Different lift kit questions?

[brooksman9]

Decided this Rough Country 4" lift is a little too much for my taste. Thinking of going to a Tuff Country 2" or 3" kit. Truck won't see a lot of off road (it's for the wife). Wondering if I can still use any of the already installed parts and are any of them replacement to begin with. Steering arm? Pitman arm? Shocks? Pics below. Also comment if you see any issues. Thanks

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[nvrenuf]

That pitman arm (on the gear box) is stock.

That steering arm (on the axle) is for 4” so it’ll likely be too tall for anything less.

A 2” drop pitman arm and a stock steering arm would work.

The stocks are ok for 3” and possibly 2”, it just depends on if the new springs are true to advertised height (Rough Country can also be tall).

Were the driveshafts lengthened with the RC lift? 4” is a borderline height for lengthening mods so check that.

 

[brooksman9]

So it looks like anything 3" and below doesn't come with a steering arm. Guessing I would have to come up with a stock replacement?

 

[nvrenuf]

So it looks like anything 3" and below doesn't come with a steering arm. Guessing I would have to come up with a stock replacement?

Correct. If you go with 3" I'd consider a drop pitman arm or a 2" drop drag link (they make 2" or 4"), you really only want to have about 1" or so of downward rake to the drag link. If you go with 2" lift then I'd run all stock steering pieces.

 

[brooksman9]

Thanks. Guess I'll start looking for a steering arm since this kit was on the truck when I bought it.

 

[Bextreme04]

Thanks. Guess I'll start looking for a steering arm since this kit was on the truck when I bought it.

That rough country 4" front spring looks like it sits WAY higher than my Tuff Country 4" springs do. My 4" steering arm and 4" springs make the drag link sit completely horizontal. I have zero bump steer and it rides very nice.

I would think your best time, money, and result would be to swap those rough country springs out for a set of 4" Tuff country EZ ride springs.

 

[brooksman9]

Looks like I don't have enough posts yet to add a "wanted" post. Anyone know where to find a stock height steering arm? They seem to be made of unobtanium!

 

[brooksman9]

Is it common for the front sway bar to be missing after installing a lift kit?

 

[bucket]

Is it common for the front sway bar to be missing after installing a lift kit?

Depends on who you ask. A lot of people insist on retaining a sway bay because they feel it is a safety feature. But the fact of the matter is with most lift springs that it's not needed and you'll never notice it's absence. Especially with springs like you have.

 

[Redfish]

I usually agree with @nvrenuf but I am going to have to question going back all stock on that steering arm. I honestly cannot tell how much difference there is in height there but is it truly 4 inches different from stock? He may be right but it is difficult for me to tell by the pics. And he is a very solid source of information. It looks like you have more than one inch of rear drop on that drag link now.

My front end:

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A 4 inch lift without some sort of offset bracket will put the sway bar in a bind. What they should have done was installed the taller brackets that also give you a disconnect option. Any lift over 2 to 2.5 inches requires something be done with the sway bar. Some folks do pull it off...your choice, not mine.

My Truck has a 2.5 inch Skyjacker SoftRide front spring set. It was closer to 3 & 1/8th of lift. I took it apart and removed the bottom leaf on each side. That put me closer to a 2 inch lift and made it ride a little bit softer.

My Advice (which is worth exactly what you are paying for it!) would be to contact Skyjacker because their springs ride a little bit better than Rough Country. Go with their 2.5 inch lift so you are somewhere between what you have now and what I have on The '87. Check with Rough Country, those front shocks may be perfect for that lift height. Remember you have to decide if you want new springs or different lift blocks in the rear, that also affects price and ride quality.

I have my Truck set up so that Mrs. Redfish can easily get in and out of it. It's about where we lifted trucks that we used in the '70s and '80s. Yes, there were some really high lifted trucks but most of us had them just tall enough to clear whatever tire we wanted to run.

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[Strick]

There goes that Redfish showing off his truck again! I nearly salivate each time I see it. I had the opportunity to buy an 86 Tan/White LB like that when I was a youngin’ around 1990 or so. I missed out and now I’m punished each time he posts his truck. So cruel…

HS

 

[Camar068]

It looks like you have more than one inch of rear drop on that drag link now.

first thing I noticed. Grandkids love 'em

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[brooksman9]

That drag link pic may be misleading with the truck parked on a slope. Bextreme04 has sent me a stock steering arm (most appreciated) so I should be able to go down some with that. Leaning towards the 2” Tuff Country for hopefully ride quality and height. Did a little more research on the sway bar. Understand why it is missing now. Thanks

 

[Redfish]

first thing I noticed. Grandkids love 'em

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Close but no... This pic hits a little closer to the mark.

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@brooksman9 it sounds like you are on the right track. When we start picking which brands we get into some gray areas between facts and opinions. I researched this topic for about a year. Sorting through the opinions and the facts got a little frustrating. Then we have the "Well if you did not buy the brand I used you bought the wrong brand."

As I interpreted the data this was my OPINION.

Rough Country rides rough. They have good prices.

Tuff Country rides better but recently had some quality issues and some mismatched shipping issues, those are reported on this forum in a couple different threads.

ORD and Deever make/sell the best riding stuff. They are also the most expensive and ORD has some quality control issues that are also reported on this forum.

Skyjacker rides better than Rough Country, maybe, possibly, probably about as good as the Tuff Country. They are based out of West Monroe, Louisiana so if things went sideways I could always drive up there and slam their springs on the counter and yell at somebody.


I am going to post a pic of the 1977 4WD GMC I grew up driving. Pop lifted this truck back in 1977 or '78 with some help from our neighbor. All I ever understood was that they added one leaf from an unknown junk yard source and "whooped the hell out of the original springs with a sledghammer". I don't know where the rear blocks came from. That makeshift lift kit lasted longer than the truck. When Old Red finally got shut down in the early '90s he had rolled his odometer over twice and was reading about 85K. He had rusted through to the point that we had installed a wooden flat bed. There were pieces of sheet metal on both floor pans because the floor had rusted through. The cab was swaying dangerously on the frame, the 350 had burnt valves, had almost no power and was getting about 7 mpg. But the height and the stance was about the same as when we had started back in the late '70s.

My point? Get whatever lift kit you like, install it properly and you will not have to worry anymore. As long as YOU are happy, you will have made The Right Decision. And post pics!

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[calredneck]

The softer the better for mama.