Extended Shackles

Hey,

What brand of extended shackles are you runnin? (snake, superior etc)

Any good?

Looking for some that give around 40/50mm lift.

Ayting i should look out for? (geaseable pins etc)

Looking to get some next pay.

A 50mm extended shackle will give 25mm in lift.

Do you supply these Zordo??

Thinking along the lines of:

1. Snake: Snake Racing

2. Superior: Superior Engineering

make your own, $200 cheaper. Snake racing site says how much longer theres are so i just made mine that much longer then factory. 10mm plates, bit wider then factory, then if you want weld a bit of RHS in the centre to stop them from twisting. But if you dont it will help the flex/wear out the bushes faster.

joshy said:

make your own, $200 cheaper. Snake racing site says how much longer theres are so i just made mine that much longer then factory. 10mm plates, bit wider then factory, then if you want weld a bit of RHS in the centre to stop them from twisting. But if you dont it will help the flex/wear out the bushes faster.

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mmm, sounds a bit dodge without the RHS...but would work.

Getting a mate to lift my bullbar, might see how much to do a pair of shackles as well.

What bushes you using, heard rubber flex better than poly???

ah watever is left of the factory bushes. I didnt put the RHS in mine. no problems in 18months.

have you replaced the horrible factory springs ?
if not extended shackles will compound the problem. fix the springs themselves, either replace them or fit an extra leaf. the bonus of that is you get a 50mm lift.
if you want more lift then fit extended shackles.

someone on another forum found out the hard way, only to replace the springs 6 months later.

ive still got factory leafs. they sit flat now, flex well.

the other option is to fit axle blocks that way it does not effect your flex but gives you the lift you are chasing snake racing advertises them but heaps cheaper if you know some one who you can get them from about to do mine that way

joshy said:

ive still got factory leafs. they sit flat now, flex well.

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start carrying some decent loads and they will start going inverted

marvin3 said:

the other option is to fit axle blocks that way it does not effect your flex but gives you the lift you are chasing snake racing advertises them but heaps cheaper if you know some one who you can get them from about to do mine that way

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Dont do it Bro. Gotta be the dodgiest way possible.

All the guys that say change your leaf springs, what for.
The curve (or lack of it on nav's) makes bugger all difference to flex but affects the type of spring rate.

The spring rate is governed by the length and thickness of the individual leaves. Each leaf has a spring constant (mm/kg). The poor ride your talking about is because the nav's leaves (when near flat) act in a linear (constant) spring rate not a progressive rate (more comfortable.)

To achieve a more comfortable ride you need a spring pack designed to be a progressive spring rate. (ie: softer at the start then hardens up when loaded or on a large bump)

But to get back on Topic: WHAT SHACKLES WOULD YOU RECOMEND?

navara springs are actually curved. the reason most see them as being flat is they have sagged due to the weakness of the springs. with enough use they will go to an inverted curve !
hence the fix the springs first. shackles will make them sag even faster.

i wouldnt touch those axle blocks. If your that keen on buying shackles any greaseable one, there all the same. Or go the drop shackle from the states.

tweak'e said:

navara springs are actually curved. the reason most see them as being flat is they have sagged due to the weakness of the springs. with enough use they will go to an inverted curve !
hence the fix the springs first. shackles will make them sag even faster.

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Yes, the springs are a poor design. Whats so bad a bout an inverted curve?
The reason Navara springs are so flat is because of the low chassis to spring mount and because they are a spring over axle. The only way to achieve more curvature is to lift the truck. only need a 2" lift so its either reset/new springs or shackles but not both.

joshy said:

i wouldnt touch those axle blocks. If your that keen on buying shackles any greaseable one, there all the same. Or go the drop shackle from the states.

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yeah, have considered getting drop shackles. still don't know if i'll go that way.

with the drop shackles youll have to pin them onroad. (from what ive read) as theyll want to open up and can be unstable at speed unpinned. If you want flex, there deffinetly the way to go.

tommy222220_0 said:

Whats so bad a bout an inverted curve?

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springs don't work when they are bent backwoulds and it will be sitting hard on the bump stops !
its not so much a bad design but rather they seam to be missing a leaf or two. virtually all other makes of utes seam to have more leafs in the rear springs.

fix the springs and it will give you your lift at the same time.

my leafs get no where near the top bumpstops even with max flex. id need atleast half a ton in it while flexing to get it down the 4-5 inches till the bumpstops touch.

it should take well in excess of a ton before it hits the bump stops with good stock springs.
when new, ours had 25mm left before the stops with a ton on. double cabs expect it to be a bit less due to load being behind the axle.

we got down to 500kg and it was sitting hard on the stops. when we got the springs done one vehicle the springs where flat, the other vehicle the springs where inverted.
all that in under 50,000km and we are careful not to overload (others will happily put 2 ton on the back !)
stock springs are uncomfortable as well. feal every bump on the road.
with the fixed springs its far more comfortable and even with well in excess of a ton on i still had 25mm left before the stops.

i think the stock springs are only a 3 leaf, even my Toyota (less load capacity) has 4 leaf springs. most utes are 4-5 leafs.
its just Nissan penny pinching.

yeah i rekn mine would still take a ton. i was refering to it at max flex.

Tommy if your just after flex and dont carry much load your better off sticking to the factory leafs, a new set will be stiff and wont flex as much as a worn in set will. To get a leaf pack that does flex then youll be lowering the recommonded weight at the same time.
Go the drop shackles.. and when you get new shocks invert them. should flex very nice.