Attention: TDR Forum Junkies I finally got tires and the leveling kit installed. It looks very good, but I don't have pics right now. The tires are 315/75/16's on stock alloy rims. For those that may wonder, they don't rub the fender or control arms during normal turning from lock to lock. The guy who installed them was very skeptical of them fitting, but I did my homework on here, and was fairly certain they would work. I haven't had a chance to see what they will hit when the suspension is compressed while turning.
To install the Tough Country 2" spacers, I put the frame on jackstands with the axle hanging and removed the tires. I unbolted the three bolts of the shock towers and bottom bolt of the shock. I couldn't get the top nut off the shock stud so I left it assembled. I unbolted the sway bar linkage to let the axle droop freely. This gave me enough space to slide out the stock coil while tilting the bottom of the shock outward. I couldn't get the spacer + coil back in. So, I used a small mechanical bottle jack tucked in between the bump stops to separate the axle and frame enough to finally kick the spring and spacer into place. And I did have to kick it pretty good. I (I didn't have a spring compressor, and don't like to use them. ) To get them back in, you have to slide the coil + spacer up over the bottom of the shock. Then, place the spacer studs through the holes in the upper spring cup. It might help to barely install the nuts on the studs to hold it in place, but I didn't. If you do temporarily install the nuts, leave the shock tower unbolted from the spacer/upper spring cup/shock tower assembly so you can move it around. Then the spring edge would barely sit on the edge of the lower cup. This is when I could kick it into place. This resulted in a perfectly level (maybe a tiny bit butt high) truck. I have the camper package, so that may affect the stance. Hope this helps anyone else who might try this.
EDIT: After doing some more testing in a parking lot, they DO RUB THE LOWER CONTROL ARMS. I half expected this, and the severity of the rubbing is small enough that I wouldn't hesitate to get 315's again.
To install the Tough Country 2" spacers, I put the frame on jackstands with the axle hanging and removed the tires. I unbolted the three bolts of the shock towers and bottom bolt of the shock. I couldn't get the top nut off the shock stud so I left it assembled. I unbolted the sway bar linkage to let the axle droop freely. This gave me enough space to slide out the stock coil while tilting the bottom of the shock outward. I couldn't get the spacer + coil back in. So, I used a small mechanical bottle jack tucked in between the bump stops to separate the axle and frame enough to finally kick the spring and spacer into place. And I did have to kick it pretty good. I (I didn't have a spring compressor, and don't like to use them. ) To get them back in, you have to slide the coil + spacer up over the bottom of the shock. Then, place the spacer studs through the holes in the upper spring cup. It might help to barely install the nuts on the studs to hold it in place, but I didn't. If you do temporarily install the nuts, leave the shock tower unbolted from the spacer/upper spring cup/shock tower assembly so you can move it around. Then the spring edge would barely sit on the edge of the lower cup. This is when I could kick it into place. This resulted in a perfectly level (maybe a tiny bit butt high) truck. I have the camper package, so that may affect the stance. Hope this helps anyone else who might try this.
EDIT: After doing some more testing in a parking lot, they DO RUB THE LOWER CONTROL ARMS. I half expected this, and the severity of the rubbing is small enough that I wouldn't hesitate to get 315's again.
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