Dampeners/shocks for '99 jeep cherokee xj

What does the hive recommend regarding dampeners for an xj?

I needed something that can tackle dirt roads without destroying themselves. Also something for a two inch lift I plan on doing to it.

It now has blown stock replacement shocks. After driving the Gambler 500 ( dirt roads for 12 hours plus off road park) they gave up their ghost and bottom out on everything. 

I want a two inch lift for a number of reasons including some up travel. 

Primary option is to get stock replacement but from a zj up country for the extra length and take advantage of the lifetime warranty. 

Thoughts? 

Thank you

I had takeoff JK Rubicon shocks on my XJ that I found for like $40 on Craigslist and liked them a lot. IIRC, they're a gas charged Bilstein. Little on the stiff side, but not overly so. They'll bolt right in with a set of bar pin eliminators in the rear and the length should work well for a 2" lift.

OME shocks are good:

https://www.quadratec.com/brand/old-man-emu/lift-kits-and-suspension/shocks

Apparently 2" is an odd lift height, if you can't go up to 3" you should combine these:

https://www.quadratec.com/products/16091_1050_14.htm

https://www.quadratec.com/products/16091_1051_14.htm

Edit: Ok those JK Rubicon shocks look like a better idea.

Fox. I mean, you can get cheaper and crappier, but I'm not convinced you can get better. I have them on my XJ and it's magic on dirt roads. They come in several lengths for whatever lift you have planned. I would recommend you lift the truck first to find out how high your lift really is, as the specs tend to be a little approximate in my experience.

In reply to Keith Tanner :

Definitely agree on that last point. My 3" leaf packs yielded about 5" in the rear initially (vs stock height, close to 6" taller than my saggy old leaves.) Had to pull a leaf and still ended up with around 4" in the rear after everything settled.

Grrrr I can’t believe I’m going here...

Dampen:  to make wet

Damp:  to reduce energy in system

they are dampers, until the seals leak

Shocks convert movement to heat. How good of a shock you need really depends on how long you're going to be working them. If it's miles and miles of washboard surface you need a pretty serious shock with some serious heat dissipation. If it's casual off roading and regular dirt roads that aren't torture, I'd say you'd do pretty well with stock JK takeoffs or the longer ZJ shocks. 

While that is true, a shock with bad (or inappropriate) valving will be a shock with bad valving all the time. The off-road world doesn't always pay a lot of attention to this, but it can make a massive difference to ride quality and the ability to keep tires in contact with the road.

In reply to AngryCorvair :

I'll have to check but I'm sure their seals are toast .

I will now use the excuse that I'm a foreigner from a far away land. It's true, I'm a Spaniard living in Texas. 

I'll have to check prices on the Fox shocks, I'm sure they will be now capable than me.. Will have to check warranty etc. 

Jk take offs are an interesting option, will look into it.

This is relevant to my current Toyota Hilux build I'm wrapping up, but I went with Bilstein 5100's.  The rear I got cheap thru Amazon, but I bought the fronts thru Autozone, as the fronts were for a OEM application, unlike the rears (custom setup)  Lifetime, no questions warranty, and they price matched Summit.

I've got Bilstein 7100s on my ZJ.  Rears were an easy fit, fronts required a little bit of modification to the lower shock mounts to make them fit.  I went 7100s mostly for the valving choices.  Plus, short body 7100s meant more travel than any other shock I could fit (including Fox).  I managed 12" travel shocks in the front, 10" in the rear at basically stock ride height (and I could go to 12" in the rear if I move the rear upper shock mounts, but I'm currently using the stock ones).  

I put free new JK Sahara/Sport take-offs on our XJ.  The JK shocks are a good fit for a 3-4" lift on an XJ, probably too long for only a 2" lift.

I ended up with Bilsteins on my Franken-lifted ‘98.  I finally got the kinks worked out of that lift and was rewarded with driving, riding, and even handling better than stock.  It was no easy path getting there though.  The first iterations were terrible.  Death wobbled so bad a couple times I thought the glass was going to break out.  Miss that rig.  Practically gave it away on trade for my Rubicon.  They were dime a dozen back in ‘13.  As soon as a I signed it over I noticed the prices starting to ratchet up.  I had more in good aftermarket parts than I got on trade.

I'll look into the bilsteins. 

Thank you