Rustys vs Frankenlift for Offroad Safari

[icarl]

"Heavy duty suspension should be fitted to those vehicles asked to carry loads close to their limits over rough ground. Heavy duty shock-absorbers will also assist...Loading any roof rack too well forward will cause overloading of both roof pillars and front springs, which are not designed for this and structural failures from overloading show themselves in the form of cracks appearing in the windscreen. If you also have a winch, bull bar, power steering and air conditioning fitted, your front springs may well be pushed beyond their weight carrying limit. Overloading a vehicle’s springs will quickly result in serious structural failures in rough terrain."
Quote from: 'A 4-Wheel Drive in Southern Africa'

"When coil springs are exchanged for higher rated units make your
selection carefully. Light-duty units will feel similar to those that
the manufacturer has fitted but will ensure longer life of the shock
absorbers, especially if they are the gas type. Medium rate springs
will improve road holding, reduce body roll and improve payload
by a small amount. Hard springs will improve off-road handling,
on-road adhesion, reduce body roll and are recommended for
vehicles with loaded roof-racks. They improve heavy payload
handling, stability and safety but may feel harsh on-road."
Quote from: 'A 4-Wheel Drive in Southern Africa'


Given the above information it seems it is best to have Heavy duty coils and heavy duty gas shocks for off-road safari ventures. Also, after further researching it seems like the Frankenlift with the HD OME springs and OME front strut and rear OME N132L shock upgrade is the best lift kit/suspension for the KJ. The two lift kits that I am debating about are the Frankenlift and the Rusty's/OME lift. I have some questions that hopefully you can fill in the blanks for.

Rusty's
coils springs -- ? Are they Heavy Duty, Light Duty, or Medium Duty? Are they OME Springs?
I noticed a lot of guys are doing clevis lift to compensate for sag. Is this because the springs are light duty? Will the frankenlift sag too even with the heavy duty springs?

Frankenlift
Will the lift require Al's A-Arms or are they only nice to have? If required, this would increase the cost of this lift considerably.

Thanks

 

[jelohead]

well, i just received my rusty's lift this passed week....the coils all have ROR, rusty's off road stamped on them. the fronts ARE OME's, even though he says they arent, the OME name and part number are right there stamped into the outer tube, covered by rusty's sticker.
he doesnt specify whether they (the coils ) are light, med, or heavy, only that they are "vehicle specific" for the kj. i will be adding a clevis lift, but not as a sag eliminator, only to add another 1/2" or so to the front lift. other folks have posted that doing a moderate clevis lift will not induce contact with rusty's, but not too sure about the frank....i think that one is already slightly taller than rusty's, correct me folks if i'm wrong.

 

[tjkj2002]

Almost all of Rusty's springs(coil and leaf) are 300lbs rate springs,read up on his site and he say's that(for comfort and flex),OME has light,med,and HD springs(from 350-500 lbs spring rates).

 

[JeepJeepster]

I believe the spring rates on Rustys coils are a tad low.. I have them on the front and they ride great, but I do not have an aftermarket bumper or anything..

I have OME HD rear coils, OME HD shocks all around, and Rustys front coils.. I love it..

 

[myjeepwalks]

I've had my rusty's kit on for about a week. After it settled and sagged a bit i'm happy with it. Might go with the rusty's strut plates and 1 more isolator in the rear. The ride is awesome now!! I love it as long as it doesn't settle anymore. I dont carry any extra cargo or have any heavy bumpers either, dont know how it would be with those.

 

[jkl]

rustys front springs are light duty, i guess 300lbs.
they worked great until i put added the arb, its sagged about 1/2 inch in 6 months or so.

just got the 927 ome heavy duty's and 1 inch poly spacers that'll be going on there in a couple of weeks, should fix the sagging problem right up.