At the risk of starting a war – I would like to solicit input on the upcoming lift of my 1979 FJ-40. Last winter was engine, brakes and electrical work (Stroked SB Chevy with a nice bumpy cam) and this winter I turn to the suspension and steering. I have been driving with the driver’s side lean for a while now, and the springs in general are just shot, so there is no doubt I need to replace them. My tires are pretty well shot too, time for springs and tires. I originally planned to just stick a 2.5 inch lift on the thing, buy some 33’s and be done with it. Unfortunately for me, I have seen a couple of local 40’s with a 4” and 35’s plus a really nice 55 with a soa and 37’s. Looking at the vehicle and knowing my own abilities, I am not up for a soa, but want your comments on a 2.5 vs a 4, especially if you have had the opportunity to drive both. I do drive the thing on the road to the spots I wheel, so compromise is a must. The 2.5” seems to make sense for that reason, but I wonder if I will regret it and end up with the 4” next time. Comments from anyone who had tried both on and off the road?

And, is there much difference between the different brands of springs? Finally, for those of you who have or had the Driver’s side lean, will new springs fix it or do I need to stick a shim in there anyhow?

Thanks in advance for your comments.

Snead in Bend, Oregon

1979 FJ 40
350 Small Block w/400 Crank
Cam of unknown origin (a “gift” from another engine)
Saggy springs
Big ugly bumper!
Stinky exhaust

Its up to you and the type of wheeling your into really. If your going to want to run more of the challenging trails, I would run the 4" springs and 35's. Throw on some beefier shackles as well. But a guy with a 2" lift 33's and lockers will out wheel the crap outa yah. :D
Lighter trails, go with a smaller lift/tires.
Dont forget about p/s. 33's are no prob, but anything bigger, I would run p/s.

I have ran all types of set-ups, and found that a good 4" lift and some 35's is a good all around combo. The added ground clearance helps out and its still roadworthy to and from the trail. Plus its not too crazy that your busting parts all the time. You can allways add a locker/gears later if needed.


After I ran a slight lift and 31's, I regreted not getting more lift and 35's/36's.

If I had to buy leaf springs again, I would run some Alcans, or Old Man Emu's(OME's)

Just my $.02

Maybe you can find a local cruiser builder/fabricator or shop that can do the SOA conversion for you? That would be my first choice for many reasons that I don't feel like typing right now!

But if that is not an option, then I would look for a 4" spring kit plus 1-1.5" longer shackle kit. I think Man-a-Fre makes a decent 4" spring kit. But there are lots of good kits out there, you may want to avoid kits from Rancho, Trail Master, Tuff Country, etc, as most of those springs simply provide a lift kit, rather than a decent suspension.

When I first got my cruiser, It already had a 4" kit. I hated it. The rear springs sagged and had like 8" shackles (maybe 7" eye to eye). There was no flex and three wheel motion--not hitting the switches--was common.

When I started looking around at what I wanted to do, I met a few local cruiser heads that told me a few important things. first, i was told flex is important. this will solve the 3 wheel motion issue. more wheel base will put the wheels farther out in the corners and make your rig a little more stable. also, droop. with 4 in kits it seems like folks are stoked on the up travel of the springs, but more springs like the ones mentioned above like tuff country, sky jacker etc are so stiff your springs are not going to go up that much.

Im not trying to advocate a spring over, I have seen many cruisers that had 4" kits that wheeled well with shackle and wb combinations...

so, back to my rig, I went spring over cause it seemed the easiest thing to do. one major factor in my decision was the same cruiser heads told me to think where I wanted to be in 3 or 4 years and go that direction, not think about next year and plan for that. 4 link is way outta my leauge at the moment, and that is wayyy far down the road, so again back to the sping over. I think I have seen several cruiser heads up there in bend over on mud, I remember cause I went to Mt Batch several years ago and I like the area.

really, I think the hardest part of the spring over was the cut and turn. I didnt feel comfortable doing myself, so I took my front axle out, took everything off--perches, steering stops, shock mounts etc, and mailed it off to kurt at cruiser outfitters. hearing several positve things about this, it seemed to be the first choice. having everything back together, I have nothing to say except for a suuppper postive, helpful expierence. I found myself calling him frequently with questions along the way for realted projects with more of the same results.

I guess to sum it up, think where you want to be a few years from now and work backwards.

mike

Wow,

You guys are fast and thorough. Of course, now I am more confused than ever. I suspect the limiting factor may be my garage door height. That may send me toward 33's with a 2.5" lift and a few bucks on a good differential. Thanks for the comments about suspension versus lift. I will definitely consider that, especially since my old saggy springs have no suspension value left to them at all.

Anyone have any experience with the HFS stuff from Cool Cruisers?

Snead