Need some help on direction

[BEZZ]

Okay, I'm going to be the first to say it...I am an idiot. Now that its out in the open and I am aware of it lets move on to finding a solution to my problem. First the back story:  I bought my jeep two years ago as a bone stock 2001 TJ Sport in mint conditions with 51K and 31's. I started to be some what of a hang around and at my first club event (post may long cleanup) met some one who had some parts to make my Jeep bigger. I also found some one on the board (Johnny) with bigger tires to make my jeep bigger. So after owning the vehicle for two months I had installed 3.5" RE springs, sway bar discos in the front, no sway bar in the back and 33's. I was loving it and wheeling every weekend. One weekend I found out the hard way about paying attention to every turn you make when I rolled my jeep in the most ridiculous spot ever. After some help from some CJA members we got the jeep upright and running and back to the store safe.

Now its been a year and a bit since that incident and other than a few short runs I have not been wheeling at all. Mostly due to the financial obligations of buying house but also a due to wanting to learn a little more before I hurt myself or someone else. The driving part will come with time (Jeep 101, group runs etc) but I wanted to research my setup more and decide what I wanted.

So back to the Tech part of this. I know, I said it, I am an idiot. 3.5" lift springs with stock control arms...at least I did a t-case drop! I want to build a dual purpose rig, one that will be used mostly for daily driving/weekend camping/fishing/hunting but still be fairly capable off-road. A few years down the road (5+) I will hopefully do axles/stretch/custom CA etc. for a full custom build. 

My current setup leaves me with vibe issues, floating steering with a big "flat" spot (caster issue?) and a relatively not fun ride (cheap shocks). Looking for help on the following:

1. Do I Remove 3.5" springs, find some stockers and  2" BB.
2.DO I Keep 3.5" springs, rebuild the RE control arms I bought off of Robin that are still in a rubber maid from when I bought them. Are the RE's worth rebuilding for my application.
3.Do I Build custom CA's. I have the knowledge from reading alot on Pirate, I know you guys can help me out and I have a bunch of welder buddies who would weld them out for beer. (I only worry about insurance issues with this, is there any?)
4.Do high end shocks make a difference in ride? Are they worth the money?
5.With Steering will the control arms make this feel more like stock once I roll the axle back?

I want to get back on the horse and enjoy the toy I drive. I am also not made of money like lots of us and I am looking to build a dependable stable ride both on the trail and on the highway.

Sorry for the length of this but its been a long time coming! Thanks in advance for the help.

[fug]

Long term your best bet would be to build some custom arms... use Johnny joints and they'll last forever and have great articulation.  If you make them adjustable you can get your wheelbase to where it should be.  To get rid of the vibes properly get yourself an SYE kit for your T-case and new rear drive shaft... you'll get rid of the vibes and lose the t-case drop at the same time.   Also reinstall your rear swaybar, contrary to what you might think... having a swaybar offroad is actually a good thing.  With no rear swaybar and the front disco'd your TJ will flop all over.  I don't know what exactly happened when you rolled it but it wouldn't surprise me if not having a rear sway bar helped you over.  If you can afford it you could do an antirock setup front and rear.  Once thats done you are probably going to want to regear at some point to get your power back.  Once you've done that it your jeep should drive/handle/ride as good as it ever did.

[BEZZ]

Thanks Buddy! I know the SYE is in my future as well. Do you worry at all about running a homebuilt suspension on the street? I know its as strong and stronger than most OEM and after market stuff.  I just don't know if trussing and custom long arms on my D30/D44 setup is money worth spending. Maybe my dollars should go into a SYE, rear anti-rock and rebuilding the RE CA's I bought from you.

[JackstandJohnny]

if it were me:
make your rubicon express arms work. why not right?  long arms are costly and doesn't sound like you are there just yet! then you can get your axle back to stock position. how are hte bushings on those stock arms? that'll make your jeep wander.  make sure you use good bushings in the RE arms and tighten them well.  if not ask bnine if he could make you some; he uses Johnny joints i believe and its usually good stuff out of his garage.
how are your other front end components? wheel bearings, balljoints, etc?  all tight?
steering; hows your trackbar? stock? bracket? or did you just redrill the mount?
what do you have for shocks?  are they oil based shocks? or gas charged? oil freezes in alberta and they become crap ((skyjacker esp.)  better ones is not a bad call.  what are you running for coils and shocks?  its possible a real lift kit, (new) might be an option.....
SYE? sure. good upgrade. 
antirock? not necessary unless you want it. just throw a stock sway bar in the rear. robyns right, thats an important thing to have.

OR sell the house, build a long arm kit and live in the jeep  
i've debated it

[BEZZ]

Thanks Johnny... I tried that with the wife, rent out the house to pay off the mortgage and live in the garage (with the jeep of course) putting all available funds into the TJ! She didn't go for it.

The front end seems pretty tight to me. I did just relocate the front track bar which probably doesn't help but did it as accurately as possible and its definitely tight since I know what it feels like when it gets loose. I think I will do the control arms for now to get the axles in the right spot. The springs in there are RE from the 3.5" SA kit, which is why I bought Fug's CA's to begin with.

Which brings me to another question, what is the easiest way to measure caster?

[hps4evr]

this may be a good time to figure what all is wrong with your jeep. spending big bucks on SYE, driveshaft, control arms is nice, but if steering, hubs, u joints are pooched then you cant go anywhere anyways. do the maintenance stuff first. rebuild current CA, custom CA's, or buy new ones is your call. better to save for the best option then spend a little on crap now. and again, your shocks are done anyways, save for something gooder, bilstein, ome nitros, whatever. maybe you'll want lockers and gears too. heck, you dont even need to modify the suspension to fit bigger tires. so maybe some hi-line fenders would be a better option if you only want 33" tires. i say you start saving some cash for your jeep and make a plan.

[mike s]

this may be a good time to figure what all is wrong with your jeep. spending big bucks on SYE, driveshaft, control arms is nice, but if steering, hubs, u joints are pooched then you cant go anywhere anyways. do the maintenance stuff first. rebuild current CA, custom CA's, or buy new ones is your call. better to save for the best option then spend a little on crap now. and again, your shocks are done anyways, save for something gooder, bilstein, ome nitros, whatever. maybe you'll want lockers and gears too. heck, you dont even need to modify the suspension to fit bigger tires. so maybe some hi-line fenders would be a better option if you only want 33" tires. i say you start saving some cash for your jeep and make a plan.

My thoughts exactly. Less lift less tip. Make room above the tires to lessen the lift your running for the larger tires. Get a winch, or buddy to drag you through what you can't clear.

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction

never been so scared going so slow...savor the moment.

[BEZZ]

Good points guys, I guess the sloppy steering could be a result of other issues not attributed to suspension geometry. What is the best way to diagnose the steering issues? I guess I need some one else's opinion. I'll bring the beer! I consider myself to be mechanically inclined but there are definitely a lot of people in the community with way more experience than I've got! Anyone have some spare time in the next couple weeks to lend a keen eye?

Maintenance should come first...I know  I need a pinion seal in the front axle since its been leaking for a while. There could also be more going on in my front end then I know about.

[Immortal]

pm bnine.... I believe he consults for Timmy's