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leveling kit vs. lift

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Old May 1, 2005 | 09:01 PM
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From: northern va
leveling kit vs. lift

Ive been browsing through the forums lately trying to find the best way to run 35's. After reading alot of threads it seems alot of ya'll with leveling kits still have some rubbing. I really wasnt planning on doing a full lift on this truck since Id like to add a gooseneck in the future...........granted I dont want anything taller than 315's, but couldnt a lift complicate things with a gooseneck?

anywho Ive come up w/ a few options and would like some opinions

1. leveling kit and shocks
2. new 2" lift coils and shocks

w/ either of those I assume Im gonna need longer control arms etc......, even then, what about rubbing?

3. 4.5" lift........recommendations are welcome. Im more concerned on what you guys recommend for the rear with these lifts. I really dont want to use lift blocks.

Thanks in advance
Jeff
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Old May 2, 2005 | 09:26 AM
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i have the lift spacers, and 315's, and i only get a little rub on the lower track bar/control arm at full turn, lock to lock.
if i was you, i would go with the spacers or springs up front, just depends on how much money you want to throw away, and maybe consider the air bags out back to level off any heavy loads that you might have while towing.
i was going to run the lift blocks in the rear of my truck, but decided not to,as i like the look of it leveled, and i don't tow 95% of thr time, more like 5-10% at best, so the bags make more sence.
air lift i think is one company that sells heavy duty air bags , and i am sure there are others out there too.
just a though
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Old May 2, 2005 | 07:11 PM
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Do you think longer control arms would fix the problem?

I've thought of airbags, but I dont tow enough to justify the cost of that.

anyone else?

thanks
jeff
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Old May 2, 2005 | 07:54 PM
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No...longer control arms will not fix the problem...tapered or bent ones would though! It is more an issue of wheel backspacing to why they rub. Longer control arms are not needed for 2-2.5 inches of lift.
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Old May 2, 2005 | 08:21 PM
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http://www.koreperformance.com
http://www.desertracingconcepts.com

The Kore suspension products are the best and will enable you to run the 35's.
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Old May 2, 2005 | 09:58 PM
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No...longer control arms will not fix the problem...tapered or bent ones would though! It is more an issue of wheel backspacing to why they rub. Longer control arms are not needed for 2-2.5 inches of lift.
hmmm........I was thinking of going in that direction in the future anyways so maybe Ill just go w/ the leveling kit after all.

dsteinke, Ive heard of the KORE systems before. While I have no doubt they are probably some of the best out there, I just cant justify spending that much cash for a suspension that will see very little offroad use. Just my 2cents

Thanks
Jeff
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Old May 3, 2005 | 07:17 AM
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Don't waste your $ on crappy spacers if you take your truck off road at all. 1st off, your putting undo stress on your steering components, specially your drag link (pitman arm end) and your steering box, not to mention your track bar WILL be off.... making your front end shift to the left!. 2nd, if you go off road at all, your shocks are not sufficient, you WILL destroy your shock. 2" lift= more flex, more compression= blown shock.... been there done that. Go spend the $1000 to get a good lift. Skyjacker or Superlift both have roughly 4" of lift with decent shocks for that price. I've lifted 4 new trucks after I had the problems with my "Leveling Kit"... its actually still on my old dually that my dad owns, but I replaced the pitman arm and put an adjustable track bar on it and put Rancho 9000's on it, but by the time you do all that.... you could have bought a lift!
See my pics... I've got a superlift 4" and I take my truck off road and actually use it. My front diff has dents, oops..."was that a rock?".... its a 4X4..... don't make it "look" like one with spacers.... do it right.
just my .02
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Old May 3, 2005 | 08:29 PM
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Ramasaur, I hear what your saying, and that why Ive been giving though to going w/ a 4" lift. What did you use for the rear? Id like to avoid lift blocks, but it seems the only other option (aside from all new spring packs) are add-a-leafs.

thanks again,
jeff
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Old May 3, 2005 | 11:58 PM
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quantrill88 -- Some people have been experiencing the "Death Wobble" when using the 2" spacers. While a correctly performed alignment can usually prevent this, it doesn't always. Do some reading on this, as it can be a serious safety issue. I ran into another person two days ago in a local Chinese restaurant. He used a 2" spacer lift kit, immediately had it aligned, and the next day went flying through the median into oncoming traffic at 70mph because of the death wobble. The truck was completely uncontrollable when it happened and it can cause serious front end component damage. I have never heard of this happening with the Kore kits. They only lift the front 2 1/2" using springs, shocks, and longer bump stops. The rear is lifted 1 inch by replacing the lower overload leaf with a mini leaf pack.

Also, I stayed away from the "lift" kits because I didn't want additional wear items or additional wear on my stock components. Kore keeps the geometry closer to stock to help with these types of issues as well.

Either way, good luck!
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Old May 5, 2005 | 03:30 PM
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I have a 04.5 2500 Diesel, with a 2inch levelling kit and 35inch tyres with NO RUBBING, and im running bushwacker fender flares.

Very few wheels have a suitable offset. I have 20inch Ultra "Assault" style.
Email me at batts@espracing.net if you want some images.

Cheers,

Batts
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Old May 5, 2005 | 03:32 PM
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Ignore the pics in my gallery, that is when I had the 18inch wheels (which did rub), the 20inch I now have a better offset and dont rub.
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Old May 9, 2005 | 06:26 PM
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From: northern va
sorry its taken me so long to get back to you guys but work has really started to pick up lately.

anywho, dsteinke, Ive heard nothing but great things about the KORE kits...........but correct me if Im wrong, arent they well over 1k? I have no doubt they are probably some of the best engineered lift kits on the market but I just am having problems parting w/ that much money for only 2.5" of lift.

again, more ideas are welcome as Im still trying to decide what to do. Thanks again
Jeff
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Old May 9, 2005 | 07:03 PM
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alright, ive been looking around the net again and am now leaning towards a 4-4.5" lift.

Im still kinda worried about running blocks in the rear (superlift)........anyone else running this lift?

With the Skyjacker kits you have the option either add-a-leafs or new rear leaf springs...........I know the add-a-leafs would proly make it ride rougher, what about new rear springs and towing?????
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Old May 9, 2005 | 08:23 PM
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I'm running the 2 inch block in the rear.... since it's only a two incher, I didn't see it as a problem. I've hauled over 2k in the bed w/out a problem with the spacers. I had a 5" skyjacker double flex on my 2001, 2500... I put the new spring packs on it.... It actually smoothed out the ride some, but when towing, the rear sagged a little becuase of the softer springs.... I would go with the 2" block to keep the factory ride, and not have to worry about sag.
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Old May 9, 2005 | 09:05 PM
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i've also thought about a 4-4.5" lift instead of the leveling kit that i'm currently running, but i also pull a gooseneck and was worried about clearance problems with the trailer and truck bed, so i decided that all those jacked up trucks look nice, (and don't get mad at me for sayin' this, b/c mine would be jacked up too), but what good is a $40K+ truck on a 6" or more lift for if you can't use it for what it was made for , just my .02
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