Hammer, I posted in an older thread, but not sure if it was buried, overlooked, or what...

In short, the Bilstein 5100's all around will work for longer replacement shocks if I crank my torsion bars about 1 3/4", correct?

 

Well, depends. My trucks in the past haven't been strictly street queens. I like to do some wheeling, but I don't do it a ton, and when I do it's nothing super crazy. Just some mud holes or easy trails. I'm not buying an 05 ram for a rediculous wheeling rig. If I wanted that, I'd go buy back my SFA s10. I'd rather have my 20"s that I think look great and have a sick looking daily driver that is still perfectly capable of doing anything I want it to offroad. To each his own...

 

I think where you live has a lot to do with it too. We got us some of that red clay mud down here and to be honest, the boys with the older SFA trucks with smaller calipers that can still hold a 15" wheel will put everybody else to shame off-road. A 35" tire on 15" wheels will just float over mud that a 35" tire on a 17" wheel will have trouble staying on top off. Guys with 20s don't even bother to try...

 

bars cranked



2.5" level kit..



4~5" RC lift, back on +3" easy rides and 3" blocks... torsion bars cranked..



just for the hayel of it.. good comparison..



lift, with torsion bars somewhat cranked, but still sitting on 2.5" keys..



where she sits now.. torsion bars on stock keys, set fairly low (just over the 'swimming' stage), and blocks removed from the rear.. I get the same axle clearance, but the truck sits as low as is comfortable enough to allow some decent negative travel on the suspension..


oh- it's an '02... and, fwiw- the way it currently sits is by far the best.. it doesn't swim, I get the same clearance, and it handles predictably.

 

torsion bars cranked, 34" terra grapplers, on 17" wheels, torsion bar removed also

 

 

Drew: Thanks for the comparison shots.

KX250: Do you have any visibility problems when you are towing?

 

Nope none at all, but i am used to driving bigger trucks that are lifted so your idea of visibilty issues might be different from mine.

 

I mean, it looks like the rear is sagging and you are looking at a 45 degree angle into the sky, rather than over the hood. OK, slight hyperbole, but it still appears that the driver's seat is looking up, rather than out. I'm used to driving HMMWV's, tractor-trailers and aircraft loaders. "Visibility" is a subjective thing, of course, but when you can't see, you can't see!

 

My truck is sagging because I don't have my airbags filled up in the rear but if your used to driving semi's then you'll be fine. I think the A-pillar is the biggest blind spot of them all.