scarecrow

looking for a small lift for my 3500 4 to 5 inches. are there company`s i should stay away from?

diesel_kid

All of em lol. Except TREX lift systems, I think they are known as KORE now. They are IMHO superior to all others. But you can peice together your own lift that will work very well. There was something on here about the best peices for a lift on our trucks. I dont know if it was here or pavementsucks.com, mostly Rams there. For the lift for my truck I will probably be building most of the components myself, but here is a good list

1. Trac Bar (should be replaced lift or not) - The best I have heard are either DTprofab or the Thurenfab.

2. Front Springs - Do a search around for the best riding, just get the correct height that you want, some people use spacers as high as 5" on stock springs, I will probably be picking up a set of Skyjacker D25s with 2" spacers for 4.5" of lift in the front.

3. Rear Springs - There are a couple options here, there is add-a-leafs, taller blocks, shackle flips, and a whole new leaf pack. I will be going with a whole new leaf pack and eliminating my block. Atlas I have heard is a good name for Leafs.

4. Control Arms - Many companies make these, the favourite probably being the Dick Cepek Extreme Travel Control Arms, they move the mounting brackets back on the frame and are supposed to be superior to all others. I will probably be making my own, but they run about $400 or $500 I think.

5. Shocks - This is probably just personal preference for what you want, I will be going with Bilsteins as I have heard nothing bad about them.

6. Pitman Arm Drop - Skyjacker I think makes one.

I dont know what else, Im pretty tired and probably forgetting some stuff. Do a search, there is lots to read about lifts, and alot more knowledgeable people on here than me. Hope this helps.

BigBlue

I like my skyjacker lift. It rides a little rough and one of the shocks might already be blown (6000 miles on it) but it's a good lift.

Cowhand

diesel kid is pretty close to the mark. The Thuren track bar is probably your best bet, it doesn't use heims like the DT. It also has a weld in bracket. Honestly, if you weld the frame bracket on, you can't go wrong with either one. The Thuren bar is cheaper by about $90.

For coils, I got custom 6" coils from Deaver Spring in Santa Ana, CA with a 15% lighter spring rate. They work very well. Deaver actually subs out the coils, they do primarily leaf springs. Very good leaf springs. Deaver does all the leaf work for KORE Performance and Donahoe Racing (Super Duty lifts). Can't go wrong with Atlas, they do nice work. IMO, Deaver is a little better, but a little more $$.

I'd wait on control arms.....the DC long arms require hacking up the cab mounts, and depending on your rim backspacing you might have rubbing problems at full lock. The DC kit relocates the upper arms outside the frame.

DT is coming out with long radius arms that are pretty trick. Price will be comparable to the DC "front box". Keep an eye on their website.....David said he will post pictures and put them into production in the next couple weeks. I have one of the first sets on the way, I'll post pics as soon as they're installed. They should be here by next Tuesday......

turbo dreams

i always like the sky jacker and tough country kits. they are both bolt ons. alot of people will say bad things about the tough country one because it uses a 5" spacer, but i've read where alot of people liked it alot because it is said to be a stock ride. i spend most of my time on the street so i am looking into tough country.

ASTAR

I went with a Skyjacker kit. It is fine but I did replace the shocks (after 65k) with some Bilstiens. It is very complete and the geometry is good for driveability. It also will come with everything you need. I also added 2" to the kit for 37" tire clearance.

I have also heard through the grapevine that there is a VERY reputable company coming up with a new long arm kit for our trucks and I can hardly wait!!!

Cowhand

If that reputable company is DT/Profab, then I beat you to the punch by 2 posts
If not, then you've heard something I haven't.

As far as the SJ kit, yes, it is complete. It does work well- for the first year or two. I have 160K on my SJ kit, and I haven't been able to keep the front end aligned for the better part of 2 1/2 years. That's why it's headed for the trash heap next week. God forbid you get the control arms with the heims, the heims are $80-90 each to replace and they don't last but 30K or so before they're shot.

You can put a functional , durable lift on your truck by piecing it together for slightly more than the average SJ kit. IIRC, the last time I priced everything out is was around $1800 including track bar, cross over steering and Bilstien 5100's.

Just trying to pass along the lessons I learned the expensive way. Don't wan't anyone to spend their hard earned bucks twice.....

halerazor

i think skyjacker already has a long arm kit it is an option in their 7in kit and you can also get king coil over shocks with it too

ASTAR

Nope, different company

I have had mine on for 70k and I did replace my control arm bushings about 10k ago. A couple were a little shot but other than that, I can't complain. Of course I could let ya know when I hit 160K but I won't have this kit on, I'll be having that new long arm kit

BigBlue

While the skyjacker kit might be a "bolt on" kit, it's not for the faint of heart. It took me and 2 other buddies 36 hours to install. 12hr days, 3 days straight. They also forgot to include some nuts and bolts in the kit and I ended up spending an extra $20 on various little parts like that. I love my kit though. For the little bit of fourwheeling I do, it works great. I wish the ride was a little smoother but oh well. For the weekend fourwheeler or for someone who just wants that lifted look, you can't go wrong with the skyjacker kit. Only reason I didn't go with the tough country lift is because I think 5" spacers would look like . JMO.

diesel_kid

Cowhand let us know when DT comes out with the Long Radius Arms. And what is the difference between them and the DC Long arms? Price Difference? Pros and Cons?
Thanks.

-Jared

smokeyram

for a 3500 go with D25s in front, have a heavy duty truck shope re-arc your rear springs, done

Cowhand

Different company, huh? Super Secret Squirrel stuff? We'll have to compare pics and install headaches later.......

Apparently you didn't get the single/double flex control arms......that's the biggest reason why mine is shot.

The DC long arm kit uses two long control arms per side. The radius arm is basically one arm per side that picks up both axle mounts. They both move the control arm mounting point back toward the rear of the truck. Price is roughly the same, but I think the DC kit comes with coils and the DT arms do not. David Turbyfill is researching manufacturers and spring rates right now, it looks like he will be doing a whole kit for the Dodge instead of bits and pieces. He is also in the middle of building a coil-over setup for his truck.

As far as pros and cons, the DC kit requires you to cut and brace the cab mounts. It also mounts the upper arms outside the frame, which can cause the tire to rub at full lock. Other than that, I've heard good things. The DT arms theoretically should flex better because there are less moving parts to bind up. The DT arms also have less caster change when articulated than the 4 link system does. Should be easier to keep aligned as well. Don't know if there are any cons to the DT setup, I guess I'll find out.

scarecrow

thanks for all the replys....now i have to figure out what i want to do i think i am gonna piece one together.

Captain

From what I gatherd befor buying my skjacker. Mostly from pavement sucks.com and what not. The best thing to do is peice one together using atlas rear spring packages. custom front springs for smoother ride up there. cepek long controll arms. then goto skyjacker for all your other needs like pitman arm, bump stops, break line relocation brackets if you dont get longer lines in general. I would also suggest seriously looking into Solid Steel's 03 trac bar conversion. I have it on my truck. They sell one with a diffrent bracket for "lifted" trucks but I've found that there standard one is more then enough for 4.5" lift. After all this I deicded it was to expensive by far and way to much of a pain in the butt for the cepek long arms. lots of cutting and stuff I dont want to do. I picked up a used skyjacker with rear spring packages isnted. used a solid steel trac bar. My own bigger ubolts and added a 1" lift block so it isnt a "leveling" lift.