This is my 1979 toyota pickup with a brand new 3" lift from Rough Country... Eventually with the adition of a flatbed and 33's I want it to be a little rock crawler. not to great but fun.




This is the picture of my shackles...




WTF? Why are the shackles baskwards??????? =O



Please help. these are stock shackles with a BRAND new lift kit installed correctly (I hope)...

I followed the manual but...

3 step long manuals sure make the job look very simple. ex, "Step 2: install new leaf springs"... hu? lol.

I just need to know why my shackles are ed, ty.

 

id say the shackles are to short, mixed with unloaded springs. a longer shackle will keep it from inverting

 

ok, so now I need a shackle lift? how big do you think I need? I dont have enough money to fix the steering/ drive shaft problems that will occur after a 4+ inch lift and I already have the 3" spring lift... so I really hope more lift isent the solution.

and, unloaded spings???

 

I hope you own a kidney belt ? because you are in for a "rough ride" ..

ALL lifts are designed for "loaded" weight .. with out a box on (or any weight at all) your springs and shocks wont work at all ..


you need to put some weight on the back !!! buy a box !



.

 

You may need longer shackles but it probably will not lift it much at all. You need to get them going the other way and listen to Slacker, you need some weight. Put the bed on!!! You won't want to drive it like that.

 

were custom building the flatbed. it will be pretty heavy. Steel has been ordered and we hope it'll be done in the next couple weeks. We figured we'd paint the cab and put on suspension before putting on the bed.

It'll be similar to the All-Pro flatbeds here

on top of that im gonna be carryin my dirtbike everywhere I go so I'm sure there will be enough weight



Back to the problem, can you be SURE that a bit longer shackles would fix it or should I keep waiting for a better answer. On top of that, can some1 link me to a shackle you think would fix it?

 

 

springs will settle somewhat too when you get that bed on there.

one other thing to consider: did you mount the springs in the correct position?
from what I recall: for use in stock mounting locations: front springs are about 45" Eye to Eye, rear springs are about 47-48"ish eye to eye.

how is your front shackle angle?

 

unload the rear springs and use a pry bar to...encourage...the shackles back. Mine did the same thing when I installed the rear springs. A little pry bar loving and they flipped right around.

 

Weight will help to flatten out the springs, pry the shackle off the frame and load up the back and see what it looks like.

And for shackle length, take a few measurements then see below:
- http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/CheapTri...l#Applications

 

Good question, never even thought about front shackles. The fronts are straight down and look "ok". they look like they would flex outwards as normal.

I measured the rear springs eye to eye and they were about 43-44" while attached to the frame... that mean they sent me ed up rears?

my front springs are just as long as my rears... fronts measured 44"...

 

Either what they said or 1- you have them rear forward or 2 they're too short. Might want to check the part #s. When I went to install my rear leafs they did the same thing, turns out 4WP ordered me the wrong leafs that were too short.

 

ok, not sure how to be sure which part it is. no labels on the actual spring.

I used a jack to the frame to remove the small ammount of weight that was on the springs and even then they wont go all the way back.

The shackle on the other side of the truck is weird to, its not all the way to the frame but it is angled forward. the exaust pipe is the only thing keeping it from calapsing to the frame (like how the picture shows).

I think it is a bad spring. I'm gonna remove it, , measure again and contact Rough Country.

anyone want to double check the length for me of the rear springs eye to eye. just to make sure it is suposed to be 47-48"ish...

 

You are likely measuring eye-eye (chord length) straight across the springs, correct? Proper way to measure is along the arc of the spring, then you should find the fronts are closer to 45" and the rears are about 47":
- http://4x4spot.com/misc__spring_information.htm

 

ah, ty for the clarification. following it on the ark I get 47-48". BUT we still need to get the shackles where they should be.

 

my 5" skyjacker was the same way. i have a flatbed that is around 300# on it and it didnt help much even with longer shakles. they used to flop the wrong way and hit the frame. i keep a bar in my truck to pull it back right. after i used them for hard a few times they setled down some but the shakles are still streat up and down but they wount go the wrong way any more. and the springs are very stiff so dont exspect a smoth ride.

 

With the shackle pried back into the correct position and some weight in the back the spring will start to flatten out. Once it settles some it probably won't invert the shackle anymore. Its going to take some weight or cinching down of the suspension to speed up the normal settling process.

 

ok, I'll wait a while and get my bed before I try this again. BUT...

if anyone has a solution they think will work please post it, I will be looking.

 

did you use a large pry bar? you will want to lift the truck, then pry like mad while the weight is slowly reapplied.

Al

 

I pryed pretty good and got it like this. could pry more I guess but that seems to be the full extension of the springs. prying more would be pulling the springs.





ok. unfortunatly I wont be getting my bed soon. Im gonna pry it more and try and get something on there.