For relatively cheap to build, your current truck is perfect.
It’s also dang capable stock.
There is a ton of stuff to consider when lifting. If you’re on a budget, you need to either save up to do it all at once or do it a bit at a time, but at some point it’s going to be an expense.
I lifted my Choptop a bit at a time. I did 2” lift coils in the front at first with air shocks in the back and 31” tires. Then I found a set of used 3” James Duff coils and axle pivot drops. I got a welder to fabricate some extended arms at that point but they didn’t work out real well. For the back I built leaf packs with Explorer leaves. Then I added F-150 spring perches in the front and 2” shackles in the rear for a total of about 5” of suspension. Added a 2” body lift somewhere along the line. My shocks are for who knows what. I bought what I could get that had the compressed and extended lengths I was looking for, lol. Also, when I did the D-35 front in it, I built my own extended arms that worked out a lot better (still learning some things). It sits on 35” tires on 15x8 rims, no beadlocks. I run 12-15 psi all the time on and off the road because that’s where the tread flattened to about 80% or so.
Gears are going to be a thing, possibly. With 3.73 gears, I wouldn’t try over 30” tires with a 2.9 or 31“ with a 4.0, the good news is a 4.0 is a relatively easy swap in yours. It will bolt up to the FM-146, but the FM-146 may not last long. Also, the 7.5” will get tired of big tires at some point, it will be fine with 31” tires but beyond that you’re starting to test it’s limits. An 8.8 is an easy swap for that. Now 4.10 gears the 2.9 will be ok with 31” tires and may be able to tolerate 33” tires, the 4.0 will be ok with 33” tires and tolerate 35” tires. 4.56 or 4.88 will naturally be better. I’m running 35” tires with a 4.0 through a FM-146 and BW1350 t-case and 4.10 gears. It does it, but 4.56 or 4.88 would be better. Problem is, gears for the D-35 are getting hard to find.
Oh, and 31” tires will clear with a 2” lift, which can be done with lift coils or spacers in the front and a shackle in the rear. You will probably need longer shocks but everything else should work. Won’t be ideal for suspension performance but it’s something cheap. Extended arms for the front with a 2” lift coil in the front will give you the best budget performance.
A locker in the rear will help a lot for off-road. If you have a limited slip rear you can pack an extra clutch disk in to make it work more like a locker. The budget lockers aren’t super hard to install for a novice. Not the smoothest performance usually, but effective. The better lockers are the carrier replacement ones, like Detroit or an air locker or electric locker. You have to re-set the gear pattern though with those and they’re more money.
A locker and a 2” budget lift with long arms and 31” tires would be a best bang for the buck start.
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