Time to play with the big kids.

Mog9buG said:

Pook catch me up real quick, what year 4.3 is the one you are using? What kind of wiring harness is this? Custom thinned or aftermarket? ECM reprogramed? I am going to use a 96 4.3 in a future build but it was manufactured in the 12th month of 96. Do you know if that would be considered a 97. Just trying to figure out what is commonly used. Thanks:awesomework:

Click to expand...

12th of 96' would be a 97' model year.. SCPI

Mog9buG said:

Pook catch me up real quick, what year 4.3 is the one you are using? What kind of wiring harness is this? Custom thinned or aftermarket? ECM reprogramed? I am going to use a 96 4.3 in a future build but it was manufactured in the 12th month of 96. Do you know if that would be considered a 97. Just trying to figure out what is commonly used. Thanks:awesomework:

Click to expand...

Mine came with the Howell wiring harness...so not much help there. Sorry.

Thanks to JasonC and Joel at Bilstein these babies should help smooth out the rough stuff.


New shocks are longer so I need to move all the mounts up to keep my uptravel the same as before. Cut off all the old shocks mounts so I can rework them.

Now where am I going to mount the reservoirs?

shiny new parts:awesomework::masturbanana[1]:

Whats up with the tie rod boss???

Bunk said:

Whats up with the tie rod boss???

Click to expand...

Still working that out. :redface: Might be switching to a double ended ram, just looking at how it'd fit, I'm trying to get things tucked in a bit tighter.

Some big things have worked out for 2010 and I'll be announcing them soon :awesomework:

Pook said:

Still working that out. :redface: Might be switching to a double ended ram, just looking at how it'd fit, I'm trying to get things tucked in a bit tighter.

Some big things have worked out for 2010 and I'll be announcing them soon :awesomework:

Click to expand...

Right on, Well i have what you need so let me know.

how much longer are those Bilsteins than the air shocks you had in there? (curious how much higher you have to move the shock mount)

Fronts are around 1.5" and the rears are 2.5" due to them being 17" instead of 16" travel. Really depends on how much uptravel you want vs how low of a belly height. I really could of left everything as is and had a 19" belly on 37" tires vs the 18" I had built it with.

Lower rear section of the chassis ended up being totaly cut out and I worked it so I have another 1" of up travel and flattened things out for the new 22gallon cell. Should be all back together by the end of the weekend.

Clark I think your shock mounts are already taller than mine judging by your pics...yours are like Jason's, mine were done similar to the sexpanther.

Started fitting the new stuff in the rear of the buggy last night. Decided I want the rear shocks to stand more vertical front to back, (still be leaning in to the middle side to side for side hill stablity) and since I needed to raise the mounts anyways now was the time to do it. The thinking behind it is that the shock valving will be more consistant and easier for the shocks to control the rear diff travel.



After trying to fit stuff in there along with the new fuel cell, thinking about the spare tire placement, it was easy to see things needed to be totaly reworked.

We ended up be able to get another inch of uptravel, and will have a nice solid platform for the shocks and fuel cell.



Start of the new tube work. The lower frame rails now bend up and turn into the front portion of the upper shock mounts. I got some more parts bent and ready to go in, but ran out of time last night to get them in.

I was on Dad duty all weekend while the wife was working at a tradeshow. I got out for a few late night hours.

Rear section of the buggy is coming back together. Fitting a 22 gallon cell in a small buggy is more work than one would think combine that with 7" of uptravel, coilovers and you run out of room real fast...oh and need to fit a spare on it somewhere

New shock mounts coming together, one more piece of tube and they're done. We tried to stick true to S&N-Fab's original design. I think we pulled it off.

All the pics I had taken...didn't feel like sorting them. the box is the same width as the new fuel cell front to back, just a few inches shorter.

more...

Very nice, lots of uptravel Are you going to move your front mounts on the axle?

I need to raise the chassis mounts for the front shocks just to keep the travel I had. I don't want to lose all my droop. So the front will stay at 5.5" of uptravel like it was.

In the rear I still need to make new lower mounts. I'm going to put them on top of the diff this time instead of behind it so the shocks sit more vertical.

Current specs are 18" Belly on 37"s, 5'8" top of cage, 5.5" compression front(14" shock) and 7" rear (17" shock). For going fast I might crank the adjusters down and sit it at 19"-20" to gain some more the uptravel which shouldn;t be bad since its still would only be 5'10"

Ok, so on the front your only changing the upper mount, and keeping the lower one? i think you have about 2-3 more inches of uptravel than me.

Looks like my 2.5s are within .1" Rear - .5" front, of the bilsteins, so i could swap them later if i wanted.:redneck:

Spill the beans on the big announcement:corn:

Looks real nice and clean

Is the rear drive shaft going to handle the angle with shocks that long? The rear driveshaft looks pretty short.

jimboy said:

Is the rear drive shaft going to handle the angle with shocks that long? The rear driveshaft looks pretty short.

Click to expand...

S&N usually runs 16" rear shocks, with a few inches less up travel than what I have now. These are 17"s and I have 7" of compression from ride height, so I should be ok.

EDIT: if I stay with the single ujoints I'll need to limit straight droop a couple inches, but I'll run the straps in the middle to not limit articulation.

I think there is a bit of an optical illusion in the photo's, the lower links are actually going up hill to the axle 4-5" in the pics and the pinion yoke is level or even slightly above the Atlas yoke at full compression. I was actually worried I was going to hit the lower cross tube in the x brace at full compression but it looks like it should just clear.