lift question (YEAH I KNOW)

Jmjnewbold

Jmjnewbold

Member
I know there are probably a lot of threads on here about "what lift should I get", but I was not able to find one recently through the search tool. So, I've finally be able to save some money and after I PCS to FL I am pulling the trigger on a 2.5" to 3.5" lift. Guys that I work with have recommended metalcloak, rock krawler, and skyjacker. I am not considering skyjacker at all because I have heard less than great things about them. So, other than Metalcloak or rock krawler what lifts do you guys run and what do you guys recommend? I'm looking to spend about $2,500 for the lift excluding the driveshaft (if I need it? :dont_know:). Thanks to you guys in advanced!
 
What size tires are you going to run?

Evo enforcer 3" for 35's. I had a rock krawler and wished I went enforcer from the beginning. Rancho 9000 shocks.

Guys in my club are happy with their metal cloak. I don't like their stacked spring design.

I've read decent stuff about the Rancho sport kits too.

Avoid the chinese kits (rough country, teraflex).

You'll want a front driveshaft. Recommend an Adams 1310.
 
Personally, I would avoid Metalcloak suspension as much as possible. They seem to work well, but their durability leaves lots to be desired.
 
zimm said:
What size tires are you going to run?

Evo enforcer 3" for 35's. I had a rock krawler and wished I went enforcer from the beginning. Rancho 9000 shocks.

Guys in my club are happy with their metal cloak. I don't like their stacked spring design.

I've read decent stuff about the Rancho sport kits too.

Avoid the chinese kits (rough country, teraflex).

You'll want a front driveshaft. Recommend an Adams 1310.
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Thank you for the info. I'm looking at 35s or 37s. It's still gonna be a daily driver, but work is only about 10-15miles away so. What did you feel was lacking the in the rock krawler that the EVO enforcer kit had?
 
Jmjnewbold said:
What did you feel was lacking the in the rock krawler that the EVO enforcer kit had?
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I bought the RK "flex" 2.5 in Jan 2016.

The rear springs sagged really bad. I was running 1" spacers and still low in the rear. Since then they've changed their spring rates and folks are complaining that the rear end is way too high. I don't think they've dialed in their rates.

Their sway links require drilling out the holes in the sway bar to 1/2". That required hours of work and several burned out drill bits. I've since changed the end links to Evo because those RK ones bent. Now the holes in my rubicon sway bar are a little too big.

The front control arms are a major PITA to adjust. The adjustment nut is in the front, so you can only tighten them with the arm dropped down. They want 250 ft/lbs on the lock nut with red loctite. You have to index the end of the arm just right so after you tighten the crap out of it, it has to be vertical when you're done. That takes about 10 tries to get it close. The arms are also not bent in to help tire clearance so my tires rubbed when I had AEV wheels (5.2" backspace).

Their rear track bracket was garbage. They've redesigned it, but I cut mine off and had an artec welded in.

So the only remaining RK stuff I have now is the track bar, brake lines, and lower control arms.

I want to change my castor again, and I'd rather buy new arms than deal with adjusting those suckers again. I'll be buying EVO arms in the future- you can adjust them in place on the jeep.
 
zimm said:
I bought the RK "flex" 2.5 in Jan 2016.

The rear springs sagged really bad. I was running 1" spacers and still low in the rear. Since then they've changed their spring rates and folks are complaining that the rear end is way too high. I don't think they've dialed in their rates.

Their sway links require drilling out the holes in the sway bar to 1/2". That required hours of work and several burned out drill bits. I've since changed the end links to Evo because those RK ones bent. Now the holes in my rubicon sway bar are a little too big.

The front control arms are a major PITA to adjust. The adjustment nut is in the front, so you can only tighten them with the arm dropped down. They want 250 ft/lbs on the lock nut with red loctite. You have to index the end of the arm just right so after you tighten the crap out of it, it has to be vertical when you're done. That takes about 10 tries to get it close. The arms are also not bent in to help tire clearance so my tires rubbed when I had AEV wheels (5.2" backspace).

Their rear track bracket was garbage. They've redesigned it, but I cut mine off and had an artec welded in.

So the only remaining RK stuff I have now is the track bar, brake lines, and lower control arms.

I want to change my castor again, and I'd rather buy new arms than deal with adjusting those suckers again. I'll be buying EVO arms in the future- you can adjust them in place on the jeep.
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Wow that was a lot. LOL I appreciate the advise. I know that Rock Krawler has their abuse proof lifetime warranty, do you have any experience in dealing with them when your end links bent? Do you know if EVO has something similar?
 
Don't know. I didn't want another set of RK links. They use threaded rod and female threaded ends. Pretty skimpy. The Evo links are thick octagon barrels, internal threaded with beefy links. There's a reason they're $100 a pair. They do squeak every once in a while and I have to squirt 'em with WD-40 to quiet the ends down.

I put a set of currie lower control arms in my sister's jeep, they're much beefier than the RK arms. Although the RK arms are solid, so heavier, the currie are bigger around, lighter, and have huge johnny joints. The Evo's use the same joints, but have a double threaded collar like your tie rod does, so you can adjust the length in place on the jeep.
 
Jmjnewbold said:
Is that based on personal experience or just what you have heard?
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A little bit of both.

I'm on a "Metalcloak Owners Page" as I run their front fenders on my TJ. The amount of times I've seen their control arms literally just snap in half from people on that page, is scary. A buddy of mine has bent more than one of their tie rods, even though they claim it to be super strong.

That being said, I know a few people who run their kits that have no issues. I personally have never ran their suspension, and I won't based on what I see.
 
Though I have no personal experience with the EVO enforcer lift there are a lot of people on here running their lift and are extremely happy with it. That would be my suggestion as for lifts go. Also ride quality is 100% subjective so if possible I'd try to ride in as many Jeeps with different lifts so you can compare one another. Also as for front drive shafts go I'd recommend nothing less than a 1350. A 1310 is weaker than stock and while most manufactures will say they are good for 35's I managed to blow my 1310 apart. Look for a manufacturer who uses Spicer or Neapco u-joints and you can't go wrong.
 
jesse3638 said:
Though I have no personal experience with the EVO enforcer lift there are a lot of people on here running their lift and are extremely happy with it. That would be my suggestion as for lifts go. Also ride quality is 100% subjective so if possible I'd try to ride in as many Jeeps with different lifts so you can compare one another. Also as for front drive shafts go I'd recommend nothing less than a 1350. A 1310 is weaker than stock and while most manufactures will say they are good for 35's I managed to blow my 1310 apart. Look for a manufacturer who uses Spicer or Neapco u-joints and you can't go wrong.
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I appreciate your advise. What lift are you running on your JK?
 
When shopping and comparing lift kits, it's easy to make apples to oranges comparisons. Some kits include things that are extra cost options for other kits. For example, track bar relocation brackets, extended brake lines, drag link flips, shocks, adjustable-length control arms, etc. I suggest you do a bunch of general research re what you will need to fit the tire size you want, put all those things on a spreadsheet, then compare kits from different manufacturers and include all the add ons where necessary that you need. That way you will be comparing apples to apples, both component wise and price wise. Then, things like reputation, warranty, customer service, can come into play and guide you to a final decision.
 
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fiend said:
When shopping and comparing lift kits, it's easy to make apples to oranges comparisons. Some kits include things that are extra cost options for other kits. For example, track bar relocation brackets, extended brake lines, drag link flips, shocks, etc. I suggest you do a bunch of general research re what you will need to fit the tire size you want, out all those things on a spreadsheet, then compare kits from different manufacturers and include add ons where necessary. That way you will be comparing apples to apples, both component wise and price wise. Then, things like reputation, warranty, customer service, can come into play and guide you to a final decision.
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That's a good idea, thank you! I guess my next thread is going to be what do I need to fit 37's. LOL I honestly don't know where to begin so I will definitely have to research that. Thanks again.
 
Jmjnewbold said:
That's a good idea, thank you! I guess my next thread is going to be what do I need to fit 37's. LOL I honestly don't know where to begin so I will definitely have to research that. Thanks again.
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You can fit 37s on a stock suspension with enough cutting.
 
To do 37's, you'll need 5.13 gears (or 4.88) in the axles and c-gusset the front knuckles. You should seriously consider a Dana 44 front axle upgrade while you're going gears.
 
zimm said:
To do 37's, you'll need 5.13 gears (or 4.88) in the axles and c-gusset the front knuckles. You should seriously consider a Dana 44 front axle upgrade while you're going gears.
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^ solid advice. I wouldn't recommend 37s on a d30 at all, but that's just me.
 
BananaJeep said:
^ solid advice. I wouldn't recommend 37s on a d30 at all, but that's just me.
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I know of several jeeps in my club running 4.88 or 5.13 on a trussed/gusseted D30. They know they're on borrowed time, but for few hundred dollars of welding, they figure it's better than nothing until they can afford a pro rock D44 down the road.
 
zimm said:
I know of several jeeps in my club running 4.88 or 5.13 on a trussed/gusseted D30. They know they're on borrowed time, but for few hundred dollars of welding, they figure it's better than nothing until they can afford a pro rock D44 down the road.
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Not bad until you're on a wheeling trip 16 hours from home and your axle cracks in half. To each their own, though!
 
I will definitely be upgrading axles at some point, but right now that is just way out of budget. I won't be running 37's anytime soon, but my end goal is to be able to run 37's. I figured if I purchased a kit or put parts together to enable me to run 37s, I won't have to switch things out later down the road. Right now I'm running the stock willys edition tires which I think measure out to 32's. Once those are worn down I will upgrade to 35s. Then once I have the axles I'll upgrade the wheels and tires to 37s. It's a slow plan as the military isn't exactly a six figure job. lol
 
Jmjnewbold said:
I will definitely be upgrading axles at some point, but right now that is just way out of budget. I won't be running 37's anytime soon, but my end goal is to be able to run 37's. I figured if I purchased a kit or put parts together to enable me to run 37s, I won't have to switch things out later down the road. Right now I'm running the stock willys edition tires which I think measure out to 32's. Once those are worn down I will upgrade to 35s. Then once I have the axles I'll upgrade the wheels and tires to 37s. It's a slow plan as the military isn't exactly a six figure job. lol
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Good plan :thumb:

Edit: you can have tons of fun on those stock tires. Your Willys is extremely capable, even in stock form. Get out there and enjoy it. You'll learn along the way
 
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