1994 Lightning front suspension

[1925mosin]

Hey all! It's been a while since I've posted, but it looks like I may need some advice again. When I bought my lightning in January it had lots of play in the front end and a lot of on-center steering slop. It really hasn't bothered me too much but now it looks like I may be able to afford to get it fixed. For starters I took it to my local Midas to have them look at it. I was with them when they had it on the lift, and I could definitily tell the problems they were pointing out. For starters I need a new tie rod end and adjustment sleeve. Its been loose for a while apparently and is possibly bent. Also, my shock bolts were loose and the bushings were just beat to hell. While up on the lift you could rattle the shocks against the bolts. The mechanic said the shocks looked fairly new, but not in great shape. He said its possible that one of the previous owners installed standard F150 shocks that were too long and just beat the hell out of the bushings. So I need new shocks too. I know very little about suspension, so I'm having Midas do the tie rod and alignment, but I was thinking about installing new shocks myself. One problem I'm encountering as I shop around online is raising and lowering. I don't know if my truck has been lowered at all. Also I'm unsure of what brand to trust. The only ones I've heard of that I've found are Bilstein, Belltech, and Monroe. Any advice would be awesome!!! Ben