lifting without drop brackets....

ok i'm peicing my lift together and i am weighing the reasonable options.. i'm shooting for a minimum of 4.5" with RE parts.... i am not going with the CA drop brackets.. how much higher can i reasonably go considering the angle of the CAs at that point? i have some 33x10.50s that i am ok with cutting to fit but the less complicated the better.. what about a 1" spacer on top of the 4.5" coil? how much axle droop will i have left? doesnt seem like much at that point.. i'm going for function... not inches.. if i can swing it with a spacer and not cut i'd prefer that but i am sketching out my plan right now... this is a 95% trail rig so actual road manners arent as important.. but safety is since it will be driven to all trail runs
thanks guys
mike

What is the terrain you will be on? If it requires a lot of articulation, then you are simply crazy to be cheap with this one. Not buying the right components for what you need is a bad idea. I would suggest you rethink your ink, and get it done right the first time= long arms or drop brackets . . .the drop bracket is a really cost effective solution to the droop you're looking for, and somewhere down the road I'm sure you will do it neway.

PC-UT-XJ said:

What is the terrain you will be on? If it requires a lot of articulation, then you are simply crazy to be cheap with this one. Not buying the right components for what you need is a bad idea. I would suggest you rethink your ink, and get it done right the first time= long arms or drop brackets . . .the drop bracket is a really cost effective solution to the droop you're looking for, and somewhere down the road I'm sure you will do it neway.

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i thought the purpose of long arms and drop brackets were to improve the on-road driving. not to increase droop. you can droop just fine with short arms without drop brackets

IntrepidXJ said:

i thought the purpose of long arms and drop brackets were to improve the on-road driving. not to increase droop. you can droop just fine with short arms without drop brackets

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Biggest problem you'll run into, is that instead of the suspension sucking up the bumps, it'll be transferred through the arm angles, into the unibody frame brackets, which could damage them.

IntrepidXJ said:

you can droop just fine with short arms without drop brackets

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without drop brackets, short arms will begin to swing rearwards as the axle drops near the bottom of their travel.

awr94903 said:

without drop brackets, short arms will begin to swing rearwards as the axle drops near the bottom of their travel.

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usually something else is limiting droop before that point, though

IntrepidXJ said:

usually something else is limiting droop before that point, though

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not, my shocks do limit my droop, but when i climb the ledges the jeep tries to drive over the front axle, and push it under because of the steep CA angle (i have 6" with short arms - it sucks)

IntrepidXJ said:

usually something else is limiting droop before that point, though

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if your suspension is setup somewhat correctly, it will be an issue at 5" & up

i will be running mostly rocks.... and i don't like how low those drop brackets reduce ground clearance.. and they put additional leverage on the mount and tear the mount from the frame.. i have seen this twice.. the 5" point was what i was thinking as the limit.. i have seen some pretty steep CA angles with no compliant from the owner.. i agree with "do it right, do it once" ....... but i'm looking for first hand info about what is RIGHT for guys who are running this set-up... so i can decide if its right for me.... i'm not cheap, so i don't appreciate the inference.. i don't want to cut my fenders OR run steep angles but i know one is inevitable.. i'm looking for a happy medium for a rig that will see road duty 4 or 5 times a month.... if i run this set-up.. think i'll need adjustable LCAs or just the uppers?
mike

Get the braces with the drop brackets! Of course without the braces there will be too much leverage and thats not the right or safe way to do it.

I run the setup you are looking at 4.5" RE coils with 3/4" spacer in addition to stock isolator. It droops great but it will do even better with the drop brackets. The axle DOES travel in an arc and I don't like that. I'm looking forward to more straight up-and-down once I upgrade to the drop brackets. And on-road the steep angle of the short arms has been bugging me for a while now.