Help me make my 33s stop rubbing

[rts23msu]

Hi guys. New member 1st post. I recently purchased this samurai already built. It supposedly has YJ springs. They are SOA. Im not sure what BS the rims are but they stick out fairly far. I have attached a couple pics. Can someone help me out with any modifications i can do to stop rubbing. They rub the wheel well when wheel is turned (not even fully turned) especially everytime i hit a pothole turning in my neighborhood. DOnt think i could ever take it offroad this way.

Also the front springs look very flat to me. Is this normal for samurais?

[gasjr4wd]

Originally Posted by rts23msu

Hi guys. New member 1st post. I recently purchased this samurai already built. It supposedly has YJ springs. They are SOA. Im not sure what BS the rims are but they stick out fairly far. I have attached a couple pics. Can someone help me out with any modifications i can do to stop rubbing. They rub the wheel well when wheel is turned (not even fully turned) especially everytime i hit a pothole turning in my neighborhood. DOnt think i could ever take it offroad this way.

Also the front springs look very flat to me. Is this normal for samurais?

Flat gives a better ride... SOA is nice... as is the shackle reversal. I didn't do all that... yet... but do have 33" rubbers also. I run a 8000lb Ramsey and a sno-way plow all after extending the frame and adding a wench mounts from frame rail to rail. I DID re-drill the holes in the spring perch so the axle sits forward as much as possible. Remember, the spring bolt indexes in the perch and dictates the axle location. Looks like you have enough lift, its just the tire is too far back.
Have you thought about running a little longer, reinforced in the middle shackle? The springs do look a little long to me. Can the front spring mounts be moved forward any? Can you post a pict of that.
The issue with the shackle reversal is when you hit a bump, the axle moves back. This gives a little nicer ride but as you see, it hits the back of the fender.
Also I have seen (but can't remember where) a spring mount that lets the axle drop more... would go in the front, opposite the shackle end, that will move the spring forward and gives about an inch lift. That sounds about what you need. Personally, I would re-drill the mount first. Free fix and may be the amount you need.

[zooki4x4]

They make or you can fix an axel relocating pad. It is a piece of flat stock with a peg sticking out of one side of the flat with a hole in it about an inch from the peg. It fits between the spring and axel pad. It will shift your axel forward the amout of the offset from the hole to the peg. Just watch your driveshaft length and steering clearence. That is if the axel pad is made like a factory setup.

[FireCkrEd]

they also make an offset spring pin-locating bolt. not sure how much it would move the axle fwd.

[gasjr4wd]

you could use something like this-
EZ Inch

don't recommend them as I've never used it and just found the site...
YMMV

[bigbasshb]

Please do NOT put a block in the suspension on the front axle. It can be very dangerous. The only way is to either cut the fender or relocate the axle forward more.

[Baratacus]

relocate the axle. Either move it forward on the spring, or move the spring forward. I love shackle reversal, but if you don't get the geometry right then you have a world of hurt. Be glad that you caught it with just mild driving. If you were off road and got some serious deflection, there's a good chance that your drive shaft is not going to have enough compression left between the two halves to keep it from jamming your T-case out of it's mounts. If I had to choose between moving the axle on the spring, and moving the spring on the frame, I would be moving the front spring mount forward a few inches. (have to extend the frame for that) relocating the axle forward of center is an option, but you're going to affect your spring rate and you'll need to adjust your perches so that the axle isn't rotated back.