CJ 5 Skyjacker 4" Lift ??

[Kman]

I just picked up a used set of Skyjacker Softride 4" lift front and rear springs.What degree rear axle shims should I run with these?Do I need front shims?I have a drop pitman arm already.Do I need to buy(or build) a transfer case lowering kit?The kits don't look like much more than some 1" square tubing and bolts.I think I remember seeing that NAPA has longer brake lines to work with lifts.Any thoughts or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

[rick]

You should be able to use ~'87 Chevy 1/2 ton truck brake lines for the front. Go to Napa and ask them what style brake lines are on the front of a chevy 1/2 ton, then look in their catalog to verify the fittings. You will need to look pretty closely at your existing fittings to make sure you are getting the right lines, because I'm not positive if they are the same as mine or not. You will have to grind or file the clip on the frame slightly to get the ferrule in the chevy lines to fit. No biggie. I did this a couple years ago and have not had any problems.

As far as the springs, I have the same springs on my CJ-7 with 1 3/8" lift shackles and I run an 8 degree wedge in the rear with a CV driveshaft (pinion pointed at the tcase). The amount of wedge you need depends on how long your shackles are and your driveshaft. I have no wedges in the front (it is not a good idea to point the pinion up any further, as this makes the castor even worse if running longer shackles). The front driveshaft is long enough that you shouldn't have to worry about the pinion angle as much anyway.

You can use 1/2" washers to space the crossmember down, or some square tubing, flat bar, whatever you want. However, I had a tcase drop on mine with stock driveshaft and these springs. I had serious vibes that only went away after lowering the crossmember even further than the tcase drop kit did - I think I had to add almost 3/4" to the 3/4" that the tcase drop added for a total drop of 1 1/2". This is a serious waste of ground clearance, so that was the deciding factor to go with a CV rear shaft. I would do the CV shaft and save yourself some heartache. I doubt you will be happy with the lowering kit, especially on a CJ-5 where driveshaft lenght is at a premium you may need to drop it a long way.

[Kman]

I was out in Ohio last week for training and swung by Summit Speed Shop.I spent the $100. and got the braided stainless 4" brake lines.I got 5 new 15x8 white spokes(I mounted 33x12.5 BFG A/T's on them) and "Jeep 4x4 Performance handbook" by Jim Allen.Rick your 7 looks pretty sharp!Looks like I'm headed in the right direction with my 5.