Thread: 5.5 inch long arm shock length

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  1. #1 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    Ok I've posted on here a few times but not recently. I own a 96 zj with a 3.5 inch lift now I'm looking to upgrade I just finished the axles a hp30 in the front a Ford 8.8 in the rear both air lockers. I'm looking for a daily dual purpose rig. I want fast and crawl and daily. Im looking at doing the iro front long arm. I'm deciding on the rear if I want there long arm or keep it short arm. I'm doing a 5.5 inch lift on 35s and I need to know what shock length to order king is on a 4 week back order, so I was going to get those first. So I'm looking for lengths of front and rear and how much would the length change in the rear if I did long arm vs short arm?
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  2. #2 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    I've got front and rear longarms and a 6.5" lift in the rear, 4.5 in the front. I'm running Bilstein 5100 series monotubes. 14" travel in the back and 12" in the front has worked great for me and is more than i need. If you want to go fast offroad and dont want to break the bank, monotubes are the way to go. Better dampening and longer life.
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  3. #3 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    The guy at iro told meFront 18.5-32” and rear 17-29.5”. But that seems awfully long like way too long.
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  4. #4 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
    The class retard Lifetime Supporter ajmorell's Avatar
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    You really need to break out a tape and measure to get it right. It depends on a lot of factors (ie total travel, limit straps, bump length, etc.) and lift height is just one of them.
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  5. #5 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    Yeah that's what I was trying to avoid doing cause they have a 4 week wait. But if that's what I have to do i guess so.
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  6. #6 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    Can you guys weigh in on if it's worth doing long arm in the rear or not
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  7. #7 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
    Senior Member Ken L's Avatar
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    Long arm vs short arm really won't mean much as far as shock length. One limit will be the amount of up travel you have, which won't change from short arm to long arm unless you do something with your bump stops. You can get crazy downtravel with long arm and you may want to add limit straps. That way you can keep the same shocks as with the short arms. Don't rely on using your shock as your downtravel limit. They don't work so well, and I know this from personal experience. Twice.
    Ken L
    '96 ZJ with stuff
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  8. #8 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    Yeah I'm basically doing that now with my current set up. I was more asking like is it worth the money for long arm in the rear? I've heard of a couple people saying it isn't. Unless you do Clayton or something but I can't do that since I used a full brace to put the 8.8 in.
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  9. #9 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
    Senior Member Ken L's Avatar
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    Long arm will ride smoother than short arm. If it's your DD that should be a big consideration. Also, if you 'wheel your Jeep at all, and 'wheel it hard (suspect you will with ARBs front and rear) the short arms in back will tear the uppers off the body. BTDT. One of the factors that pushed me over the edge to go long arm. I think most of us that have 'wheeled our ZJs hard on short arms have experienced this.

    Long arm front will also help with the goofy bouncing and darting that happens with lifted short arms when you hit things like bumps and railroad tracks at speed, too. I know you just asked about long arm in the rear, but it's well worth considering doing the front at the same time.
    Ken L
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  10. #10 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    Doesn't the iro use the stock bracket in the rear still?

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  11. #11 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
    Senior Member Ken L's Avatar
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    I don't believe so, but someone that has an IRO set up will comment. Mine is all custom built.
    Ken L
    '96 ZJ with stuff
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  12. #12 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ken L View Post
    I don't believe so, but someone that has an IRO set up will comment. Mine is all custom built.
    How much in material did that cost you for the arms and heims if you can remember?


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  13. #13 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
    Senior Member Ken L's Avatar
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    If I remember right, I have about $400 in materials. That includes two different sizes of DOM for the arms, the steel for the unibody sleeves and the brackets, and the heims. I didn't have to build a truss for the axle because the D60 that I had built has the top milled flat and a bunch of bolt holes tapped in it. We just built a plate that we welded the brackets to and then bolted it to the top of the axle.

    At the same time I built a new cross member. None of the arms are bolted to the cross member, just the skid plate. And of course the transmission.

    What you're paying for when you buy any long arm kit isn't just the materials. You're paying for the engineering to make sure that it works right, and that there is clearance for important things like exhaust and driveshafts. When I built mine, a friend and I spent hours and hours with a link calculator and a tape measure before we cut or bent the first piece.
    Ken L
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  14. #14 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    I fabricated my rear 4 link and here's my cost breakdown
    $200- DOM (i bought a 20' length from a steel mill) Some of this was used for a front 3 link
    $125- 1.25" Heims (2x)
    $210- .874" Heims (6x)
    $80- Ruffstuff Specialties Beefy Truss
    $60- Upper Bracket
    $70- Lower Bracket/ Coil Bucket
    $70- Frame Side Brackets

    $815 Total. I could have saved a bit more cutting all my brackets from plate but the RuffStuff brackets are reasonable and look great.

    I did not use 4 link calculator but I spent about a year looking at 4 link setups on different buggys and KOH rigs to figure out what works and what doesn't then formulated a plan.

    I would argue that a good portion of the price on bolt on lift kits comes as much from engineering as it does branding. I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt, my setup has better hardware and beefier construction that a lot of the kits out there for Grands and I paid less to do it myself.

    Don't bite off more than you can chew, but don't be afraid to try something and learn a whole bunch along the way.
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  15. #15 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    With 2" longer bump stops you can run a way longer shock. I used a Zone 4920 rear, 15.4" - 26", and a Rough Country front n20008 15.0 - 26".
    $50 apiece in Canadian pesos.
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  16. #16 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    Quote Originally Posted by BCWildman View Post
    With 2" longer bump stops you can run a way longer shock. I used a Zone 4920 rear, 15.4" - 26", and a Rough Country front n20008 15.0 - 26".
    $50 apiece in Canadian pesos.
    That's with a 5.5 inch lift ?

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  17. #17 Re: 5.5 inch long arm shock length 
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    My arms are 1.25" longer than stock and I don't see wanting more droop than these shocks allow. Stuff is pretty well maxed out.
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