TheDirtman

The problem is education. I try to do threads that will educate people on what components are in the suspenion and what they do. Explaining the changes that are caused by chaning one part or another wether it be my thought on lifts, simple guide to shocks, or the jkfreaks dictionary. The "what lift" threads will never stop and saying I run this and its great or not does nothing to educate people on their suspension. Just look at the many threads on rough country or the new metal cloak vs rock krawler threads. About half like rough country and half don't. Half will say rock krawler and half will say metal cloak. Almost non of the posters will explain why or what else thay have done to their jeep. I would say about 25% on here don't have a profile filled out so people can help answer questions or see what else they may have on their jeep.

I find that most people install new tires when lifting and then rave about how much nicer their new lift rides but in reality it due to the tires and those that do the big lifts that are way more then they need are hurting their ride and potientially making the jeep dangerous to drive depending on their set up. I typically find when I go to an event with lots of JKs guys like to talk about their lift and try to impress you with what did and when you look at it, it is improperly set up. Mostly shock sizing and bump stops. They know it came in the box so they installed it is all they know.

All the treads on coils are another thing that I really don't get. I see people so concerned with oils and constantly swapping them out for a better ride or that extra 1/2" of extended length. If you are that anal on the ride from the coils you should be running coil overs and tune them. I also find people to complain about ride from shocks and coils that run E rated tires with 65 psi on a 5000 lb jeep. E rated tires also do not give you the traction off road when aired down, but people don't seem to care about that. They want big tires and are ignorant about how they perform so they can run down that dirt road.

I have never bought or run a "lift kit" from any manufacturer, I have always chosen the components that I thought I needed but I can tell you that off road when I ran a 5.5" short arm lift and 37" tires it could get down right scary.

ABENDX

Again... you're missing the point (or at least mine).

The keywords are important.... best, most articulation, hardcore, and a ton of actual suspension terms that get thrown around with zero regard for actual meaning and application.

When those keywords occur, that is when things get interesting. Because, with almost exact precision, none of them apply as they are applied.

But not all kits are created equal. You, as the consumer, should be able to take a few hours and research the basics and decide where you want to take your build, based upon your requirements and desires. Not come on and ask... "what should I get?," but rather specific, pointed questions regarding design.... so again, one can make their own decision.

Brand rules all when it comes to chest puffing competitions in the JK world (and American consumerism in general). Guys like DIRTMAN are trying to show you that brand means nothing and how to decide for yourself what you need and what you don't. You can select your route of attack. In the end you could save money and actually have a basic or better understanding of what you have accomplished in your build. Hopefully, you will not be re-buying parts because you were mislead by either the manufacture, re-seller, or fanboi.

Stubicon

My fear is, with all the newbies on here, myself including, the message being delivered is, "don't lift your jeep! And if you do, don't buy from the fanboi companies." But I digress And I totally agree about the do it once and do it right philosophy. I learned the hard way building my last car.

webejeepin

I think the Dirtman has documented some great write ups, I've learned more than a thing or two, and re-read them when need to. Thanks.

My take on this...be 100% honest with how you will use your Jeep 90% of the time. If you are not lying to yourself, your build will come out the way it should.

I'm a DD of 750KM per week on the highway, and wheel light trails from time to time, nothing extream. Do I NEED 37's, and a long arm lift? No. Do I WANT one, sure.

I'm very happy with my TerraFlex puck level kit 2"/1" and 33" MT. It allowed me to run a larger wheel and tire, leveled things out, and provided a more agressive 'not stock' looking Jeep without all the negative effects had I done 37's and long arm ect.

I've learned what a stock Jeep will do, and now I've learned what my current build will do....Happy Happy.

Would I go 35's on this Jeep? Maybe, perhaspe the next Jeep as I'm sure my day to day will be different then, and I will build for that change.

Stubicon

Agreed. There's a lot of good info on here. As a matter of fact, after reading Dirtmans stickie it deterred me from looking at lifts. I'm not ready for one nor do I currently need one. All I plan to do is skids, diff covers, and a winch. Keeping the stock bumpers until they need to be replaced. All I'm trying to figure out is where's a good place to look and or buy parts haha.

TheDirtman

poly performance is a great place to buy stuff as they carry just about everything and actually spend quite a bit of time in the racing community.

Stubicon

Sellout! I kid I kid. Thanks man. I'll check them out.

TheDirtman

I buy from mainly from poly performance, filthy motorsports, genright, ballistic fabrication, blue torch fabrication, iron man off road, ruff stuff, my local steel shop, and once in a while I will use northridge and quadratec. I also have a local 4wheel drive parts if I am in a pinch and they have what I need which is rare. I get my stuff from the people who have what I need not for free shipping.

Stubicon

Thanks for the advice. When I was building my Subaru the closest reputable shop was about 4 hours away. Bought most all my stuff from them. But now I've been searching for a good 4x4 shop near me and they are few and far between.

Stubicon

So I was looking at the Polyperformance 3/4" and 1 3/4" coil spacers. Considering either 3/4" spacer upfront only OR 1 3/4" up front and 3/4" in the rear. My question is, if I go with option 2, is that really enough of a change to need longer shocks?

My main goal is to get rid of the rake while getting the belly off the ground a bit.