Before I knew much about jeeps, or did much research on lift kits, I went out and bought myself a Rancho 2.5 inch lift kit for my 79 CJ5, that I am running SUA. I have now been told that rancho springs are very stiff, and I can say I have also learned that they are very stiff. I am getting very limited flex out of my suspension because of this.

I have heard of a few things in the past about making springs flex more but can't seem to recall them, can someone please give me some suggestions(besides new springs) to make these springs flex more, to give me more articulation.

Do you think that the springs will soften up after a while? I have not yet put a lot of miles on them.

thanks
tony

they will break in over time, but not as much as you would probably like. There are two things that I have done that improved flex. #1 open up the spring clamps, and #2 put some teflon strips or other slippery substance between the leaves. This will reduce the spring rate and your springs will sag over time because of it.:smokin:

Where do you get the teflon strips? Do they have adhesive on them? If not how are they held in place?

Also what is involved in losining the clamps, do I just bend the ends up slightly, or do I need to bend them all the way up then make a new bend at a high point on the clamp?

thanks for the reply
tony

Just removed a 2.5" Rancho and installed a 4" Pro-Comp. The Rancho was way stiffer than the Pro-Chump which is known for being stiff. They are tightly clamped with huge clamps. Good luck getting them open. I didn't even try it on my Rancho. You'll hafta torch them without getting the leafs hot and open them up up like a U. Some people cut the top part of the clamp off so that it looks like a shallow U but I'd worry about the leafs fanning. Maybe it'll work though.

Rancho 2.5" vs Wranger

notice the front end angle
http://www.rivercityrockcrawlers.com/TechReports/BornAgain/Massey/LiftinALegOnMassey7.jpg

ok, for a comparison shot, here are the 2.5" rancho's
http://www.rivercityrockcrawlers.com/TechReports/BornAgain/miller3.jpg


this is with rear wrangers up front, and the 2.5" rancho's out back still

http://www.rivercityrockcrawlers.com/temp/P2232021/P2232022.JPG

more work is done up front which makes the jeep more stable, of course those are masseys 29'5 new swampers my 80" wheelbase jeep is on in the first pic with the 2.5" rancho's soa - not too bad!

If you don't have any you should get yourself some 1" lift shackles. Tighten the bolts to around 20#s and this will help quite a bit. You could also try dissasembling your leaf packs and greasing your leafs. Last resort if you dont care about your leafs lasting would be to pull a leaf out like I did :smokin: Once I get all the details worked out I should be flexing pretty good for SUA.

go SOA........:rolleyes:

Originally posted by RCKRATZ
they will break in over time, but not as much as you would probably like. There are two things that I have done that improved flex. #1 open up the spring clamps, and #2 put some teflon strips or other slippery substance between the leaves. This will reduce the spring rate and your springs will sag over time because of it.:smokin:

That won't change the spring rate. Still good suggestions, though. Opening up the clamps alows fo rthe springs to pull away from each other during droop, and the teflon will allow for less friction between leaves while compressing.

Originally posted by cjhunter
Where do you get the teflon strips? Do they have adhesive on them? If not how are they held in place?

Also what is involved in losining the clamps, do I just bend the ends up slightly, or do I need to bend them all the way up then make a new bend at a high point on the clamp?

tony

I used the torch to open up my clamps. I put a small bolt though the top of them (personal preference)

Can't remember where I got the teflon. Center bolt locates them.

No matter what you do to the springs, the older CJ's ('81 & older) won't flex worth crap up front until you get rid of the short shock mount.

I have an '81 CJ-7 right now with the Rancho 2.5" lift and the limiting factor in the front are the shocks. I thought about cutting off the shock mount and installing a longer one so I can run longer shocks but have decided that it isn't worth the effort. Right now I'm spending all the time (and money) I got on putting together my project vehicle.

At the time my lift was bought, 2.5" was big and Rancho made the softest ride; my how times have changed.

yep - shocks definately limit, I put longer ones on and they still limit