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It makes your rig less capable. You run the risk of blowing up or binding a CV if you get a wheel in the air, because your CV axles droop (in my case) 2.5” below what they’re supposed to run at. No one who regularly off-roads their rig sticks with a spacer of more than 1” for very long, theyre just too unreliable. One guy blew 4 axles in one off-road trip because he was on front spacers. Not to mention, you gain no load bearing or handling performance that a spring lift provides, and your articulation doesn’t increase as much because your springs still aren’t very stiff. Until I got manual hubs, my passenger side CV clicked at full lock really badly, and that’s not uncommon. If you want to go off-road and carry lots of stuff and have normal handling, get springs. If you wanna drive to the mall in your shiny Nissan, get spacers. I only say this because of how many build threads I’ve read. Look at just about anyone who starts with spacers but is serious about taking their rig places. They eventually get coils springs, which hardly cost more than a spacer lift anyway. I’m really not trying to offend anyone, but that’s how I see it given the loads of research I’ve done on this forum and my own experience with a spacer lift. nobodies ever Blown up their CV’s on a coil spring lift, let alone experienced binding. Spacers have their place, but know what you’re getting into and why you want them. Again, I’m not hating on people who run spacers, I just see a lot of people start with spacers only to get coil springs later. Don’t make the same mistake as me. Save yourself time and money. Rant over

Alright so to get this thread back on topic, as a recap I have the LR 9449's on and just put some Bilstein 33-185569 5125 shocks on the rear because they offered more travel as my old shocks (Bilstein 33-185552 5125's) were too short now. After a quick test up in the hills they weren't too long! Coils stayed put and didnt come out of the perch or were loose. I gained more articulation with the new shocks. Also note I still have the sway bar connected and extended brake lines. The breather tube still needs to be extended. So these shocks work with these coils, I also might add a 1 inch bumpstop on the bottom spring perch just to be safe. The snow picture is the same spot with the old shocks and new coils, the tire did come up from the ground. Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

I’m actually in the middle of an experiment right now for my front springs. I’ve been scouring websites that supply custom parts for race cars because they have a ton of options for people who are building their own suspension components. I settled on a spring with a 250 lb rate and a free height of 13 inches. 250 puts it in between the OME and AC coils which is what I’m looking for. I chose the 13 inch spring height ( 3 inches shorter than the OME hd) because I’m pairing them with an adjustable height spring spacer (similar to the way a coil over sleeve works) that I plan to adapt to the lower spring perch on the strut. If it all comes together as planned the adjustable lower perch will let me dial in my front ride height exactly where I want it. Total cost so far is $145 for the springs and spacers. Hopefully I’ll get time to work on it next weekend and I’ll update with results then.

It works!!! Sill have lots of work to do to finish up the lose ends but I was able to drive it down the street today.

Dave upload them on youtube then copy and paste the link. Itll automatically populate.

Well said @pathydude17, Steve is a great guy, a great asset to this niche market and his products are of phenomenal quality, but you're very correct, if you flex your R50 out with any sort of regularity, don't go over 1" on spacers.

I have been running Old Man Emu MD springs on all corners (approximately 3/4 inch over fresh stock height) for over 120k miles on my 01 SE. Initially I was running 255/70 Yokohama AT2's, as that is what I replaced the original 255/65 Toyo's with, had no issues at stock height. Once I needed tires again (after the spring swap), I went with 265/70 General AT2's which cleared the front struts by just enough to be comfortable with. I was recently due for tires again, spent about a month doing research, finally decided on the Falken Wildpeak AT3W'S (ordered from tirebuyer.com & had delivered to a local firestone, less expensive than anywhere else I could find). It turns out the Falken must run a little larger than average, as the 265's rubbed the struts. They actually had a set of 255's in stock and they were super cool about swapping to those. Had I wanted to buy & install wheel spacers, the 265's would've worked, but I didn't want to go that route. Keep in mind, any change in lift height has absolutely no effect on the distance between the wheel mounting surface and coil bucket on the struts, only wheel backspace/offset can play a role there. Over the years I ran 3 different manufacturers of 265/70 (Goodyear Silent Armor, Definity AT & General Grabber AT2's), all on the same set of factory wheels, without rubbing. Also, as far as the Falkens go, the 265's had a 4 ply sidewall, whereas the 255's have a 6 ply, so I'm probably better off in the end. I've had them for a few thousand miles now, in every type of weather (except extreme heat) and they've been impressive. As far as your thoughts about lifting, although I love Steve's products, my suggestion would be to look into OME springs, as they have held up really well, do firm up the ride, but not to an uncomfortable point and they also handle a load far better than stock (no more bottoming out with some gear, or 2 people in the back). I'm approaching 130k miles on my MD springs and I'm preparing to freshen things up, as they're finally losing a bit of cargo carrying capacity (I frequently tow a loaded trailer or trunk full of tools), so I'm going with the md's again (approximately $170/set, but we'll worth every penny). Sorry for the long winded read, but figured it couldn't hurt to offer all the information I could.

Dude, I’m ordering AC springs tonight, I could probably get you my front spacers to you in 2 weeks or less. PM if you’re interested.

[emoji106] for Desert Rat! I’ve known them since I lived in PHX. I’ve always had a good experience with them (certainly better than 4WP). Generally they’re pretty knowledgeable as well. For me, the primary benefit with them on the springs was free shipping & no tax. I ended up just getting my local 4WP manager to match the same.

Ok I found the 2928s. And desert rat is right here in AZ. Didn’t realize they carried them!!

Should be 2928 for OME HD. If I remember correctly I’ve seen them on both websites. I think @RainGoat has also recommended desertrat? Desert4x4? Can’t remember the exact name

AC wants to charge me $70 for shipping.....

I should be down if I don’t have another one by then

If that's a valid number, that's awfully stiff...150% more than an OE spring (150 lbs/in), and 90% more than OME (200 lbs/in). That seems exceptionally harsh. Two front bumpers and two winches with steel rope would only compress the front end 0.5". I'm for a "truck" like feel, but that's "semi-truck" feel. Still, I've not tried them (and likely won't), so it's just an impression.

I know I am waiting patiently for their sfd. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Suspension update: After having the LR 9449's on with my old shocks I found out that they were too short now. So I went ahead and bought some Bilstein 33-185569 5125's and man what a difference. I got so much more travel now and can actually flex and tuck a wheel now. Before the shock would pick up my wheel but now the wheel stays in contact with the ground. Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

Hopefully someone has used those tires, but if not, for $15 more per tire, you could get falken Wildpeak AT3W’s. Those have a definite following and good reputations. They’ve got the fancy schmancy snow symbol on them and do really well in snow and off-road. Should be able to get them with a 55k mike warranty too.

I recommend the part that I got just because that's what the other people run and I heard that the 255/70 valving works better for our rigs, and that's from my opinion and from what I've heard. To be completley honest too, I still haven't learned the differences in valving yet and the benefits [emoji23]. Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

Mostly correct. For rear, 2" spacers and LR9448s. I'd say that if you plan to go with a bumper and winch, the AC's could be a good choice. They seem to have a much higher spring rate than OMEs judging by complaints of stiffness, but with enough weight to help compress them, it might work out well. Otherwise, if you'll be without bumper and or winch, I'd still consider the MD or HD springs and a spacer for ride quality. Also, heads up that the $167 springs that AC sells are OMEs (description includes their duty rating); the $180 springs are their house springs.

This couldn't be more true, those OME springs ride unbelievably well. With them I could fly down trails that I previously had to tiptoe along with stock coils. Just to clarify, you're running a 3" SFD and OME HD coils up front with 2" spacers and OME MD coils in the rear right?

Check the injector harness for rodent damage or chafing.

Wait, you like that better than a Tide jug?

Update: Seling my pathfinder now