2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission what 5" lift to get???

[dragrcr1005]

i am running a level kit and 315 bfg at tires now but i want to step up to maybe a 37 ssr swamper or mtr. i want to accomplish this by putting a 5" lift on the truck but i cant make up my mind on which one to get. there are two that always come up when looking for lifts, skyjacker 4. 5", and the tough country 5". the obvious difference in the kits are the front coils. the tuff country lift comes with 5" spacers for your stock springs. the skyjacker comes with coils to replace the stock ones. i am leaning toward the tuff country lift because i like the ride that the stock springs give and the truck i perfectly level now. on the skyjacker web site they sell shims for the lift kit because according to them there might be a problem after the lift is installed with the truck sitting low on the pass. or driver side. this concerns me! i know if the stock springs are reinstalled the height side to side will remain even like it is now. the next difference is the price. the tuff country is $685 and the skyjacker is $985. the kits are very similar other than the coils. they both do not include shocks and include the longer arms. any experence with the lifts for the 2500's, let me know what you think. . thanks guys!!!!

 

[EBottema]

dick cepek is a nice lift... . most of the skyjacker stuff is junk

 

[CumminFast]

I think the next lift I get it will be air ride. Tuff country is junk. I mean if the truck is your BABY save the money and get something nice.

 

[Beast2B]

I'd go air also for first rate lift, adjustable as necessary. I don't know about Skyjacker being junk, mine seems well built and every bracket fit right and every piece was there. To each his own. For some high quality stuff, check out http://www.fabtechmotorsports.com/applications/dodge/4wd94-04_2500_3500ram.html

 

[IC Smoke]

BDS 4. 5 you CANT beat the warranty! easy install! look in the "products" for an application then "Pride & Joy" under Dodge 1989 & 1995 and you'll see my two trucks 89 5" 95 3"



Ian



http://www.bds-suspension.com/pride_joy.html

 

[EBottema]

If you want a really nice lift that is done correctly, do this..... Those two words are hard to find when it comes to bolt on lifts. Most kits are a bunch of crap thrown together...



First, Order the skyjacker 4. 5 inch front coils. Great strong springs. Order a DT trac bar for a lifted truck and DT 1/2 longer link arms. Both are nice quality. Link arms mount in stock brackets to keep extra strain off the axle mounts... Get some bilstein stocks for a lifted truck from ORW. Thats it, just lift the front and wait about a week for it to settle, then take it to a good custom spring shop and have left springs made to get rid of the stupid rear blocks. Add some good bilstiens to the back also. Top the whole lift off with 35's and some good weld wheels. Then your set with a suspension that feels better than stock and rides awsome. Mine does and this is what I did.



Erik

 

[KYLE4]

I like dealing with the smaller companies they are more concerned about perfection with the systems and offer better warranties. Kits are also complete they don't trick you with low prices on incomplete kits and upgrade's. They sell you everything you need all in the kit the best parts the first time. for example full traction suspension, whiplash, donahoe racing. good luck

 

[Luke Warmwater]

most of the skyjacker stuff is junk

BS... SkyJacker is probably the most popular lift out there for Dodge trucks. Been running the 4. 5" for a couple years with no problems. Know of a couple more that have been trouble free also.

 

[mworner]

First, Order the skyjacker 4. 5 inch front coils. Great strong springs. Order a DT trac bar for a lifted truck and DT 1/2 longer link arms. Both are nice quality. Link arms mount in stock brackets to keep extra strain off the axle mounts... Get some bilstein stocks for a lifted truck from ORW. Thats it, just lift the front and wait about a week for it to settle, then take it to a good custom spring shop and have left springs made to get rid of the stupid rear blocks. Add some good bilstiens to the back also. Top the whole lift off with 35's and some good weld wheels. Then your set with a suspension that feels better than stock and rides awsome. Mine does and this is what I did.



Erik[/QUOTE]



So has anyone else tried this style lift ? are the dt control arms long enough for a 4 inch longer spring, and do you need to adress the pitman arm, bumpstops, or swaybar ? As for the rear do you ditch the factory blocks totally with custom rear leaf springs? i want to clear 35's well without rubbing !

 

[dragrcr1005]

Superlift?

thanks for the info but as usuall everyone has a different opinion on what is the best way to go. i have been looking for a complete kit that is good quality and have come up with superlift, tough country, and skyjacker. i know that alot of people do not like tuff country but i read alot about them on pavementsucks.com and those guys have alot of good things to say about TC. i recently purchased a skyjacker dual steering stabilizer for my ram and was very dissapointed in the quality of the bushings and the u bolts. i had all kinds of problems with the kit not fitting. i called skyjacker and they said that i did have the right kit and that i would have to weld the brackets on to the tie rods and the rear diff. WHAT!!!!!... . WELD!!!!..... F- THAT. there is no way i was going to weld the kit on to the truck! i had to modify all the u bolts and two of the three brackets to make them work on my application. the instructions did not have a picture that resembled my truck in any way at all. the kit did not even come close to fitting like the instructions said. if this is any kind of example of the way skyjacker "fits" a kit to a truck i will not buy another thing from them. the bushings that are included in the kit are like jelly! they cant last long. not impressed at all in the kit. i have seen and installed superlifts on other trucks and have always been impressed with the quality of their products. they just introduced a kit for the 2500 that fits the 94-01 year models. it includes shocks and limiting straps and most importantly it has 4 links that are made for the 5" springs that are included. i think that this is the way i will go with the lift. but that is only my opinion.....

 

[Beast2B]

I'd have to agree about the Skyjacker shocks. They suck, they're rusting, etc. The springs for the front are great (took about 3 months to stop settling, still over 4. 25" in the end), the long arms are fine (about 1" per arm according to tech support at SJ) and came with poly bushings. Rear leafs are better ride than stock, I added airbags to tow my trailer level. 20k miles and bushings are fine, arms are fine, springs are fine. Shocks suck! All hardware and bracketry were fit well, I have some pics in my readers rig gallery from my install.

 

[Alphacowboy]

Hey bud, this is also Alphacowboy from Ps.com I am the owner of the truck in the Showcase section on the site Click here for more info I so far have had very few problems with the lift. If you are not looking for a very "flexy" lift this one does it, and also rides no different than it did stock, as it does use coil spacers. Alot of extreme offroad guys will say stay away from spacers, but being an offroader (dont belive me, i do actually wheel my truck from time to time, just as a few on ps.com) and I have had ZERO problems with running spacers. I have not had one part "fail" on this lift in the past almost year I have had it on the truck. If you have any questions, let me know. Trust me, I would love to build my own lift with different parts from many different companies, but I dont wheel enough to need all the flex, I just wanted larger tires, and the TC lift works great. I am going to 37" tires this spring, so it should look a little more full in the wheel wells. Currently I am running 35" BFGs ATs.



Now, the honest facts about this lift, and others parts for that matter...

Trac bar... uses your stock bar, IE JUNK, ask if you can order it without the trackbar relocation bracket, maybe save some money. Toss that OEM bar in the trash and buy somthing from DT (even though I know my fair share of people complain about this bar as well) or Dons bar (http://thurenfabrication.com/trackbar.html) a few here think it looks like junk, but the field testing has proven otherwise, this is my next mod definately. Another note if you decided to use the drop bracket TC has, its the same (so I have heard) as BDS, and it is beefy, but on 2500 trucks, it caused on my truck the track bar to contact the front Diff due to the size of the D60F, only from big bumps and flexing. The TC lift comes with upper and lower control arms for the fron axle, unfortunately, the arms are not greasable, but they easily could be tapped and a zerk grease fitting could be installed. I have no squeeks from them how ever after near 25k miles. Other than that, like the lift quite abit, no problems... .





Now, being that you are a PS.com member, you probably know this, but this is the best option (cost more too) if you are also looking for some flex...



DC (Dick Cepek) long arms (control arms)

Skyjacker 7" Diesel Coils (of course)

Dons Trac Bar (my opinion)

New rear leaf packs (pick anyone, National Spring has been pretty popular)

SJ extreme drop pitman



Now with a larger tire, you are going to also need to do somthing about that junk steering setup, there are many options out there, might want to do some searching, as do many options exist, so do many opinions... I honestly have not been truely convinced on any product out there.



also, Either toss the sway bar all together or fabricate some of your own quick disconnects. I know for a fact this is what is very much so limiting my flexyness.



let me know if you have anymore questions.

 

[dragrcr1005]

Got The Superlift

i must say that the superlift kit is very nice and fit very well. i had no problems installing it on my own. all the pieces were good quality and the instructions were very good and easy to understand. one piece of advice, the rear lift is a add a leaf only. when following the instructions, i removed the stock overload leaf and installed the superlift leaf. when the lift was done the truck sat down a little in the rear. the next day i reinstalled the stock overload under the superlift leaf and the truck sits very level now. :-laf

 

[Tcolesanti]

For a lift that big, I would also recommend the Superlift. The guy that had the Dodge/Earthroamer truck had that lift on his rig with 37" tires. He said he liked it in numerous articles. That truck has more miles off the pavement than it does on. Facts are facts, and BTW, I would steer FAR away from spacers (especially 5" spacers) on any truck. Just my $0. 02