maybe fewer details, but depending out the miles your truck has, getting suspension parts apart may be as much as a pain as worrying about body lift details that take a little time to do...

your answer is, what YOU think is best for YOU. take peoples opinions and develop your own. this is a never ending debate and people have argued over it since the body/suspension lift came to be. one person will tell you one thing, another will tell you another....

 

As he doesn't really have "off road capability" as a concern here, you are right. One is just as good as the other.

I always looked at it from a 'function' point of view though. Sure, a body lift will let you put bigger tires under there, thus, giving you a bit more ground clearance, the suspension lift will also give you room for larger tires, AND a more EFFECTIVE increase in ground clearance. (the lowest point on the truck, aside from the axles, is the crossmember for the t-case, body lift doesn't raise that.) But then, I AM concerned about off road capability.

I think ALL the bolts that live under the truck are going to be reluctant to come off, but, yeah, the bolts that hold suspension stuff on start out tighter. Air tools and/or a torch can be your best friend.

 

You guys are correct in saying it is a personal choice. The off roading ability is not important to me yet, but I have only had the truck for a little amount of time. Having the ability in the future to do some off road type activities is a plus. I do travel to the mountains often on typical unpaved mountain roads with deep valleys and grooves so the suspension lift is probably the best place to start and maybe add a small body lift in the future.

 

How many leaves do you have in that pack? I have a five leaf pack and no block, so I get the impression that yours must have 3 or 4; which means that your payload would benefit greatly from an extra leaf.

 

whichever lift you decide to go with, be careful of the accompanying tire size you choose...i can run 40" tires with the lift i have on my truck, but I run 37" tires instead to allow for suspension compression/travel...you don't want your tire bowing out your fender if you hit a good size pothole or bump on or off the road

 

Grox,
I think I have a 3 leaf pack, plus the overload leaf. I've decided on the suspension lift. After all is said and done the price is about the same but I get new shocks and lower control arms if I go with the TGC 3" kit with the AAL. Now to decide if that is the kit to go with. Any suggestions that use AAL instead of blocks? Looking for the best bang and lift for the buck.

 

With the AAL, you will need to deal with the clips that hold the leaves in line. I recommend having a spring shop just do these. The other option is to call some junkyards to see if they have a pack already put together from another truck that has 4 or 5 leaves. I would go this route as it requires no fabrication, all you do is swap them out. $80 is a fair price for a set of leaf packs from a junkyard.

To change out the packs, you will have to cut the bolt on the front drivers side ALMOST all the way to the mounting bracket, but leave enough to get a wrench on the bolt (you will see what I mean). I also recommend doing it one side at a time and leaving a floor jack under the differential.