It seems like I need longer travel shocks. Yesterday, I replaced all of my shackles, and while I hadn’t touched the suspension in years, I noticed a problem. When I swapped the rear shackle, I jacked up one side to relieve the pressure and removed the shackle, but needed more room for the new ones. I jacked the Jeep up higher, but the spring wouldn’t drop further. I realized I forgot to disconnect the shock. Once I removed the bottom of the shock, everything dropped as it should. The odd thing is, it took very little effort to lift the wheel off the ground with the shock connected, but significantly more with it disconnected. I suspect the shock has been limiting the spring’s full extension when one side is compressed. When I removed the front shocks, they extended 2-3 inches below the mount. My springs have no lift, and the new shackles gave me a 1/2" lift. The rear springs are heavy-duty from when I had a hard top, but now I only use a soft top.
I measured 20 inches from bolt to bolt where the rear shock mounts with the Jeep sitting normally on the ground.
I know I need new shocks for the rear since the old ones are worn out, but how much travel should I go for? Should I replace the front shocks as well? The rear springs seem to be in good shape, but should I consider swapping them too?
I’m just trying to figure out the best way forward. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!
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Just be sure that your bump stops hit before your shock compresses completely or you will be breaking off shock mounts. A longer shock has more travel but it is longer at full compression too.
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It sounds like your springs are essentially at stock height (with no significant lift), and the 1" over shackle has only raised the height by about 0.5". In simple terms, you should use standard height shocks for a '76-'86 CJ. That 0.5" increase shouldn’t cause any major issues in my opinion.
Regarding non-gas and gas-filled shocks: Pro Comp 1000 shocks (non-gas charged) will feel like a stabilizer out of the box—you can compress or extend them by hand, and they’ll stay in place. The rest of their lineup is gas-charged and will be fully extended out of the box.
Monroe shocks from a parts store will also be fully extended when you buy them.
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Measure the distance between your bump stop and the point it contacts. Then, measure your current shock while it’s on the axle. Subtract the first measurement from the second, and that gives you the maximum length your shock can be when fully compressed. Choose a shock that matches or is slightly shorter than that length. If your shock is mounted at an angle, you can still use one that compresses to that length.
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Although limiting straps can restrict downward travel, I prefer to let the springs handle that, rather than relying on the shocks or limiting straps. So, yes, you’ll need longer shocks.
Upward movement can be controlled with bump stops.
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What I did was remove a shock and take three measurements:
- the distance from mount to mount with the spring at rest,
- the distance with the spring compressed, and
- the distance with the spring fully extended (drooped).
Then, I went to Advance Auto and asked the guy to pull out the catalog (not the computer) and gave him my compressed and extended measurements.
We looked for shocks that matched those measurements and had the correct ends for CJs. Keep in mind that shocks can come with 3 or 4 different types of ends in various combinations.
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How did you go about compressing and extending the springs? I’m considering using a high-lift jack to either compress or separate the frame and spring, while using the shackle angle to find my limits. This should give me the maximum travel range (from bolt to bolt) and help me position my bump stop. The challenge is that I’ll be doing this without the tub on, so I won’t be able to gauge how close the tires are to the fender flares.
In theory, I’ll have a 2.5" spring lift and 1.5" shackle lift, giving me 4" over stock at rest. However, some springs flex more than others, and longer shackles increase the range of motion. Using the manufacturer’s chart for height over stock might not be completely accurate. I don’t want to order shocks only to find they’re too short, so I guess it’s best not to order them ahead of time.
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I measure real quick this morning
Shock mounting bolt to bolt L 19 1/2" R 20"
Bump stop to axle L 5 3/4" R 6 1/4"
So I have a 1/2 lean to the left side, which I guess isnt too bad. I looks worse than that.
So I can have a 13 3/4" shock? So should I get one a little longer and drop the bump stops?
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If you get a longer shock and drop the bump stops you will get more axle droop capability but your up travel will be limited and you will bottom out more when the spring compresses. I personally hate getting pounded when my bumpstops hit so I would try to keep at least 5" of up travel.