4" vs 6" Lift Springs and Why??

[George_Pimpdaddy]

Looking for a lift soon as im runing 35" bfg muds now with no lift and i dotn really like the body lifts but for the 1" size. also I daily drive my blazer and its my only vehicle. Will the driveshaft need to be lengthened for the 6"??

 

[walla2k5]

You want the short version ? Yes... You'll also probably have to clearance grind the front cardon joint too.

 

[George_Pimpdaddy]

so also im interested in a shackle flip and 56" rear springs how does that play into going for 6" ?

 

[Chaddy]

so also im interested in a shackle flip and 56" rear springs how does that play into going for 6" ?

Do you plan on towing anything? It is you're DD correct?

If you plan on towing anything, then I wouldnt do a flip. Get some good lift springs and shocks.

 

[George_Pimpdaddy]

yes it is my DD and the only thing i have to tow now is a small utility trailer designed for a quad or 2. In the future id love to get a bigger holiday trailer as well but i thought that shackle flips werent bad for towing???

 

[slyguy_22]

If you plan on towing anything, then I wouldnt do a flip. Get some good lift springs and shocks.[/quote]

Why not tow anything? I have the Shackle flip with 4" bds springs and a zero rate and tow my boat all over creation. shackle flip wont effect your towing ability on a blazer.

 

[Pookster]

stay away from flips in general if you do any towing. I tried it, its ok for small loads I dont think with a quad you'll have too much trouble, but anything with more than 50lbs of tongue weight you'll start feeling stuff. It will make the truck a white nuckle experience.

The alternative of course, at a higher cost, is to install a flip and air bags.

 

[pauly383]

I have towed several thousand pounds behind my Blazer numerous times . Trash runs , Blazer tub on a flatbed , pickup truck trailer , camper .

I do have a friction sway control and a brake controller though , never had it before the camper .

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

With a 4" lift you probably won't have to mess with driveshafts.

With a 6" lift you probably will.

 

[Russell]

Lifting my K25 4" was alright as far as the driveshafts went, but I wouldn't go much further. At full droop without my shocks hooked up, my driveshaft halfs are only engaged by about an inch

 

[redbeast24740]

Just a question with a 6" lift you need longer driveshaft for blazer? I have a suburban with a 6" and didnt need to do anything.

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

Just a question with a 6" lift you need longer driveshaft for blazer? I have a suburban with a 6" and didnt need to do anything.

The longer suburban driveshaft is less affected by the lift (i.e. the length of the driveshaft changes less for a Suburban than it would for a Blazer). Its trigonometry

 

[redbeast24740]

The longer suburban driveshaft is less affected by the lift (i.e. the length of the driveshaft changes less for a Suburban than it would for a Blazer). Its trigonometry

ok so it's just the rear that will really be affected???

well i never even took trig so i am lost

 

[slyguy_22]

I have a blazer with a 8" lift and didnt have to change the driveshaft. and still had bout 2" in the slip. now by 8" lift i mean 4" shackle flip & 4" bds springs. Ive since gone to a sm465 trans and np205 case so i had a custom cv driveshaft made. but when i had the th350 & t-case it was fine with stock driveshaft. Blazer's are only designed to tow light loads under 5K. with the shackle flip you can still tow 5K and there are plenty of guys that tow more than that! Take the advice from those of us that have the shackle flips and tow with them rather than someone that dosnt have them and heard that there no good.

 

[George_Pimpdaddy]

thanks for all the input guys im really leaning towards the DIY4X shackle flip and around 4"-5" total lift gonna keep the 35" size range due to my 4.10 gears

 

[Gaffed]

so for a 6" all spring lift & 700r4/241c, how much do the driveshafts need to be lengthened? This lift can only be duplicated so many times before people start going with the same length driveshaft.

 

[Pookster]

so for a 6" all spring lift & 700r4/241c, how much do the driveshafts need to be lengthened? This lift can only be duplicated so many times before people start going with the same length driveshaft.

There's too many variables. Who's shackle flip you use, spring wear...

Depending on which flip, I think all of them end up pushing the axle slightly forward. (that math stuff again). Since the front pivot point is the same, and your basically pulling the rear pivot down, the axle moves forward slightly.

If your springs are old and flatter, vs slightly arched.

if you have a 208 or 241-: Slip yolk or not. If you have a slip yolk its more problematic. Another trig thing again, slip yolks will change angles more than a non slip yolk. Non slip yolks can take up the extra length within the shaft.

Plus, I've seen people (not on a chevy, but on an exploder), going down hill... with some rocks, and the combination of unloading and what not, caused more droop than his truck could take. And his drive shaft fell out.

Also keep in mind- when braking since we dont have trailing arms of any sort, we have no axle locator's other than the leaf spring.. so under braking, the leafs will flatten out, causing the slip yolk to come out more...

 

[Chaddy]

so for a 6" all spring lift & 700r4/241c, how much do the driveshafts need to be lengthened? .

about an inch and a half to 2 inches.