bigmatt Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 (edited) So the wife went out of town this weekend and I finally got some time to take this project on. The shocks are Gabriel Hi Jackers off a 2005 Silverado 2wd. Extended and compressed lengths are very close to stock. This project starts with making the shocks fit. The top mount needs a bushing machined to fit the stock 12mm bolt. The bottom mount needs to be reamed open to 5/8". If you need to ask how to do this then this project probably isn't for you. Bolt on the new shocks, route the air lines to a convenient area and enjoy your new ride height. I mounted the air valve in the rear cubby on the passenger side of the vehicle. It's convenient to get to and out of sight. I measured the stock ride height at 19" to the trailer hitch with no load. After I sat on the bumper (~225lbs of dead weight) this dropped to 17 1/2". With 50 PSI in the shocks the unloaded ride height increased to 21". With me on the bumper this dropped to 19 1/2". This should let me load up with 3 friends and a weekends worth of camping gear and not have to drive on the bumpstops. Photobucket is not coperating tonight so no pictures yet. I'll try again in the morning. I think I covered the majority of the details, if anyone has specific questions let me know and I'll do my best to answer. Bigmatt Edited April 17, 2011 by bigmatt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom01Pathfinder Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 (edited) thanks for posting this info...but i think it should be moved to the WD21 section... Edited April 17, 2011 by Phantom01Pathfinder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigmatt Posted April 17, 2011 Author Share Posted April 17, 2011 thanks for posting this info...but i think it should be moved to the WD21 section... Nope, This is on a 2001 R50 5 speed. As far as I've read this hasn't been done before so I figured I'd do a quick overview. Bigmatt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tekazgtr1984 Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Sounds like a promising mod. Hopefully, you can post some pics of your work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowTied Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Interesting. Are your springs wre out possibly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom01Pathfinder Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Nope, This is on a 2001 R50 5 speed. As far as I've read this hasn't been done before so I figured I'd do a quick overview. Bigmatt Ah my apologizes...i saw 1987 in your little profile thingy so i assumed you had an 87 pathy. but now i see you have a '01 with a 5speed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigmatt Posted April 19, 2011 Author Share Posted April 19, 2011 Ok, finally got the pictures loaded up. Yes, my existing springs are wore out and so were my shocks. With this mod I was able to replace the shocks and fix the sagging rear end for $80 First is the shocks installed. Not very impressive, they just bolted into the stock location. I only took pictures of the Passenger side. The shocks will also fit around the AC lines on the drivers side Next is the stock ride height Air shocks at 50 psi. Ride height increased by 2" And here is where I routed the air lines to. I picked up the compressor for $25 at Kmart. It has an automatic shutoff at a set pressure so I should be able to set the pressure and leave it plugged in in the rear storage area. If it works the way I want it to, it'll air up the shocks to 30 psi every time I turn on the ignition. Bigmatt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skulptr Posted April 19, 2011 Share Posted April 19, 2011 nice setup. simpler version of what most car makers put out from the factory. also, since your like me, into cheap upgrades, have you looked into the jeep spring conversion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigmatt Posted April 20, 2011 Author Share Posted April 20, 2011 My understanding was the jeep springs were for a subframe drop (4.5" of lift). I did consider replacing the spring with OME's, but I would still have needed new shocks. If I was going to keep the vehicle long term I would probably have gone OME's all the way around, but home ownership has made me wish for a truck for a couple of years now. Probably going to pick one up in a year or two and trade in the pathy. Next weekend I will replace the struts call it good for suspension upgrades. Bigmatt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skulptr Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 you can use the stock jeep springs to sit close to stock height, as they have a higher spring rate. the sub drop thing is for jeep LIFT springs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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