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max lift w/o driveshaft mods

bodacious

bodacious

1/2 ton status
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Dec 29, 2005
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Quitman, Mississippi
Ok, this might get a little long, but I just want ya'll to know how I got here. I've heard that 6" is about the limit, but here goes:

I started out with a 4" all spring Pro-Comp lift and 35x15.50 TSL-SX. The width caused them to rub when lightly flexed. Trimmed the fenders slightly. Added ORD zero rates to the rear to fix the K5 "saggy butt". Wasn't tall enough. I bought 3" blocks for the rear, moved the zero rates to the front and added 1" lift DIY 4x4 shackles. 7" rear, 6" front. I just installed a ORD 1" body lift and body mount bushings, which gave me about 1.5". Total lift of 7.5 to 8". I bought some 38x15.50 TSL Radials from Mr.Chevy4x4 Saturday. The fenderwells are FULL of tire now. I'm pretty sure they won't rub, but I would like a little more room. I am thinking of buying 6" springs, and replacing the 4 inchers, and leaving all the other stuff there. This will give me 9" in the rear and 8" in the front.

Will this be too much lift for the factory driveshafts? As of now, I have no driveline problems. Thanks for any advise/help/comments.:waytogo:
 
with a 6" lift you can get them to work. but you would be better off at least extending the rear.
 
y5mgisi said:
with a 6" lift you can get them to work. but you would be better off at least extending the rear.
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He's got that right now, I think he's wanting to go even bigger.

It's tough to say since there is no golden number for being the limit for factory shafts. With 8-9" of lift you're going to start experiencing just as many angle/binding issues as you will length issues.

I'd stay where you're at and trim.
 
Take a very close look at the CV joint in the front driveshaft. It should be very close to binding. One good axle-droop situation can pop the CV apart. :( You're probably high enough to warrant taking the CV apart and grinding it for clearance.

Nice looking K5! :cool1:
 
I had ~6" of lift in the rear and ended up having an odd "hum" when I was on the freeway at higher speeds and the stock driveshaft. (45+) I ended up rotating the spring perches and going CV shaft which cured it. It wasn't vibrating so it might have just been a worn joint, but I think 6" is probably really close to the limit on a stock shaft if you drive fast.
 
Man the truck looks great on those tires! Did you have any adventures getting them home?

Thanks again for a great transaction! :)

Mike
 
No trouble getting them home. Everything went good. My tire guy was not real happy when I pulled up at his shop Monday morning, though.:D Breaking down 35x15.50s and mounting 38x15.50s almost got him, and the 38s barely fit on his spin balancer. Oh well, he got compensated well. It was good dealing with you Mr.Chevy, thanks again.:waytogo:
 
Funny, my tire guy did his share of grumbling as well! :)

He said the same thing about having a hard time spinning them on his machine.

Do you like the way they ride? How did they balance?
 
Leper said:
I had trouble at 5" of lift.
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same here. i have a six inch lift and i'm having to extend the driveshafts a whole 2" almost. It pissed me off so much. I was going to use that money for a new carb too.:mad: makes me wanna hurt beavers.
 
Ok sorry to steal someone elses thread but I am new to this. I bought a used 8in lift, springs in the front, and four inch springs with four inch blocks in the rear. I had planned on doing the shackle flip in the rear to eliminate the blocks giving me 8 inches all around. (i believe) Will I have to purchase new d shafts front and rear? As far as extending the drive shafts is that common practice? Or is it a better idea to just replace the d-shafts?
 
SUPERSUB87 said:
same here. i have a six inch lift and i'm having to extend the driveshafts a whole 2" almost. It pissed me off so much. I was going to use that money for a new carb too.:mad: makes me wanna hurt beavers.
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I had trouble with 4" lift, the rear d-shaft vibrated so bad! I had a shaft on order when my stock rear U-joint nearly blew out, lucky I caught it in time.
 
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