Trouble in Paradise, rusty's 4.5 XJ lift

[XJ_ranger]

Im a college student so money is rare for me and to waste 1500 of it would just suck, also what append to the love here?

if 1500 is steep........


get out of this sport now....



right now...


dont walk....


RUN!!!!!!!!

 

[wiltj]

well for a college student, any money is steep, i still look around town to find the cheapest place to wash my chlothes. im not gona dive complely into this, and im sure as i find a job in the world of real work ill have more to throw at my xj but for now im jsut chillin. dont hate, dont hate.

also any word on why the rear springs are soo hard?

 

[smithz]

Strange you had so many problems. A friend of mine and I installed Rusty's 4.5" full spring pack in a couple days. I had never done it before, he had lifted his dodge himself. The only problems we had were stuck bolts and broken bolts. The rear actually took way longer than the front because of that, which is backwards of course. We actually got the coils in without compressing them at all, just need to let the axle droop enough and they squeezed in by hand.

As for your problems with Rusty's, I'll say they do make mistakes in shipping. But never once has he failed to make it right at his expense. Rusty knows his shit, and you can nearly always get him on the phone to ask questions, but you need to know what you are talking about and ask the right questions. Sometimes it's a pain, but like I said he has always come through.

And his lifts work pretty damn well for the cost...

As for the rough ride... learn to love it or sell it now. I've heard that RE and other lifts are way stiffer than Rusty's too. My advice, don't drive so fast over speed bumps.

 

[ncjeepfreak]

the rustys kits are made from missmatched parts, i'v heard of a few people who have had problems with them, just try and make it work, thats all i can tell ya

 

[smithz]

the rustys kits are made from missmatched parts, i'v heard of a few people who have had problems with them, just try and make it work, thats all i can tell ya

Not sure where you got that from, but everything worked fine for me.

 

[Wa Woody]

First; the front swaybar is missing its end drops so that it can be connected back to the frame this is something i might need.

I installed Rusty's 4.5" lift by myself on my rig over 4 years ago and mine didn't come with the swaybar end drops either, some things never change. I install a set of JKS quick disconnects. I wanted to be able to utilize the articulation in the longer springs I had just installed. BTW, I spent over a week of evenings getting everything in the way I wanted. This was my first lift on a XJ and I wanted it safe for me and my family. Good Luck

JKS Quick Disconnects:
http://store.jksmfg.com/merchant2/m..._Code=JKS01&Category_Code=Swaybar_Disconnects

Woody

 

[Nine Mile]

I bought my XJ with all of rusty's components on it.

The very first thing I did was go through and replace them all with RE.

Rusty's stuff is just weak, clunky junk.

I kept the springs for now though...but they will go eventually too.

 

[Chero-King]

also any word on why the rear springs are soo hard?

Well they're brand new springs, they'll settle and break in after some time. Usually people put a bunch of heavy tools or something in the back to break them in quicker. Once they're broken in the height will lower a bit and you'll have a better ride.

 

[boise49ers]

So did the weak clunky junk actually break or is it from what people told you ? People used to tell me the same thing about Trailmaster, but I have yet to break a component of the lift and it has seen lots of rock. It has been about 8 years since I installed it.
I'm not doubting you , but if it is just hear say you are going by, I'd think twice about believing it. JMO !:sunshine:

 

[cal]

So did the weak clunky junk actually break or is it from what people told you ? People used to tell me the same thing about Trailmaster, but I have yet to break a component of the lift and it has seen lots of rock. It has been about 8 years since I installed it.
I'm not doubting you , but if it is just hear say you are going by, I'd think twice about believing it. JMO !:sunshine:

It goes beyond just hear say when the majority says it. Myself, I know two people personally that have nearly been killed when rusty's parts broke for no reason sending jeeps out of control.. the biggest culp. seems to be their trackbar, but I wont ride in a jeep that has any of their suspension parts at all.

Do it right the first time, you get what you pay for, and theres a reason rusty's stuff looks so cheap.

 

[Nine Mile]

So did the weak clunky junk actually break or is it from what people told you ? People used to tell me the same thing about Trailmaster, but I have yet to break a component of the lift and it has seen lots of rock. It has been about 8 years since I installed it.
I'm not doubting you , but if it is just hear say you are going by, I'd think twice about believing it. JMO !:sunshine:

I have built many different models of Jeeps and used his stuff before. I learned myself. Some of it broke, other stuff just had too much play waay too soon in its service life.

These components were SHOT. Nothing was broke yet but the entire axle was moving forward and back a few inches due to his junk arms and side to side due to his trackbar. I could not take the noise or the feeling of having the front end walking all over the place. Yes all bolts were tight. Lift only had a few thousand miles on it at most.

 

[bigblueandugly]

thats to bad you had a hard time with the guys on the phone, although they can seem to have issues with shipping (i ordered a trac bar and got an empty box with a whole in it...) they have always been unbelievably helpful and easy to talk too, dont give up on them and always be respectful!!!

 

[boise49ers]

I have built many different models of Jeeps and used his stuff before. I learned myself. Some of it broke, other stuff just had too much play waay too soon in its service life.

These components were SHOT. Nothing was broke yet but the entire axle was moving forward and back a few inches due to his junk arms and side to side due to his trackbar. I could not take the noise or the feeling of having the front end walking all over the place. Yes all bolts were tight. Lift only had a few thousand miles on it at most.

Man you would think if the stuff is that bad someone would of had that place shut down by now. The reason I put that responce in was the fact everyone bad mouthed Trailmaster for years then RE came out with basically the exact drop bracket set up. I just found that ironic as hell. Trailmaster does ride very firm, but I have very very good articulation because of it. The set up on this is Trailmaster 4" coils with 2" spacers Trailmaster drop brackets and Terra Flex adjustable LCAs. The lift is 8 years old and I have just added the Spacers and LCAs. No vibration,death wobble and I run w/out sway bars because the springs are so firm. It actually has very good road manner if you can by the stiff ass LTB swampers riding like bricks.
http://myweb.cableone.net/cherokeexj/Flexout.avi