cj5 suspinsion lift

[Fireman259]

I have a 79 CJ5 with power steering I am told that I can put a yj suspension lift on it but will need to move the front shackles forward. Anybody have any thoughts or has anyone done this?

 

[Jimbos76cj]

I have a 79 CJ5 with power steering I am told that I can put a yj suspension lift on it but will need to move the front shackles forward. Anybody have any thoughts or has anyone done this?

The front shacks should be moved forward but dont "have to be" your shackles my be at less then optimal angle if you dont..

With that said the bigger issue you will have is the YJ springs are 2.5" wide and the CJ fronts are 2" wide. you will need to change spring perches, spring plates and front shackle hangers to get em to work. The front shackle hange on a CJ is .5" to narrow for the YJ springs.

 

[jerry1847]

Im going this swap over the weekend (i hope) in my '80 CJ5 . The PO did the YJ spring conversion bud did not change the front hangers for some reason. All he did was get the 2.5in shackles (i think) and add 2 washers on each side of the top mount. Im assuming the spring perches (on the inside?) and the spring plates were replaced, not sure how the springs would fit otherwise.

Needless to say, it drives like over 35mph. Serious wandering and death issues. So dont cheap out and try to skip.

I ordered a set from quadratec (Mountain Off-Road 7686FSH25Y - M.O.R.E. Front Shackle Hangers for 76-86 Jeep CJ with 2.5" Wide Springs & 1-1/4" Diameter Bushings - Quadratec) that say bolt on (and ill spot weld to be safe) and also this shackle set (Original Replacement Parts 2040415KHD - Heavy Duty Rear Greasable Shackles for 76-86 Jeep® CJ Rear & 87-95 Wrangler YJ Front or Rear - Quadratec) for the bolts, bushings and spacers. The PO put what look like currie tow shackles on it so ill keep them.

Anyone have advice on the install?
best way to jack and support the frame and axle so the thing isnt under pressure?
Steering box issues? (CJ has an updraded steering box but it looks like its sharing a bolt with the shackle mount).

Otherwise, there is an awesome thread with a build list and part links for an OME lift kit. i think total parts came to $1100. I would search for that as there is a TON of detail in the thread. Ill post pics if i get to this over the long weekend. I also need to strip and repaint so we will see how long that takes.

 

[jerry1847]

Finished today. Wasn't bad at all. I used an old high lift jack for the first time, I'll never use a bottle jack again.
It was as simple as jack in the front end and unbolting a couple bolts on each side. However it depends on the setup. I had to cut a sliver of my front bumper to get the hanger flush on the frame on both sides. My steering box was upgraded and the stock shackle was sharing a couple bolts. It took me a little while to find all the bolts for the steering bracket but once I got it loose I just pulled the old shackle out. I just popped the new hanger in from there and everything lined up. When the stock shackles came out, there was no metal spacer in the bushing. I'm assuming the PO got the new shackles and the bolts were too big so he just had the bolt on the rubber. I'm guessing this contributed to by god awful steering.

I also replaced all the hardware for the shackles except the lower bushings. They were in good condition from when the PO did the yj conversion, and because i wasnt 100% if the new bushing diameter was the same.

Overall took me 4 hours with a couple brakes in the middle. Spent another hour installing the steering stabilizer. Pretty easy, I kept running into clearance issues and getting my wrench stuck.