Which makes more sense?

[The Lone Ranger]

Alright, to start things off, I know I have asked lots and lots of questions so I would really like to say thank you!

I want to lift my truck pretty bad but I have a tight budget so Ive looked at a couple ways of doing this.

#1- 4" tuff country lift kit. The cheaper one without the extended radius arms, I would really like to get the performance kit but just cant afford the extra $400 while I am in highschool.

#2- Purchase the 2" skyjacker lift with coils and add-a-leafs (will I need new shocks?) and then put a 3" PA body lift on top of it. Getting nearly 4-5" of lift.

Which do you think would make more sense to do?? I am not even close to a hardcore wheeler but enjoy taking my Ranger up and down some trails. I am really looking for added clearance for larger tires while achevieng better off-road abilities. Possibly later on I could buy the extended radius arms if I purchased the Tuff Country kit...?

Anyway, I really appreciate all of the input and thank you very very much!

Patrick

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

Well, when you're talking about doing a 4-5" lift and bigger tires, then you have to start thinking about if you have enough gear in the axles. IMHO, 3.56 is only good to a 30" tire, 3.73 is only good to a 31" max, and 4.10 is good to a 33" tire. Granted you can go bigger, but you start to lose performance and it becomes a bit of a dog. With 4-5" of lift, you're gonna want 33" tires....

IMHO, on a tight budget, I'd do a cheap suspension lift and stuff some 31's on it and be happy for now. F-150 spring perches (see tech pages) will give you about 2" of lift in the front. Belltech 6400 chevy drop shackles for the rear will give you around 2" too. Get some nice 31's that have good bite an be happy. If you still feel a need to spend more money, get a lunchbox locker for the rear.

I say all that because I keep looking at my F-150 and I keep thinking about lifting it. But then again it's a work truck, so I don't want to lift it too high. And I don't want to spend a fortune on tires either. So I'm probably just going to settle for leveling coils in the front and stick 31's and a locker on it. (I'm still liable to have a slight rake to the front because I'm beefing up the rear suspension, but I'd be happy with that).

I did cobble together a 5" suspension lift on a shoestring budget for my choptop and then put a 2" body lift on it. Now 33" tires look small and I keep looking at tire prices (35 or 36") and thinking that 4.56 gears might be the ticket....

 

[rangerdude91]

hey there lone ranger again. i was a junior when i did my lift. im a senior now. i just got rid of my 1995 with the 4in RC lift. got myself an 2005 FX4. like i said if your not worried bout gas mileage like i wasnt run the 33's. i ran 35's with 3.23 gears and i swear it got better gas mileage than my 05 with 4.10 and like 30's. i already crancked my t bars and im doing a 3in BL and 33's possible 35's.

it all depends how rough you are when you wheel. my truck was so rusty it broke 3 times. skyjacker is good but its also the name you pay for. i loved my RC lift and it i get another 1993-1997 i would deffinatly get it again and it held up very nice and went in without any trouble. i cant help you with the tuff country lift dont know much bout them.
let me know if you got anymore questions about RC

Nathan

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

hey there lone ranger again. i was a junior when i did my lift. im a senior now. i just got rid of my 1995 with the 4in RC lift. got myself an 2005 FX4. like i said if your not worried bout gas mileage like i wasnt run the 33's. i ran 35's with 3.23 gears and i swear it got better gas mileage than my 05 with 4.10 and like 30's. i already crancked my t bars and im doing a 3in BL and 33's possible 35's.

it all depends how rough you are when you wheel. my truck was so rusty it broke 3 times. skyjacker is good but its also the name you pay for. i loved my RC lift and it i get another 1993-1997 i would deffinatly get it again and it held up very nice and went in without any trouble. i cant help you with the tuff country lift dont know much bout them.
let me know if you got anymore questions about RC

Nathan

If you're going by the odometer reading for calculating fuel mileage and not correcting the speedo or taking that into your calculations when you change tire sizes, you're fuel economy numbers woln't be accurate. Just FYI.

Speedo in my choptop was corrected fairly close and I can get 17 mpg out of it for mixed highway and local on 33's with 4.10s. But my highway speed is a max of 60, anything over that and it starts getting some vibrations that get worse the longer you keep it at that speed. (of course, I'm running old bias ply GroundHawg knock-offs and no balancing, might have something to do with it).

 

[RDR]

just make your own body lift

 

[The Lone Ranger]

thanks!

Any other suggestions?