New Guy with some Lift Kit questions

[bignastystacks]

Hey I am new to the oilburners society but I have been scavenging other forums for a while and this looks to be the spot for me. My truck I got about a year ago to get my toys to the dunes and now its my daily driver. 1993 7.3 with ATS turbo. Its got about 218000 on it with the STOCK transmission and motor. The clutch has been changed but not by me. My truck runs great except for a couple things that need smoothing out. (Ill get to those after I make my way through all the 7.3 forums.) So far I have done small things mainly cosmetic for my truck. I did find a set of six inch stacks in a COMPLETE kit for $70 here in town so I couldnt pass them up. I also put new smoked headlights on and I bought some clear lense tail lights and put some smoke tint over them. My truck is black so It really set it off. I painted the interior of the grill black and it made it look ten years newer. I got a set of black wheels and threw them on and now I am looking to raise it up. I am thinking about a four inch kit becuase I want to raise it up with out having to replace the drive lines or tweak the axels but I also dont want to jeoprodize my transmission. What are your thoughts on lift kits? Any economic tips would be greatly appreciated as I now have a baby boy.

 

[Agnem]

Nice truck, and welcome to OB! Gosh... lift kit for our vintage trucks. Can one still be bought? I'm not even sure. Go for it if you can find one.

 

[Pearl_Diesel]

Try skyjacker or superlift, or look at a JC whitney truck catalog. That's a 350, right? If so lifts aren't that bad pricewise, and kits for those are all over the place. If it was a 250, it gets a little trickier because of the TTB, that I know from experience.

 

[darwin]

Not sure if I missed it, but if it is a f250 instead of a f350, then the best route/cheapest I have found is a rough country 4 inch lift. The kit is around 600 dollars and if you do the labor yourself that is probably the cheapest way to do it. If it is an F350 or has a dana 60 front axle then I would look into a SKY MFG, front shackle lift. On mine I can fit 35 inch tires and it rides better than stock.

LesShwab wanted around 2,600 dollars plus to do the same lift!

 

[Russ]

Welcome to OB!! Nice looking truck.
You can do a RSK(reverse shackle kit) It will give you some front end lift and make it ride better. http://www.sky-manufacturing.com/new/detaproduct.php?id=162

 

[sportsmobile88]

Is you truck a 250 or 350? I couldn't tell from the pics and you might want to add your info to your signature. The lift won't affect your transmission, Tire size/weight/diameter does. You will have to play around with shims at the rear in order to keep the rear driveline in phase. First off, If you can't do it right, don't do it. If you are patient, you can buy a few parts at a time and once you have ALL the parts then install it. It is usually more expensive that way. A typical 4" kit will have 2 front springs, frt u-bolt kit, rear block and u-bolt kit, sway bar drop brackets, Brake lines, and 4 shocks of proper length and adequate valving for your truck. Sometimes steering correction (usually not needed on kits 4" and below although there are exceptions), but remember to keep the track bar parallel to the drag link due to bump steer. Remember though, you put cheap parts (springs,shocks) your truck will ride cheap. That's why National's and Deaver's springs are spendy and Fox and King shocks are too. A middle of the road is usually a good compromise. Say a softride type spring with a correct length/valve monotube gas shock such as Bilstein. So if it were mine, I'd go through the issues smoothing it out first and research your spring and shock choices carefully and your truck will ride and drive much better than it does now. Just do yourself a favor and buy quality parts not someone else's hodge podge $200 disappointment!! I've been there.....and....will never go there again.

 

[sportsmobile88]

Oops, thanks Russ!!! Shackle reverse definately and some kits will give you about 1-2" of lift allowing you to run a flatter 2.5" spring which also improves ride quality.

Just make sure that the SR moves the front forward an inch or two or the front driveline slip may bottom out causing potential t-case damage and tire interference at the back lower fender.

 

[bignastystacks]

I have heard of the shackle reverse but I remember some bad reviews. I need new shocks anyways so I figure I will get a kit of some sort. My buddy can get a skyjacker 4 inch for 600.

On another note... now that it is darker earlier I have noticed that after I start my truck if I turn my Head lights on they will flash. Not all the way off then on but go dim then bright, then dim then bright about ten times before it stops. There is also a clicking under my hood on the right side (maybe starter relay) every time they flash. Has any one ever expirienced this?

 

[sportsmobile88]

I have heard of the shackle reverse but I remember some bad reviews. I need new shocks anyways so I figure I will get a kit of some sort. My buddy can get a skyjacker 4 inch for 600.

BUY THE SOFTRIDE. unless you plan on a heavy wich/bumper combo. The standard springs ride like an un-loaded lumber truck.

On another note... now that it is darker earlier I have noticed that after I start my truck if I turn my Head lights on they will flash. Not all the way off then on but go dim then bright, then dim then bright about ten times before it stops. There is also a clicking under my hood on the right side (maybe starter relay) every time they flash. Has any one ever expirienced this?

Check your headlight relay or it just may be dimming from the amps drawn by the glow plug controller.

 

[Russ]

On another note... now that it is darker earlier I have noticed that after I start my truck if I turn my Head lights on they will flash. Not all the way off then on but go dim then bright, then dim then bright about ten times before it stops. There is also a clicking under my hood on the right side (maybe starter relay) every time they flash. Has any one ever expirienced this?

That's your glowplug relay doing it's job. Normal operation.

 

[snicklas]

X2 - Clicking on the fender sounds like after-glow to me......

 

[sportsmobile88]

THe idea of a shackle reversal seems to have come from Jeeps (off road racing in the 70's). It works like this: Vehicle moving forward hits bump. Bump wants to push axle to the rear as it compresses. Axle can't move to the rear due to the springs being solidly mounted at rear. axle must move forward as front mounted shackles swing forward resulting in a hop (sort of). You wont notice this really untill you have more arch in the spring as the eliptic movement in which the axle travels increases. As the arch in the spring increases, so does the leverage exerted at the rear, sometimes resulting in a bent spring (jumping or a big rock/hole). Never have seen it on a truck, but have seen countless Jeeps with the problem.
ORU has a very nice kit: http://www.offroadunlimited.com/orustore/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=47&idproduct=8305

 

[hesutton]

I'm running a Skyjacker 4 inch lift. It came with new springs (front and rear) with new ubolts, a drop bracket for the track bar. I'm runing thier shocks as well. I didn't need a drop pitman arm. The driveshafts will work fine, and the angle to the front shaft isn't too bad. The rear angle didn't change much at all. They also sell dropped sway bar mounts, but Dad just fabbed up some to save some cash. It works well and hauls well. I'd buy another from them in the furture.

Heath

 

[bignastystacks]

Thanks Guys. I put in a new GPR at the end of the winter last year and that may have been when it started. It hasnt got too cold here yet but I havent had any hard starts so far. I do get the ROMP ROMP every now an then in the early morning but it goes away after a second or so.

 

[Sycostang67]

Welcome, good looking truck.