Alright. Here is the deal:
1. I am looking for a way to cheaply "lift" my truck 2" or 3". The word "lift" is in quotes because I don't want to use a body lift, and a suspension lift is quite costly. I have heard that rear blocks are not safe. Anyone have any suggestions? I am also trying to keep the ride quality really close to the way it is now.
2. I would like to have a the suspension lift along the way, but my dad always gives me this, it isn't good for the truck business. Any truth in this? What can I say to convince him the worthiness of a lift?
Thanks...MEEK

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1997 Black 4x4 F-150 XLT 4.6L 285/75/16 Bridgestone Dueler A/T's Eagle Alloy Wheels, K&N Airfilter, Flowmaster Exhaust, Dual tips off of one pipe. Nerf Bars, Brush guard, 2 Ralley Lights, Sony X-plod head unit, Jensen 500 watt amp, Sony X-Plod 10" Sub

sooner or later: a lift and bigger mud terrain tires
meek47@f150driver.com

 

Hmm... A cheap lift? Unsafe rear blocks?

A quality suspension lift for your 4x4 Ford will run at least a thousand bucks. You can't crank the torsion bars up enough to achieve 3" inches of lift without big problems... Gaining two inches of lift via the old "crank em' up" is do-able on some trucks - not all. Rear blocks are standard on almost all the new trucks - take a look at the rear of a one ton truck - chances are damn good you'll see a set of blocks under there. A lift isn't good for the truck - bigger tires cause more wear and tear on components, additional weight will wear out brakes faster, non-stock components can void factory warranties in certain cases... on and on and on...

To sum it up - No cheap 3" lifts - unless $1300 bucks is cheap to you - lift blocks are not unsafe on a rearend when properly installed with correct shims and proper length u-bolts.

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Jeff @ CST / STU
www.CaliforniaSuperTrucks.com
www.SuperTrucksUnlimited.com

 

meek47-

If you look under your 97, look between the rear axle and the leaf springs. You'll see that there is already an OEM lift block there. That is why the 4x4's sit higher than the 4x2's. So you already have had "unsafe blocks" under your truck the whole time. Sorry to flame your Dad, but a suspention lift has a lot of engineering go into it, (hence the high prices). They only make your truck ride and handle better, if do any off-roading.

I have lifted my 97 4x4 already very cheaply. My rear springs were sagging slightly, the front was slightly higher than the rear. I added add-a-leafs, and this instantly cured the sag, and actually helped the ride a bit by lessening some body roll. I "cranked" the torsion bars to get about 1.5 inches of lift in the front, and got an alignment.

Next, I am putting in 3" blocks in the rear in place of the stock 2" blocks. I am also getting big polyurethane bumpstops to give back the correct bumpstop height. Finally, I am putting in ProComp 3000 shocks tomorrow, and a steeing stabilizer next month. Total cost to me will probably be in the $500 range. It will be close to an honest 1.5 front, 2.5 rear. Not super high, but a lot cheaper than a full susp. lift. And definately higher than a stock 4x4




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'97 F-150 4x4 SC SB 4.6L. Riding on Sport King 265/75R16 AT's. Add-a-Leafs & Torsion lift. Side Bars. WMS Intake, TB spacer, and Superchip!

Wish list: 4.10 Gears, Hedman Hedders, 3" body lift, 33x12.5 MT's!!

 

You sound like the perfect person for a body lift, but you say you don't want one....I want to ask why? A body lift is going to accomplish everything you asked for...stock ride, no big modifications, and the 2-3" of lift that is safe for your truck.

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Black 1997 F-150 Extended Cab
4x4 w/Off-Road Package
5.4 liter Triton V8
Luverne Stainless Steel Nerf Bars
DeeZee Silver Series Toolbox
Grizzly Oval Style Chrome Grill/Brush Guard
Wrap around bug shield
Ventshade Ventvisors
Ford Factory Bedliner
Pioneer Deh-P6000 45 Watt CD Stereo
3" Trailmaster Body Lift
Smittybilt Outland Tail Light guards.
16x10 American Racing Polished Atlas Wheels
4 315/75R16 BF Goodrich All-Terrain TA/KO Tires on all four corners.
Flowmaster 50 Muffler w/Dual Pipes & 2 18" Stainless Tips
MTX 2 Channel Amp w/Crossover
2 MTX 10" Subwoofers w/Box
Next Up: 4" Rancho Suspension Lift

 

JimW
The stock blocks have a large ear that sticks out to hit the bumpstop. So I assume you are just going to the bigger block and even bigger bumpstops to compensate for the lack of the "ear" on the OEM block. Am I correct in my thinking? Also, did the add a leafs add in lift that you can tell or just produce a much stiffer ride. Mine is not sagging but I would put on some add-a-leafs if it would give me some lift.

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97 Ford F150 XLT 4wd 4.6L auto, Std cab/Long bed 2 tone royal blue w tan bottom, PW,PL, and PM, captian chairs w/arm rests

Current Mods
K&N Filter
Xact Plug Wires- 8mm
Ventshade side window deflectors,read window deflector, bug guard, headlight and taillight blackouts
custom hand painted Ford emblems on door jamb guards and under hood on plastic intake cover
plastic mud guards
custom 4x4 off road graphics
Ford hitch cover and license plate frame
Custom carpet liner (protects factory carpet)
Slyvania Cool Blue Headlight and fog lamp bulbs
Pioneer 6 disc changer
Whistler 1650 radar detector
oh yeah, one custom dent and scratch from a deer the night before deer season

 

KYFordFreak-

You are correct. The bumpstop ears that stick out from the stock blocks will no longer be there with a new lift block. Explorer Procomp makes a very large poly bumpstop that is 4.5 inches tall by 2.5 wide by about 4 long. It has square holes cut into it to give a firm but not crushing stop point. The small rubber OEM stops are about 2 inches tall, the bumpstop ears are about 3 inches above the axle. From what I measured, the new stops will give a bit more flex limit, but be close to the original travel distance allowed. I will measure the new distance of travel vs. old, then see if I need to put a small spacer between the frame and poly stop to give a close distance to original.

I had custom leafs made up by a local heavy equipment shop. They fit under the first leaf in the pack, and were about 5-16" thick, and go almost the length of the top spring minus a couple of inches on either end. the total lift was about 1.2 inches.
The ride is a bit firmer, but not harsh at all, I would say just about right. There is less body roll in the back.

Before the new leafs, I put a load of only about 300 lbs in the truck, and it started to squat down. Now, with the same load, it goes down only a very little bit. I would actually prefer a bit stiffer spring yet.

I did some research, and you can get either a long thin spring like mine between #1 and 2 stock. Or you can get a short thicker spring between the bottom spring and the very bottom overload spring. The longer thin spring will theoretically add more height but still keep the ride fairly soft. The short thick spring will make the ride harder, a bit less lift, but will help sagging springs most and allow more weight in the back. I wouldn't go with both, I bet that would really destroy the ride!

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'97 F-150 4x4 SC SB 4.6L. Riding on Sport King 265/75R16 AT's. Add-a-Leafs & Torsion lift. Side Bars. WMS Intake, TB spacer, and Superchip!

Wish list: 4.10 Gears, Hedman Hedders, 3" body lift, 33x12.5 MT's!!

 

I forgot to mention that the rear blocks I got were from ProComp as well, and were the 3.5 inch steel blocks. They are tapered front to back to keep proper u-joint angle. When I measured them in the middle for lift, they were actually only about 3 1/16 inch tall.

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'97 F-150 4x4 SC SB 4.6L. Riding on Sport King 265/75R16 AT's. Add-a-Leafs & Torsion lift. Side Bars. WMS Intake, TB spacer, and Superchip!

Wish list: 4.10 Gears, Hedman Hedders, 3" body lift, 33x12.5 MT's!!