Lift question for 95 4x4

[poomero]

Hey everyone. I am build a 95 4x4 with a 4.0 in it for my wife to drive around and for light wheeling. I would like to do a 3-4 inch lift and 31’s or 33’s if I can make them fit.
I am looking for something that will have a comfortable soft ride on the road and will be semi capable off-road. This truck will be used to back and forth to a ranch where she rides horses and to explore mt roads, nothing crazy when she is in it.
Any suggestions on what lift would be good for this build?

 

[SenorNoob]

Softest AFAIK is the Skyjacker.

 

[RonD]

There are two kinds of lifts

Body lift, its the least expensive, 3" is about the limit, after that you can run into wire length issues at some locations for wires that run between body and frame
Also the bumpers are attached to the frame, so there will be a gap between body and bumpers
The body is bolted to the frame with rubber vibration isolators/dampers between body and frame, you remove these dampers and install thicker ones with longer bolts
Since the engine, trans/transfer case and driveshafts are all on the frame nothing changes.

If you have 28" or 29" tires now then 32" should be fine and that would give you 1" to 1.5" more ground clearance off road
33" might require fender trimming, but this is a fender wheel opening size issue you can run into with any lift
But outside of the heavier tires the ride would be the same as it is now as there were no suspension changes


Suspension lifts are more expensive and basically its just the front suspension you are lifting, the rear axle is solid so you still just get the extra ground clearance the larger diameter tires provide
But the front axle gets more ground clearance and more travel in most cases, for the front and rear, which would be needed for more aggressive off road driving, which doesn't sound like what you need
With suspension lifts the driveshaft angles change, and the front axle shafts angles also change, usually not an issue with 3" lift
And no bumper gap
Ride would need to be dialed in with correct springs and then shocks



Ride is based on the springs, coil or leaf
If you remove one end of the two shocks on an axle and then bounce on the bumper, that will be your ride
If its stiff then stiff ride, if its soft then soft ride
Spring ratings are based on vehicles weight on that axle, weight of vehicle should be enough to hold the spring compressed a bit but when you add more weight, i.e. push down on the bumper, you can compress the spring more and easily
Over sprung will feel stiff, to high of a spring rating

The rear leaf springs on pickups are often over sprung so they can get a 1,000lbs(1/2 ton) carrying capacity rating, but when driving with bed empty it will feel stiff
If you are not constantly carrying heavy loads the better setup is lower rated leaf springs with an overload leaf added
The lower rated springs make the ride better when bed is empty or has under 400lbs
When a heavier load is added the springs compress and touch the overload leaf which carries the extra weight
Just more expensive, so truck makers don't do it that way, lol

Shocks are there to prevent springs from being "springs", lol, springs tend to keep bouncing after hitting a bump
Shocks dampen the rebound effect of springs
The wrong shocks can prevent springs from doing what they are there for, to absorb bumps, the shock takes over and prevents spring from compressing
Thats why you need to take the shocks out of the picture to test the springs

Off road vehicles with proper springs and shocks are easy to bounce, even with shocks in place
Because the whole point of the suspension is to keep all 4 wheels on the ground
When you hit a bump the wheel should go up over the bump then right back down onto the ground
If the suspension is too stiff then when the wheel goes up it pushes the weight of the body and frame up, which holds the wheel up off the ground
When wheels are not in contact with the ground, you can't steer, brake, or accelerate, lol, so not what you want on the road or off the road

 

[4x4junkie]

Unfortunately it isn't quite that simple...

While true that too-stiff springs will make for a stiff ride, the shocks are just as much (if not more so) a factor in ride quality as the springs. Both need to be matched to the vehicle's weight. If the shock is too stiff, the ride still can be very jarring, since the shock doesn't allow the suspension to move quickly enough for the terrain. If the shock is too soft, then the truck tends to bounce and slam down over bumps and dips because the shocks are not damping the suspension's motions as much as needed. You want something that lies in between those two extremes.
There are a multitude of other factors that also affect ride, such as shock valving and damping progression (the shock's firmness at different shaft speeds, both during compression and during rebound), however this gets into the more-technical end of things.

The best way to do it (for someone not fully familiar with shock tuning principles) is to simply get something that is made specific for the vehicle application, and is of good quality. Skyjacker's M95-series monotube gas shocks should provide a nice firm well-controlled ride that is not harsh over bumps. Bilstein and KYB are a couple other decent shock brands. Non-gas-charged shocks tend to have the crappiest ride, so certainly avoid any shock that doesn't say it's nitrogen-charged.


FWIW,
31x10.50R15 tires will fit a '95 4x4 stock (and is very close equivalent to the 265/75R15 tires that were offered by Ford on some trucks). No lift is needed to clear those. 33x10.50s will also fit and shouldn't rub under all but extreme circumstances. 33x12.50s will require ~4" lift.
For the use case you mention, I would suggest a 2" lift (leveling coils or coil spring spacers/washers to go underneath the lower front spring seats + rear extended shackles), M95 shocks, and 31x10.50R15 all-terrain tires. This should be able to handle just about any forest service road or desert mining trail that isn't specifically dedicated for hard-core offroaders, while still having good manners on the street.