hey guys, thought you might like this. im slowly progressing with my project, and picked up a set of used tires. cant use my 15x6 rims, so ive been on the hunt for newer 16x8 or wider rims.... got 4 Michelin X tires used on 8 wheel armour vehicles. 325 85 R16 ( 38x12.5in )
i got a set of wheel spacers on ebay, and ill probly get another set for the rear. they are 2in billet aluminum. they have their own studs you use for the wheel, you use your old nuts on your old studs to hold the spacer on
(srry cell phone pics)

i put the big tire beside my truck, and then put a 285 beside it, then my spare rim with 235 beside it. gives you an idea of how big these are

and the stock rim w/235 mounted on the 2 in spacer with the big boy beside it

i made my own 6in body lift, and it looks like i have to move the cab mount behind the front wheel to fit this tire. ill be making an angled piece that mounts on the frame instead of beside it. i may have to cut a v notch in the frame in front to get full turn. ill be adding plate steel to create the "v" shape, all welded with a HD arc welder. going to add some extra bracing too to play it safe. and yeah, cut a LOT of fender off...
if theres any intrest ill keep you all updated. just waiting to find a set of used rims...

 

Dang those are sweet! 38s NICE! 6in body lift! Go big or go home! You got the right Idea! Ya I'm defiantly interested! I'll throw this post under the FAQ2 if you want me to, for others that would want to do this one day. So are you planning on using stock axles/ gear ratios/ suspension? Give the details and all the pics you can. Over load us with pics! I want to see how the 6in body lift was made and everything! Keep it coming.

 

thx! yeah go ahead and post it in the faq2. im honoured
its just an old beater im playing around with(it was in really rough shape when i got it). making most of the stuff with parts lying around my old mans shop. it will be my daily driver so everything will have to work. im hoping i dont run into many problems(because i prefer spending money on the ninja). its a budget build so im going to use as much of the stock parts as i can. which should appeal to a lot of backyard mechanics like myself who just cant leave well enough alone. my buddy has an old 3/4 tonne chev with a 3 in lift i made(with skyjacker shocks and blocks on the axles, leaf springs front and back) and 33x12.5s, so naturally i want to have my truck bigger. I may need to change the gearing, its going to be really tall, but ill try it as is and see what happens. it has the 5.2 so it may be fine. speedo is going to be a little off lol. suspension may stay as is unless upgrades are required. ive thought about making a set of brackets to add dual front shocks, but nothing set in stone yet. might try a small suspension lift, who knows. i dont think its required right now though if i can cut enough stuff out of the way. the body lift was basically made with 5&1/4in long pieces of pipe with a 3/8 plate on each end. for the cab, drill a hole in the middle of each piece of 3/8 plate and theres your spacer. i bought some threaded rod the same size as the stock bolts and cut them 6 in longer than the original bolt, welded a nut on one end and you have new bolts. i added some braces, and im going to put more. the box was simply welded onto the spacers. i intended to bolt it on by i was given the wrong pitch threaded rod and just got angry and welded everything (this is where someone copying this may want to improve my design). it didnt have to be rubber mounted anyway. hopefully i never have to take it off... the gas tank was lifted the 6 in with the box just to keep it that much higher from hitting a big rock or stump... had to extend the steering column, gear selector ect. i just cut them in the middle and welded whatever i had close by in place. i may need to cut the hole in the floor bigger to get 4L, im not sure. had to cut the bottom rad hose, but i was able to make it work without buying anything other than 2 extra hose clamps. the top one is fine. had to take out the stock fan, and ill be putting on an electric one. the battery to starter and engine ground wires need to be extended. you can see the bracket i made to raise the rear bumper. ill get pics showing the front, and some other stuff.

 

that's a sweet project, one of these days i'll go bigger on my '95

 

Definitely keep us posted that's going to be insane when you're done!

 

That is a sweet project! I can't wait to see it sitting on those tires. About changing the gearing, the 5.2 can definatley handle it, but it's the transmission you need to worry about. Trying to turn those large tires with the factory gearing puts about the same load on the transmission as carrying around a trailer with a couple 4 wheelers on it everywhere you go. It will put a lot of accelerated wear on the tranmission, so it's probably cheaper to change the gears now than to overhaul the transmission in 10K miles.

 

waiting to hear back about a set of rims from a newer truck. cant wait to get these tires mounted and on! the body will be 11 in higher than before with the lift and big tires. whats a set of 16x8 mag rims go for? (stock ones)thats a good point on the trans. im not even sure what gearing is in the truck right now?



rear cab mount front box mount, some bracing


had to move the strap from the frame up 6 in. (i had to extend it to reach the new bracket too)


front bumper mounts



have to move the cab mount behind the tire in order to cut the wheel. making an angled one. i think ill have to trim the fender at least to the red line

 

LOL, that is one hard to follow post... It might say on the info sticker on the under side of the hood what gearing is in it. Most likley 3.55 but maybe 3.90... you should prolly be going over 5.00:1 with those tires though.

 

I Straightened up the pics! That should be better on the eyes.

Most likly it will be 3.55. I belive the lowest gear for these axles are 4.11 up front and 4.56 at the rear. 4.56 will be the min. that you woulld want to go. But not the best on power. Like said above over 5.00 will be best. You can check out this chart for gear ratios depending on tire sizes. http://www.4lo.com/calc/geartable.htm

Now those axles should be upgraded too. And deffently the brakes.

 

So are you going to fabricate something to cover the gap between the frame and body?