ok, i'm still designing a new frame for my cj5 in CAD and had some questions regarding the shackle reversal setup...

my question is basically trying to determine how long/deep i should be making the spring hanger buckets in the front...i've noticed that on the front springs in most applications, if you were to put a straight line between the two leafspring eyes, there is an angle,(longer buckets=less angle, shorter buckets=more angle) i'm assuming this has to do with my front caster and general suspension geometry, since this Jeep will see plenty of time on the pavement getting to and from wheeling spots, it needs to be able to handle reasonably well onroad...

so if anyone has any input on this, please share, or better yet, if you have some measurements that compare the height of the shackle hanger to the height of the spring hanger, that would be enough for me to work with...thanks :flipoff2:

ignore castor and pinion angle when doing that, those you should set by where you weld on your spring perches (pinion angle) and by rotating the knuckles (castor).

what this will effect is brake-dive and how much travel your driveshaft will need, a flatter angle will provide less of both.

well the thing that i guess is concerning me the most is if i put a large drop bucket in to try and get more of a flat angle, what about hanging it up on stuff, with having two big fangs coming off the front i would thinkg that i'd be hanging them up on rocks and anything i'm trying to go over....so i guess i'm wondering what a good compromise between having brakedive/driveshaft travel and banging the hangers into stuff is?......also, if i were to try and get a stock axle to fit, like a waggy front is what i've been lookin at, where i wouldn't necessarily be moving the knuckles, is what angle would work, or am i pretty much stuck in having to go completely cut/custom with the axle to make it work well with the new frame?

i assume you're doing spring-over, in which case you would need to weld new spring perches on the Waggy axle anyway, do your pinion angle then. Cutting and turning the knuckles isn't that big of a deal.

as for how low to drop it, it's all a comprimise. do some searching and just look at where other people are putting it.

let me say that one more time: DO SOME SEARCHING

The higher you go on the front mount the more brake dive you will have
also the axle will be moving forward & back vs. up & down = long slip DS
a good setup would be come down about the same length as factory shackles for your mount - ~5" bottom of frame to spring bolt
Essentially keeping the same angles as stock, just moving the pivot.

hope any of this makes since, otherwise Im just making it up as I go :flipoff2:

SRS is so 3 years ago....






.

my shackles are up front, and i like it :flipoff2:

well to be honest i'm fairly tempted to just say fawk the SR and just do it regular style, at this point if i go SR i'll have to make a bucket thats going to have to drop down more than any shackle would and if i go with the flat YJ springs SR wouldn't be that useful anyway.....

I'm going to hear it about this, (I know it's probably been covered millions of times) but I thought that the only time a SR was better was with flat springs since they can only get shorter with comp/droop therefore pressing the tire into the obstacle. :confused: In this case that would be correct right? If you get the correct pinion angle and turn the knuckles like Brett said you should be good to go. Just wondering since this is close to my set up. :)

Depending on the lift you are attempting to achieve, a lot of that extra length on the front bracket can be made up by moving the upper shackle mount further up into the frame. ( shackle reverse ) I would try to keep the spring close to level. If your frame is the same width as your perches, it should not be a problem to build the shackle mount higher and thus the front mount shorter. This way castor is not an issue and you just bolt the axle on.

Just for the record, my springs are outboarded, shackle in front, pumpkin and knuckles are turned. Suspension design came after frame design. I would do it different if I had the chance, not because it doesn't work, but because it is easier to do it in the frame when you build it than to try to compensate for it later.

well, the reason why i believe SR and flattish springs aren't really complementary is because when the leave are flat and at rest, they are the longest (eye to eye) that they will be, meaning with an ordinary shackle in the front setup, when the tire droops or stuffs, the axle will travel backwards, with a standard arched spring, and the normal shackle forwards setup, the springs get longer when stuff/drooped, pushing the axle forward....unless my reading was entirely misunderstood, that pushing into objects is what SR is trying to get rid of, so instead of pushing over the obstacle, the axle travels backwards and up making it a much more smooth transition.....at least thats how i see, i'm sure opinions and views are different between people so i'm open to hear them....

as for the lift, i'm not going for something huge, i want to keep a reasonable COG and probably not go for anything over 35" tires, so all in all, nothing big, however, the way that i'm looking at it, there's no way i can move the shackle hanger up the frame without having my springs hanger be more than 12"+ in front of the grill, and as this will be a street legal rig, that most likely won't fly....i thought of just drilling a hole in the frame and sleeving it, but that would only yield me maybe 2" and even with that, i still think that the spring hanger buckets would hang lower than if i just did a standard shackle forward setup....

although, thats not to say i wouldn't like any more suggestions if they're out there....thanks for the replies everyone

Can one of the gurus tell me if my last post is correct? Too late for me to change it now due to wanting to get my heep done this summer, just want to know for next time.