my ride quality improved dramatically when i swapped from my 03 EDGE 4wd to this 02 XLT 4wd. not sure if its the extra weight(excab 4.0 vs reg cab 3.0) or the longer wheelbase, or a different spring package or some combination of the three. i know the fronts are different rate, but the rear feels much better also, not as harsh. i am also at my ideal ride height, 2" torsion crank, 1" BL, and 33" tires. all that said, i dont want to change any of these characteristics. i would like more flex in the trails though. ideally i would have tons of extra cash, and i could get the camburg upgrade and a set of deavers, but my money tree hasnt sprouted, so im lookin for jy ways to emulate these parts.
lots of searchin and checkin around has led me to this setup that i want opinions on.
FRONT:
longer shocks with limit strap. ill hafta research my shock options, maybe a lift kit shock, or sumthin from a different application(F150 maybe?). thats easy.
REAR:
chevy spring swap with flipped hangers and longer shocks. springs from a 2wd so i can keep close to the proper rates. maybe a ranger "drop" hanger(if they still exist) to eliminate the blocks.

what i want to know is mostly from the guys with chevy springs. hows the ride? i really like the ride in my new truck and i wanna keep it this way! also how much flex did you gain with the chevy springs? flippin the hangers should get me even more, is it overkill? what shocks did you use to take advantage of the extra travel?

for anyone with the camburg upgrade how long is thier strap and where did they mount it? im sure i can find my own method, jus curious and like to see all my options.

i have more ideas, but this is gettin long....

 

i have procomp springs which are for a chevy, doesnt ride too bad, i had chevy 2wd springs but we all know how that turned out. the springs i have now are 4wd springs. the ride difference in chevy springs isnt that much different.

the shackles already hang down so there is no flipping to that.

i need to go out and flex mine, ive only done it one or two other times, but it flexes nice.

the front straps are either 8" or 10" beard straps. but i wouldnt think the length would matter as much as where you mount the straps.

you could also look into ball joint replacement in the front.

 

i want to flip the hangers so the shackles point up. did it many many times when i was lowerin trucks, so i know that it fits under the bed and such. should allow for more downward travel in the shackle = more flex. the extra lift from the chevy spring will negate the drop from flippin the hangers.

how much more travel can you get past the balljoint lockout? wouldnt CV bind come into play?

 

with the camburg upgrade it was like 8" of suspension travel and the limiting factor was CVs

i dont think you want to flip the shackles up, maybe look into chevy drop shackles.

 

188.95 for some Revolver shackles from summit racing. MississippiMDR from ORR uses them on his truck. You could even use them on the cheby springs, too.

 

everything ive read on the camburg upgrade says 10" travel before the ball joints lock out. 9-9.5 limit strapped.
why not flip the shackles? a chevy shackle will lift me more. i dont want to lift the truck. only reason i see not to flip the shackles is pinion angle, but ive never had an issue, and have no problems correctin it if i run into it this time.

 

then take the stock block out. and put in a AAL and run the shackle.

also im almost 100% sure our CVs cant handle 10"s of travel

 

^the idea is not to stiffn the rear end, adding a AAL and shackle isnt going to smooth things out

 

ok then take the stock block out and put in some chevy 2wd springs.

 

now that we got that straight....

i still dont see why you are against the shackle flip. deavers long travel pack says to flip the hangers. camburg flips the hangers when using deavers as well. http://www.kartek.com/products/truck...p/rearsusp.htm
if you think about the arc the shackle moves thru during droop, flippin the hanger puts it in a more natural position to allow maximum droop travel.
when pointing down the shackle moves forward and UP when the spring droops. if you flip it over the arc changes to forward and DOWN during droop allowing more droop travel.

anybody else runnin chevy springs? i got one vote for the ride stays about the same....

 

bob has them, Gildo has them, Alon has them, and im sure i could go on and on.

 

I have the 2WD C1500 springs and they ride about the same with an empty bed, maybe just a little firmer. There is better resistance to bottoming when heavily loaded.

 

This is the Camburg upgrade with Bilstein 7100, 10" Beard limit stap and fabricated frame mount.

 

i was trying to get across to him that just becasue it is a 10" strp doesnt mean 10" of travel.

isnt it only capable of 8" of travel?

 

i understand that a 10" strap doesnt equal 10" travel, thanks.

ive read here:
http://www.offroadrangers.com/forum/...ad.php?t=11636
and other places that confirm the same numbers. guess ill find out when i check myself.

thanks for the info so far guys!

 

I've heard that the Camburg upgrade is good for 8, 9, 9 1/2" - depends on who's telling the story. The halfshaft CVs bind if you go too far. The left shaft binds on full lock left turns and right binds on full lock right turns due to Ackerman steering. I'm using an adjustable clevis mount with my limit straps so that I can optimize it.

 

I measured my suspension at full droop limited by the stock Bilsteins and then again with the shocks disconnected. That let it drop until the UCAs hit the frame. Guess what? The increase is only one inch at the wheel and the CV joints won't even allow that much when the steering is turned to the lock - they start to bind up. Using longer shocks and limit straps while staying out of CV bind is only good for about 1/2" more travel on my Ranger.

 

Not what I wanted to hear but thanks for the heads up. Do you have a final travel number.

 

oh that sucks. stock travel is 7" ? if so then you arent even going to get 8"? that sucks.

 

No, I was too lazy to remove the torsion bars and cycle it.

 

still looks good bob. and im sure better than stock.

how dooes it ride?

 

What I was sort of getting at was wondering if the bilistens from the LII package offered more travel then the stock shocks from a non level II. In other words Bob only gained 1/2 an inch but a standard 4x4 would gain more from this upgrade?

 

I was wondering the same thing. Still, even if there is more, it can't be that much more.

 

Seems OK on the street and I took it down a dirt road for a mile or so. I don't have much time on it since I just finished it this morning.

 

still i thought that admin from ORR that had that writeup only said he got 8.5" of travel max. that was an 02? right? it would have had the bilistens stock then? idk maybe im way off.