Thanks! Change all you can while you got the stuff apart.

 

Yeah, I'm not sure what to even buy in regards to hangers.... Nor how to do this, .....OH, and I can't weld and don't have ANY means to weld anyhow hahaha. Whatcha think I should take as a first step in approach? Want me to measure some things, etc.?

 

Well since those springs are 2 1/2 wide you'll have to either find some hangers that size or we can always just make them, just need some plate and ill weld anything u need. Probably just need to move the hangers forward 5-6 inches depending on the center pin location on the leafs.

 

24"/32" A and B Measurements from center pin. Stock 4Runner 1st Gen is 20.5"/27"... Seems pretty evenly spread "ratio"/"Fractionally" from center pin... Couldn't it just go forward 3.5 and back 5? And Stock are 2 and 3/8", right? New Hangers, eh? Would I use the same Dakota shackles in the rear of the spring?

You tell me what kinda metal to get and I'm on it, SoCal! I really appreciate this, I mean it!

 

Yup, mainly want to keep the centerpin centered in the wheel well, it will move backwards about 1" with travel. I'd remeasure the thickness of the stock hangers and get something close to that..3/16" or so. U want enough plate metal to trace out hangers for both sides.

 

Went out to Big bear this weekend with a friend to check out John bull and a few other trails...







Friends 05 Taco(open F&R) Got about 1/2 way before deciding we where getting in over our heads with his Taco.











I'll put up a few vids of some sections when i get around to it.

 

Dangggggggg! That thing is looking so PERFECT! Yeah, it's bigger than average 4wheelers, ... but what I mean is, some SAS and SFA rigs end up looking... well, silly(but hey, it's what they want, not dogging them for that... just not my taste, ya know?) ........... but THAT? It's like it was made by some off road team in Aussie for Toyota

Oh, yeah... your friend? Is he a lil ????? hehehe. JK, ...but wow... Maybe the camera angle is making it look steeper than it is? That is BALLLLLLLL.......ISTIC! haha. NICE TACO! Gotta be equipped to keep up with your beast!

 

Sorry, had to comment on the 'SICK TRUCK FESTIVAL' first! hehe..

Ok, gotcha on the metal. I got under yesterday... I'm not sure there IS 5" to go back worth of frame. lol..... Forward, obviously, ... as it would just come closer to the flat portion of the frame.

So, .......... couple questions... I know they're probably stupid.. but welllll,.... ........

1. Where to get the metal? I'm SURE my neighbor has tons of 3/16 and 3/8" plate. I should say 'HE USUALLY WOULD, lemme check', ha...

2. Would heavy duty Beam 90* Plate work? If it's big enough, of course... or is it best to just get plate metal

3. I noticed that PepBoys and Autozone have some hanger stuff and even adjustable shackles, etc.... Stay away from those? hahaha.

4. Do the hangers need to be longer just for extra flex? ... OR ,because these springs are moving forward on the front portion to a lower spot on the frame? Or both?

5. What I didn't see if you'd answered.... Would we reuse the Dakota Shackle?

6. If I don't like these 56" Dakota Springs... can I just toss em and get some "TG or other spring kits?".... as they all seem to be 56"?

7. You're saying, that NEITHER my front nor rear hangers can be used for these springs, right? I know an 1/8" difference can be HUGE when dealing with thick metals, etc.... I guess I might wanna keep mine for if I ever put back stock springs or OMEmu or something? In fact, I see lots of guys leaving them welded in there and just weld the new hanger further back?

Sorry buddy.... I'm just trying to learn. I'm going to read up tonight a lil on progressive leaf springs when I get home later today... I wanna fully understand the longer shackles, hanger location, how the shackles invert on people in certain situations, etc.

I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge with me, Mista! lol.

 

Thanks for the compliments again chef!

To answer what i can...

1. Clean new plate steel is always nice to work with...M&K Metal in Gardena has tons on it and scraps for even cheaper.

2.Will work but easier and cleaner with some fresh plate to trace and cutout.

3. Yeah i would buy some TG shackle mounts. if its easier than hunting down metal get the Hangers too.

4.Hangers dont need to change length just position. front hanger going forward and rear shackle mount back( It may give u a better idea how it all works by going on TG instructions page and reading their rear lift instructions.

5. Not sure about the shackles but wouldnt be a big deal to make up or buy some new ones only if needed.

6. I suggested reading TG instructions for the rear lift because incase you dont like the dakotas youre already setup to swap in the TG's etc.

Hope this helps a bit.

7. I cut mine off only to make it look cleaner...

 

Ha Thanks! Im able to enjoy all the hard work i put into it! He got stuck a few times despite the best spotting i could do for him with his setup. This trail pushed his open diff truck to the max, and yes its pretty damn steep!lol
Hes got it setup Desert/prerun style so Sliders and bumpers is pretty much all it has in common with rock crawling.

 

Quick Vid clip on John Bull

 

DAYUMMMMMM! lol... NICE crawlin, Socal! I could tell that was some serious rocks, man.

Thanks on the info... sorry it's been a couple days. Been a bit distracted with life and the cargo area project, haha.

I read up a bit on TG.. just to get some perspective.. Thanks... Good idea.

Couple things I've gotten more curious about........

1. The TG Springs... What I notice about them and many others... They always seem to say... "Move front hanger 6in. forward".... Even with 63's... it seems to be close to that, right? (8"?) .... And, "Move rear hanger back 2in. to 3in from center of previous hanger"................. WTH? hahahaa...... THENNNNNN? I read this; "Pin to center of front mount is 27 1/2", pin to center of rear mount is 29 5/8"." ..................This means that, unlike my Toyota Springs, unlike these Dakota Springs, which both seem to be a similar ratio of 'inches from center pin forward and back'.... The Trail gear and I guess, Chevy 63's(?).... seem to put the pin nearly centered. Then they move forward really far and back only slightly. From what I've read, ...AND I'm HOPING I now understand this, is....... hahaha...... 'By putting the pin near the center, this ALLOWS them to move the spring forward, WITHOUT moving the axle AND to get the front hanger closer to the ground/onto the flat part of the frame..... RIGHT? HAHAHA.

2. Noting #1... I'm thinking that it's going to be close in the rear..... As I have move them back 5".... and yet, ... I don't think THERE IS 5" of frame past the rear hanger! hahaha. I'm guessing you would say, "We'd just weld a piece of plate to extend the frame a lil longer."...... Maybe? (One problem I see there is that the Hitch is mounted through that portion of the frame/Nuts are on the bottom side of the frame, where the rear hangers would go... Guess I could pull the hitch as I'll be going to a bumper with Hitch Carrier, right? Maybe we could use the hitch carrier slot portion? Just thinking out loud)

PS> The Dakota shackle, eyelet to eyelet in the rear/end to end on the bushing sleeves/ is 3"... The Stock ones, I just measured, are 2.75" ... hahaha.

A buddy is going to call me from Napa.. he said, "We have hangers... lemme find some open box for ya", hahahaha. He means returned ones that go cheaper. So I'll call him back as well.

***********************

The other thing that I'm reading on there is that their springs at TG and others, are flip kits in the 'LIFT KIT' in rear. The Dakota springs are also flipped on the Dakotas. I took the ubolts and nuts and ubolt plates(and shackles are still on, as you saw)... I would need those shock mount things from TG too, right? (or more plate for those?)...

I guess my question is; Is it advisable to do that when installing these springs? Or just use my existing ubolts and plates and mount them on top like Toyota-OEM?(And therein the latter question.. would that then make them lift the truck even more? I don't really want it to lift it more than 2" or so(I would think the TG 5 leaf packs are likely, to lift more than the Dakota springs would, even though they are both 56", right? )

 

Not to throw u off track with this but since your looking for pretty minimal lift and a better ride have you looked into Old Man Emu springs? In your situation i think these might be a much more simple and beneficial to your application. I have these springs on the rear of my pickup and i have nothing but great things to say about OME. They are about $80/ea (brand new) from 4wheelparts and bolt into all of the stock locations. It would take a fraction of the time to install and would probably make u very happy.(I couldnt believe how much better they were over stock) (The dakota/56" springs are do-able but may cause more issues than they're worth, and you still may not be happy with them) Just my opinion.

 

Ahhh, ok. Well, was worth a shot, right?

Does it allow any additional articulation, the OME kit in rear?(I figure probably not, since it's the same length, right?) The Pickup is a lot lighter and has far less issues with sag... BUT, yes, Toyotech has them in his 88 4Runner rear and so far seems to love em.

I know the 63's give people axle wrap, etc... Do the 56's cause that? I'm just curious, cause... well, TG and others, that's exactly what they sell. I DO NOT doubt your 'experience' in this...... Guess it's not practical for me.

 

Just looked up 4wheelparts.... "There are no parts available for your selected vehicle 1987 TOYOTA 4RUNNER SR5, under this category.

To better tailor the site to your needs, please select your Year, Make and Model." ......

the only ones they seem to offer are Jeep... as that's all that pops up from there when I look in the 'Look up another vehicle', hahaha.

 

I actually have OME 4runner springs on my pickup which are too stiff in the rear(wish i got the ome pickup springs for the rear, I got the 4runner springs for even more lift.) I figure they would be Perfect for a 4runner tho. They will give you +2'' of lift and they flex nicely. If you dont need serious flex/lift and want something thats not gonna put ur truck under the knife for a week or two then i wouldnt hesitate to buy the ome 4runner springs...ill look up the part# for you or you can even call ARB...the manufacturer and they will answer anything u can think of(Great customer service and informative)



Take a look at my toyota pickup build...the rear leafs for the 4runner are CS009R...you need 2 springs and bushing.

 

Hey man.... thanks so much for all the input.

Far as the 4wheelparts... they list the OME 009 as Front Leaf Pack....

But as far as what's best... One says, for rear, "Rear Heavy Constant Load 2.5"" Lift Spring"

The other says, "2.5"" Lift Rear Leaf Spring Constant 1300lbs to GVW"

I know Toyotech went with the OME's... so I will try to find that on his thread, too. And, he got them for 200$ for both.. 4wheelparts says 281$... I think Toyo went through this hunt as well

thanks much, Socal.... Still maybe interested in doing the bumper?

 

The OME rear springs are CS009R (The R is the rear)(008 is P/U)(009 is 4rnr)

i paid about 80-90 each.

Call me anytime when u wanna start the project.

 

Hey man, thanks... I'll look again. They didn't pop out to me on the 4wheelparts site. All I saw was 008.... Guess you have to dig into the 'sub categories' hehe.

Yeah, I definitely will... and hopefully SOON! I'm DYING to get this thing finished... But I'm neck deep in the 'TRUNK PROJECT'.... Which I really wanna finish as winter is hitting, ya know? Plus, all my extra "Project Cash" is into the materials, etc., ya know? (Gotta keep the budget in tact, right? hahaha)

Curious.... Do you like the CBI rear with carrier set up? NO worries if you hate it... everyone has different taste, hahaha. I'm just curious. Thought it looked really good on this guy on here's rig. I love the Iron Bull rear ones too... Is that stuff hard to make?

 

I think you'll have to call 4wheelparts(the online search sucks) Make them type the part# into their system.

I like their bumper but If you want to get into a more comlex type bumper its probably best to buy the kit. Its alot more extensive when u add hindges etc...Im in the process of this right now and its robbing what little brain power i have left lol. Ill get some pics up of my progress