73-87chevytrucks.com
73-87 Chevy _ GMC Trucks => Brakes, Frame, Steering & Suspension => Topic started by: jumpkickyergunt on July 18, 2014, 01:48:49 pm
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I'm driving down the road and I hear this massive banging noise. Check it out and the top piece cracked and broke right off. So upset as it could have really ruined someone's morning. I've never done this replacement before. Can I do it? The bolts seem pretty straight forward but I'm not sure where to start and how much leaf springs even cost. Very unhappy right now. Never seen this before.
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79 k10 btw
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Its not a hard job find a local spring shop or lift your truck !
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Sounds like the Perfect excuse for a lift kit :)
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Yep and will cost almost the same as stock springs
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You guy are right. What are your recommendations on brands? I was wanting to do 4" and try to get some 33's in there. Any k10 experts know if that's enough lift?
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some say you can fit 33's on a stock setup. it just depends on the springs and wear on them. so 4" you would fit 33s with no problem
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I like a 6" lift for 33"s, but that is just me. Cost is about the same as a 4", too.
Now repeat after me: Skyjacker. Skyjacker. Skyjacker.
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If you do go with just replacement springs instead of a lift, make sure you do at least both, do not do just the one that broke. Your truck will lean if you do only 1 spring instead of at least 2, better would be all 4.
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Sky........jackaaaaaaaa
I'm going to save up and do the lift. Skyjacker seems like the classy stuff. I like classy. De classay. That's french for classy.
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Ok guys, so I'm having a little trouble figuring out which particular kit I need. I want to do the 6" lift and skyjackers website has several options ranging from $725-$1400. If someone wouldn't mind filling me on the details of why one is worth it over the others (or for fitment purposes) then please let me know. It is much appreciated.
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What size tires are you running? With a 6" lift you will need to make sure you modify the steering, check your pinion angle, driveshaft length, stabilizers, sway bar kit, drag link or crossover, brake hoses, shocks, Front hangers, steering arm and align. When you are purchasing a "kit" they usually do not include everything you need.
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I was planning on doing 33's or 35's. That sounds like a lot of stuff and a ton of money I don't have. Well shoot. Can I get away with a 4" lift on 33's and do a lot less modification? I doubt this will be easy for me as I don't have all the necessary knowledge to make the correct decision.
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33s will fit with no lift on most trucks
They should easily fit with a 2" lift. And with a 2" you shouldn't have any driveshaft. Or steering mods
Probably need a longer rear brake hose And you will need longer jocks
But you should change all the flex hoses anyway. My K-10 just popped a flex hose and lost all braking
You should be able to
Find a stock spring for free from
Someone putting in a lift
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There is 1 important question/fact that has not been asked or answered yet.
What do you plan on using your truck for ? Skyjacker is an excellent lift, nice ride and quality for the street. Hard core 4 wheeling not so much, it is a soft lift and therefor will lean and sway too much.
So you see, you really need to do some thinking and homework before jumping in.
If you are looking for 33" tires on a budget, roundhouse is right. Do a 2" lift, 33" will fit and never hit unless you do some extreme flexing or have the wrong backspacing on the rims, and will be the least amount of money for a lift.
See, needs homework first, I bet you never thought about backspacing for rims and how that affects the tires hitting the wheel wells when flexing.
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See, this 2" lift sounds more like me. The 6", although it looks friggin beast, serves no purpose for my situation I guess. I need my truck to handle snow and small rock, but not crazy boulder crawling business. I'm from northern Colorado and if I can have something that will ride over some small rocks comfortably then I'm good. I'm only on these tight little rocky trails that I use to get to my dispersed camping sites. 2" on 33's will look good too.
You're right that I never thought about flex. My current backspacing is at -22mm and that was chosen because 0 offset would not clear the outer tie rods. It was not chosen based on anything else, but that they fit.
So skyjacker is great for street. What brands would you recommend for my situation? Mountain roads, dirt trails peppered with lots of pointy rock, and snow snow snow. I call the truck Gunther because Gunther is a guy that rams into things for no reason, breaks 3 ribs doing it, and doesn't get to the doctor for about 3 weeks because he's too busy boozin' and neglecting his stepchildren.
As roundhouse said, I've been told a bunch of times that 33's will fit fine, but then the dude at the tire is telling me I may have to shave the fenders a bit. If its that close then maybe its not safe enough. I'm in your guys's hands.
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There are so many different company's that sell's lifts and unless you have actually had them on vehicles there is no way to tell how they ride.
33" on a stock truck depends solely on the truck. I have 33" on my 74 on stock suspension. They used to rub only when I went off road and off camber, now they rub just going into a parking lot when the entrance is off kilter. So if your stock suspension has already settled and a little worn it will rub especially off road on uneven dirt trails.
These are the one's I have used in the past and have knowledge of.
Tuff Country & Ruff Country lifts are very stiff, very stiff.
Rancho lifts are a intermediate lift in that they are in the middle of being stiff and soft for say road use.
Skyjacker & Super lift are more for the comfort and easy trail riding (like you are describing), they are super soft and flexy (they are not ridged like the other 2).
The one's that I have not used that come to mind is Pro-comp and BDS, which I have heard good reviews from both of these lifts.
I personally am thinking of a 4" or 6" Skyjacker to replace my worn out 4" Rancho lift I have on the truck I am rebuilding right now. I do the same as you, mostly street but the occasional fire road to get to camping spots.
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So following everyone's advice here, I'm going with the softer skyjacker. I'm sticking with my needs and not overdoing it. There's a bunch of different options for shocks and extra parts. For shocks do I go with hydro, monotube, or nitro and there's scratch and dent versions of those and another random upgrade for each. Also there's parts that don't have pictures or descriptions. Ca50 and c124as. No idea. Should I just go as cheap as possible on the shocks and leaf upgrades and find out from them what these other random parts are for?
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From what you described that you will be doing with the truck, it does not sound like you need high tech shocks. Heck shocks from a auto parts store will probably be fine for mostly street.
Do some comparison and go from there.
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Thank you so much for the advice. Everyone has been very helpful.