Ironman 4x4 Foam Cell Pro

Not sure if you’re aware, but the two 6mm allen screws are for the brake line that mounts on top of the UCA. I had to bore out the bracket a little to fit the larger screw. The single washer I couldn’t figure out, but liked it so I kept it.

 

Coils have been adjusted, settling on 8.5” and got the desired 1” drop in the front..

So, I’m now 23.25 front, 24 rear // with an added 3.5” lift up front, 2” rear

CV axles definitely look better, but unfortunately I have my alignment appointment set for monday and diff drop parts are scheduled to arrive on Wednesday. Do you think that should affect the alignment much? I don’t think they even mess with the cv’s, no?

Also, how’s the new frame paint look??

DRIVER FRONT


PASSENGER FRONT


LIFT AFTER - CLOSEUP


LIFT AFTER

 

Your suspension components look so clean!

 

Thanks, por-15 plus topcoat! I’ll be glad when I can go back to just driving again, lol



While I had the tires and coils off, wanted to do all this. Will get to the rest of the frame next day or so

 

Amazing how this thread blew up in just a year.

Foamcells went from "Literally what?" To loads of adopters now.

 

Couldn't wait until Christmas Day to install the lift. Spent Saturday & Sunday knocking it out. Happy with the results. Might be little taller than I hoped, but I'll be doing more reading here to see if I can pull it off.

Driver Front: 20.5" Post Install: 24.5"
Passenger Front: 20/75" Post Install: 24"
Driver Rear: 21.75" Post Install:24"
Passenger Rear: 21.5" Post Install: 24"
*These measurements are not exact. Rounded to the nearest "easy"
See Page 51, post #1010 for my preinstalled Coil measurements.

As far as install, the biggest pain by far was the UCA bolt. Passenger side required some bending, but not nearly as challenging as the driver side! Driver side bolt hit the Battery box, which just isn't as easy to finesse!

Sorry for my 1992 Microsoft Paint Skills

Also, just to point out, the UCA Bolt is not the fault of IronMan. Any Aftermarket UCA can encounter this contact.

Rear was easier, although I didn't have everything needed so I had to bum a ride mid-project to grab some grease.
*Also note: I am running the Constant Load Springs with the 3rd and 5th spring removed. Probably 200 lbs back there now.

Couple Slowdowns on the rear:
-Driver Side E-Brake screw wasn't long enough to tap with the plastic guards they have around the "rebound clip"
-The shocks have a rubber bushing on the shaft, under the plastic shield. One of mine somehow got pushed up like an inch and I couldn't figure out why the Upper Shock Mount wouldn't seat with enough thread to start the nut. Seems super easy, and maybe I was getting tired at that point, but I thought they sent the wrong shock before I thought there would be a spacer I could simply slide down
-EDIT: Also had to drop the spare tire down to get the leaf spring mounting bolt back through on the driver side. Was able to get it out, but not back in.
-Getting the leaf pack into position was tough, but patience and a second person are definitely the way to go.
Impact gun to undo the U-Bolts was clutch. I tightened by hand to try and keep them as even front to back as possible. The Ironman UBolts are a nice touch also. I believe I got the extended U-Bolts as I ordered the Constant load pack, but they worked with plenty of threads remaining.
*The nut on the Ironman hardware is a 22mm I believe, so you'll have to track that down in the garage vs the previous 17/19mm.


Waiting to see if I need to drop (probably) the front coils so I haven't gotten an alignment yet. Of course I couldn't resist at least taking it for a spin to grab dinner. Love everything except the stock tires and wheels! Gotta find time to get to my buddies house where they're being stored.

Don't want to blow up the thread with pics, but I took quite a few if you want to see something, reach out!

As it sits now:


Driver Side:


Passenger Side:


Open to feedback on ride height (will settle a bit I'm sure) but maybe not "enough"

Couple Questions:
1. How bad to the CV's look? Will the angle improve with the bigger tires? Geometry isn't my strength.
2. Is it beneficial to get the alignment with the bigger tires already on? Wondering if it'll help the shop to see it when they adjust vs asking for it but the current setup not needing the addl Camber.
3. Anything else you notice!

 

"Sorry for my 1992 Microsoft Paint Skills"

 

Congrats on the early install! I’m sitting in the wait room, waiting on the alignment...

It sounds like you ended up almost exactly as I did... 24” all around roughly speaking. I wasn’t so sure about the CV axle and definitely wasn’t looking for that much lift. Also, if you figure it naturally sits 1” lower in the front, I tried to keep that geometry.

So, I paid for 30min of labor and got the collars adjusted to be 8 1/2” final. This got my nose down the desired inch (23.25” fender to hub).

As far as the uca frame bolt, I cut a notch out on the passenger, but the ticket for both sides was using a long bolt + hammer to either drive in or drive out the original bolt and just keep checking to see if it had a clear path and/or the uca was lined up.

I think I had the same thing happen on the rear shock and just pushed down on it a little, but yah it threw me for a second as well.

I think the best move is to wait until all parts are in before aligning. Unsure if bigger tires would alter the angle or not. I feel like it would help straighten out the axle since the wheels center point would be higher, but I could definitely be wrong about that.

So you liked the test ride?? It’s definitely not softer in the back, that’s for sure, lol.

 

@mandog Just got back from "re-measuring" with a common point on each wheel center cap. Was going to update my post and saw you responded so I'll just add another.
Today I'm at like:
24.25" Front
25" Rear Pass
24.5" Rear Driver

I have the same thought about the tires helping the angle just a little. May also pull the boots and hose clamp them out a bit to reduce rub.

I called 4WP as they originally assembled them and was hoping they would be willing to drop them for me, but lowering the coils and alignment he came it at just under $400. That's definitely more than I was hoping to spend. I may as well just spend a little extra and get a front bumper to add some weight!

I think someone mentioned they were able to drop them while on the truck, I gave it a little effort yesterday but those lock collars seems pretty stubborn Should I just keep cranking and try to get them unlocked?

I told 4WP I have some time constraints this week and need to drive ~70 miles Wednesday. The guy said that drive wouldn't have any impact on the current setup being out of alignment. "Alignments have the most impact with stops, starts and turns." My drive is mostly highway. He wasn't worried about that distance at all. Forgot to ask him if the tires would make a difference on alignment.

 

I didn’t think about extending boots, that’s a good workaround. I think I’d perhaps heard rumblings about that between @Devir7 and @oakcity ??

I should mention it was 30min of labor because I brought them the shocks loose off the truck... but $400 for an alignment and shock adjustment? Seems high..

It took em 30 min to adjust, and I got an alignment for $90 I think... is that to remove and install? Even still, it’s not 3 hours of labor to do that. But, tiddly-pom I think you’re on track. Just monitor the boots I guess and can also do a diff drop. I’ll be doing that in a few days time and will report back how that changed things plus post-alignment report.

 

Great job, looking truck and write up. The bigger ties *may* help the angle a little. If it’s not gonna be long till you get them I’d say hold off unless it’s really bad and your fighting the wheel to stay straight.

You could always do the boot slide mod. Cutting the smaller clamps off, sliding the boot out just a little and using a hose clamp.

lol @mandog i typed this out earlier but got distracted and didn’t post it.

Here’s the clamp I’m going to order. I’ll order from the manufacturer not what I linked. Just used that link to show a picture and the part number. Those are narrow band and rolled edges so it won’t tear into the boot.

 

I could absolutely be wrong about this, but I don’t think the larger tires would impact the angles. I’d still wait to get the alignment done when the new tires are o regardless. If that might be a while, you could always just check the toe alignment for the time. All you need is a tape measure and a few wrenches.
My reason for not thinking the tires will change the angles is along the lines of how we measure our lifts. Center hub to fender. That is because regardless of tire size, that is a constant distance. I could be wrong though.
Good luck and my advise would be to lower the front some.
Keep having fun and enjoy the build life.

 

Thinking more on it, I’m pretty sure you’re right. I don’t think it would be possible for the tires to impact the cv axles at all. I thought they might a little but can’t see how they would.
The good news is that 255/85/16 or 255/80/17 can fit with no lift so dropping down some won’t be an issue there.
The boot slide mod (if it works right) should be much easier to deal with than lowering the spring seats.

 

The 4WP quote was a "worst case" scenario, if they had to pull them off, put them back in the compressor and adjust from there. If they were able to adjust while on the vehicle it would be less.
Tires are 60 miles away, have an appt Wednesday to get them installed. Once they're installed I may use day after Christmas to revisit the front end. First week of Jan I have a 1,000 mile trip so I want it all dialed in by then.
Appreciate the insight on the tire impacting/not impacting the CVs. More pics to come with tires and wheels installed!

Thanks for the feedback!

 

One thing to consider(and I am no expert, so take with a grain of salt). Beyond the boots ripping, having that steep of an angle I believe increases the likely hood of the CV axle breaking under stress. When I was off road the other day, there were times I could feel the tension/binding in the steering wheel and backed off and adjusted. Part of the reason for trying to keep as level as possible, is to keep the tension to a minimum or as close to factory tolerance. I’m probably sharing stuff you already know. But if not, hope this helps.

 

Great reminder @Superhulk LB much appreciated. I would like to pull the front down about 3/4 of an inch and hope it'll settle the extra 1/4 bringing me right around 23" hub to fender. I'm hoping that 23" puts me with decent CVs and minimal fin rubbing. More to come!

 

These pics are just shy of 23” somewhere between 22.5”-22.75.

 

Red loctite, in the blue tube ,is the never coming off kind. Requires heat

blue loctite, in the red tube, is the easier to remove kind


Why they did such packaging...no idea

 

As mentioned by some of the other guys, I’d lower the front 1/2-5/8”. Mine were able to be lowered in the truck using the factory shock rebuild tool ($79 worth it in the long haul to have). I personally did a diff drop kit from toy tech and I’m happy with my cv angles. I have 1700 miles on the lift so far and I definitely have a needle bearing groan/vibrations. I’m installing the ECGS bushing in the next week or two. The tires have no impact on alignment but will impact steering and handling. I had good luck with a 0mm offset wheel. Much better cornering and stability with less bump steer after lowering the front end. The larger tires will also help by leveraging the suspension with a bigger tire. Alignment is worth getting done sooner than later, after 500 miles or so it’ll start to really eat up tires cuz it’s pretty far out from stock.

Truck looks good dude! Hope it all works out!

 

Any thoughts on the noise? It showed up after raising the front another inch...