cheap lift

[FasterTheBetter]

Hey y'all.
Looking for the cheapest lift I can find. Not into spending $1,200+ for a lift kit from summit. Would like to build my own.

Want all spring, no blocks, so found these: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/E...ry=Year|1998|Make|GMC|Model|K1500&prefilter=1

And for the front, Skyjacker's 2.5" upper a-arm lift
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SJA-C2567/

With new T-Bars:
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/GRF-3814/

Should give me 5" of lift in the back and ~4.5 inches in the front. Enough for the 35's I've got planned. Anyone know of using a setup like this? I don't have the cash for a expensive Cepek lift or something like that, but this would get me lifted for what looks pretty cheap. Help is appreciated.

 

[FastOrange]

Sigh.

keys doing nothing on a 88-98, your stock keys can crank just as high
and the lift is just PART of a lift, not a complete kit.

 

[Swims350]

x2, those are not new t bars, those are keys and they do nothing. if your bars are sagging they give you nothing, if they are not then the stock keys can be cranked to around 3 inches. adding those front parts get you ZERO LIFT!!!!!! the lift for that kit is done by torsion bar key cranking, the controls arms DO NOT lift they correct the terrible angle you get IF you crank your stock keys or other keys all the way and the bars ARE NOT sagging.

The diff. drop does NOT lift the front, it drops the dif. to correct the horrible cv angles you get from cranking your stock or other keys.

it's only correction for overcranking that's it.

The keys are only indexed to make you think you get more lift. What they do is allow you to crank your bars to the max and have some bolt left sticking out, THINKING you can crank more when you actually CANNOT, everything is maxxed and WILL NOT go further w/o breaking things. You do he exact same thing with the stockers ecept fully cranked you won't have bolt showing.

Don't beleive me try it. Measure it from the ground to the top of the wheel arch/lip above the tire, on a flat level surface, keep note of exactly where you measured to also. Get you a jack, and an 18mm socket, jack one side up or both sides, whichever is safe for you, until the tires are off the ground follow the bars back to the crossmember and keys, find the bolt that is sticking out the least, whichever side it may be, and yes sometimes they are uneven, no worries. Then begin to turn the bolt, counting the number of turns you tighten it. Now once you have bottomed it out, mine took 3-1/2 turns on the DS which was my shortest, your results may vary, but turn the other the same amount, now let it down, drive it a bit, notice how different the ride is or not, park it back on the level ground and remeasure the same place you did before, see how much lift you got. This amount is the EXACT same amount you'll get with new keys, nothing more, you'll just have more bolt sticking out and it won't lift anymore. Reason? if the bars are sagging they no longer hold the weight of the truck right, bottoming out the bolt with the aftermarket keys will NOt do anything, it'll settle right back down to around the exact same as stock keys cranked. if this happens BUY NEW TORSION BARS NOT KEYS!!!!!!!! They aint cheap, lmc has em. Ten crank your stock keys and watch how high you get it. Guys on this site and others have 2-3 inch blocks out back and their truck sits level with cranked stock keys.

 

[Horns]

If you want a cheap lift that you want to build a lot yourself It's time to start planning a SAS.

 

[Swims350]

agreed, or buy a body lift, they are cheap less then $200 and the only cheap lifdt worth having, which some would argue.

Some guys run 35's on stock wheels with only a crank of their stock t bars, some guys can't run 33's with a body lift and crank, the wheel backspace and sagging bars really come into play. I say body lift it and try to run 35's then crank the bars if need be. if you run aftermarket wheels unless they have about 5.5 or more inches of backspace or you get like a 7 inch wide or something it's not gonna work most likely will rub something.

 

[ndians68]

1 an sas is NOT cheap
2 i personally think body lifts are ugly, and you can only fit 33 on there not 35
3 if you look, you can buy an rcx lift some what cheap

 

[JJZ71]

I have a body lift because I couldnt/did want to spend the money on a suspension lift. I will have a 6" lift one day.

 

[dirtyhick42]

1 an sas is NOT cheap
2 i personally think body lifts are ugly, and you can only fit 33 on there not 35
3 if you look, you can buy an rcx lift some what cheap

You can fit 35s on a body lift easy.

 

[Swims350]

EXACTLY!!!!!!!!

search the site some guys have 315's which is the EXACT same as a 35 if not taller and they clear em with only a torsion bar crank, or the body lift, or in some cases both. You don't beleive me I'll find posts and show you. I know because it's what gave me hope of doing the same.

 

[dirtyhick42]

I have pictures of my old truck with 35s with and without a bodylift