Hello all! I'm looking on anyone's input on my planned build, especially on spring heights and tire/wheel sizes. I have a 97 Sport with the 4.0 and AX-15 trans, dana 30/35 geared to 3.07. I got a helluva deal on a set of Dana 44s geared to 4.88 with an ARB air locker in the rear and an e-locker (unsure of brand) in the front. Originally, I just planned to swap them out and run them, but after my last thread seeking advice on the matter (Thread ) I really thought hard about it and decided to plan a build. I was initially hesitant to go all out because of the cost, but decided, hell, you only live once, so I'm going to build it to be a really fun Jeep. I want it to be capable of tackling most any trail I come across as well as moderate rock crawling, but still have decent road manners. I live in northern NM so there is a ton of offroading available out here, but I still want to be able to comfortably drive to the trailheads and be capable of going 70 the couple of times a year I take it on highways. I currently live in mountainous terrain at about 7k above sea level. I've played with the Grimjeeper calculator a bit and am back and fourth between 35 and 33 tires for the build. Either looks like they would give me back a usable 5th gear with the 4.88 gearing, although I have no practical experience with this, just the GrimJeeper numbers.
I have currently bought the following for the build:
-Dana 44 set, geared to 4.88 with lockers
-JKS front and rear adjustable trackbars
-extended brake lines
-moog bushings for uca mounts for front axles
-artec front spring perch and lca brackets (the Dana 44 front axle brackets were chopped up and modified for high clearance steering, which I dont want)
Before the install, I plan on buying the following
-Correctlync steering setup
-Savvy double adjustable control arms
-sye (not set on a particular brand at this point)
-tom woods front and DC rear drive shafts
-springs (currently has factory springs with a 1.75 puck lift (PO installed) and some serious sag. With pucks, front measures 12.5 and rear measures 8.75)
-shocks if needed. I am currently running Rancho 5000x for a 2-3 inch lift. I put them on about 6 months ago, but forgot the model#. I knew I had 1.75 inch spacers so I just bought ones that would accommodate about 2 inches of lift and installed them, not really knowing what I was doing. But with the sagging springs on there now, there isn't a lot of exposed shaft.
-bump stops once I cycle the suspension and determine what I need
-arb air compressor for the rear locker, and wiring harness for the front.
-wheels and tires
-speedo gear to match new ratios
-Long term (6-12 months out) I may get a Swayloc as well. No plans for a tummy tuck at this time.
If I am missing something obvious let me know, but the big question mark for me right now is springs and wheels/tires. I am currently running 31 KM3s on Grizzlys and I like them, but they will be a little small for 4.88 gears. So the current thoughts are:
-3" spring lift with 33 KM3s
-4" spring lift with 33 KM3s
-4" spring lift with 35 KM3s
-4" spring and 1" body with 35 KM3's
I'm leaning toward the 4"spring lift with 35 KM3s because I kinda figure might as well go 35's if I'm even considering it, and if the 4" springs don't give me enough space, adding a body lift in a few months won't be a hard job. Of course, if I run 35's, I'll have to get new wheels to accommodate the 12.5 width, and I don't even know where to start on backspacing, aluminum vs steelies, etc.
That said, I was hoping ya'll might have some input about my plans and I'm happy for any advice/criticism you may have.
I am saving furiously to be able to buy the rest of what I need in the next few months, but my wife did recently have a health problem and won't be able to return to work until probably the end of January or mid February. We are doing fine and have savings for just such emergencies as this, but I'm pigeonholing the money I was saving for this project until she is back at work just in case it needs to go to a more pressing matter than the Jeep.
In a few months, once my wife is back working and I get all the parts together, I'm definately going to start a build thread! Anyway, thanks for reading, and I look forward to your comments!
I have currently bought the following for the build:
-Dana 44 set, geared to 4.88 with lockers
-JKS front and rear adjustable trackbars
-extended brake lines
-moog bushings for uca mounts for front axles
-artec front spring perch and lca brackets (the Dana 44 front axle brackets were chopped up and modified for high clearance steering, which I dont want)
Before the install, I plan on buying the following
-Correctlync steering setup
-Savvy double adjustable control arms
-sye (not set on a particular brand at this point)
-tom woods front and DC rear drive shafts
-springs (currently has factory springs with a 1.75 puck lift (PO installed) and some serious sag. With pucks, front measures 12.5 and rear measures 8.75)
-shocks if needed. I am currently running Rancho 5000x for a 2-3 inch lift. I put them on about 6 months ago, but forgot the model#. I knew I had 1.75 inch spacers so I just bought ones that would accommodate about 2 inches of lift and installed them, not really knowing what I was doing. But with the sagging springs on there now, there isn't a lot of exposed shaft.
-bump stops once I cycle the suspension and determine what I need
-arb air compressor for the rear locker, and wiring harness for the front.
-wheels and tires
-speedo gear to match new ratios
-Long term (6-12 months out) I may get a Swayloc as well. No plans for a tummy tuck at this time.
If I am missing something obvious let me know, but the big question mark for me right now is springs and wheels/tires. I am currently running 31 KM3s on Grizzlys and I like them, but they will be a little small for 4.88 gears. So the current thoughts are:
-3" spring lift with 33 KM3s
-4" spring lift with 33 KM3s
-4" spring lift with 35 KM3s
-4" spring and 1" body with 35 KM3's
I'm leaning toward the 4"spring lift with 35 KM3s because I kinda figure might as well go 35's if I'm even considering it, and if the 4" springs don't give me enough space, adding a body lift in a few months won't be a hard job. Of course, if I run 35's, I'll have to get new wheels to accommodate the 12.5 width, and I don't even know where to start on backspacing, aluminum vs steelies, etc.
That said, I was hoping ya'll might have some input about my plans and I'm happy for any advice/criticism you may have.
I am saving furiously to be able to buy the rest of what I need in the next few months, but my wife did recently have a health problem and won't be able to return to work until probably the end of January or mid February. We are doing fine and have savings for just such emergencies as this, but I'm pigeonholing the money I was saving for this project until she is back at work just in case it needs to go to a more pressing matter than the Jeep.
In a few months, once my wife is back working and I get all the parts together, I'm definately going to start a build thread! Anyway, thanks for reading, and I look forward to your comments!
My bad. I gotta remember to read twice, reply once!
