Hello! New to the forum and I think I grasp the lifting concept...

First off, Hello! I've been lurking for quite some time reading as many tech articles and other posts before I make a fool of myself. Secondly, I should be purchasing a 93 3.0L 2WD Ranger from my climbing buddy next week. It's got 174,000 and she wants $1000 for it. Body is in fantastic shape and it seems to be in great running condition.

My goal would be to put 31-33s on it using 15in rims and give it a functional and nice looking lift of anywhere from 3-5inches.

Anyways, after using the search function, it is my understanding that:

I can lift the rear with Explorer leafs and a 4x4 block for about 4" of lift (depending on the sag of the springs). If I wanted to add another 1" I could extend the rear shackles by 2" via Belltech 6400 or extending the stock shackle.

As for the front setup, since it's TIB (correct?), I could add a 2" spacer underneath the coil springs on each side and also add in taller coils for more lift.

Assuming that my information is correct:

1. On the rear, would using an extended shackle be a smoother ride than using an add-a-leaf?
2. For the front, if I added a taller coil and a spacer, would I need a frame drop down bracket for each of the I-Beams to correct the camber?
3. For the front, I assume I will I need taller shocks?
------If Yes for Question 3, Should I do the F250 shock tower swap for standard-style shocks or should I just find taller stud shocks?


Sorry for the assault of questions!

honestly, I did an add a leaf on my b2, and it rides better IMO... but that's my OPINION. technically it is stiffer than stock now... but I like it.

anything over 2" of lift up front and you'll need the drop brackets to correct your geometry.

shocks, maybe... maybe not... idk for sure. after lifting it, cycle your syspension up and down w/ a jack and see what it looks like. if your shocks bottom extend all way out and limit your droop, yes, you need longer shocks.
if i was only doing 2" of lift and not looking for a lot of travel, i'd just get longer shocks and not do the f250 towers... but that's up to you. seems like extra work w/ minimal payoff in my eyes for only 2" of lift.

1 yes
2 depends on the truck, but most likely because you are going with more than 2 inches of lift
3 yes, but you could probably just get a set of 4wd shocks or something a little longer than stock

edit: ninja'd

Wow! Fast reply!

Understood with the drop downs. Cool.

How tall of a coil could I throw in there while still using stock radius arms?

the stock radius arms ain't a problem as long as you have the drop brackets! lol..
I don't know the answer to that... But have you looked into lift kits? Rough Country has one for.... well, its more than I thought lol. its $440
http://roughcountry.com/suspension/2wd-ford/ranger_83-97_4.html

they offer a 1.5" leveling coils. some people use f150 coils but idk what kind of lift that gives you. Personally I'd be looking for a stock xj coil and spacer or some kind of 2" xj lift coil, they are softer and ride better! But some say they are to soft.

Looks like you've taken the time to research and educate yourself so nice work on that. You pretty much got it figured out it sounds like. Anything over 2" lift in front requires drop brackets. It might be easiest to buy a 4" lift kit like has been mentioned if you're looking for that much lift. Rough Country is lowest price I think. From what I've read skyjacker makes really nice kits for our trucks that you can get rear blocks or new leaf springs. Its pricier though. Also don't overlook the gears for the new tires.

Sent from my LS670 using Tapatalk 2

Oh boy... my brother is a 1k+ poster over on Pirate4x4 and when I let him know about my plans, he mentioned he has some toys AND plans I should consider. Apparently we have an 8.8 Explorer rearend AND 63" Chevy leafs ALREADY at my parents place that he snagged for a project years ago that have been lying around collecting dust.

I'll be doing a bit more research on this of course, but he may have me convinced on doing either the 8.8/D35 SAS swap or the Ford 9/D44 full-size SAS. If I recall I shouldn't do 8.8/D44 because D44 solid is full-size width and 8.8 is not.

If I do end up going for the SAS I still want to have a little fun while collecting parts for it so I may just hop to this setup:

63" Chevy leaf springs in the rear and probably just the 2" spacer and/or F150 springs in the front. I might throw in the 4x4 blocks to get it up that little extra but unless I can find drop brackets cheaply on eBay/online I might settle for the rake look the swap will probably give me.

I do dig Woods-Rider's flex here: http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13477&page=3

Oh, and is this list of lift options I made correct?


Lift Heights
Rear:
2" longer Belltech 6400 shackles = 1"
63/64" Chevy Leaf Springs = 2-3" and lots of flex (depending on sagginess)
4x4 Ranger Lift blocks = 2"
Explorer leaf springs = 1-2" (depending on sagginess)

Front:
F150 Coil Springs: 1-2" (depending on if your truck is Super/Single or 4cyl/6cyl)
F150 Coil Spring spacers: 1"
Aftermarket Spacers: Usually 2"

My only complaint are dang drop brackets. I can do everything so cheaply but anywhere from TRS to Rough Country are rather expensive. I'd like to fab up some brackets, they really don't look so difficult, but I'm gonna have to see if anyone else has done it. Perhaps I can find some dimensions.

Anyways, I just thought I'd throw this info out because I'd certainly love to do the swap and y'all seem pretty cool, might as well get to know y'all better and vice versa.