SOA ride height vs. stock?

[haminawag]

If you start with a bone stock '79 Wagoneer, and do a SOA conversion to it, how many inches of lift do you get? I'm figuring a 4" axle tube + the leaf spring pack thickness (1.5"?) + the spring perch height (1.5"). So about 7" of lift overall, right? So with some spring flex a set of 6" lift shocks should do the trick. Am I right, or did I miss something?

So then I reconverted the front to a Rough Country 4" SUA lift, and left the rear alone (6" lift) and yet there doesn't seem to be but a slight forward rake, maybe around 1" of nose-down difference, if that, why?

I don't mind the slight rake at all, and it'd be a heck of a lot easier to leave the rear end as is. But since I'm basically an FSJ newbie am I violating a cardinal rule by doing this? My old school instincts are telling me to level it out and get 4" lift shocks for the rear. But will I be safe by leaving the rear alone and will 6" shocks be the right choice for the rear?

Any thoughts from you fellas with the hands on experience will be much appreciated.

[Tad]

If you use the TT's perches it is basic math.
4 3/4" + the thickness of your spring pack.
It will settle down up front about 1/2" up front as our stock springs were not designed for the forces applied in a SOA setup.

You need to clarify the rest of your question/statement.
Seems confusing, I do this a lot.

[haminawag]

I, however, don't do this a lot, this is my first lift. What are "TT" perches?

[Stuka]

I, however, don't do this a lot, this is my first lift. What are "TT" perches?

The majority of people that do SOA's buy the TT's Fab Works SOA/Shackle Flip kit. This gives you SOA up front, and does a shackle flip in back to match it. It takes all the math out of the conversion. All you have to worry about is steering, shocks, brake lines, and possibly drive shafts.

I really do not think you would like having a 3" rough country (Last I checked, they don't make an actual 4") up front with a 6" lift in back. It would be horrible.

[haminawag]

Thanks for the info Stuka. That helps. The wag was SOA when I bought it, but it was a really bad job, they used WOOD axle perches! No lie! WOOD! So the first thing I did was buy a 4" (advertised) SUA lift kit and install it on the front. Since the rear was already lifted to match the front when I bought it, I expected the front to now sit much lower, but it's only a tiny bit lower.

That's why I asked how many inches a SOA lifts a Wagoneer. If it lifts it 6", then the rear must also be raised 6" for the vehicle to sit level, right?
If so, then why does it still sit almost level with a SUA 4" kit in the front?

[Tad]

I didn't mean to sound brash, when I type from my phone I try to keep it short.

I too was under the impression that rough Country only made a 3" kit, both spring/spring and spring/block versions.
Perhaps your existing rear is not really a 6" lift or it's really sagged over time.
Is the rear all springs or does it have blocks installed?
If you can find a part number on the springs it's usually not too hard to source the maker and spec's.

[haminawag]

Gotcha Tad, no problem. The rear is lifted using blocks. Here's what I know about it, the truck sat perfectly level. The front was a normal SOA conversion using stock springs, (despite the wood perches, they were of a normal perch size). I was told all the springs were stock and, based on the fact that he didn't want to shell out a few bucks for steel spring perches, I believe him. But I don't have the spring PNs. I just find it odd that the front end doesn't sit any lower since I installed the front SUA lift. The whole thing is sitting pretty tall. Anyway, it's making it hard for me to choose the correct shock absorber length. Life was simpler when all I did was hot rod engines.

[mmarriott2]

Your new lift springs up front will settle a bit over time making the difference much more noticeable

[Stuka]

When you installed the front springs, did you leave the eye bolts loose until it was on the ground? If you tighten them with the axle hanging, you will give yourself artificial lift.

[haminawag]

Mmariott2: Yup, I know they'll sag some, but it'll be awhile cause these babys are RIGID.

Stuka: Yup, I followed the instructions, left all spring eye bolts loose until I had the full weight on the wheels, then torqued them, same with the front shackles which had to be loosened a bit to line it all up.