So if I end up getting a '73-'79 ford pickup that is 2wd, I'm going to want to lift it since I like riding up higher. I know autofab makes the lift kits for 2wd trucks. As for the rear end, do I just add blocks/leaf springs, or is there something else I will need?

 

i think you have it figured out

 

Sorry if it seemed like a stupid question to some people, but I've never lifted a truck before...

 

Go autofab for the front = nice stuff.

For the rear you can do blocks, add a leafs or a new leaf pack. I listed them from lowest to highest in price, which also ends up being lowest to highest in the best way to do it

In other words - if you can swing for new leafs - go for it!

 

Who sells good 4-6 inch lifting blocks for the rear leaf springs? And are there any "late model" leaf springs that fit our dents? I am wondering if I could go to a junkyard and pick up some late model leaf springs from a newer truck that would help achieve lift for my dent? I would really appreciate any help with this question as new springs plus shipping them around cost lots of bucks, wastes precious fuel and this pollutes our world. Going to a junkyard and getting good used or "recycled" leaf spring makes lots of sense to me, if this is possible. Thanks for any help! Roy

 

5 lift

autoFab 5 inch lift click 5 lift link above for prices

 

Looks to me like the I beams have been slotted and bent upwards slightly to compensate for the 5 inch lift gained from longer springs. Can anyone comment on this? Once bent the I beams could be reinforced and welded for strength. I am planning to build my own radius arm brackets which will compensate for the lift and at the same time maintain factory specs for steering/caster. It looks like camber could be adjusted by mods to the angle of the opposite end of the I Beam. Could anyone comment about what camber I might try to run on the truck? I am thinking that I would like a little more negative camber as my suspension will be flexible and I can deal with uneven tire wear as long as my camber is not extreme when driving on level pavement. I am thinking about 1-3 degrees of negative camber or so. Would this be ballpark close? And as far as caster, it looks like the length of the radius rod and its adjustment along the nut at the end of the radius rod will set camber. What ball park camber figure do you think I should run??? I will build my own radius rods from chrome moly tubing reinforced with sheet steel tacked to the CrMoly tubes. Thanks in advance for any help you can offer, Roy.

 

I suppose with all these planned mods I should consider building my own unequal length lower A-arms for the truck. This way I could achieve the camber/caster I am looking for after changing so many aspects of the front steering/suspension. It would not be all that difficult and maybe much easier than modifying both the radius arms and the I-Beams. However, I like the I-Beams, I have had many old Fords equipped with them. I like the way they drive. Anyway I just wanted to throw this out there as an option, I don't want to go too deeply down a road that leads to diminishing returns. Thanks again, Roy

 

If you must use blocks - find a set of the stock, 4" ones out of a 73-77 F-250 or 350 4wd also known as the "highboy" trucks. I wouldn't go 6" blocks. Heck - I'm not even a fan of 4" blocks...
As for the leafs - you can pull a pack out of a 90's F-150 and try those, but they aren't a huge improvement over stock, and they won't lift it. To get a lift you're going to have to buy "lift" leafs. OR if you are open to some time and trail/error you can put together a pack yourself. I'm putting lift leafs for Chevy 1500's/2500's on my trucks. They are longer and have a few benefits because of this. You can use the stock chevy leafs on your truck to gain a bit of lift and retain a decent ride, but the chevy leafs are long and therefore require moving your leaf hangers and shackle hangers around as well as cycling the suspension (typically multiple times) to get everything right. It's work, but it can be worth it.

Is buying an aftermarket leaf pack looking any better as of now?

Now as for the part of your post in bold - seriously??? You are driving the wrong tuck if you buy into that BS



Autofab doesn't slot the beams - he bends them in a 100 ton press with a fixture for the beams to get the camber & caster correct.
Yes you can pie cut and then weld the beams to correct the camber. And yes it is a good idea to plate over the cut and weld for extra strength. If you want examples of this let me know.
For the radius arms - I wouldn't drop the brackets lower, just mover them back on the frame and extend the arms themselves (a 1.75" x .120 wall DOM or chrmo tube will slide over the stock end easily).
Camber can be corrected by lowering the beams pivot points, but you loose ground clearance by doing this and also greatly raise the amount of load on the beam mounting brackets. IF you decide to do this make them out of chromo and make them beefy!
Caster is not only found in the radius arm attachment to the beam, but also in the beam end itself. Look at the kingpins and how the top of them points at the back of the truck - the majoprty of the caster is built into the beam end itself.
Now as for camber & caster numbers - that depends on what terrain you will drive on mainly. For camber I'd stay at 0 degrees at ride heigh - maybe 1 degree negative. You will get more tire wear than you want going more than that.
Caster again depends on terrain and also driver preferance. I think stock is at 7 degrees or so. Many guys like about 10* and I've seen dirt only trucks at 15 or more. This helps the truck track well & pull itself straight, but you may fatigue yourself fighting the thing to turn if it's a daily driver & on the street the majority of the time.



If you have the skills, $ and time then by all means a-arms would out perform the i-beams. BUT most people don't have the $ or skill to do this, and the i-beams do really well for really cheap. The main downfall is the camber change through the suspension cycle. 2 other things people combat on these trucks are getting bump travel (upward suspension travel) without hitting the frame - while still keeping the ride heigh low, and then the limitations of the rear steer through the large amounts of suspension travel available through the i-beam setup.