Coil over gurus need help

F

filterbiz

Member
So I contacted a vendor and had special needs for my jk.
I use it in the desert 80% of the time so I wanted their kit but did not want it to sit high and also wanted king 2.5 with adjusters.
I made it very clear I didn't want a 8" lift I wanted to be around 4-4.5. I also made it clear that I needed more up travel than what most out of the box coil over kits have.
Well this is what I got sitting at a 5" lift.
Also the shock bottoms out before the bumpstop.

I have kings on everything I own so I'm not new to the game. But other that raising ride height (not an option)I don't see how it can be fixed.
These are 12" coil overs by the way. But they have 16" shock body's.

After several emails and calls to the company all I get is bring it in. How is that going to give me more up travel. I only have about 3" of shaft showing at ride height. I'm thinking I have been burned. I am by no means bashing but when I spend money on what I want and I am assured it's right and it's clearly not I have no choice but to air my frustration. Any help from u guys would be rad.

Thx ImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1447817166.278360.jpg ImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1447817191.029340.jpg ImageUploadedByWAYALIFE1447817203.232058.jpg
 
Evil

Evil

New member
Why the 12 inch shaft in a 16 inch body?
Did these shocks come with the kit?
Is it a Rebel kit?
 
SFNick

SFNick

New member
Every Time I see a Rebel Coilover kit it's setup all wrong. I wish I could give you a little insight on how to fix it but in my opinion, there isn't much you can do with your current coilover and bumstop mounted the way it is. I'd take it in and have them redo it.
 
F

filterbiz

Member
I bought there brackets and the shocks were "built the way I wanted"
And for what I was looking to do.
I have days of emails going over the plans and this is what I got.
I did the install myself because I always have done my own work.
 
Evil

Evil

New member
So what driving style were you setting this up for and what were you trying to achieve?

I ask because I have built many trucks in the past and have set them up differently depending on the purpose and have had everything from Kings to SwayAways etc. The short shaft in a long body is a old school pre runner trick that was used to hold more fluid to keep the shock cooler. Most typical on the rear when running leaf springs.
 
F

filterbiz

Member
All coil over "kits" I have seen for the jk all have limited up travel
So since we go to glamis and the desert I wanted to build something that my wife could cruise around in with the kid with a/c

Wanted to be able to handle whoops and be capable on rocks too.

I'm just struggling with the fact I have 8-9" of shaft in the body at ride height
 
Evil

Evil

New member
Almost sounds like a 10 would have given you more of what you wanted with a 4.5 lift, up travel and the ability articulate a bit.
 
Q

qwasin

New member
Par for the course with a 12" shock. Read through the EVO coilover threads on this forum you will see the same thing. A 12" shock on 35s or 37s is dumb as hell on a JK because of how well 37s can stuff up into the wheel well with flat fenders and minor trimming. Yea you'll have 3" of up travel and 9" of droop, that's nice. I would rather have 5" of up travel and 5" of droop. For rock crawling and general trail use some people will tell you that 1/3 up travel and 2/3 droop is perfectly acceptable and that's a valid opinion. Not what I would prefer, but valid. However, coilovers really shine in the high speed stuff, where most experienced builders will tell you at least 50/50, or even 2/3 up 1/3 droop. So as it sits now OP, you have high dollar coilovers built for speed but set up for low speed articulation that you could accomplish with any $100 shock and some coil retainers. Your solutions are either mount the coilovers higher in the tub or raise your ride height. With the latter being exponentially easier.
 
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SFNick

SFNick

New member
qwasin said:
Par for the course with a 12" shock. Read through the EVO coilover threads on this forum you will see the same thing. A 12" shock on 35s or 37s is dumb as hell on a JK because of how well 37s can stuff up into the wheel well with flat fenders and minor trimming. Yea you'll have 3" of up travel and 9" of droop, that's nice. I would rather have 5" of up travel and 5" of droop. For rock crawling and general trail use some people will tell you that 1/3 up travel and 2/3 droop is perfectly acceptable and that's a valid opinion. Not what I would prefer, but valid. However, coilovers really shine in the high speed stuff, where most experienced builders will tell you at least 50/50, or even 2/3 up 1/3 droop. So as it sits now OP, you have high dollar coilovers built for speed but set up for low speed articulation that you could accomplish with any $100 shock and some coil retainers. Your solutions are either mount the coilovers higher in the tub or raise your ride height. With the latter being exponentially easier.
Click to expand...

Lol Your post is "dumb as hell"
 
F

filterbiz

Member
Thanks guys I agree. 10" coil overs is what they should have built and I left out the fact the valving is so stiff you need a kidney belt.
I'm going to order cans and shafts for 10 shocks and new valving and do them myself.
If you see an issue shout please but that's my new plan
 
Q

qwasin

New member
SFNick said:
Lol Your post is "dumb as hell"
Click to expand...

Thank you for the constructive response. Here is an example of what I'm talking about. The first picture is what I would consider a reasonable amount of up travel for a coilover that would justify the expense. The second picture is how high the vehicle needs to sit to achieve that up travel. As you can see, with 37s, it's ridiculous. From Mechengineer2 on JKF:

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Q

qwasin

New member
Here is what you would need to do up front to properly run the 12" or 14" shocks at a reasonable ride height for a 37. And a cantilever system out back if you don't want to come up through the tub and into the cab. From Invest2m4 on JKF.

pbIOXFm.jpg
 
thardy

thardy

Banned
qwasin said:
Thank you for the constructive response. Here is an example of what I'm talking about. The first picture is what I would consider a reasonable amount of up travel for a coilover that would justify the expense. The second picture is how high the vehicle needs to sit to achieve that up travel. As you can see, with 37s, it's ridiculous. From Mechengineer2 on JKF:
Click to expand...

qwasin said:
Here is what you would need to do up front to properly run the 12" or 14" shocks at a reasonable ride height for a 37. And a cantilever system out back if you don't want to come up through the tub and into the cab. From Invest2m4 on JKF.
Click to expand...

You obviously spend a good bit of time on JKF, why come here, posting things from over there?
 
GR8WHITE

GR8WHITE

New member
qwasin said:
Here is what you would need to do up front to properly run the 12" or 14" shocks at a reasonable ride height for a 37. And a cantilever system out back if you don't want to come up through the tub and into the cab. From Invest2m4 on JKF.
Click to expand...
He actually running 16"...
 
Q

qwasin

New member
thardy said:
You obviously spend a good bit of time on JKF, why come here, posting things from over there?
Click to expand...

Do I? Search google images for "jk bolt on coilovers" and that white jeep is the first one that pops up. The black one was found by searching for some variation of "jk frenched coilover tower".

And why am I posting that here? Because everyone here seems completely unaware that you can run a 37" tire up front with as little as a 1" bump stop. Consequently, that means the ideal compressed shock length for a 37" tire would be 1" longer than stock. And a 10" shock fits that bill perfectly.

But hey if yall want to try to shoe-horn 12" shocks in your stock wheel wells and run those massive 3" bump stops on 37s and have 2" of up travel at 3.5" of lift then there are a few companies who will be more than happy to separate you from your $$$.
 
Q

qwasin

New member
GR8WHITE said:
He actually running 16"...
Click to expand...

And 40s but my point still stands. 37s with a 12" shock means you bottom out the shock or hit the bump stop before the tire uses all of the available wheel well. The best way to fix that is to raise the towers further into the engine compartment as the picture demonstrates.
 
thardy

thardy

Banned
qwasin said:
Do I? Search google images for "jk bolt on coilovers" and that white jeep is the first one that pops up. The black one was found by searching for some variation of "jk frenched coilover tower".

And why am I posting that here? Because everyone here seems completely unaware that you can run a 37" tire up front with as little as a 1" bump stop. Consequently, that means the ideal compressed shock length for a 37" tire would be 1" longer than stock. And a 10" shock fits that bill perfectly.

But hey if yall want to try to shoe-horn 12" shocks in your stock wheel wells and run those massive 3" bump stops on 37s and have 2" of up travel at 3.5" of lift then there are a few companies who will be more than happy to separate you from your $$$.
Click to expand...

Then why mention JKF? And you're saying that EVO has it all WRONG with their DTD setup?

Edited: So you're claiming that someone can run 37s up front by only adding a 1" bump stop extension?
 
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jedg

jedg

New member
thardy said:
Then why mention JKF? And you're saying that EVO has it all WRONG with their DTD setup?

Edited: So you're claiming that someone can run 37s up front by only adding a 1" bump stop extension?
Click to expand...

Rock Krawler too I guess...
 
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