Take offs vs BB

Ok, I'm sure I'm beating a dead horse here but I would like to ask opinions. I've personally never done this before but, I've recently had several folks suggest I swap out my springs and shocks with take offs. This got me doing some researching, and as it is with about everything with jeeps, there was 35,654 different opinions.

My current vehicle is a stock 2012 JK sport. Springs are 15/54's if I remember correctly. It was suggested to find 18/59's off of a JKUR, and use the shocks as well. It was said that it should give me about 1.5"-2" of lift and I will have a better suspension. Some have reported better flex and overall a better ride by doing this. Considering I will not be going crazy on the trails, I got to thinking about this. Is there any truth to this, when it comes to the flexing and ride? I'm sure I will get some lift but I don't need a ton as I'm staying with a tire no larger than 33".

My other option is the Teraflex Budget Boost 2.5" with shocks. It was also suggested that I could still use JKUR springs with this setup. This setup is about 500.00.

I don't want to spend a ton of money on a lift that I will get very little use out off. Hell, I will do trail riding, but they will be few and far between because I'm normally in the patrol car riding around. Most of my time will be road, BEACH, light trails and mud. Anything more intense than that may happen twice a year on rides.

Thoughts on this?

Again, I'm new to this forum so I'm sorry if I'm beating the horse here.

This is a stock photo of the kit I was originally looking at. If I can do a spring and shock swap and pretty much get the same thing this will give me, I will save this money to replace the factory running boards with some sliders.

reelsilly said:

This is a stock photo of the kit I was originally looking at. If I can do a spring and shock swap and pretty much get the same thing this will give me, I will save this money to replace the factory running boards with some sliders.

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ive heard the teraflex shocks arent very good. what i have heard is people doing that kit without the shocks but getting it with the shock extensions, and either reusing current shocks or getting a set of rubicon take off shocks and using those with the shock extensions.

edit:
i have also been told that the springs will sag over time and you'll lose some of the lift you gained by swapping. in my opinion doing both would give you the most lift but probly not worth it in the long run i also have a 2dr and had the 14/55 springs i was debating doing the spring swap, i decided to just spend the money on a lift instead

also what tire size are you/are you planning to run?

If you can find them fairly cheap like $100 or less for springs and rubi shocks then maybe. With those you can run 33s with nothing else, maybe trim your fenders.

Other than that, I would look at the EVO level kit or the rancho level kit/sport kit (whichever they call it). Then get good shocks. Be better than factory springs that way.

Wethy said:

ive heard the teraflex shocks arent very good. what i have heard is people doing that kit without the shocks but getting it with the shock extensions, and either reusing current shocks or getting a set of rubicon take off shocks and using those with the shock extensions.

edit:
i have also been told that the springs will sag over time and you'll lose some of the lift you gained by swapping. in my opinion doing both would give you the most lift but probly not worth it in the long run i also have a 2dr and had the 14/55 springs i was debating doing the spring swap, i decided to just spend the money on a lift instead

also what tire size are you/are you planning to run?

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I will be running nothing bigger than 33's. I expected some sag once they were broke in good. I figured if I went with the JKUR takeoff shocks and springs, I could just do a 1" leveling kit. If I went this route, I assume I wouldn't need relocation brackets, extenders, and such as it may it give me even 2".

What lift are you going with?

I see the rubicon express lift is another fairly complete 2.5" kit

mudmobeeler said:

If you can find them fairly cheap like $100 or less for springs and rubi shocks then maybe. With those you can run 33s with nothing else, maybe trim your fenders.

Other than that, I would look at the EVO level kit or the rancho level kit/sport kit (whichever they call it). Then get good shocks. Be better than factory springs that way.

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^^^^This!

I started with swapping in Rubi coils, Rubi shocks and some cool spacers. It did lift my Jeep and there was zero change to how the ride felt to me. I now have the EVO leveling kit. It gave me a little more clearance but a much better ride on and off road. I still have the Rubi shocks on the Jeep and the only other addition I did was JKS quick discos (which I also love). I'm running what BFG states is a 33", in the 255/80R17 and am content for now. So far no fender rub, but I can't say I've flexed it completely either.

reelsilly said:

I will be running nothing bigger than 33's. I expected some sag once they were broke in good. I figured if I went with the JKUR takeoff shocks and springs, I could just do a 1" leveling kit. If I went this route, I assume I wouldn't need relocation brackets, extenders, and such as it may it give me even 2".

What lift are you going with?

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I went with the RE7121 2.5" lift with monotone shocks(they're rebranded bilstein 5100s) and I have 285/70/17 duratracs

This is it all put together

reelsilly said:

I see the rubicon express lift is another fairly complete 2.5" kit

Click to expand...

It is other than not having rear brake line relocation. Brackets but it does ride decent and flexes well

You might get an inch at best from juke springs. I personally don't buy anything from teraflex. If you trim your fenders you can fit 33s as is

reelsilly said:

Ok, I'm sure I'm beating a dead horse here but I would like to ask opinions. I've personally never done this before but, I've recently had several folks suggest I swap out my springs and shocks with take offs. This got me doing some researching, and as it is with about everything with jeeps, there was 35,654 different opinions.

My current vehicle is a stock 2012 JK sport. Springs are 15/54's if I remember correctly. It was suggested to find 18/59's off of a JKUR, and use the shocks as well. It was said that it should give me about 1.5"-2" of lift and I will have a better suspension. Some have reported better flex and overall a better ride by doing this. Considering I will not be going crazy on the trails, I got to thinking about this. Is there any truth to this, when it comes to the flexing and ride? I'm sure I will get some lift but I don't need a ton as I'm staying with a tire no larger than 33".

My other option is the Teraflex Budget Boost 2.5" with shocks. It was also suggested that I could still use JKUR springs with this setup. This setup is about 500.00.

I don't want to spend a ton of money on a lift that I will get very little use out off. Hell, I will do trail riding, but they will be few and far between because I'm normally in the patrol car riding around. Most of my time will be road, BEACH, light trails and mud. Anything more intense than that may happen twice a year on rides.

Thoughts on this?

Again, I'm new to this forum so I'm sorry if I'm beating the horse here.

Click to expand...

Since your a 2 door a set of 18/59 or 19/59 springs from a 4 door Rubi will yield you some lift. They will ride very close to your stock sport and this is the route I suggest you go for you only wanting to run 33's.

Now if you were switching to 35's then I would say a 2.5" budget boost with shock extensions from teraflex is the way to go. They have the most complete 2.5" bb on the market IMO. DONT get their shocks and springs as they are both to stiff IMO.

I've done more research. It honestly seems to just be easier to buy a kit that will lift it true. I like the idea of going cheap but I don't want to be all happy and then it settles down and I'm back at square one. Now the biggest question is, what lift to go with. There are 40 million of them. I don't want to get into changing drive shafts and all that so I'm not looking to go very high. I'm guessing 2-2.5" maybe 3" at the most? I'm sure anything after that and I start running into shaft angles and such.

Old Man Emu, Rubicon Express, Skyjacker, all have decent lifts. I wanted Teraflex but it seems that folks don't like them very much for some reason. They get rave reviews by half the crowd and crap reviews by the others.

You will want to stay at less than 3 inches of actual gained lift, not advertised lift. At 3 inches you will usually need a new front driveshaft, adjustable lower control arms up front, and a drag link flip kit. Being that you have a two door, I believe at 3 inches of lift you would also need adjustable upper control arms on the rear as well as a rear driveshaft along with the other stuff I mentioned. I could be wrong though on the stuff for the rear on 2 doors.

reelsilly said:

I've done more research. It honestly seems to just be easier to buy a kit that will lift it true. I like the idea of going cheap but I don't want to be all happy and then it settles down and I'm back at square one. Now the biggest question is, what lift to go with. There are 40 million of them. I don't want to get into changing drive shafts and all that so I'm not looking to go very high. I'm guessing 2-2.5" maybe 3" at the most? I'm sure anything after that and I start running into shaft angles and such.

Old Man Emu, Rubicon Express, Skyjacker, all have decent lifts. I wanted Teraflex but it seems that folks don't like them very much for some reason. They get rave reviews by half the crowd and crap reviews by the others.

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If you want true lift you cant go wrong with the teraflex BB like you posted earlier and maybe some rancho 9000s instead of the teraflex shocks. Another option would be the evo leveling kit with the same 9000s. 5-600 i think lol

I'm running the Rough Country 2.5" BB, all you need with it is front end links. It's not the greatest but it definitely gets the job done. Here's a pic with 37's and cut fenders.

If you're going to mod your rig, do it right the first time. You'll be happier that you did. With that, based off every forum/thread I have read on JK's 33's are a waste of money and 35's/37's is where it's at.

This is your build, your rig, and your coin. Spend it how you see fit. However, as I tell most people it's a waste of money/time to do something (like take offs) to get you by - especially when it comes to wear items. As it has been mentioned it will get you what you desire, but it'll sag or break down over time and you'll be back at square one. I would highly suggest that you do a kit that will allow you 35's so you have the room to move up in the world. I understand you do not want to go beyond 33's right now, and I don't want to derail you from what you want. I was the same way...

I ran an '08 Un-Sahara on 33's with the suspension of a Rubicon. I did a few trails, nothing to much (as I didn't have the ability to disconnect my sway-bar, and didn't know I should or what it was at the time). I ran into issues as it started sagging about 6 months of installing the take offs, and my wheels started rubbing on the fenders. I'm kicking myself that I should have saved the money I spent on doing the take off for the Sahara in to saving it for a real lift and 35's. The 33's were nice but no better than the 32's that come stock with the vehicle. From my personal experience there is really no difference between 32's and 33's. -- I am now running a '15 Un-Rubi, bone stock with the same 33's.

If you go with a kit (as most have suggested/recommended), I would agree with them on staying away from Teraflex. They're not a bad company or anything, but the ride is stiff and most people (especially me with my bad back) like a plusher ride. EVO seems to be the most popular on this forum. I would agree and suggest with most people on here to perform a leveling kit and do fender trimming if you truly do not want to go beyond 33's. You might spend a little more money, but again you'll be happier in the long run.

Thanks for the info everyone. I have a lot to think about and take into consideration. I would love 35" tires but I'm not really interested in swapping gears to get the best ride out of them. It appears that most everyone running 35" tires fuss because of the power loss in running them.

As for lifts, I'm looking something fairly complete and not just pucks and shock extenders. I do want something a bit more than stock flex but I can't justify spending 2-3k on a lift. My rig might see 6k miles a year with a majority of the off road being sand and some mud.

It seems that Teraflex, Old Man Emu, Rubicon Express, and Mopar all have the fairly complete kits in the 2-2.5" range. Decisions decisions