I decided to do a Long Arm kit in preparations for an AiROCK
suspension some time down the road. I had heard good things about
the ride of the long arm and after twisting up my factory skid pretty
good I really needed to replace it.
Rubicon Express Parts List
4.5" Extreme Duty Long Arm Kit RE-7214 (Manual)
OME 'LT' Shocks
JKS "Quicker Disconnects"
Teraflex shock relocators
My Jeep currently has a winch in the front along with rear
corner guards, Hi-lift and recover gear in the back so I am fairly balanced on
additional weight. I also have a 1 1/4" body lift installed. I
had taken measurements before, so I figured I would once again show the
difference between stock and lifted.
Critical
Measurements
(*includes 1 1/4" body lift)
Before
Lift
After
Lift
Total
Lift
*Front
Fender (Centered through tire from ground)
34
1/8"
38
3/4"
4
5/8"
*Front
Fender (From center of wheel)
19
5/8"
24
1/4"
4
5/8"
Frame
behind Front
LCA bracket
14
5/8"
19
1/2"
4
7/8"
*Center
of Rocker Guard (Centered on middle body mount)
20"
24
3/4"
4
3/4"
Skid
Plate (Lowest point under Transfer case)
10
1/4"
15
1/2"
5
1/4"
Frame
in-front of Rear LCA bracket
15"
19
3/4"
4
3/4"
*Rear
Fender (Centered through tire from ground)
34
7/8"
39
1/2"
4
5/8"
*Rear
Fender (From center of wheel)
20
3/8"
25"
4
5/8"
Note: When I removed the factory shocks I was surprised when the vehicle
dropped. I went back and remeasured the Front and Rear fenders
from the ground. The front had sagged 1/2" and the rear
3/8". Nobody has ever mentioned this drop. Now
the OME shocks are not high charged Nitrogen like the factory shocks,
so I will not get any additional height out of them.
Spring Characteristics
Factory
Front
RE
Front
Factory
Rear
RE
Rear
Length
17
1/4"
20
3/4"
12"
16
3/8"
Width
4
7/8"
5
3/8"
6
1/4"
6
5/8"
Wire
Size
0.508"
0.630
0.610"
0.658"
#
of wraps
8
+1/4" overlap
11.75
6.5
7
Shock Characteristics
Factory
Front
OME
Front
Factory
Rear
OME
Rear
Extended
21"
27
3/8"
19"
24
3/8"
Compressed
14"
16
3/8"
12
1/2"
14
5/8"
Comp.
Force
90lbs
10lbs
90lbs
10lbs
Note: Compression Force Measured on scale by applying weight stacks
to top of shock. Force is Approximate of what is required
to hold shock compressed.
Installation: This is not an easy kit to install.
Hopefully I can make it simpler for you. The RE instructions are
lacking in every detail. RE does recommend that you have a professional
installer install this kit, and I can see why by their instructions.
Take a look at my Issues section before you begin, so you can see some
of the problems that you will run into with this kit. On to the Install.
