Shackle Reversal

We're not talking about gaining any lift, we're talking about how much clearance we gained by doing a shackle reversal. Depending on how you do your front spring mounts they usually don't hang as low as the shackles. As for lift, mine didn't change because I didn't want to mess with the rear end. This has been a running debate on shackle reversals that has really been a lot of fun to read. Everyone kicking around different therories and sharing ideas has been great reading. This is like the thread that might never end.

 

Am I to late to jump in on this one? When I did mine...mmmmm..I think it was in '80(?) I had bent the springs once and then they are very susceptible to do it again, which I did again and again (it's a real cheap 3/4" lift and I got real good at prying them back into shape with anything I could find) so therefore, do a reversal! When you do it, it make an already understeering vehicle understeer more (street stuff) but helps with an arched spring (like what was said, flat spring, no) the kicker is if you use a mil. wrap spring you probably won't bend it in the first place!!! I did think hard about stuffing the drive shaft into the transfer (moved it ahead a bit) I also spaced the front hanger down with a 2"x2"x1/4" wall tube angled and flat plated (as a skid) and had a bushing machined, steel, O.D. 1 1/2" and whatever the spring bushing O.D. was for the I.D. and drilled and welded it in place through the frame. Would I do it again??? Good question, probably, but I will think some more on it!

 

Can anyone recommend alignment settings after reverse shackle modification? I've done the mod and it seems to oversteer

 

kinda an old thread, but i smacked into a tree stump and bent the main leaf about 4 inches in front of the eye. it seems that a reversal would allow for some flex rearward, preventing such incidents. ryan mentioned something similar, his race jeep would bump into things and ruin the main leaf, he went witha shackle reversal and solved his problems.


i like to argue.

 

To keep the same suspension geometry with the same springs, you need to extend the front spring mount down enough to keep the spring at the same plane, including the drop you add at the back for the added shackle.

You can see that here -



When Chuchua prepared a CJ-5 for the Baja 1000 in 1972 (for some reporters to drive), they welded blockss on the side of the frame to prevent the front shackles from too much backward travel.