newbi bought a truck from a tweeker
 

hello all,
i bought a truck from a tweeker. i'm also a new member. got it for $800 and it runs like a champ, tranny and tcase are new/rebuilt...

that said, it has a lift on it i cant identify and there is some crazy stuff going on in the back. i dont have any pictures on me that i can post.

the thing has huge lift blocks in the back, about 6". the u bolts look like they were put on upside down and there are about 10 ratchet straps wrapped around the block and ubolts + a c-clamp?!? on the drivers side... then the same thing on the passenger side, plus a strap tying all that mess to the frame. [i know you all are really curious now, i promise to post pictures asap]

it's gonna take a bit of patience and work to unravel the mess i bought, but it should be well worth it in the end.

i was wondering if y'all could point me in the direction of some clear pictures of how the rear is supposed to look? i could really use some clear pictures in the area around the u bolts, which end is up, factory lift block. that would get me off to a great start untangling this mess.:icon_bowrofl::icon_worthy:

Some folks will flip the u-bolts to get a bit better clearance under the axle. After all, you don't want those stubs sticking out getting hung up on rocks, or whathaveyou, and ripping stuff off. Probably not really an issue there. (but, pics will certainly help with that observation.)

The trucks come stock with 3" blocks between spring, and axle. Not my favorite design, but, it is what it is.

If things are held together with ratchet straps, and clamps, I would NOT drive it, until you get that sorted out...... That sounds like an accident waiting to happen.

You can download a service manual for your truck from here. (grab the 98 version, as it is closer to your truck than the 00-01 manual will be.) There are illustrations of how things SHOULD look. :D

Welcome to DF! :D Put up some pics when ya can.

I agree with Hey You (he's never wrong, lol) on taking care of the strap issue before driving it. If the engine and trans are in good shape, you most likely got a great deal.
What are your plans for the truck? Is this going to be your daily driver?
Get some pics up of that rear end mess.

ok, here's the pictures if i did it right...

All I can say is WTF!

Maybe some kind of limiting strap? Who knows...

thank you very much, off to a great start i appreciate it! pictures are up, can't wait for the responses...

i would like for it to be my daily... feels like forever since i last had a truck and this is my first 4x4 truck... not that i ever hesitated 4x4 my 2x4's lol. i had a 2011 wrangler i had to let go, been pretty bummed out since, but house is more important than toy's... giving it another go minus the $300 month payment. i guess, like my jeep, it won't be a mall crawler, but i'm also not going to bash it against rocks. at least not intentionally.

if i had to guess, i would say he didn't do something right putting it together and spit out one or both of the blocks at some point. i personally don't like anything bigger than a 4" block and prefer no blocks, just leafs and maybe shackles.

Take all the money you saved from the tweaker deal and take it to your local shop and have them put a new lift kit on. Then enjoy your great deal. FYI make sure you look everywhere for used needles and have the interior cleaned up good.

Ok, spacers up front, and a cluster fark out back..... It looks like the bump stops were moved on the frame, and now contact the spring forward of the axle?

I would be REAL tempted to replace the rear springs with some appropriate lift springs, dump the blocks completely, and maybe do a shackle flip if you need more lift..... Either that, or just pick up a real lift kit, and replace EVERYTHING under there.... That mess does not bode well for the quality of any of the other work on the truck........

from the last picture, to me, it looks like there is no bolt connecting the leafs together, and the straps were put on to do that.

I saw something like that on the red green show one time

Scary looking setup on the truck's rear end for sure!

On the front end, was a kit installed to allow for the extra shock?

http://diy4x.com/product.php?product...cat=250&page=3
Should be a link to a shackle flip kit.

Please don't drive it like that. Get a flip kit and shorter blocks. Maybe check into some new springs from Atlas http://atlassuspension.com or BD.

The factory blocks have an arm poking out to hit the bump stop that also keeps them from scooting off the axle. I was thinking that they were a useless limit strap at first but I bet that the blocks shifted at one point since they don't have that bit poking out of them.

I dug through some old pictures and found a few.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/dodgefo...85aa5981bc.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/dodgefo...7da10f64b6.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/dodgefo...c9d3c454d2.jpg

i searched for pokey bits before getting in it :D... i am thinking just doing a fresh lift is my best bet.

we think alike :)

you have a good eye, i met with him yesterday at dmv to get the title transferred and that is exactly why he did it... he welded the diff and was tearing the springs/ubolts apart daily driving it on pavement.

did i mention i need a new ls or locker?

lol, it's definitely creative...

i was hoping someone might recognize the kit that was used, but i am starting to think it's a homebrew kit.

i drove it just long enough to get it away from where i bought it. it will remain parked until i'm ready to overhaul it. steering box is shot too, it was VERY spooky driving it the 2 miles i did. it was also the middle of nowhere and late at night, i wouldn't have driven it even 2 miles if others had been around.

thank you very much, exactly what i was looking for!:icon_worthy::icon_worthy::icon_worthy:

anyone have a suggestion for a good spring lift kit? i would really like to get rid of the blocks and spacers... pretty sure the rear springs are toast or need rebuilt from talking to the dude about it. besides it would have the added bonus of actually knowing what i have and what shocks to order, little things like that lol.

i like the height it's at now. looks like stock leafs plus 5.5 or 6" blocks. i didn't measure the spacer on the coils though.

Stock blocks are 3", so, you may only have like a 3" total lift there. What size tires are on it?

Check out Top Guns Customz, they carry a variety of lift kits... Find a manufacturer you like, and chat directly with them for what you want on the rear.

it's got 35\12.5\15's.

though as it sits, it's got one thats so bald it looks like a 31 lol

Any idea what gears it has in it? Might consider going with like a 3" lift, going to 33" tires, and being a little easier on the trans, with what is likely 3.55 gears.

no idea yet. we have been being pummeled with bitter cold, snow and ice since i bought it... that's in the valley... i don't even want to know what it's like at my brothers place up on the mountain.

i almost wrecked and got stuck till i could get chains on just getting the pictures i posted lol. i'm in vancouver and he's up by the washougal moto cross.

it didn't look like there was an axle tag in the pictures, but the short time i drove it, it felt deeper than 3.55. did not feel bogged at all. which really surprised me, most just throw big tires on then whine cause they don't have any power or they broke something.

i had considered just putting it back to stock'ish height and doing 33's... these were not lowrider 4x4's from the factory, so a lift is not as imperative as it would be with a silverado or f150 of the same era. or at least thats what my brain is trying to tell me lol.

You could probably get away with 33's at stock height, if you didn't offroad much. But, flex that suspension some, and you likely would get some contact..... Never really a good scene.

You are going to be in your diffs anyway, so, verify the gears when you are. (and make sure front and rear ratios are the same. :) )

i should be fine at stock then, i just stick to the fire roads, maybe some mud\snow. i don't really have rockcrawler money or time.

had a wrangler that would do that stuff, but never really had time to enjoy it, or the friends with the kind of rigs it would take to get me out if i got stuck lol. though, even if i built this ram to the max i would never take it to the places i got that jeep in.

we're supposed to thaw out last time i checked, so hopefully next weekend i can get up there and start getting some hard info out of it.

Try it, and see what happens. :) Worst case, you need to bump it up a bit. At least you will know you have a suspension that will hang on to the truck while you are driving it.....

exactly, what am i gonna do? break it? lol

Break it? Oh hell no. You would never do that......... :D

At stock height with 33" x 11" tires:
If they're the stock swirly rims then they'll rub the control arms at full lock.
If they poke out a little like the off road rims then they'll rub the plastic on the back of the fender at 3/4 of a turn.
If they're not stock rims then I know of one way to find out if they'll rub...

A 3" lift with 33" tires and 4.10 gears is the best combo on these trucks as far as having on road manners and being capable off road as well.
A 5-6" lift and 35" tires (with 4.56 gears) looks perfect on these trucks but those tires ain't cheap and the big knobbys wear out a lot faster.

Brian 102...

I'm just outside of Portland, if you need a shop to park/work in.

that answers alot of questions i was probly about to ask, thank you. gotta admit i love the look of the 35's on it, but the practical side of me is leaning toward taking her down a notch to 33's.

i very much appreciate the offer, thank you... i may take you up on that if she wont clear my garage, lol...

if a fuel injected engine only has an O2 sensor before and after the cat only, how the hell does it know if 1 of the banks are running lean? knock sensor? i have 2 codes, bank 1 running lean and #2 injector open circut... the injector code is new and it would cause a lean condition... just trying to understand how it would know a bank is lean if the sensors are only on the cat and not each manifold like most rigs. knock sensor is the only other way i can think.

also, a small status update for those wondering... installed some fresh hoses, tensioner and idler... dug through some wiring the previous owner/s added... found out my truck came with 3.55 lsd. my cad is shot. the wiring for the switch on the cad that runs the 4x4 dash light had been damaged and "fixed" then damaged again from installing a lift and not extending those wires. the worn out tires in the front are 33's and the less worn tires in the rear are 35's XD . i got some of the parts i need to put it back together... new factory cover for the drivers seat, new taillights, lens and sunglass holder for the overhead, one of those supports for the steering box, tie rod, steering box. going to order a vinyl/rubber floor to replace the old carpet, new dash top, lockrite to replace the vacuum cad, flow matched injectors, ditch the tb spacer and try to find a factory airbox so i can get rid of the pos cai. couple of weeks i'll tear into the rear end and see what i can do for that. i'm probly going to have to take a burr and cut out all the welds so i can get the spiders and c clips out. i'm hoping they only welded the spiders and didn't weld the carrier. don't know why he didn't just rebuild the lsd. not that hard or expensive is it?

A C-Clamp?
Tell me more, are those blocks made of Pressure treated 4x4's ?
HOLY MOTHER OF GOD !!!!! JUST PUT SOME ELMERS GLUE ON THAT AND YOU SHOULD BE GOOD....

All puns aside... Take that to a shop before you kill yourself or worst, someone else. if you cant afford a new lift for now at least just get it corrected with proper parts.
I will get some pics of mine for you to see shortly, just so you have an idea of whats supposed to be there
( and be ready as mechanics love this stuff ) lol

Heres some pics

So the rear end has a poor mans locker (welded spider gears), the gear ratio is 3.55 and the front tires are two inches shorter that the back tires. I wonder why he had to get the transmission and transfer case rebuilt...

If it were me I would put 33" tires on it along with buying a 4.10 ring/pinion kit for both axles and some Detroit TrueTracs then toss those old axle innards in the trash.

Holy crap lol

lol, yeah it's ****ed.

i haven't been to a shop since i was 19, bought a rig and while changing the plugs i couldn't get the last one to come out. took a closer look and someone had jb welded the plug in. tried pulling it again, broke the plug in the head. took it to a shop up the road, very first time going to a mechanic. they helicoil it... about a minute down the road with my professional repair and i hear what was left of the sparkplug that fell in the cylinder rattle it's way past the exhaust valve and seize my turbo... that would be my last trip to a "professional".

fast forward 20 years and we have the internet... even better, YOUTUBE :) and vehicle specific forums! i also have a house, garage and nice assortment of tools now that would have saved 19yr old me a wasted trip to a "pro".

still trying to figure out what kit the kid i bought it from used. i'm convinced at this point it's some kind of spacer on the front that has the added benefit of dual shocks and just a 6" block in the rear. i have looked at other lift kits and i just dont think 4 shocks, front springs, an add a leaf and/or block are worth $800. the only kit i have seen that actually changes anything is almost 3k. i could buy a damn nice miller and steel/fittings/beer and still have some money left toward new tires for 3k. so at this point i'm still thinking about the lift. i didn't realise rams had the jeep markup on their parts.

thank you for the pictures, it does help to see things unmolested:icon_drink:

that's the direction i'm heading. i like 4x4's, but i also need to actually use my truck to haul things. accessing the bed right now is awkward at best. i love the look, but i need it to do more than look cool. right now i am actually considering 33's and stock height, then adjusting that as needed.

Only thing you can do is start unravelling that mess of tie down straps and see whats going on under that. To me it seemed he drove it hard and the blocks popped out or something ( I think there are notches in the blocks and nipples they set in on that bracket and the springs ) could be upside down or who knows:icon_shrug:

he actually told me what the deal was. after he locked it, the forces from turning on pavement started tearing the springs apart. he actually had it come apart on him going down the road, it broke the center bolt on one of the springs. he got the bolt replaced and did all the straps/clamps trying to keep it from happening again. scared him pretty good. that was also when he decided to sell it.

i think he realized i didn't care and it was safe to just tell me. he also had the hoses wrapped in rubber gloves, zip ties, para cord and duct tape where they had sprung a leak. it actually held... i have seen some rigged up stuff in my life, but this kid was a master. it looks horrible, but it takes alot of effort to unravel his fixes. i do proper repairs, but without a parts store i would hand the wrench to him. of course he would drop the wrench and head for the zip ties, but whatever lol

Yeah, you cant afford to fix stuff when you need a hit....lol