Tire size for 12 inch lift on 1985 suburban?

[Grit dog]

Looks like a 6” lift on the burb in question.
Owner is full of ____.

 

[Grit dog]

One surefire way to tell if its on stock rear springs with blocks.
Measure the blocks, measure the rake, use those 2 numbers to get real close to what the front springs are.

 

[shiftpro]

I believe Bushwacker is the only maker of the large cutout flares for our trucks, so they are probably the same.

They should never have called them Bushwacker, because one whack from branch or sapling and they become bush whacked ...= broken.

 

[shiftpro]

Just a note on front lift springs over 4". They are over sprung, anf for a reason. If those high arch springs flexed anymore than few inches a big bump would cause the arch to flatten and the rear eye would harshly contact the frame behind the swinging shackle. You have never experienced BOTTOMING OUT until you feel that leaf spring smoke the frame.
Stiff spring that don't flex are ok for mud... until you hit a pit with speed and find a log or hole. You see these trucks bounce their front wheels right out of the mud hole. I guess that's ok for cleaning tires lol.

 

[Grit dog]

@bucket, I’m confused too. Or think I am.
Is burbzilla “not” the OPs truck and the black one is? Think that’s what I got out of this recent post.
At this point, OPs priorities or wants seem to be in conflict with his wallet and real world conditions.
Short answer, 40s won’t destroy axles (at least quickly) if it’s just a show truck. No bumper cars, lol, no hooking up a 40 mph burnout on a log or dry pavement.
But if you want to use the truck, and actually put any real torque on those 40s or whatever, stock half ton axles will be in the scrap heap fairly quick.

 

[bucket]

Short answer, 40s won’t destroy axles (at least quickly) if it’s just a show truck. No bumper cars, lol, no hooking up a 40 mph burnout on a log or dry pavement.
But if you want to use the truck, and actually put any real torque on those 40s or whatever, stock half ton axles will be in the scrap heap fairly quick.

That's very well said.

 

[short]

Thanks for the vbb. I didn't take any offense to your comment either. One thing I should have mentioned is I also have a 2 wheel drive 1990 2500 suburban. Would it be a good idea if I were to switch the rear axle with the 1985? I'm pretty sure it's a 14 bolt. Another thing I should have mentioned earlier is that I don't know much(obviously) about working on these vehicles, while my pops knows a little, he worked at a tire shop when he was a kid and also lifted and lowered vehicles. I more than likely will be going to a shop to get some of the work done that my father is unfamiliar with. I'm just trying to gather as much information as possible to make sure I don't get ripped off

 

[short]

Sorry bucket. I didn't realize I didn't specify the look. I'm going after the look with out flares/ with 40s. As for the budget, I want it to be a functional vehicle, but I've seen the price on some of those brand new axles, and they're worth more than what I paid for my truck. I'm also going to have to go to a shop for some of the work to get done, so I have to keep that in mind. In the end if I have to get completely new parts for the truck, I will, although I'd prefer the least pricey option. One random question I wanted to know was if there are any heavy duty 6 lug axles? I noticed in the photos the axles were 6 lug.

 

[short]

@bucket, I’m confused too. Or think I am.
Is burbzilla “not” the OPs truck and the black one is? Think that’s what I got out of this recent post.
At this point, OPs priorities or wants seem to be in conflict with his wallet and real world conditions.
Short answer, 40s won’t destroy axles (at least quickly) if it’s just a show truck. No bumper cars, lol, no hooking up a 40 mph burnout on a log or dry pavement.
But if you want to use the truck, and actually put any real torque on those 40s or whatever, stock half ton axles will be in the scrap heap fairly quick.

Sorry I should have given more detail. Neither of the trucks are mine. The look I am going after is the look of the brown truck with out the flares. I saw some photos online of the truck, and I messaged the owner asking about the details. He told me the truck had a 12 inch lift and 40in tires. I didn't believe that to be accurate and now here I am

 

[SquareRoot]

*Moderator's note: this thread was merged with another, some posts may seem a little repetitive*

I wanted to know what's the biggest tire size that I can get while having 1/2 ton axles? I wanted to eventually get a 12 inch lift on my suburban and I was hoping to get a tire size between 40-44. I'm not sure if the axles would be able to handle tires that big, so if that's too big and I have to down size, what would be the biggest size I can get? Also if it makes any difference, I don't plan on taking the truck off road at all, I just like the look. Any help is appreciated

Lol. Next

 

[bucket]

Those axles under the brown Burb are 1/2 ton, 10 bolt axles. Without getting into cutting and welding, there's no 6-lug axles to use that are stronger. There were later generation trucks that had a stronger 6-lug rear axle that can be swapped in with modifications, but that doesn't take care of the brakes. If you do swap in 3/4 or 1 ton axles, they will be used. Look for a set with the highest (numerically) gearset you can find. As for what is stronger, swaps directly in, etc, is a whole nuther subject and it's been covered here a time or two if you want to do some reading.

If you aren't willing to cut the fenders, you are going to need a much higher lift than that brown Burb. Which then of course, there's a lot more to it if you want a truck that you can reliability drive around in. Particularly driveshaft angles and steering.

 

[short]

More photos I should've added in earlier

 

[short]

Last one

 

[Raider L]

@Catbox,

What is the practical purpose of jacking the truck up that high? If you hit a bump you're liable to fall over. Also, I would imagine it's not very practical in the woods either. I have a lot of off roading mags from the '90's and there are a lot of articles about all these bad a** trails around the country with mud, big rocks, trees, and all kinds of other terrain and none of those guys had trucks set up that high. A lot had big tires, which I think are good for big rocks, but not standing up that high.

 

[short]

Thank you again bucket. I wished I would've done more research on all this before I bought my truck. I thought it was as simple as buying the tires and lift kit and that's it. I do plan on getting the fenders cut when the time comes. Can you give me a rundown of what your vehicle is on? Thanks again