quote:

Originally posted by Black flag:
I saw the calmini shackle kits http://www.purenissan.com/h_d__shackle_4wd.htm .
I thought I read something about cranking up the OEM t-bars can do other damage. Don't remember to what other parts though.

What do you think about the calmini heavy duty t-bars as a front lift solution ? Will they work better than cranking up the OE or should I save the $$ for the full lift ? http://www.purenissan.com/h_d__torsion_bars.htm

The problem you have when you lift the front is the geometry of the suspension components causing uneven tire wear. Instead of buying t-bars, I'd buy UCA's so that when you do crank the front up, the geometry of the front suspension will stay the same. The heavy duty t-bars are 30% stiffer, good for the additional wieght of an aftermarket bumper.

When I lifted my truck, I did get after market springs for the back but for shackles I just got some 3/8ths steel and drilled the proper holes for longer shackles, been running that way fine for a year or so now. You could try that with the stock springs, super cheap and may be sufficient for the time being.

The front, I have the 4x4parts Upper A-arms, and the stock torsion bars cranked up with Rancho 5000 shocks. Unless you have a heavy front bumper, I think the stiffer torsion bars would make for a harsh ride, my experience is the stock ones are just right.

If your wanting bigger tires, I would go the cheap route and do a Body Lift first, then look at a suspension lift once you have the money or find one on the auction forum. Once you do a suspension lift, you need to upgrade your steering.

I wanna' do the suspension lift first for ground clearance. Don't want to drag the frame everywhere I go. I see the 4X4 parts front lift comes with an idler arm brace. The calmini upper control arms looks to be a little beefier though.
Choices, Choices.

As far as the rear lift is concerned, I'll make my own shackles. Probably doing 2 inch lift out back. I'll also make my own brake line relocation brackets if need be.
Not in the market for an aftermarket bumper just yet, although there is an incredible lack of solid towpoints up front. Those paper thin things under there look sketchy. Don't look like there are any solid spots to weld on real D-ring lugs. I have a set of 1" thick steel weld on lugs ready to go.

Won't be changing tires for a while. The tires I have now are very new. Wanna get a little more life out of them. When i'm ready, i'm not going over 32" with tires but I do intend on using an idler arm brace. I don't do anything real serious on the trails. Haven't been wheeling very long plus there aren't alot of parks here in eastern PA/NJ/DE/MD area like I see in your pix in AZ.

When it's time I will do a search to see how much to crank up the torsion bars to get 3" of lift. I used to have torsion bars on my 1968 Dodge Dart. Same technology I see.

quote:

Originally posted by azorr:
When I lifted my truck, I did get after market springs for the back but for shackles I just got some 3/8ths steel and drilled the proper holes for longer shackles, been running that way fine for a year or so now. You could try that with the stock springs, super cheap and may be sufficient for the time being.

The front, I have the 4x4parts Upper A-arms, and the stock torsion bars cranked up with Rancho 5000 shocks. Unless you have a heavy front bumper, I think the stiffer torsion bars would make for a harsh ride, my experience is the stock ones are just right.

3/8 inch steel ? Why so thick ? The factory ones look to be close to 1/4". Calmini shackles look a tiny bit thicker. Looks like 1/4 would do the trick. Your thoughts ?