So who wants to talk me into going SOA finally??

[Whisker_Biscuit]

Yup, I'm thinking about the next level for the ole YJ... anyone got some sage advice on what the big gotchas are???

In my mind, driveline angle is the biggie, then the steering geom has to be fixed too. Of course, once opening this worm can, I'm also going to be tempted to put real axle's under it and drop my gearing so I can run 33 or 35's for real. Also of equal importance is no friggin body lifting or shimming the xfer down, unless those are absolute requirements.

Anyone wish to comment??


:agree: :agree: :agree:

[pcoplin]

Well.....Black Diamond has a real nice coil conversion!:brows: Nope, just kidding. Well, not really.
If I had a YJ I wouldn't lift it without a spring over. Very impressive flex with stock leafs. I say Go for it!

And belly-up it before you get your drivline.

Just my 0.05 cent

[ErieJeepSteve]

BIG GOTCHAS

Axle Wrap
If you use stock springs (like I am curently) you will have crazy axle wrap. I took care of this with a M.O.R.E traction bar and a custom built crossmember like Sam's Off-road sells

Steering
I don't have any issues with my steering yet, but I'm also running flat stock springs.

I wish I would have put a few more degrees of caster into the front because it seems a little loose, but not bad. After lifting I had the alignment checked and I was within .1* of stock caster. I have since read that people will put an additional 4*-6* degrees of additional caster for an SOA rig.

If I ever go to 1.5" RE SOA leafs, I have a funny feeling that my bump steer will get worse (it's very tolerable now) and I may have some clearance issues. You might want to start researching cross-over steering or if your looking at putting bigger axles like a 44 or 60, start searching for hi-steer.

SYE and CV Driveshaft

These arent necessary, but they are VERY recommended when lifting a vehicle as high as an SOA will. 5.5" with stock springs, 7" with the RE SOA leafs. I did it on mine, and I have absolutley NO regrets.

Extended Brake lines

Longer Shocks

Extended shock towers

That's all for now, If I think of any more I'll post later.

[ksdaoski]

dont let people fool you. it can cost a lot depending on what you do. you mentioned new axles, steering, driveshafts, SYE.....really starts to add up. I've been working on SOA for awhile now, gathering parts and rebuilding axles. few bucks have definitly gone in. good luck!

[RhinoJeep]

Not trying to steal your thread I just have a question on this caster stuff....on the front axle..I understand most of it but how do you determine where to mount the new spring perches?..from what all I have read most people will basically set the spring perches on the axles put on the ubolts and adjust the rear axle pinion angle with weight on the axle but on the front how do you measure this caster ??

[cbwymore]

Generally you want to keep the caster stock. So if your using your D30 you can weld your new perches parallel to the factory ones. This is what I did.

Originally posted by RhinoJeep
Not trying to steal your thread I just have a question on this caster stuff....on the front axle..I understand most of it but how do you determine where to mount the new spring perches?..from what all I have read most people will basically set the spring perches on the axles put on the ubolts and adjust the rear axle pinion angle with weight on the axle but on the front how do you measure this caster ??

[Whisker_Biscuit]

Well honestly, the idea is less compelling the more I look. I've already done the SYE so cost on that is no issue now. What seems like a rats nest is reseting the axle's as from what I'm reading, you need to rotate the resting position of the pumpkin up to avoid harsh angles at the U joints... this sound about right??? Because from what I see, folks are cutting the front wheel perch off and rotating in false castor, then spinning the axle back that same angle, thus coming back to a castor angle near where you started.

I mean really, if I'm gonna have to cut the **** out of a D30 to get the drive angles right... I might as well buy a 44 already done or invest the work in making it right by starting from ground zero and doing/learning it all myself... and that's a time taker I'm sure.

So why is everyone so hot and horny over SOA then... seems like a lot of pain to get 1.5" more clearence... well I'm only shooting for 5/6" I guess, obviously you can't lift 8" by springs only and hope to flex worth a dang, so SOA is mandatory for that I guess... I dunno.

Hmmm... what to do... what to do...

[IDMO]

use the search n00b :D:D:D

[Whisker_Biscuit]

Originally posted by idrinkmotoroil
use the search n00b :D:D:D

stfu n00b http://www.stopstart.freeserve.co.uk/smilie/thefinger.gif http://www.stopstart.freeserve.co.uk/smilie/thefinger.gif http://www.stopstart.freeserve.co.uk/smilie/thefinger.gif

[Whisker_Biscuit]

Originally posted by El_jeepo
BIG GOTCHAS

Axle Wrap
If you use stock springs (like I am curently) you will have crazy axle wrap. I took care of this with a M.O.R.E traction bar and a custom built crossmember like Sam's Off-road sells

Steering
I don't have any issues with my steering yet, but I'm also running flat stock springs.

I wish I would have put a few more degrees of caster into the front because it seems a little loose, but not bad. After lifting I had the alignment checked and I was within .1* of stock caster. I have since read that people will put an additional 4*-6* degrees of additional caster for an SOA rig.

If I ever go to 1.5" RE SOA leafs, I have a funny feeling that my bump steer will get worse (it's very tolerable now) and I may have some clearance issues. You might want to start researching cross-over steering or if your looking at putting bigger axles like a 44 or 60, start searching for hi-steer.

SYE and CV Driveshaft

These arent necessary, but they are VERY recommended when lifting a vehicle as high as an SOA will. 5.5" with stock springs, 7" with the RE SOA leafs. I did it on mine, and I have absolutley NO regrets.

Extended Brake lines

Longer Shocks

Extended shock towers

That's all for now, If I think of any more I'll post later.

Hmm... now thats a good post, thanks man. So all this **** I'm reading about turning axles and perches and such is all toyota land cruider bull****?? I got the impression that you had to either wedge the axle to rotate it or do someother whack weld job. It seems to me my dad had to do something to this effect when he went SOA, guess I coulda asked him first huh??

[Rodney YJ]

SOA is the best thing you can do for a SUA jeep. Don't worry about the steering, just use a drop pitman arm for now and get use to a little bump steer. Definately do the sye and antiwrap bar which is a small price to pay for such a great ride and performance. DO THE SOA AND DON'T LOOK BACK.

[imported_Jeep_Freak]

I went SOA and love it. As stated before, yes you will need a traction arm. I have a Sam's Offroad torque arm and it works great. Do some research tho as a competent fabricator could build one easily and for cheaper. It can be a costly venture but if you make your own or purchase a kit I think you will like it. My steering was resolved with a drop pitman arm also, and I left my front end pinion angles as close to stock as possible with the naked eye. No problems as of yet. My rear diff is clocked fairly high, but no problems with it either.

[Whisker_Biscuit]

frickin good reply's... thanks...

i already have a drop pitman arm on, am i done here already?!?!

and on that trac bar, i guess ive never seen one, you don't mean that trac bar i took off 7 years ago do you?? (the ralph nader bar)

cuz if they are that expensive, ill design that sucker myself on pro/e, ive been looking for a reason to draw jeep ****, this would be a good intro project... good idea.


Ok, so... do the axles get rotated or not, i dont see that answer above here... or was i correct in the toyota aspect of it??

thanks y'all :hah:http://www.jeepsunlimited.com/forums/images/icons/icon14.gif

[ErieJeepSteve]

Yes you must rotate the axles, especially if you do the SYE/CV Driveshaft. Since you are going to be putting new perches on the axle, you don't need to cut anything off unless you want to get crazy and rotate the shock mounts so that they are parallel with the ground (for ground clearance reasons). I didn't do mine, and I have had no problems, I also did not cut off the factory perches. I know people are going to chime in and say stuff about losing ground clearance, but the reason I left them on is in case I have to switch springs for inspection next year. If my state inspection goes fine then I'll take the plasma cutter to 'em.

Rotating front axle
When I put the new perches on the top, I set the angle of the new perch to the angle on the existing perch on the bottom. I have not had any problems with this set-up, the steering still returns to center fine and it doesn't drift too much on the street, but for some reason alot of other people are saying to put more caster into the front axle. Your gonna have to make decision yourself. Remember when using the angle finder on the perches, if the reading is to the right of the zero when the angle finder is upside down, it should be to the left of the zero when the angle finder is right side up. You'll see what I mean when you get to that point.

Rotating rear axle
The following is how I set my rear pinion angle. Yes, I realize it is a little bit of work, but you have to make sure that the angle is perfect because once you start welding, there is no changing the angle again (without cutting perches or using angle shims). If you don't wnat to go through all of this work, then scroll down to the picture at the end of the post to see a shortcut that should give you good results. :)

http://www.velocity.net/~steve/Jeep_tech/setting_pinion/Drawing2.jpg

http://www.velocity.net/~steve/Jeep_tech/setting_pinion/Drawing3.jpg

http://www.velocity.net/~steve/Jeep_tech/setting_pinion/Drawing4.jpg

Or you can skip all of that and just do the following as it should be close enough...

http://www.velocity.net/~steve/Jeep_tech/setting_pinion/Drawing1.jpg