Cowhand

Haven't had a problem with my brake lines. A lift is hard on track bars, that's why most of us with lifted trucks, and some without lifts, have gone with an aftermarket track bar like the DT. Ride quality depends on a lot of things such as spring rates, shock valving, tires, tire pressure, load, etc. Does my truck ride like my wife's Durango? Not by a long shot. But it does ride a helluva lot better than my buddy's bone stock '93 4X4 Dually.

I have ~145K miles on my lift, and I recently replaced the original ball joints and tie rod ends at 190K miles. Your mileage may vary.

Off road, it works well for what it is set up for, which is relatively low speed. If I wanted to go fast, I'd do the T-Rex kit or better yet, build a Class 7 desert truck. I had one of those, I sold it to buy my Dodge.

gaRam

thanks for all the information, cowhand. what steering components would you recommend replacing that aren't included in the lift?

gaRam

i checked rocky mountain susp. again, the 2500 5" is $640. it includes a pitman arm. the pictures show a taller block and an add-a-leaf. does anyone know how long the leaf is? i already have a tuff country 2" add-a-leaf. if i kept that would it be a little higher? instead of using the one with the kit? i want the back to have a little more stance than the front.


"The front DS problem varies from truck to truck.
You won't really know until you put the lift on.
You have the vaccum disconnect, so your shaft isn't spinning all the time like mine is, hence the highway vibe."-phox mulder

what do you mean by this? is it something that changes from year to year, the vaccum disconnect? i don't really understand. my front driveshaft isn't spinning like yours does all the time, only when i put it in 4wd? could someone please explain some of this for me. thanks

gsdog1

I replaced the trac bar and steering stabilizer with SJ stuff as well, which was in addition to the kit. I will most likely be needing ball joints soon (will be going with Moog), and plan on doing that when I overhaul the brakes.

FWIW - the ride I have now is no comparison to stock off of the lot, and I won't be going back.

Matt

phox_mulder

2nd gen trucks pre 2002.5 have a Central Axle Disconnect, a vaccum powered sleeve that connects both halves of the front axle to the driveshaft, it's how they got away from having manual locking hubs, and giving you the "shift on the fly",
you shift the transfer case into 4HI or 4LOW and it starts turning the front driveshaft and activiates this sleeve thus giving power to the front wheels.

Post 2002.5 doesn't have the sleeve, the axles are connected to the front driveshaft all the time, therefore the front driveshaft is always turning.
Shifting into 4HI or 4LOW just gives power to the front driveshaft, thus giving power to the front wheels.


phox

Cowhand

Ditto what gsdog1 said. I'd stay away from the SJ track bar, I have one and I've had to make several "modifications" to it to make it work right. Spend the money for the DT track bar. The SJ kit comes with a drop bracket for the stock track bar, so if yours is in good shape you can run it until you need a new one. I'd throw in a DSS regardless of whether or not you lift the truck.

You also need to shim the center support bearing (rear driveline) down ~1/2" to eliminate any rear driveline vibration. SJ didn't supply a shim with my kit.

Cowhand

Do your cross joints while you're at it or you'll be sorry.....

duke1n

Wrong!

Not sure how you figure this but who buys a full size Cummins 4x4 to climb rocks...

Doesn't ruin the ride or the handling...

I didn't buy my truck and drop the kind of $ we do to worry about resale. I guarrantee engine mods are more of a deterent to good resale than a lift... oh yeah just do the transfer case index ring and spend the money on the Tom Woods shaft.

See above response. I would say the same thing about engine mods.... who cares? I am my own warranty station!

gsdog1

Thanks!

Matt

xzlram

skyjacker 4.5 clears my 9.00r16 xzl's (measure almost 37" on the truck) no prob never rubbed not once... 8 inch wheels only prob is trailing arms are to short and to much of an angle, that makes the ride harsh when you hit sharp bumps in the road. I would try the superlift long arm system same price, should ride better

HOHN

The only problem with the "hot" setup you describe is that you can't just buy Bilstein 7100/9100 shocks. You have have to have them specially valved and setup for your application. They are NOT for the average guy, and they are NOT cheap. Bilstein basically builds these to order for Baja race teams who spec their own valving. By the time you get your valving set up, you've already spent more than the T-rex/Bilstein kit.

DT makes good stuff-- I have their track bar and love it.

Cowhand, are you trying to tell us that your truck has BETTER handling after you've lifted the CG at least 4"?? I'm I the only who things that's impossible to do? Maybe we have different meaning of handling? I think of it has cornering and steering-- traction and stability.

I have news for you: the SJ springs I installed do not lift the front end any more than the OEM SnowPlow springs would have. I wanted longer, not just stiffer coils. So my truck is perfectly within OEM parameters.

The point needs to be made: if you plan on lifting your truck because you want to run large (over 35") tires, you need to be VERY sure that this is what you want, as there's a steep penalty to be paid in ride comfort, component wear, and practicality.

JLH

duke1n

Still don't know why you are insisting on that? I know of more than one lifted(4.5" Skyjacker) truck running 35s similar to mine with none of the symptoms you describe. My wheels have a little more offset which in effects negates the higher CG. My trackbar was getting loose before I put the lift on. I know the truck rides better with the 35s than it does with 10ply 31.5s. If your truck is not lifted giving you first hand experience then one could conclude you just are sharing an opinion that is based on conjecture and second hand information. Who knows but as a counter to hohn, mine is lifted and I have had no issues other than silly driveshaft problems that were solved with a Tom Woods unit.

Cowhand

I agree with you on one point....Bilstiens are expensive. Having said that, I can go down to Kartek in Corona and buy 7100's off the shelf with any valving I choose. After I install them, I can drive back over to Kartek or Custom Motorsports and have them charged with N2. Since T-Rex uses the 7100 in their set up, I have to question how you determined the 7100's cost more than the entire T-Rex system that includes upper shock mounts, coils, and limiting straps as well as shocks. For that matter, the 5100 series is a good shock and infinetly better than anything any of the "lift kit" manufacturers offer. And much cheaper than the 7100/9100 series.

As far as handling, we're talking about a 3/4 ton 4X4 that weighs in the neighborhood of 8K lbs. Yes, I raised the CG better than 8", but I also increased the track 6-8". Cornering and steering? I don't throw the truck into a hard right hand curve at 65 MPH. I wouldn't do that with a stock truck. If I wanted to go fast through the twisties, I'd have bought a sports car. Traction and stability? It was a lot easier to break loose the rears when I had 265's on it. Even with the lift, the truck is more stable than your average stock Ford Explorer or any other little SUV for that matter.

And if OEM design parameters are so important, why did you go with the SJ springs instead of the factory snow plow springs? News Flash: the SJ springs have a higher spring rate than the factory springs. Is a higher spring rate within factory spec's? Not exactly. Typically, to improve handling you go with a softer spring and a more aggressive shock to control it. A stiffer spring simply results in a harsher ride. So I wouldn't say perfectly within OEM parameters, but you can believe whatever you want.

And your point that needs to be made: If I wasn't sure of what I wanted, I wouldn't have spent in upwards of $2K for my suspension. My truck probably rides better than yours does, because I ditched the POS SJ springs and shocks and went to something that provides better ride quality and handling. Practicality? Well, my truck is pretty practical for what I use it for, which is driving back and forth to work, hauling stuff in the back, tearing up the weeds on the weekend, and occasionally pulling a two horse slant. My front end components lasted 180K miles, 130K of which were after the lift was installed. That's longer than a lot of folks here get out of their components on a stock truck.

So your point isn't very sharp. Where's the steep penalty?

gaRam

very interesting. also i bought my truck with a 2" leveling kit and 35's. so i really don't know what a"stock" truck handles like. i'm used to what i got. but my question is this, is the tough country kit good? and what otrher components should be upgraded not included in the kit? please no abreviations, i'm a semi-newbie trying to learn the terms. also brake lines will be ok?

Wilson

So what about the Kelderman system. Cant you use it to lift your truck and wouldnt air bags ride better? We are talking about a bunch of brands here so I thought I would throw Kelderman into the mix and try and get some feedback to see how it compares.