i've been seeing it everywhere on this forum dont know what it means.
SOA?

spring over axle. it is when you relocate the spring perches from under the axle to over it achieving more lift. it is relatively difficult and expensive to do, but it has many advantages. one of which is that the springs don't sit under the axle so they take less of a beating on the trail.

(SUA means spring under axle)

isnt SOA more flexy?

yes

ok im sold on it i got all winter

do you gotta buy a kit to convert?

they make them for a price i think. SYE a welder and new spring perches and possably crossover steering i think.

the kits mostly suck (or at least are overpriced). you can do it yourself cheaper.

my parts list (as i recall)

SYE
CV driveshaft (i used front shaft off an XJ)
new front spring perches (i swapped rear axles and reused the rear perches (yay! plasma torch!)
drop pitman arm
shocks
extended brake line for rear.

some people need ladder bars in the rear.
most recommend new springs but im running franken-leaf packs and its working ok

i was just gonna reuse my stock springs with an addaleaf for the 302 and solid iron tranny and t case

are you planning to swap axles too? that dana 35 isnt gonna hold 302 power for long at all......

its a purty gutless 302 i have seen 35's hold up to 350s so ill see what happens if not its gonna get an 8.8 or a 9 in

i would suggest getting an 8.8 if your going to do the soa at the same time... makes for less work in the long run and the 8.8 is stout and cheap.

then i need to regear the 8.8 to 4.10

Some ford explorers and mountaniers came with 4:10 gears, you just have to look for them. Then you wont have to regear, check RE for the basic SOA kit it is pretty reasonable and will give you a good starting point.

My D35 held up to my built 350 for about 6 years.


If you are doing this all at once I would definitely recommend swapping in an 8.8. They aren't all that expensive and you won't need to regear it.

I would also recommend NOT getting a kit. It will have stuff you don't need and won't have stuff you need.

Perhaps before you say not to get a kit, maybe look into what I am suggesting. The kit I am suggesting is not a bolt on kit but some of the basic parts he will need to do an SOA conversion. I have had good luck with these kits for the last 5 jeeps I have built with them.

•4 Doeschtech shocks
•2 Front shock tower mount converters
•2 Front brake line extensions
•1 Rear brake line extension
•4 Anti-axle-wrap spring perches
•1 Track bar axle mount extension
•2 Transfer case lowering bars w/6 nuts & bolts



Shocks are optional, I also use thier SOA springs and get a great ride, tons of articulation, and they don't wear out nearly as fast as others i have tried to use. If you use this kit you will still have to source the steering yourself but that always depends on what axles you are running. Here is my latest project using the same kit and thier springs and it is sitting on 37" tires but I opened up the fender wells. My wife also used this as a DD from time to time.

Good example.

•4 Doeschtech shocks - Not needed as you said, but optional.
•2 Front shock tower mount converters - ???
•2 Front brake line extensions - Not needed. Relocate stock lines under frame.
•1 Rear brake line extension - Yes
•4 Anti-axle-wrap spring perches - Yes
•1 Track bar axle mount extension - Not needed, throw away track bars.
•2 Transfer case lowering bars w/6 nuts & bolts - No. I would much rather see an SYE/CV shaft than a t-case lowering kit

2 things. If your going to be welding on the axle and you will be if your doing this project, you might as well replace the lower shock mounts on the axles. At that time you can rotate them up so they do not hang below the axle tube which gives better clearance.
Item two, those spring u-bolt brackets in the image you posted? Those are not needed either. Flip the stock ones upside down so that place is on top of the spring and the u-bolts are pointed up. On the front ones, put the left one on the right side and the right one on the left side you can use the stock swaybar with no modifications.

you will need to relocate the shock mounts on the rear if you put in an 8.8 but you can use the front plates on the front to mount the shocks with a large washer and a grade 8 bolt, thats what i did, basically set up like the old cj's that had their shocks mounted to the spring plates.

The main reason to use the shock convertors is you can get away from the stud type shock by using these.
The brake lines will be needed, I have mine run below the frame and still need the extra length when I articulate.
The spring plates you get allow you to relocate your axle forward or back 1" in either direction in case you need it for wheel well clearance, as do the SOA perches. I run mine forward on the front and back on the rear to get 2 more inches of wheelbase as every bit helps in some situations. More options are better than less IMHO.
I dont use the track bars myself but my friend uses his as that is his preferance. If you dont want it sell it to an XJ guy, that is what I do.
I also run sye on my jeeps but alot of people cant afford it at the time or just choose to use the tcase drop. Again optional but this allows a choice at the time of install.
I also relocate my lower shock mpouonts but those can be picked up cheap from AA fabrication.

Ya, I understand the concept behind the shock converters, I have a set sitting in a drawer somewhere if I happen to need them but for now I went with the skyjackers with the stud.

The picture of the spring perch brackets is confusing me based on what you said. I can see how the plate has 3 holes to make it adjustable but doesn't the spring perch need 3 holes as well. I only see one. I can see the advantages but I didn't need them and haven't heard of anybody using them till you posted. That's not to say people don't need or use them because you obvioulsy have used them a few times, I've just not heard of them till now.

For my front brake lines I just made a small bracket out of a sheet of aluminum and bolted it under the frame and to the mounting hole on the line and angled it so that the line is pointing at the axle. Works great.

I guess the moral of the story is there isn't one SOA kit for everyone.

definately agree there. i built mine with various parts from different companys/stores and fabbed anything i didnt already have... altough it was helpful that mine already had a 4" SUA kit on it to begin with, i used some of the parts already there, and as far as brake lines i just had to relocated my fronts to the bottom of the frame and the extend the rear line. i had a friend of mine ask me what all went into it and what all i had to do, so maybe i need to do a build thread on what all i did and how much it cost me...for better or worse

[QUOTE=coyote_94yj;465737]My D35 held up to my built 350 for about 6 years.


i havent quite decided yet but i dont drive the jeep all that hard but its getting a 4 speed so i dono yet

instead of converters in the front, i cut out my shock towers and welded in shock towers off an F-250 (10 bucks each at ford dealer).

on the spring plates, i used perches in the front with the extra holes so i stretched it out an inch(?) for the plate i just drilled a new hole where it was needed.

fwiw, relocated brake lines bought me enough length in the front, but not the back.