Rough Country 2-3" vs 4"

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SCORCH

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I'm looking for a little bit of a lift for my truck so that i can comfortably fit 33's but i also have a brush guard so i've kind of ruled out the body lift. I'm just looking for something cheap so I've been debating between the {Rough Country 2-3" suspension kit that consists of Upper control arms, differential drop bracket, torsion bar adjuster keys, brake lines, shock relocation brackets, and hardware and Option of rear lift blocks or rear add-a-leafs.
Picture shown with rear add-a-leafs and (4) Hydro 8000 shocks} ($550)

or the {4" suspension kit from rough country} ($970)

but then again I'm not far off from the 6" (but that might look wierd with 33s)

Sounds like the 2-3" is cheaper and easier so i was leaning towards that but me friend has a similar set-up and hates it, he says its really rough. He has a 3" body lift with add-a-leafs and cranked front end. Would the new shocks and NOT cranking my front end make it ride similar to stock or will i have the same problem?
thanks a lot
 

6chevy9

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if you dont crank the keys it will ride softer than your friends. the 2-3 inch kit sounds like a pretty good way to pick up your truck a little bit and keep it riding nice. i would run rear add a leafs. esp if your towing. it will be a little stiffer in the rear but depending on what you do with your truck it may be to your advantage.
 

Red97

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Why no bodylift? it would be cheaper and will ride the same as it does now
 

6chevy9

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this is true ^ im sure you can still use that brush guard youll just need to be creative.
 

Greg

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I am still debating the lift stuff myself. I am leaning towards the 2-3" lift myself. By the time you get rear bumper brackets and gap guards etc you are at about 500 bucks anyways.

body lift $555 - http://www.summitracing.com/parts/PRA-18023/

You can get the PA 3" BL kit for ~$270 with rear bumper bracket. And you can make your own gap guards.
 

Red97

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The 2-3" lift is not worth it, it includes new uppedr control arms that allow the cv to run beyond their limits and possibly break.they include shock extenders for the front? why not just longer shocks? also the front is 2-3' the rear is only an add a leaf wich will only be about an inch when it is done so you will need a block if you want the rear to match. that is extra$ then the instructions reccomend new upper balljoints. and an alignment. so all said and done you are looking at closer to $700-800 when it is done and it will ride like a lumber wagon and wear parts like crazy.IMO

the body lift is the way to go if you only want 2-3" of lift. if you have a rear hitch you dont want rear bumper relocators. just use a filler piece at the back of the box.

expect to spend an extra $200 or so on the 4-6" lift, for misc parts. the 4-6" are the same just the 6" need to be cranked and has longer break lines

the 4" will look good with 33's if you dont crank it it will ride ok just like any suspension kit it will wear front end compontnts a lot quicker than stock

it just depends on what you want
 

jcro61

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The 2-3" lift is not worth it, it includes new uppedr control arms that allow the cv to run beyond their limits and possibly break.

It comes with diff drop bracket the upper control arms put the upper ball joint back to a normal angle. the lower balljoint however will be at a sharper angle and maybe the tie rod.
 

Red97

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People have also had problems with the upper arms bending from slamming into the factory stops. because it drops the diff but keeps the arms in the factory location. i just dont see it being very cost effictive
 

Mudd Duk

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The new uca's actually help out the ball joint angles, ask me how I know. Cranking the keys is what puts alot of stress on the front end components. The uca's are there to correct the issue that the keys produce. They may be in the stock location, but are angled differently and have different pockets for mounting the balljoints to relieve the bad angles. After cranking even stock keys more than an inch, an alignment should always be performed on the truck. When I put the uca's on my truck, I went ahead and replaced all ball joints, tie rods, tie rod ends, idler arm, pitman arm etc just to be safe. As for the aal, they are actually good for 2 inches, not 1. The difference between the RCX 4" and 6" is only an aal for the rear. They have the same kit for the front, the 6 just requires you to crank to achieve that extra 2". As for rear bumper brackets, just flip the factory ones, or make your own out of the stock ones. I've been wheeling on my new uca's, Ford keys, and 6+3 on 35's for awhile and there has been no bending. If they are contacting the bump stops constantly, probably cranked a little to high and hitting **** pretty hard.

CV's aren't angled too bad
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balljoint looking down
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balljoint looking in
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The front is cranked to sit higher than the rear
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The 2-3" kit isn't that bad of a kit, if thats all you want for a lift. As long as you don't crank the hell out of it, the ride doesn't suffer too bad, and like I stated earlier, I've been wheeling mine probably close to 2 years just like this an haven't had to get an alignment or replace balljoints, CV's, tie rods etc.
 
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