I just finished a Shackle Reversal System on my 88 Wrangler and i have run into a snag......i had my driveshaft lengthened and retubed.......but when taking it for a test drive at a local trail when i backed down a ledge the front driveshaft slipped out of the slip joint. When i got it lengthened the slip joint was pretty much shoved all the way up the shaft, basically making me think that it couldn't slip out cuz it had a LONG way to go..............does anyone have any ideas as to how to fix this problem..... a longer slip joint, new shaft made, anything?

Thanks, Austin

Long travel slip joint.

aight...........any idea where i could get ahold of one or do you think that i should just call the local driveshaft shop?

The simple (and best) solution is to keep your shackles up front where they came stock. This not only helps with driveline issues & tire rub, it also increases performance in the rocks by raising contact pressure. With the shackles up front (& arched springs), as the tire contacts an obstacle and the suspension begins to compress, the spring flattens & the shackle swings forward, pushing the tire into the rock, increasing contact pressure a ton. How much does the increased contact pressure help? Think of it this way: Rub your hands together with no load on them... then squeeze them together and rub them... feel the difference? That is exactly what the shackles in the front of your jeep do when you approach a rock.

There are negative issues from having the shackles up front, such as a rougher ride (which only matters on highway driven vehicles), and the fact that the shackle gets whacked on things. The solution to the shackles getting whacked is too run a beefy set of hangers, and boomerang style shackles ran backwards to keep the springs from being damaged by the shackles inverting.

If you choose to go with the shackle reversal, you will need to, as stated earlier, extend the slip yoke on your shaft. You can either buy the longer slipset & weld it onto your existing driveline (possibly with a longer tube as well), or you can buy a complete shaft for around $300-$400. If you're making or having a driveshaft made for off-road use, I recommend you use no less than 1/4" thick (0.250" wall) tubing.

Hans

Tom Woods makes great driveshafts for this application. I got their extende spline version for my '88 YJ w/SRS it has approx 22" of spline so no worries about it not having enough travel. The customer support was great. I ended up laying under the jeep with a tape measure while I was talking to them and I had my new shaft less than a week later. The online measure sheet will get you going in the write direction. Because i was talking to them and measuring at the same time I was able to mock up a larger version of the front drive shaft so I should never have to worry about breaking it. Good luck

I've come up with a solution, here goes i'm going to get this driveshaft shop to build a custom telescoping shaft for the front of my YJ somewhat like that on a bushog that runs from the tractor to the bushog, if you havn't seen it, basically the entire shaft is a slipjoint in moves in and out from the center, i was talkin with the guy and he said it would work and it would be about $200.....the price of a new shaft i'll keep yall updated on how it works