had to do it again, I would have went RE all the way. If you are on a tight budget, get the RE control arms and trackbar. then get rustys coils and leafs
 
djblade311 said:
well Rustys is cheap but you get what you pay for. I am finally Rusty's free except for coils and leafs but those are actually decent. If I had to do it again, I would have went RE all the way. If you are on a tight budget, get the RE control arms and trackbar. then get rustys coils and leafs


I get that much, but my question is...how many Rusty's parts did you have on your rig that broke on you and left you stranded on a trail unable to complete the route? I know it's not the best stuff...but if it works, it works.

I don't want to spend $1,500 on a suspension to complete the same trail that I could have gotten away with a $750 suspension on...to me, that's $750 thrown away!

I definitely am not into just "looking cool"...my target trails are moderate routes around Big Bear and Death Valley. I want to complete 'Con in this truck at some point, but I know this will require a little more equipment that I will add later on down the road.

I guess here's the determining factor...one of my favorite trails is Holcomb Creek, from Green Valley Lake to Big Bear Lake. It's fun, but not particularly difficult.

Those of you familiar with that area/trail network...would a budget 4.5" kit be adequate for these, or do I need a high-digit kit to complete trails like Holcomb Creek? I haven't wheeled in a few years, but I remember this being a "moderate" trail. I don't plan on anything too extreme, and if I want something extreme later on down the road, I can always add to the truck for the specific trail I want to complete.

Let me know! Thanks!
 
xL8 APEKSx said:
I get that much, but my question is...how many Rusty's parts did you have on your rig that broke on you and left you stranded on a trail unable to complete the route? I know it's not the best stuff...but if it works, it works.

Here is why I dont recommend the Rusty's trackbar:

2006-11-19+036.jpg


That was doing an easy/moderate trail in JV. If you search on NAXJA, pirate4x4, and other sites, you will see that Rusty's trackbars are very prone to failure when you least expect it. So I only recommend those if you are only going to do mall crawling.

As for the upper and lower control arms, I got tired of the clucking noises and sloppiness in my steering. When you first put the stuff on, you wont notice but after a little abuse, you will start to get real picky and notice these types of things.
 
xL8 APEKSx said:
I get that much, but my question is...how many Rusty's parts did you have on your rig that broke on you and left you stranded on a trail unable to complete the route? I know it's not the best stuff...but if it works, it works.

Fuck the trail, Rusty's parts break *on the highway*, sending you out of control off of the side of the road. One of our local chapter members was nearly killed by a rusty's trackbar failure - which if you research is a very common failure.
 
why would they not have upgraded at this point then? that doesn't make sense to have a commonly known problem and do nothing about it to where a bad rep hurts sales. strange
 
thats the lingering question indeed. Some vendors are very good at listening to what customers have to say and make improvements and then there are some that dont give a rats a$$ because they are making money off the poor saps that dont know any better.
 
Yeah id listen to what Robert is saying, Do it right the first time. I might cost a little more but in the end you wont be spending twice as much. I have an RE 4.5" and NEVER have had a problem with any of their products. Id never buy from Rusty's or that eBay rough country/skycrapper stuff.
 
I just bought a Rustys 4.5 full spring kit. Of course, I've only driven one real trail with it (Holcomb Creek in Big Bear), but i ran it hard, and it feels pretty good to me. Out the door was about 750.00, but I must admit i'm watching that trac bar like a hawk, since i've heard the horror stories. It rides smooth, flexes great and looks good. Just my two cents :).
 
Awesome info.

What does a set of trac bars cost from RE or anyone other than Rusty's if I buy them stand-alone? I may use Rusty's coils and springpacks, but a different trac bar setup...but I'll poke around my finances more and see if I can hack the full RE kit. Thanks for setting me straight on the trac bar issue, I may call Rusty's and see what they have to say about the issue.
 
For a *good* trackbar setup (RE HD trackbar, mount, and brace) your looking in the $200's. You can get the non HD one for $125 or so here used alot, but I would suggest saving and getting the good one.
 
xL8 APEKSx said:
Thanks for setting me straight on the trac bar issue, I may call Rusty's and see what they have to say about the issue.

Hey while your at it, can you please call chrysler and ask them about thier rear hatch on the early caravans, and also ford on the gas tanks on the pinto, and dont leave out rockkrawler on thier rear wishbone for the TJ. Please post the answer they all give ya. I bet its something like "really thats the first we heard of that, we will check in to it". :laugh:
 
Save a few pennies more and get RE. They won't let you down. I tried the cheap way at first with ProComp 3" and 2" spacers and shackles, it rode like a jackhammer and vibrated my dashboard appart just going down the 91.. Their 4.5" kit is not really that expensive anyway, and rides really nice... My 4.5" kit lasted 4 years before I sold my XJ with moderate to some extreme offroading.... Never had any issues.

Patience Grasshoppa and do it right the first time...
 
Rusty's seems like a pretty small outfit - I worked for a similar company and we did address an issue as soon as it came up in the next batch of products. So if it's something they've heard about, and they're a stand-up operation, then I'd think they would be willing to at least acknowledge the issue. We'll see though. I'll call them tomorrow. :)
 
xL8 APEKSx said:
Rusty's seems like a pretty small outfit - I worked for a similar company and we did address an issue as soon as it came up in the next batch of products. So if it's something they've heard about, and they're a stand-up operation, then I'd think they would be willing to at least acknowledge the issue. We'll see though. I'll call them tomorrow. :)


I bought a 3" ProCrap lift and ignorantly allowed them to substitute Rancho leaves. Didja know that Rancho 3" leaves only give you 1.5" of lift? Yeah... I didn't either.

However, had I listened, I would have learned from Charles Stein that he was replacing his ProCrap control arm bushings every six months because that's the duration of their wear. Guess how long they lasted on my rig? Seven months.

You're more than welcome to ignore my advice and Josh's advice and everybody here who has already been there and done that. Buy whatever you want and then you too, can learn the hard way.
 
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