Rear Shackle Replacement Procedure

[villebacker]

Here is a pic of my 93 DS using the hole that was 1" longer than standard with 205/12" tires.

[villebacker]

I realized that the pics I posted of my 93 DS were with the original shackles. Here are a couple of pics with the extended shackles. You can see how much the 1" longer shackles increased the tire clearance. I showed a picture of what the shackle looks like with the extra hole at 2" longer. When I used the lower hole it made it look like it was running downhill.

[Raystar57]

That look perfect!
Nice wheels!

[cb0w]

Hi Folks!

I got the shackles back yesterday and got them installed last night. As you can see from the pics, they are 3/8" wide instead of 1/4". Quite a bit beefier than the stock shackles that were on my cart when I got it. As EZHO predicted, I had to go out and grab some 4" bolts from HD. While I was at it, I went ahead and replaced all the rear sleeves and bushings on the leafs/shackles.

I had a bit of trouble getting the spring lined up to replace the shackles. My jack is a bit wimpy and I couldn't get the frame up high enough to drop the axle enough to line everything up. In the end, loosening the axle "U Bolts" (one side at a time) helped a lot. I ended up using a long piece of metal conduit to pry against the leaf and the frame. This allowed me get everything lined up with the 6" hole. Luckily, the 1" difference was enough to alleviate my rubbing issues. If I ever need to go higher, I can always move to the 7" hole.

Overall, I'm very happy with the end result. The fender/wheel gap is just perfect for my taste and I'm glad I didn't have to use the 7" hole. Pics are below. Thanks to everyone who helped out and replied.