Topic: best SOA kit

[dan684]

i have a 95 yj with a rough country lift and i want to go soa to get 35s under her.  whats the best kit to buy for this and does price reflect quality on this type of kit? :?:

[Jeffy]

i have a 95 yj with a rough country lift and i want to go soa to get 35s under her.  whats the best kit to buy for this and does price reflect quality on this type of kit? :?:

Well, you won't want to be using those leafs with a SOA.  A kit isn't really required.  I believe the only 'kit' is from Full Traction and it's not that great.  It's all bolt-on and you don't gain any ground clearance under the axles.

To do a SOA properly, you'll need some leafs.  Either some really soft 2.5" or some stiff 5 or 6 leaf stockers.  Perches will be required.  Rubicnon Express sells some decent ones that allow you to change the WB 1".  Also allows you to use a dropped pitman arm to correct for steering.

You'll have to set the pinion angles and then deal with the rear driveshaft, too.  Brakelines can be moved around in the front to work.  Rears will need to be extended with either a longer line or else an extension.

It's not that difficult but you'll really want to do some research so you're not walking into this blind.  You'll need a welder and a cutter of some sort is you want to remove the old brackets.

Also, for 35's you won't want to run a D35c...

[dan684]

ive seen you write in several articles the using lift springs with soa is bad...why???
is it about ride smoothness?
and as far as axles.  i will have a 44/60 or  maybe a 9" setup waiting but i will probably run the 35 till it breaks.

[Jeffy]

ive seen you write in several articles the using lift springs with soa is bad...why???
is it about ride smoothness?
and as far as axles.  i will have a 44/60 or  maybe a 9" setup waiting but i will probably run the 35 till it breaks.

You are currently on 4" lift leafs.  If you went with a SOA you'd be around 9-11" of lift which makes for a pretty stiff ride since they are designed to be SUA.  Your driveshaft angles would be pretty bad even if you went with a hi-pinion.  A 9" would be very iffy.

Also keep in mine that the axle itself will change the height.  If you start off with stock axles then go with something like a 44 or larger you will gain a bit of height because of the axle tube dia.  If I was going to go with large axles, on the cheap, I'd probably go with a 3/4 ton D44 and a 14bolt.  They're a lot easier to find them D60's.

[kamikaze124]

If you run lift springs with a SOA, Your gonna have a crazy high center of gravity.. And the 35's would look silly under it..

I ran my jeep with 35's and only a 3 1/2" superlift on it, plus a 2 inch body lift... Cleared the 35s fine.. But like mentioned above.. Be ready to break some axles..  I broke front and rears..

If your gonna go SOA, you could run the stock wrangler springs, and it would not sit so high... But your also gonna have to do alot of other work as well.
Traction bar for sure....  Ford Shock towers, for longer travel shocks. and your gonna have to make sure you set you pinion angle back up.. Plus, Once you go to a larger tire.. Be ready to regear to like 488's...  I ran 456's, and wished I would have got to the 488's instead.

I have run alot of these setups while I was learning all about this stuff..
 I am now sitting on 39.5 Iroks with a spring over and Dana 60 and dana 44 with warn shafts... and 513 gears...

If you have any other questions, Please feel free to ask.. I will help you if I can.

[jagular7]

i have a 95 yj with a rough country lift and i want to go soa to get 35s under her.  whats the best kit to buy for this and does price reflect quality on this type of kit? :?:

Like others have suggested, you'll need to swap leafs to go SOA. However, you may not need to go SOA to run 35's. What lift do you have with the RC?
If its a 4", then look at simple things like shackles, slight body lift (better body bushings), different wheels w/ offset and TJ flares to gain the room needed for the 35's.
Lift shackles provide slight lift, but getting better than stock shackles that provide lift would be very helpful.
Body lifts in the lower ranger (1-2") help clear larger than stock tires. To add, 1" lifts can provide a replacement body bushing rather than adding a block between the body and body mount. I'm using Daystar's 1" poly lift on my TJ.
You'll be amazed at using a wheel with the proper backspacing/offset with a tire to clear the body and suspension at full articulation. You may not have to get new wheels, but could look at adding wheel spacers to the axles.
Lastly, TJ flares are known to be wider than YJs and with a little body trimming, fit 35's really well.