body lift and 33's

[murdajeep]

I have a 2.5" suspension lift on my 91 jeep YJ and I was
wondering if I put a 1.25" body lift on it if I would be able
to fit 33's under there untill I get my 4.5" lift later in the summer.
I know it will prob rub a bit and I am not to worried unless it just totally
won't work.

any thoughts from u guys will be much appreciated

[BlackYJ]

Do you have TJ flares on it?

I would recommend the 1" body lift and a 1" shackle lift.  I ran that setup with a 2.5" OME lift for a couple years and it worked great, but I have TJ flares and I definitely needed the space as my springs flexed very well.

You can get Performance Accessories shackles for about $50/pair or you can go greaseable at about double the price

[murdajeep]

ya i got some bestop 6" flares that came with the jeep when i bought it.
will those work?

Will the shackles change my drive line angles?

[BlackYJ]

The shackles will help in the rear and hinder in the front.  HOWEVER, anything around 1" or less of lift will not be noticable.  To achieve a 1" lift in a shackle, the shackle actually needs to be 2" longer than stock

As for the flares, they are probably just the YJ bestops, and I am not sure if they provide anymore room

If you find you are rubbing a lot then you will have to extend your bumpstops

[murdajeep]

sweet thx for the info.
I will just make sure my u-joints will be in good condition.

I will just have to use trial and error for the fenders.

thx

[Gearhead]

Those Bestop flares only get you some tire coverage with additional width , no clearance . I've got a set , they were on my 88 for a couple of years w/ 4.5" RE springs and 33's , the tires rubbed when the jeep was flexed. The Bestop flares are on my 94 YJ now , it's spring over and runs on 33's , clears fine like that ,  I could easily fit larger tires but that would only invite axle breakage and other problems. Both Jeeps have extended bump stops. The 88 still has the RE 4.5" springs ( nice !) but now has Bushwacker cutouts. My plan is to install a 1" body lift and trim the fenders , this is in preparation for my newly puchased 35's, this will get me the lift , flex and clearance I'm after.

33's need some carefull planning to get proper clearance , especially if you start flexing it out.

[murdajeep]

the bushwacker cut outs have better clearance for flex then the bestop ones i am assuming cuz u put them on the 88?

or should i look around for a set of tj flares

[BlackYJ]

sweet thx for the info.
I will just make sure my u-joints will be in good condition.

I will just have to use trial and error for the fenders.

thx

Since you have a high pinion D30, the front is hardly affected in terms of driveline angle, it just changes the caster slightly

After seeing SEVERAL bushwacker flares pop off and and shatter, I would not recommend a set if you are doing any serious offroading.  I would definitely go the route of TJ flares whether they are aftermark or not.  Rubi and Sahara flare are 1.5" wider than stock TJ flares

[Gearhead]

sweet thx for the info.
I will just make sure my u-joints will be in good condition.

I will just have to use trial and error for the fenders.

thx

Since you have a high pinion D30, the front is hardly affected in terms of driveline angle, it just changes the caster slightly

After seeing SEVERAL bushwacker flares pop off and and shatter, I would not recommend a set if you are doing any serious offroading.  I would definitely go the route of TJ flares whether they are aftermark or not.  Rubi and Sahara flare are 1.5" wider than stock TJ flares

Define "serious offroading"

[BlackYJ]

Define "serious offroading"

Lets put it this way, if you are on 33s you are probably going to be doing some tough and technical trails, so therefore I personally would not run bushwackers from what I have seen.  They are too brittle and tend to break rather than bend like a Warn

[murdajeep]

sweet thx ya i have never heard that about bushwackers so know I know to stay away.  I think my buddy has an extra set of tj flares laying around i will have to talk to him

[Gearhead]

Define "serious offroading"

Lets put it this way, if you are on 33s you are probably going to be doing some tough and technical trails, so therefore I personally would not run bushwackers from what I have seen.  They are too brittle and tend to break rather than bend like a Warn

I've heard that they are easily broken as well , have also heard  they are tough as the rest. I do know this , whatever brand chosen , none are cheap so it would be a shame to bust em up. I've "tested" my Bestop flares a couple of times , even destroyed a fender , the flare was intact except for a small crack where the main part of the  flare joins the extension minor damage , still functional.

The recently puchased / installed Bushwackers ? , although they have been offroad twice , I havn't "tested" those yet , I'm sure they bash something sooner or later ,  then we'll see how tough they are.

[murdajeep]

k sweet.

but another question to Black yj I looked on quadratec and they have shackles that are 1" lift and ones that are 1 1/4" lift for performance accesories.  Which ones do i go with cuz u said it takes 2" of shackle lift to raise the jeep 1"

[BlackYJ]

I got the ones that were 1", however looking at the Performance Accessories website they say they measure 5-3/4" and 1" of lift.  If you want a GREAT shackle that will perform with any spring, have a look at the MORE Boomerang shackle, they are shaped like a "7".  In the rear they provide a lot more flex and in the front they prevent shackle inversion, which can destory leaf springs.  Now they only came in 3/8" and 5/8" lift.  I recently installed the 5/8" lift ones both front and rear on my YJ.  These shackles are BEEFY, 3/8" thick plate, plus they are greaseable.  I talk about them on my build thread in the Projects section.  They will not provide the total of 1" of lift but these shackles will definitely work.

Hope that helps

[murdajeep]

yes that helps a lot

thx