Wheelers 5 leaf thumbs up or down?

Oh, I should point out that this was with the stock, and sagging, original coils with no lift, not after I swapped in the 881s and billies. But I imagine the new setup would not be different enough to prevent this tiny bit of frame rubbing with that size tire.

 

Ok, my turn.

First off, hey, welcome.

The 5-pack gives you about 1.5" of lift over the stock suspension when the suspension is "good"... i.e. the leaf packs are frowning the other way..

With my setup (which all total cost me about $2000) I've got somewhere near 2.5" in the front and almost 2" in the rear. I'm still going to crank the front coilovers up to 3" and put new shackles on the rear, so I will be sitting level, instead of having the slight bro lean that I have now.

I purchased the ToyTec Ultimate lift (which came with 1.5" Add-a-leafs, but I couldn't use them thanks to the rear leaf springs being completely shot on my truck).. new Light Racing upper control arms (UCAs), and the Wheelers 5-pack, all Billy 5100s all the way around. Ride is SOOOOO much more improved over stock. I've got about 5" more height than I had at stock, but that is because I not only put the suspension in, I went with larger tires.. the suspension gave me between 2 to 2.5", the tires even more.

If you're going to be hauling stuff around, I would definitely recommend the 5-pack.. it is much more resistant to heavy loads in the bed and on the hitch. (Think I've had about 800 lbs. in the bed going down a nasty dirt road doing 35-40MPH and the rear has not sagged at all.) Not to mention there is no axle wrap for me and the ride is much more stable.. I don't feel like the rear is going to walk away from me in turns.

 

I do rub there, mostly on the drivers side. They sell relocation plates to move the axle forward but I just deal with it.

quick question for you guys though, did any of you get axle shims? I have some bad driveline vibes between 60 and 70 that are intermittent (it vibrates the whole truck for about 10 miles, then it will be smooth as glass for another 10). Im going to take angle measurements once I get out for winter break to see how far off the pinion angle is. I also have a home made 1/4" CB drop on right now.

 

No, I made no driveline mods and used no shims, and I don't have vibes. Is your driveshaft perhaps out of balance/not indexed correctly? I assume you are in 5th at that speed, but does it do it in 4th at the same speed? Just wondering if you can isolate driveshaft RPMs relative to indicated speed as a factor.

Have you checked to make sure you don't have any animals wrapped around the driveshaft? If so, you may need to stick another one on the opposite side to balance it.

 

I need to check out my u joints to see if they are worn (163k on the originals Im assuming).

To answer you questions, it happens in 5th and in 4th. I know my front passenger tire is not balanced correctly for some reason (don't buy BLEM tires lol) but that wouldn't cause the shifter to shake.

I may try taking the CB drop off next weekend to see what kind of effect it has since I drive 180 miles of highway every weekend. If it gets worse, Im just going to shim the axle to correct the pinion angle.

Oh and no dead animals/small children wrapped up in the driveline that I can see lol. Thanks for the tip though.

 

I may need to shim the axle... I do get a vibration but I also haven't tried the CB drop yet.. believe I need to get slightly longer bolts to pull that off.. and I don't remember what size they are. (I'll make sure someone is taking video because I'll probably forget to brace the driveshaft and knock myself silly.)

And I do get a little rubbing up front with my 255/85/16s at full stuff & lock.. the rears will rub a little as well due to the axle being set back slightly.. but I'll trim the damn fender if it really bothers me that much. Wrap-around plate bumper here I come.

 

I used to stock CB bolts with my 1/4" drop and there are plenty of threads still holding it in.

 

You might also consider going the other way. If you look at some of these aftermarket CB drop kits, they are dropping it a couple of inches (or more).

A 1/4" drop is a very small drop. Add another 1/4" for a total of 1/2" to see if that helps. That is where I'm at and the stock bolts are still long enough to handle it.

 

sounds good, I have lots of 1/4 flat stock laying around so they will be free. I'll probably try that first.

 

what did you guys/girls pay for the lift kits mentioned?

 

Not counting the UCAs... about $1500.

 

ok great thanks mtgirl (your setup is the same as what i will get)

 

around $960 for the coils, leafs, and 5100's.

 

yup i'll do it all myself

5 pack, 5100's, coils, bushing sets etc

 

Sweet and good luck.

 

The three of us all got the same parts, and we also got 15% off the leafs (only) because of the group buy. But yeah, you'll be in it for about a grand. Not sure where you live, but Wheeler's doesn't charge sales tax (Oregon), but the leafs are heavy to ship. Dan at Wheeler's can give you an estimate.

 

ya i've been in talks with them (Johnny), just trying to see what everyone else paid

so it was about $1K including shipping?