AAL or full leaf pack?

Isn't the cb drop a little more than a quick fix though? I thought the propellor shafts need to be in line with each other, so won't that be possible with the CB drop? But yes you're absolutely right, the 3* shims sound like a must for most goijgntk dakars.

 

Are 5100s way too short to run with dakars? I don't do crazy off roading, but I do flex the suspension a little getting to my fishing spot so I would probably benefit from some new shocks.

 

Right now I'm at a little less than 2" in the front with 5100s but on stock springs. Thinking about swapping those to 887s to get a little more lift and a better ride, being that the dakars will most likely be stiffer than my stock leaf pack so stiff front and rear probably will be a bad ride.

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll make a list of things to get before trying to install these. Do the dakars come with new bushings? Also, do the leaves come with anti friction pads on the ends of the leaves? I would add those liners too?

 

Not sure, but I’ve heard at full flex they top out.

 

Is not about the shafts being linear it’s operating angles.

 

I think we have the same train of thought. Your example shows the output shaft working angle being in line with the first prop shaft and the angle located at the carrier bearing being within/identical with the pinion angle. I think you can have the output shaft be at an angle as long as that angle matches the pinion angle and the two prop shafts are in line with each other. Right?

 

That's what I figured. I think the bump stop would stop me just shy of overextending the shock though, I'm guessing

 

REAR LIFT BLOCK






Jk, go with the 3 AAL.

 

I recommend doing the full Dakar leaf pack. My lift in the rear is a little under 2 inches with the topper. It handles the RTT and gear much better with the Dakar Medium Leaf pack. I sometimes think I should have done the HD Dakars but don't ride around with the RTT on the truck all the time.

 

Nice looking rig. That canopy is slick

 

Like I said, it’s mainly a last resort to use the CB drop if shims don’t cut it (this is rare)

 

Dakars do not come with bushings. I am running dobinsons bushings in the eyes of the leafs because i had essentially unused bushings from a disaster of a parabolic leaf spring install from dobinsons. FYI headstrong recommends not using the Dakar bushings as they have a small OD sleeve compared to say energy suspension bushings.

The new dakar packs (EL095R - Medium, EL096R - Heavy what you want) come with anti friction pads at the end of each spring. The liners are to make sure the leafs dont contact eachother between the center and those pads. Install the liners the full length of each spring with the lip facing down. works out great.


As far as getting driveline angles right. Id recommend installing the pack without shims and no CB drop. Take it for a drive, if you feel vibes, drive to the hardware store and grab some fender washers and some longer metric bolts the same size as the stock CB bolts (dont remember the size off the top of my head, probably m10 standard thread pitch, maybe m12). Dont spend your money on a CB drop kit, you can get better results with stacking washers. Start around 1/2in of a stack of washers to lower the CB. Take it up to 3/4in if vibes are still present. See how things get better or worse.

Then move on to shimming the rear axle.

Best thing to do is measure angles and go from there. FYI im running ~ 1/2-5/8ths of an inch of CB drop, and 2* shims on the leaf but with the fat end facing FORWARD, to tilt the pinion down increasing pinion angle. This is the best combination of mitigating vibes on MY TRUCK.... each truck is unfortunately different.

 

Thanks for the detailed info, man. Really appreciate it.
Just so I'm understanding this correctly, I would put the leaf liners the entire length of the leaf and cover the anti friction pads, or remove the pads all together?

Yeah I already had bought the cb drop for a previous lift I had on, but I've heard lots of success stories with the washers and longer bolt.
Should I purchase 2* and 3* shims as well as a center pin bolt head lengthener? In the event that I do have vibes how long can I run the truck with gen before installing the shims?

 

Great looking truck. I'm most likely going with the HDs just to have the option after the lift is installed to raise the rear depending on what I actually throw in he back.

 

Probably a good move. I wish I had gone the same route so I just had the extra leaf here in case I add a bumper in the rear.

 

Roughly how much weight you have in the back of the truck, both in bed and above, daily?

 

I added 25 bags of 40lb (1000lbs) bark chips in the back when I had my HD pack and it sagged almost 1”. The HD pack rides nice with at least 300lbs. Any less and it hops over bumps because you aren’t really utilizing the shocks. The Medium pack is more than enough to carry 0-300lbs. Anything over that constantly and the HD pack is probably better

 

Perfect. I guess it's settled that I'll be taking the third leaf out of the HD packs when i get them.

 

The photo without the RTT, Truck has the 30-40 lb Tacoma bed mat, 2 maxtrax, a bin of tools/emergency kit/shovel and axe. If I had no topper and an empty bed, I would probably get over 2 inches empty. Even with the RTT and lots of camping gear it sits pretty level and feels way better than when I had the RTT on the stock leafs. I think that top picture, truck has all the camping gear loaded up. RTT weighs around 165 lbs if I remember correctly. I was told the Shell is around 150-175 lbs.