Nice! Few Qs.
1 - what's up w/ the longer front shocks? Won't that increase chances of bottoming out, and have the shock compressed most of the time? I ran into this recently w/ some Bilsteins, listed as "for trucks w/ 3" lift". Which i have, due to BJ spacers and 26mm t-bars. However i couldn't compress them enough to fit in there, it turns out due to the placement waaaay up inside the a-arms, the actual shock travel is very small retative to wheel travel... those longer Bilsteins are specifically for the bracket lift application.
I wondered about this as well when I put those KYB's on there the last time when I was trying to figure out lengths. frankly, I don't fully understand how it works. I vaguely recall it having something to do with length and piston stroke. I know very little about suspension systems, but would like to learn more. all I know right now is that it's cushier, and I'm even going to crank my bars up more. ARBUSA recommends setting front ride height to 1/3 upper bumpstop clearance and 2/3 lower. that's a lot of cranking. I feel like I've been cranked them a lot already, and I'm not even at 1/2 lower bumpstop. rim to fender clearance is 13-5/8.
2 - I see your exhaust is routed right in front of the shackle. Are you concerned about it getting pinched/squished if that side is compressed?
you know, I used to wonder about this years ago. I asked around and no one really seemed to have any problems. I haven't either, but then again that's b/c my shackles hardly moved before
I don't do any extreme off road driving, so I'm not sure I'll have much cause for concern, but I'll be watching out for it now that the shackles actually swing.
that said, I must admit to personal folly with my initial installation of the Skyjacker springs. I noticed this weekend that I had a good amount of corrosion going on at the bushing pin surfaces. like along the lines of an irregular 1/16" or so all around. that's a lot. ground most of it off with wire wheel and die grinder and lubed up really well with antiseize. I decided on antiseize, yes. not sure whether there'll be much difference between that or grease, but I like the fact that it stays around even if it dries up. I'll have to keep an eye on it though, because if it behaves like that on my spark plug threads and gets dry and crusty that's no good. I doubt it will though since it won't be exposed to that sort of heat.
3 - curious to see your end shackle angle. Looks like the mount has been repainted - has it been moved?
the mount has not been painted; stock location. what you see there is spray lithium grease stains from a couple of weeks ago
I notice that new springs put my truck up much higher than before. I really hope it settles at bit or I see myself pulling the 3rd to upper leaf as recommended by ARB. and this is the LIGHT set! just moving them around a bit though, I notice that they are very flexy and giving. I'm hoping there's some break-in. they're definitely not as stiff as a unit as those Skyjackers, but I suppose I should reserve that statement for when I actually get it on the road.
got the extra u-bolts on order, and am going to try to pick up a generic set from an OR shop here since I can't wait to see how it rides.
