Hey guys, semi-rookie here. I recently bought a 00 F350 with 7.3L 4x4 /6 speed and planned to build an overland rig out of it. I've got the Fab Four bumper and winch, a bed rack with dual cig lighter port and some LED lights installed, next I'm looking at a 4" lift and some 35" tires.

Now my question is what kind of kit I should get. I've heard a lot of bad things about the Rough Country kit, and just as many good things about the BDS and Icon kits. Now I have two questions: 1) if I want to keep it a good daily driver and an overlanding rig, which kit should I choose? 2) Icon and BDS both seem to have only the front leaf springs for their lift kits, should I get a pair for the rear? After all a big block in the back doesn't give you more wheel articulation.

Any experience or opinion you guys can share will be highly appreciated.

 

I always heard old man emu suspension was great, don’t know if they have a 4inch lift kit tho.

 

I had OME on a Tacoma. It was pretty stiff, but no issues. It seems to me like a 4" would be excessive for 35s on an overland rig. I'd go lower and keep the center of gravity down. You can easily fit 35s without going anywhere near that high.

 

Depends on the backspacing and offset of the wheels. I had some old school weld wheels 16x10 and slapped some 315/75/16s on them. With a 2.5-3 inch leveling kit, it rubbed bad. Flexing the suspension would almost rip the plastic fender liner out. If you're building an overland rig and want 35s, I would recommend a 4-inch lift since you'll probably be flexing/using the suspension quite often.

 

OME 2.5 Kit here that i installed on my Excursion which has new leaf packs for all 4 corners. That will be plenty for 35”. Im running 37” with some fender trimming. This kit gave me about 4” of lift on the excursion and should do about 2.5 on the F250.

The fenders are easy to trim then just zip tie back the wheel liners.

Very nice kit and the springs have way more leafs than any of the other kits ive seen. I did add the extra Dakar spring leaf in the year incase i was loaded heavy for an adventure.

 

For an overland type vehicle, you're generally dealing with a much heavier vehicle then most off the shelf lifts were designed for. You might not get the full advertised lift out of it and the shocks might not be able to control it, but that extra weight can help with the ride if they used an overly stiff spring. Also the cheaper box kits aren't usually designed around maximum articulation, just lift height. Some of the higher end kits do put focus on both wheel travel and ride quality. If you want full articulation with maximum control and still maintain an acceptable ride quality, your best bet is to build out the truck, then put it on scales to get the corner weights and have custom springs made, then measure you're wheel travel and get custom shocks built. That's the most expensive option usually, but really the only way to get as much as you can out of the suspension.

I didn't know OME had kits for these things, they're a quality kit. I was always under the impression they only did smaller stuff like Jeeps and Toyotas.
I had a Carli 3" kit with the full rear spring pack on an old Dodge with a plate steel flatbed and bumpers, i had just under 3" of lift cause of the extra weight, but it was a night and day difference. Going from the stock rear leaf pack/blocks/shocks to the full Deaver leaf pack with tuned Bilsteins was the biggest improvement i saw in ride quality. Totally eliminated all the road cracks, small potholes, etc. that cause 90% of the harsh ride. Imo, they are impressive systems, just not cheap. Once i get myself another SD, it'll be getting a full Carli system.

 

Thanks guys, you have raised some interesting points. I plan to use the stock wheels now, and the backspacing information on the internet is confusing at best. A 4" lift is the best compromise I can think of for now.

The truck tips the scale at around 7100lbs with nothing on it, with the winch, Fab Four bumper and tent on it that's a couple hundred pounds more. Adding a couple small passengers, food, water, and some gears, I'm guessing the whole thing could weigh 7600 to 7700lbs. A extra inch or two can be a good insurance policy. OME is a solid choice, but BDS is still in the running.

I plan to install the list at a local DIY shop. A local shop quoted me $1,500 for installation, I think that's nuts.

 

Once you get it apart theres probaly a bunch of other stuff that's gonna need to be updated. If you're really gonna use it like an overland rig
I did all new spicer joints, full front end rebuild , brakes , gears , lockers. Get a buddy and some beers those spring packs are heavy! We did mine in the driveway.

Carli is an awesome kit and probably the best.

 

$1500 isn't terrible. It's relatively easy to figure out how to put the lift on. But nothing is lightweight on these trucks and it takes a decent amount of time to put a full lift on. Like was said above, if you decide to do it yourself, get a buddy (or several) to help out. However, if it's anything like working with my buddies, 1-2 will actually be helping out, the others will drink your beer and assume the "supervisor" role.