Im looking into a 3" lift block for my truck, does anyone here use one? The one i am looking at is straight and not tapered will i have any issues with that? Oh and my truck is a 02 ram 1500 qc 4x4. thanks for your help.

 

If you go with blocks that size you could run into two problems.

One being incorrect pinion angle, which will cause binding, premature wear and void the warranty of the rear u-joint.

The second is that when you accelerate the rear differential transfers torque into the leaf springs, the twisting motion of the diff is known as axle wrap as it is trying to twist the leaf springs into an "S" shape, lift blocks create more leverage between the axle and the leaf springs therefore increasing axle wrap.

Increased axle wrap will also bind the pinion angle as well as cause wheel hop under heavy acceleration, decreasing traction and making the whole truck "shudder".

I'm not planning on ever running blocks on my truck, but if I did and wanted 3" I'd go with 2" lift overload springs and 1" blocks.

 

Yeah I was reading up on the axle wrap, but i figure my little 4.7 doesn't have enough torque to do that. The only thing that really concerns me is the incorrect pinion angle. But will 3" really make that big of a difference for that? I was also looking into add a leaf but a friend has that in his truck and it rides like a hay wagon. I figure this 3" block would be better am i mistaken??

 

Well, if your not worried about axle wrap, blocks are cheap bolt em in, check the angle and add shins as needed. http://www.carcraft.com/howto/91758/index.html

 

You can always do a 3" shackle lift. Thats what Ive got on mine.

 

You'd need a 6" longer shackle to get 3" of lift! I have a shackle lift on mine also. The longest shackle I could find was 3" longer, but since it's only on one side of the spring, you get half the lift.

 

You can also get tapered blocks to help correct the pinion angle. As far as blocks go the cheaper the junkier, I installed 2" tapered cast iron blocks that came with my lift kit and they both cracked within about a month. I constantly checked the u-bolt torque, one day I found the drivers side was cracked, ordered a new set of blocks, went under to change it a week later and found the passenger side was cracked too. I installed a set of 1" solid billet aluminum blocks and they're as sturdy as can be. Don't let a few bucks ruin your truck

 

I agree. I had a set of 2" cast iron blocks. I replaced them with 3" solid aluminum blocks.

 

I personally install lift kits almost everyday of every week where i work and from true experience a 3 inch block will not need a pinion angle change, nor will your truck have enough power to cause a shudder on hard acceleration. I ran 5 inch blocks in my truck for a year and didnt have any wrap problems with the hemi, and the only reason I have springs now is because i like the look better. If you were running the cummins or any other diesel you may have problems but a three inch block wont do it if torqued properly. Just my .02

 

Everything I stated above is from experience as well, your point is? I've even made my own blocks in the past by welding two 1" pieces of flat bar together, so what, my experience may be different than yours. All I said is that I don't plan on running them, they can increase wheel hop and make sure your pinion angle is good if you do run them.