Unless you're buying shocks that can actually be valved then Yoy don't really need to worry about it. Typically those shocks are rebuildable and in the $150 neighborhood. I ran the Ranchos which were adjustable, but I always had them cranked way up. Otherwise they were too soft. I ended up killing them so I decided to buy good shocks that would last me and I could rebuild. I went with Fox 2.0 Emulsions, 11" front and 12" rear. I got them from PolyPerformance. They valved them for me and installed the shaft bumps and stop rings. Total out the door was about $700. Pretty steep but they should last forever and hold their value better than other shocks.

When looking at shocks the travel is important but equally important is the compressed and extended values. Stock shocks may have 10" of travel but the extended length is too short to work on a lifted truck. There are many combinations for fitting shocks too. You can run shorter, taller, or adjustable front shock towers. Likewise there are raised and lowered rear upper shocks mounts. If you convert to eye-to-eye shocks the adapters on the bottom will add height thereby reducing what your compressed length can be. The only way to really dial it in is to get in there with a tape measure(once you have your final springs in) and measure what you've got and what you can do to make whatever shock you want. Bilstein also offers short body shocks that have shorter compressed and extended values for the same amount of travel as their long body shocks.
If you know what you want you can look around and find deals on used parts. Cones, shocks, etc.
It sounds like you're getting more comfortable with the D1 though. There's a lot to be said about getting seat time in. Two foot driving and picking the right lines will get you far. A little momentum will help carry you through those cross-axled low traction situations.

 

I really wish I had some better video of my truck the way it sits now.
Here's video from Moab 2010.
From 4:45-6:40, almost 2 minutes of me trying and failing to make the climb. The rest of the video shows just how helpful traction control and lockers can be.
Land Rover National Rally 2010 - Moab - Fins N Th…:
From 0:00-0:40 in this video I finally make it. FWIW I was the only truck with open diffs to make it up that day. But it goes to show how important picking your line can be.
Land Rover National Rally 2010 - Moab - Fins N Th…:
That was with 265/75 DuraTracs, 2" RTE springs, and OME Nitro shocks, and swaybars disconnected. Those OME shocks had AWFUL travel though, they really shouldn't even be an option for lifted trucks.

Couple of poseur pics on 3" RTE springs and 315/75/16 tires.

 

it isnt. IMHO, worry about the truck's reliability before you start thinking about mods if that is your goal. you can do plenty of trails in moab on 31s open/open. i did NY to CA and back and wheeled in AZ, NM, CA, CO, UT all on 33s open front, locker rear with full armor on my 93 XJ with nearly 200k miles on the odo.

KISS. after wheeling that truck for close to 5 years, I built a monster, axle-swapped, race suspension top dollar XJ. i hated it. and bc i love whoring out pics...





wheel it as it is, then if you feel like you need more upgrade your disco the 235/85s, gear to 4.11s and get at least one locker. if you can only afford one, ARB the front.

 

Please ***** away. Haha. Love the idea of cross country drive. So jealous.
The number one goal has been to get everything reliable. Just doesn't make for very interesting posts here. I've done the cooling upgrades. All fluids. CV swivel rebuild. Cdl linkage and lockout. Battery. Belts. Hoses. Thermostat. Headgaskets have been done. Alternator. Vacuum lines. Tune up. Bulbs. Ujoints. Etc etc. Reliability is king.

Fish those videos are eye opening. In the second one i saw what line you picked. Very very cool. I can't believe that LR3 made it right up. Impressive.
What are your thoughts on true tracks, and Detroit Lockers as an alternative to the all out ARB lockers?

 

a locked front will always work better than a locked rear off road. unfortunately, you cant run a detroit up front in the disco to save cash.

now before people tell me an XJ doesnt compare to a Disco, they are actually pretty close dimensionally, wheelbase is like .5" off. anyway, both of my XJs had aussie lockers out back (function the same way as a detroit) and i didnt mind them on road. off road, it does lower your turning radius a bit, but not a huge deal. trutrac LSDs are great until you lift a tire, then they are pretty much useless, so they arent a good choice for a rock crawler. i've seen people with them front and back who take it easy and can make them work in their favor pretty well. if you are too harsh in trying to force it to lock, you can blow your ring gear up.

if i if i was to do it to my truck, i'd probably end up with trutracs front and back or ARB front, trutrac rear. i dont plan on making my disco a crawler though.

 

I'm going to totally disagree, respectfully. If you only have one locker it should be in the rear. In my experience the most time you need a locker is on a climb of some sort. Very rarely on flat ground and almost never going downhill. When you're climbing the front end tends to unload somewhat. You have less weight/traction on the front wheels and more on the rear wheels. You want that locker putting to the wheels that have the best chance of transferring the power to the ground. Tons of people run just a locker in the rear. And when someone blows up an open diff it's almost always the rear.

Each type of locker has its pros and cons. If you wheel or drive in the snow or on mud on slopes a selectable(ARB/Ashcroft) is the way to go. Turn it on when you need it, off when you don't. There are times in wet and slippery conditions on a side slope where having the locker on will cause both rear wheels to break loose and slide sideways. In case like this it's better to have an open diff that lets one wheel spin while the other stays put.

I have Ashcroft selectable lockers front and rear. I like to go as far as I can with them off. I can push my truck and test my driving skills and then flip the switch and go further.

 

What are some opinions on the 255-85-16? Going by specs online it would seem it's 3 inches over where I am now. I don't want to upgrade tires twice. They seem like a perfect size tire. Only draw back is they only seem to be available in a mud tire. I'd rather have an all terrain just because of all the on road driving I do. I could live with them though. Thoughts?

 

Great tire size. I dig the tall/skinny. Fairly tall tire on stock gears though. Fitting them on a 2" lift and retaining good suspension travel will take some creativity though and some trimming.

Also worth noting is the front diff. It is exactly the same as the rear diff. Good, right? Not exactly. The rear diff turns the tires on the Drive side of the ring gear. The front, being exactly the same as the rear yet installed opposite, turns the front tires forward on the Coast side of the ring gear. This is not ideal. Aftermarket gears have the front ring and pinion Reverse cut so it rides on the Drive side of the gear when going forward. When going with a locker it is highly advisable to upgrade your axles to heavy duty versions. Front HD axles/CV's cost more than HD rear axles. This is another reason why I would say upgrade your rear to a locker instead of the front, if you can only do one.

 

I can't thank you guys enough for all the info here. This has made my head swarm with mods vs how applicable they really are for me and what I do. Now it's just figuring out the order and priority for the next steps. Assuming the truck doesn't have a catastrophic failure of some kind.

I'm ok with doing some trimming to fit larger tires. Does anyone know how much? Tires seem like they should be first.

 

Get the tires first, then trim. There's a pretty simple test you can do with a pair of ramps. Put one at the front right tire and the other at the back left tire, then drive up them. This will cross axle your truck pretty well and give you a good indication where the tires will rub. Search for "camel cut".