Rear suspension shackle box thing -

[XJ_ranger]

he removed leafs to maintain the same ride heigth when he did the shackle box mod, this allowed axle wrap to be more apparent.

exactly!:clap:

 

[Ramsey]

And then he made a traction bar out of some girly material and broke it.

 

[Mr.OverKill]

And then he made a traction bar out of some girly material and broke it.

and then had a real welder fix it with..........................................................................















wait for it..........................................................................


















Flux Core!!!!!! my favorate!!!!!!!!!! :laugh3:

 

[XJ_ranger]

Flux Core!!!!!! my favorate!!!!!!!!!! :laugh3:

yeah - at competition, had a 3550watt generator... needed it to continue...

lets just say it was not my first choice of welding process...

 

[Dan Fredrickson]

The basic desiign is good.......However.......

You need the top tube to match the bottom in length, anything else causes the stress fracture you had, just make the top bar longer and you will not break it.

 

[JeepFreak21]

Anybody ever thought of running a tube from the top of the new "mounting plate", up inside the existing shackle box, through the floor to eventually tie into an interior cage?

I was going to do this shackle box mod tonight until I started thinking ahead. I don't have a cage right now, but I think it would be a lot harder to go back and tie it in later.

What do you all think?

Billy

 

[Starboard M]

Anybody ever thought of running a tube from the top of the new "mounting plate", up inside the existing shackle box, through the floor to eventually tie into an interior cage?

I was going to do this shackle box mod tonight until I started thinking ahead. I don't have a cage right now, but I think it would be a lot harder to go back and tie it in later.

What do you all think?

Billy

Yes.



Just some random ideas I had: Put a tube through where the shackle bolts right now to act like a crush sleeve, and then tie that into the new box. And on the outside of where the old bolt was and tie that into a cage by going through the floor.


Im sure most of that is overkill, but I would think it would be worth it. But then again, I tend to overbuild stuff.

 

[JeepFreak21]

Yes.



Just some random ideas I had: Put a tube through where the shackle bolts right now to act like a crush sleeve, and then tie that into the new box. And on the outside of where the old bolt was and tie that into a cage by going through the floor.


Im sure most of that is overkill, but I would think it would be worth it. But then again, I tend to overbuild stuff.

Well, I started this tonight, so hopefully it's not a bad idea! The tube will come down through the existing shackle box and end up right on the other side of the new shackle mounting tabs. Not sure if I'm going to utilize the stock mounting bolt yet. We'll see.
Thanks,
Billy

 

[JeepFreak21]

Well, I started this tonight, so hopefully it's not a bad idea! The tube will come down through the existing shackle box and end up right on the other side of the new shackle mounting tabs. Not sure if I'm going to utilize the stock mounting bolt yet. We'll see.
Thanks,
Billy

I finally finished my write-up for this if anybody is interested.
http://www.bsfab.net/?p=71
Billy

 

[XJ_ranger]

I finally finished my write-up for this if anybody is interested.
http://www.bsfab.net/?p=71
Billy

nice!

I think that your angle looks perfect! I think that 45* back takes too much spring rate out, and a tad closer to vertical is better to prevent unloading.

 

[Weasel]

I finally finished my write-up for this if anybody is interested.
http://www.bsfab.net/?p=71
Billy

You didn't use a stock shackle with the new setup? I didn't see your writup mention which shackle you used. Looks good, need to do this on mine.

 

[JeepFreak21]

You didn't use a stock shackle with the new setup? I didn't see your writup mention which shackle you used. Looks good, need to do this on mine.

Thanks. I used the lift shackle that was on my rig when I bought it. It looked to be 1.5"-2" longer than stock. I can measure it when I get home if you want.
Billy

 

[Weasel]

no that's fine, I was just trying to figure out if I can use the lift shackle I have currently when I do this mod.

 

[GenXJeep]

Great Mod/Fix XJ_ranger. Thanks for the detailed pics and descriptions.
Been looking for a soution for my current prob of the shredded upper inner shackle mount.

http://naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1006443

This looks like a great solution. Never liked the stock XJ shackle location anyway. I've also been considering relocating the upper shackle mounts to my custom steel rear bumper which ties into the receiver mount as well as the side frame rails. Worried about strength issues though... And not sure about extending the shackle point that far backwards w/o new extended leafs.

A few Q's for ya if you have the time:
How is this mod holding up after time and wheeling?
Any chance you be interested in making/selling another set of these? Gonna try my local fab shop but'd rather go with a fellow XJ'r if possible. Very interested!
Why'd you move the shackle mount forward? Did you consider multiple mounts?
Would extending the lower area to cover the receiver strip (with additional mounting holes) provide much strength/benefit?
Did you have any issues with the welding on the drivers/fuel filler side?

Thanks,
ScottM

 

[XJ_ranger]

Great Mod/Fix XJ_ranger. Thanks for the detailed pics and descriptions.
Been looking for a soution for my current prob of the shredded upper inner shackle mount.

http://naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1006443

This looks like a great solution. Never liked the stock XJ shackle location anyway. I've also been considering relocating the upper shackle mounts to my custom steel rear bumper which ties into the receiver mount as well as the side frame rails. Worried about strength issues though... And not sure about extending the shackle point that far backwards w/o new extended leafs.

A few Q's for ya if you have the time:
How is this mod holding up after time and wheeling?
Any chance you be interested in making/selling another set of these? Gonna try my local fab shop but'd rather go with a fellow XJ'r if possible. Very interested!
Why'd you move the shackle mount forward? Did you consider multiple mounts?
Would extending the lower area to cover the receiver strip (with additional mounting holes) provide much strength/benefit?
Did you have any issues with the welding on the drivers/fuel filler side?

Thanks,
ScottM

Its held up better than the rest of the uni-body :looney:

I made these before HD OffRoad Engineering was making theres - check out their webpage here:
http://www.hdoffroadengineering.com/

and they are a sponsor...

here are a few threads about them, on -
http://naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=956630&highlight=hdoffroad

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=955999

I think they did tie them in the way you were describing as well.

:thumbup: