DanAK

134,000

Yep you are crazy I say unbolt and slide the shock off the mount and inspect for damage. If there are no cracks or really noticeable bends then I would get you a picture of mine but they have been cut and shortened so its not much of a comparison.

I can not compare to others experience, but I have had both OME mediums and AC springs in the back, I am no great fan of OME but I feel like the AC springs really let me down. The weight of my new bumper has cause them to sag and for the ride to become too soft in the back. Also the driver side spring is wearing out faster than the passenger side causing the back driver side to be about 1" lower than the passenger side. I had this happen with the OME but that was after 3 years not 7 months. I would say that the OME springs are better for heavy loading but keep in mind they will only lift that back about half an inch to an inch.

Sorry, I forgot about those fancy auto transmissions Bummer.

Gook Luck with the check! Our tx10 t-case is pretty durable but I guess you have 35s what diff gears are you running? If you do have to replace the t-case I have researched this recently and the 2002 and up tx10s have a narrower drive chain and are considered less durable.

Those are very nice, I like the addition of bolt on hard plastic.

Very Nice, I love it. I like those so much I even thought about importing one over here, but then I remembered I can't even afford the truck so I definitely can't afford the truck and the cost of importing it. Or the Total Chaos race suspension with fiberglass fenders and Fox shocks at every corner

So since I did not get springs in time for last weekend I went a ahead and reinstalled my old spring spacers to keep my tires from rubbing while fully loaded. My solution to not having a spring compressor. Safety at work So the weekend went well (a few pics in the photo forum) and now I am back on the spring hunt. Looking at FJ/Prado springs now, I will let everyone know the results.

Thanks Rick that's some great info, very helpful. Is there any reason you only looked at jeep springs? Its a holiday weekend here now so all this will be put on hold for a few days.

Okay I am now looking at front springs from a Patrol but they have a 250lbs spring rate, will that break my back ? Dose anyone know the Spring rate for the AC 2in lift springs? I am beginning to think that spring rates ate more complicated that I think because I am finding some strange information. The spring rate for the rear of an R51 is like 350lbs/in which is terrible because they fit the R50 almost perfectly

Yes I know that this would work for not bottoming out but they are designed for towing, not for off roading. If I use those the rear end will loose most of its flex.

yeah I know about that but I am looking at what I can get here in the Middle East. Mainly wondering if there are any foreseeable consequences to running a spring that has a smaller diameter than the stock springs.

My AC springs are too soft for the weight of my new bumper and my tires rub when I bounce the rear suspension too much. Looking at new springs from a few different vehicles and the best I have found is from a Land rover defender but they are narrower (smaller diameter) than my current springs. they should fit on the top perch if I get rid of the isolator and the bottom I can adapt. AC springs are ID of 126mm and the Land rovers are 116mm. Will the smaller ID/OD be a problem with stability or are there other problems that might come with a smaller spring? Opinions? Thanks -Dan P.S. I know about the jeep springs, I cant get them here.

Thanks I am happy with the way it turned out but the shop moved faster than they said they would and did it without a design from me. I tried to have them do more of a bent tubing style but they only had the equipment to bent larger tubing than I wanted . I agree with you but I do keep the can there almost empty because it looks dumb if its not there . The holder is bolted on so it is interchangeable so I can change it to a double can holder or whatever I want to put there. When I get the chance I think I will make a tool box to replace the jerry can holder so that I can put my recovery equipment back there.

I would love to but there are no measurements, it was all just thrown together. I will take some more pictures in a few days so that people can get a better look at how it was made.

Thanks everyone for the compliments, I wish it had been made by my own two hands so I take more credit. Thanks, it cost me around $1300 US, and now that I just calculated that out I am even more sad that I didn't make it with my own two hands. I think I understand you question, and yes that jerry can could be a bit lower but it is fine where it is. The tire pretty much destroys the rear view anyway. This bumper design could easily be built with a hitch but I never use one and the fabricator got lazy If I decide I need one in the future I will add one.

Well here it is! Works well, no rattles so far, a bit heavy but what can you do. I am thinking of switching out my AC lift springs and adapting some Patrol springs in there to take the extra weight.

True with enough welding and extra steel you can probably make it stronger, but I would continue to stress that a Uni-body is not a great way to start an off-road platform. I would choose a vehicle with a lot more aftermarket support, one with solid axles or with good aftermarket SAS possibilities. I think that will just make everything go smoother in the long run. NO JEEPS Find an 85 toyota 4runner I went out with some of those in Alaska this summer, Great little trucks and easy to build becuase the already have solid axles.

Get something with a real frame My pathfinder is great but I am always worried about bending the frame.

I would go with cranking the torsion bars, you just have to get under there and look for them.

They were not for any specific vehicle, I just ordered the right valving and travel. They fit pretty well actually, I used the right steel bushing on top (5/8 I believe) and no bushing on the bottom the rubber fit on the shock mount perfectly. The shocks worked fine like that but I noticed that I was not using all the upward travel on them so I had the shock mounts cut and moved up 2in so that I am utilizing more of the shocks travel up and down. If you want I will post a pick latter. On a pathfinder with no SFD they would have been perfect without moving the shock mounts, they have 11" of travel which is 3" more than stock but the reservoir makes the shock body shorter so you would still have all the up travel you need.

Yep, There are many options just got to find one you like. I am using Bilstein 5160 11" travel 255/75 valving. Great shocks so far, nice to have the reservoir when going fast in the desert.

It's pretty much finished, I am taking it out on a camping trip this weekend to test for any rattles before it goes for powder coating next week. I will post up photos in about a week of the bumper and my new bash plate.

Mounts are not made yet but I will post all the pics when it is finished. As for specs I know the that plate steel is 4mm MS and the mounts will be 12mm. The guy fabricating free-handed this bumper from a photo I brought him of an armorology 4runner bumper. So far its turning out well. (if you look closely you can see that my panhard rod is adjustable, it fixed all my issues so far)

Good things are happening It will be a few more days before its finished and has the tire carrier on it but so far so good!