I don't know what happened exactly, I usually stick to my build-up plan......but I just received a set of Revolver shackles.

Pretty cool...but I can't seem to coorelate the math with the claims...

The web claims they give 1.25" of lift...which translates to a compressed eye to eye length of about 5.6"...

My Calmini lift shackles, which are supposed to give 1.5" of lift, are 6" eye to eye..and the OEM shackles are about 3.5" eye to eye.

The first time I held the revolvers up to the lift shackles, it looked like a pretty close match...and I was thinking that the lift shackles give 1.5" lift...and the 1.25" claimed for the revolvers made sense....

I later compressed the revolvers a different time...and got it down to a 4" eye to eye distance...only 0.5" longer than OEM.



So - that would leave me lifted 3" up front, and about 1.5" in back...not good.



They extend to 9.25" though...so that will still give me about 2" more droop than the 3" SL did.

I'm trying t decide if I should modify the block they rest on at ride height to get the 1.25 or 1.5" of rear lift I need...it would only take a little bit more thickness, as its at an acute angle...a little adjustment will go a long way.

Here's some pics:











Whatcha think?

Just a thought,

The sleeved center section, which appears to unbolt the sections from one another, is there enough "meat" to put in a longer bolt and a spacer of some sort? On second thought, that probably wouldn't be strong enough.

Can the side pieces of the revolvers be swapped with the original shackles if they are perhaps longer?

Can a new C-section be fabbed to the lenghth you need on the part that unbolts?

Random thoughts...trying to kill time here at work.

I've got the revolver and the 12 leaf pack from AC and they work great. Though after a lot of abuse, the flat piece of steal that the plastic pad bolts to is now v shaped. Having someone weld a piece of angle iron to reinforce it is a good idea. Mine lost another 1/4" to 1/2" from bending.
You should be sitting slightly higher than stock but not as high as an aftermarket shackle. But you'll gain a lot more travel than both.

Marty - you mean the flat piece of steel that has that tab sticking out, the plastic block mounts too?

Is it being bent by the force of extension, or the force of compression on the shackle?

It sounds like an extension hit issue, as I'm thinking the plastic block would be hit on compression, and the plastic would break if hit hard enough to deform the plate behind it?

Are your limit straps stretched/ too long?

I am talking about on compression. But that plastic might crack a little but thats about it. The weight of the truck coming down on the plastic will bend the plate and shorten the distance from bolt to bolt. I know from Xsperience
The revolver shackles has gotten me thorough the Rubicon along with the transfercase gears and No lockers.

Somewhat related question about the revolver shackles.

With the SLR 3 pack AAL's and the Calmini shackles when the rear axle drops as far as it can go the driveshaft is just about to touch the crossmember. So, if you get all this extra droop with the revolvers then where does the driveshaft go? Do you modify the crossmember? And what are you using for shocks?

I think I've asked this before and never got an answer (or forgot...ha!), so just thought I'd throw it out there again. Just curious because I don't see how you can get that much more drop without other problems.

Honestly, I don't know if I'd ever go down that road on the X, but they look neato!

TJ,

You do realize that in the pic that shows you holding them next to the factory shackle that you have them backwards? The pivot should point towards the truck, not away.

Jason

Yeah -Its not installed...just held up to compare the positions of the eye to eye lengths when folded up....and, apparently, not as folded up as I thought...I squeezed a bit more I guess a few days after that pic...and got the eye to eye distance down to more like 4"...so, all in all....it turned out to be a less than informative pic.



I've calculated that based upon the extended length as compared to the existing maximum droop for the disco'd 3" SL...The revolver will get me 2" more droop than I have...The 10 pack Deaver spring pack droops to that point w/o the revolver (EditorX)...so I should not be in virgin territory rear articulation-wise....just using a shackle rather than longer springs to get there.

oops...Marty...the plastic block bends on impact, so the plate under it bends?

Hmmm.

Got a pic of the reinforcing you did?

I'm thinking I could kill two birds with that stone...

If the reinforcement plate is on the plastic block side rather than behind it...and the plastic block could just bolt through the reinforcement plate...I'd pretty much pick up the ride height about where it needs to be to match the height up front.....I could then shoot for an eye to eye distance of 6".

Whatcha think?

You'll find quickly TJ that the shocks will limit your travel now. I have been running Rancho 5112s in the back but I need another ~2-3" of shock extension to get what I should get. Bilstein has a shock that has the dimensions I need, I forget the number. I have been lazy and have not gotten them yet, but I also know I will need to either relocate the upper mount or increase the size of my bumpstop extension to keep the shocks from bottoming out. Right now I am using a 3/4" steel spacer for the bumpstops.

I need to do a disco'd shock/no shock droop check to see where I am in that regard...The shocks don't need to extend inch for inch on the droop due to their inboard position and inclination angles...I haven't done the trig yet either...I wanted to do the droop check first to see the opposites before calculating the needed hypotenusi.

That will also give me an idea of limit strap positions, etc.

With the BL, I might have some room to raise the upper shock mounting points to fit a longer shock if needed....

So, I just need time to play with it/figure out the best solution.

TJ, don't think I would change the closed angle of the shackle to gain height. I think it will cause them to bounce open and closed to easily. Going up steep stuff they sometime start to clap with to much throttle and limited traction.
I went with a center limiting strap that stops the axle just before they open, to prevent them from unloading on steep decents. But it still allows one side or the other to fully extend. My measurements won't work for you due to a different leaf pack. starting point for max shock length around 27.5" to 29.5". you'll gain max extension relocating shock mounts.
I was to late to reinforce mine so I'll be buying new ones

Marty - I'm not sure why they'd open too easily if less closed to start with...I'm thinking a wedge shaped metal reinforcement between the block and the (Otherwise "V" shaped) plate....to preserve the contact angle at rest...

I could also incorporate an elastic band between the two eyes to make it require a predetermined amount of opening weight to open/extend, etc...if I need to.

On the shock length's....are you saying you needed to get about 29.5" extended length shocks...or that that's where you measured your droop from arch to hub center?

shock length from mount to mount, but that's just ballpark. My mounts have been moved.

http://www.xterraownersclub.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=59;t=000051#000008
with revolvers

Marty - if that is the maximum shock length...it wouldn't matter if your mounts were moved further apart or not...it would still be the fully extended shock length.

Unless you mean you moved them other than in a straight line from the original orientation...like more foward or back on the truck than mere extension of the original line, etc.

So - how'd you move them (pics?)