Lift kit Q & A for those with lift kits and for those who want lift kits

[Don5]

Too late for me to use. I already sprung for the high dollar stainless lines. Yeah I would have bought the rubber ones in a heartbeat.

[Jason S]

I had posted about this back in 2001, but this seems a good spot to repost...

'73 GMC K2500. It has a Rancho 4" lift and had Rancho shocks (RS4000?, maybe) for over 14 years.

I was going to replace my old shocks with Rancho, until the parts store told me $50 each. Plus, Rancho was all they had listed for that truck with a 4" lift. I drive this truck almost daily on the road and some off road. But, I personally didn't think I needed the Rancho's, especially for $200 plus tax

SO, I did some research and measuring and calling buddies and wound up spending a total of $100 for all four shocks with a lifetime warranty (save the receipt)...

I found that for the rear end, rear shocks for a 2001 Dodge 1 ton dually (3500), V10 4x4 match almost perfectly.  Almost; the full extension is slightly less, but my truck would put stress on the parking brake cables with the rear end dropped (so a little less extension is good for me). Compression was the same as the Rancho's Also, I had to pull the steel sleeves out of the rubber bushing- that was it. These were Monroe at $25 each.

For the front, I found that 1993 Dodge 3/4 ton (Ram 250) 360 V8 4x4 front shocks were exactly the same in respect to length both in compression and extension. I had to make a new bushing out of steel pipe (some slight reaming with a 1/2" drill bit) and trim the sides of the rubber bushing on the bottom. About an hour extra to modify the shock. The fronts are Gabriel at $25 each.

I wound up getting two different brands because one parts store stocked the rears and one stocked the fronts and I didn't want to wait for an order. Overall, it's been 4 years and I've been very pleased with the setup and have yet to find any deficiencies with my adaptation.

Also, back when I first got the truck in the late 90's, I did the C-series front hose swap. I can't find the receipt to tell what brand, but the hoses I purchased measure out at 25 1/2".  I've found that lengths of pre-made hoses will vary from catalog lengths and also depending on different manufacturers and even between different batches. This seems especially true with factory style replacement A/C hoses.  Whenever I have to do this again, I'll be comparing brake hoses from several parts stores and brands to try to get the maximum length.

[Irish_Alley]

This post is getting better and better. Keep up the work. I'll update the first post with the new info once I get to a pc with the interweb. Jason will those shocks work with a 6" lift?

[Jason S]

Jason will those shocks work with a 6" lift?

I can't give a definite answer -  but compression shouldn't be an issue.  Extension length with axle drop likely would be limited...  It would definitely be worth looking into.

[Irish_Alley]

have any more people that want to add something?

[Greybeard]

Just one thought about extension nobody mentioned....never let the shock be the limiter for axle droop. If the shock is slightly short buy a set of limiter straps of make something that will stop the axle from using the shock, or the mounts will be needing replacement after a few rebounds.

[Captain Swampy]

When we were building Brooke's truck Which has a 4 inch lift, the shocks on it were to short. They would've only had an inch or 2 of extension, but lots of room for compression. Everyone listed about the same length shock for a 4" lift. I wanted a longer shock, so it would be equal in compression and rebound travel. That apparently blew everyones mind! Anywhoo....I (finally) found a guy with a brain, and ended up with a set of Skyjackers that fit nicely. No I don't remember the part #'s. But if I remember to ask my wife, there's a good chance she'll have the receipt.

Short version= In my opinion the shocks they have matched to 4" lifts are to short. At least on Brooke's truck anyway. Do your own measuring before installing them.

[Irish_Alley]

the shocks should be one set for 0-2 another for 2.5-4 and so on.

[firefighter]

I rebuilt this truck back in 2011/2012 and posted the progress here on the forum.

1: 4"  Rough Country Lift Kit. It was installed and completed in early 2012. The truck is a 1976 K20 series with a 468ci BB motor. I did new front springs and 4" blocks in the back. I did have to install longer brake lines and the stabilizer bar extensions. I also installed a drop steering box arm.

2: Top of axle to bottom of frame:
Front: 13.25"
Rear: 15.5"

3:Tires are Fierce Attitude LT315 / 75R 16
They measure 34" tall and 10.5" wide at the tread.
As you turn, the outside of the tread could just catch the rear of the front fender so I trimmed them slightly.
If the offset of the rim was set in just a bit, I think they would have fit without modification.

4: From bottom of bumper to the ground:
Front: 27.5"
Rear: 28"

[bd]

Hey firefighter!  Nice to hear from you.

[Irish_Alley]

just want to give this a little bump for the new guys and see if they have anything to add

[roundhouse]

We used brake hoses from a 1 ton Chevy with our 4" lift
Not sure of the year , 99 I think
But let me see if the part number is around here somewhere


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Greybeard]

One thought, just about any oversized hydraulic brake hose will work with any system, it is only a matter of finding the appropriate adapters/bushings to hook it inline. The inside diameter of a hydraulic hose is not as important as it's strength. Hydraulic fluid is not compressible, so if one ounce of fluid goes in, only one ounce will come out, the same goes for ultimate pressure, if one PSI of pressure is required to move that one ounce into the line the fluid will transfer that one PSI of pressure to the other end. The idea here is that the hose is simply another holding cell for the fluid. The bigger size only holds more fluid, nothing else. As long as the caliper and the piston(s) remain equal, everything in between remains equal also. Nevertheless, it is always a good idea to keep it as close as possible to the designed size. This only applies to an oversized brake line, going smaller in ID is never a good idea. YMMV

In my state of Iowa there are no vehicle inspections required so we can use just about anything that fits and works. I (personally) would not hesitate using industrial 6,000psi burst strength custom made hoses. They are a bit pricey but if they can handle the abuse they get in construction machinery they can certainly handle the abuse they would get under a truck.

I got one stuck once around a log when I was clearing and grubbing here at home with the JCB 530BHL teleboom. The log was a tree trunk about eight inches in diameter, the hose actually broke the log before it broke itself. It was about a 3/8" ID hose (I say about because it was actually a metric hose), 6,000psi high pressure line to the outriggers on the machine. I replace it with a 3/8" hose with JIT fittings and it was expensive! near $70 for a two foot hose. I trusted those hoses with my life and everyone's life that the machine worked around, so I guess I would I would trust it in any other application as well. BTW- our JCB was an old one, the boom went out 27 feet, it was rated at 8,000lbs lifting capacity at 12 feet with outriggers down (some folks call them stabilizers). If the bucket or pallet weighed too much the machine would tip forward and all of it's 28,000lbs and the payload would be perched on the two outriggers only. I have had many occasions to do that plus level the machine side to side while it was in that stance. The hoses where up to that.

[DanMcG]

1.  85 k10 with a 4" Rough Country all spring lift. I haven't had it on the road yet but it sets way to high now. no bed sides or tailgate on the truck.
Top of axle tube to frame;
front 14"
rear 18"

[Irish_Alley]

yeah she'll settle down over time not to mention lack of weight