If you're not smart enough to read the entire thread, then by all means go ahead and put'em on. Please post date and time of the test ride (include high speed hill climbing, articulation, braking and cornering maneuvers) so the rest of us can can get the camcorder out and film the spectacle for the Darwin Awards

 

All of the thread has to do with original U-bolt failure. My question is regarding replacement U-bolts that are customized to the application. Maybe if you were smart enough to understand the question you wouldn't have such a smart-*** answer.

 

The smart *** is the one who goes through an entire thread where there is plenty of helpful advice to avoid a safety issue, and goes ahead and does it his own way. Build up them Cr-Mo hi-tech u-bolts, you'll always have a bug in your ear everytime you hear a creak or groan from the front end wondering if now is the time it all comes apart.

My not so smart *** advice is to spend a bit of dough, not much more than what a set of custom u-bolts will run, and get yourself a set of drop shackles. You'll get the extra clearance without puting yourself, your family and everyone sharing the road with you at risk.

 

I would go with gun drilled titanium, but make sure they then nickel plated and anodized.

 

Thanks for the advice, and for the much more civil response. I think shackles might be the way for me to go. Is there an issue with difficult realignment on the front end with these? Through reading past threads I have seen some talk of not being able to get the front end realigned properly. Any advice or knowledge on that issue? Thanks.

 

There are really no alignmet issues (toe in/out or caster/camber)with lifting a SD, as long as your tracbar is adjustable or lowered with a bracket, and you run a drop pitman arm. It is always a good idea to try to keep the stock angles as much as possible.
With a leveling kit, sometimes they offer a trac bar relocation bracket and a drop pitman arm, sometimes they don't. A good kit will.

It is a staight axle, your just lifting the truck away from the axle, nothing on the axle is affected.

 

Yeti is correct about lifting your truck does not affect the axle...IF you lift via springs and/or Hangars.... BUT... if you use the old trick of a "shackle" lift... you will lift the truck from the rear of the spring only and will add ALOT of Castor into the equation.... although as long as its the same added to both sides.. youll be allright... it will be way outta spec but will still drive fine.. and may even help your truck track down the road straighter.. may be slightly more resistant to turns..... will increase the angle of the front driveline too, but with only a shackle lift i dont think youll have any issues... Still not the best way to go.. for just a little more you can get a "hangar" lift with longer hangars and shackles.. it will keep the entire front end in allignment.... better investment.
JJ

 

My bad.. I said 'shackle kit' when I meant spring hanger kit. Replace the front frame mounts with longer ones, there are a variety of kits out there and you can usually find a pair reasonably on ebay.

Sorry for the earlier tone, a weekend of GOOD marg's and I'm back in shape.

JJ - you ever post pics of the truck after your break-in roadie??

 

Thanks for the replies. I've decided that I've spent way too much money on the truck to just half *** it. I am going to order a hanger kit probably and put f-350 blocks on the rear. I want to run 315's, and I will not be doin any serious offroading. I spoke with a guy at the mall just now who has a 2003 F250 and he runs 315's on his stock suspension with no lift or leveler. It rubs a little on the rear of hi sleafs at full turn, but nowhere else. He said he's done some light offroading with no problems, but from the looks of his clearance from the fenders it looks like any serious suspension flexing would cause him some serious problems.

On a side note, I ran 315's on my 00 f-150 with no lift at all. I adjusted the torsion bars a little and they fit fine. They didn't rub at all while turning. The only time they rubbed was a tiny bit on the corner of the fender flare if I hit a ditch or something at a 45 degree angle. They never made any lasting noticeable marks from rubbing though, I ran them for 10,000 miles before I sold the truck with no problems. I wonder if I could put 315's on my 04 f-250 without a leveler just temporarily for a couple of weeks. I am going to be out of town a lot with my truck sitting at home in the garage. Probably not a good idea, I must practice patience and self-control

 

One more thing, a 2001 F-250 identical to my 04 was beside me getting diesel at the gas station the other day. We noticed my truck sat up 2 or 3 inches higher than his with the same size tires. He had the 4x4 off road package of the 2001's and I have the fx4 off road package. I'm wondering, is there more clearance on the newer super duties?? Has this been discussed somewhere. I've noticed that before too, but never side by side. These trucks are both stock, but mine definately sat a few inches higher off the ground. Hmmmm

 

Do you have a deisel also? If not, that would make his front a bit lower than yours, due to the added weight of the motor.

 

Yeah, i have a diesel auto, I guess I never have posted a good description of my truck

It's a 2004 F-250 CC 4x4 white w/arizona baige lariat. Auto tranny, moonroof, power slide rear window, fx4 off road, camper package, engine block heater, rev sensing, all the bells and whistles except the snow plow and/or heavy duty fron suspension that's offered(something I would have liked, but I am an impulse buyer and didn't want to wait). BTW, on the camper package doesn't that add a rear stabilizer and heavier springs, or what exactly is it?

 

R1ZOOM, keep in mind that your wheels will have a lot to do with clearance issues and smaller lifts / hangers. I have a 4-inch lift and am only running 295's, but they are real close to the rear of the front fender well at full turn. This is because the wheels I ordered have shallow back spacing (~1-3/4?) which throws more wheel out in the turning arc. Had I kept my stock wheels I could easily clear 35's. I think the hanger kit will be close on 315's and stock wheels, but should clear for modest 4 wheeling.

 

good point, I put aftermarket wheels with more spacing on my f150, but I really like the stock wheels on my 250

 

On street trucks that we where using as pullers. We did put lift blocks on the front because back then there was not any Suspension Companys around yet. I owned my own business and did alot of Ford and Chevy 4X4s for Off Road and street use. After just adding blocks with bigger U-bolts after a few hard pulls the axle tubes started bending and would break if you didn't fix it. So we put a brake reaction rod on the back of the block using a 1965 thru 1973 Ford Mustang units. They had to be lenghten and brackets welded to the back of the block and one to the frame on both sides. This worked fine until we started puting in bigger engines and bigger axles. We then started running with MOD trucks and than didn't like it at first. But then the fatige returned. Stopped doing it altogther because stock truck owners where starting to do it with fatal problems. Then we started using more leafs for the front and rearching the main leafs and the three other main leafs to get the hight we needed. We did put track bars on the front of most 4X4's used for HIGHWAY USE! All track bars where installed level across the bottom. Not on angle like Ford does on all there Superdutys. I have a 1999 F350 and when you hit a bump or road cleat the truck wants to jump sideways. The reason Ford did this is because of the cheap front springs with rubber bushings flix so much that with out it you would be all over the road. I just finshed a 2003 CrewCab with a 8 inch lift using DC front spring hangers and shackles. and 6 inch custom rear lift blocks. I build my own lift blocks. I use 7 inch box tubing 3/8 thick wall with end plates with grade 8 bolt for a pin and a 3 inch bump stop. I will put on a front bracket for traction bar hook up. All traction bars are heavy wall tubing threaded and use a 1 inch heim joint with a locking nut. They are bolted to the front of the lowest point of the block and bracket is welded or bolted to the frame forward of the front spring purch of the rear spring at the center of the frame. It works best if you go to the center of the truck it will not bind on the street or when off roading. The truck already had a 16 inch lift with these great big springs for 44 inch tires. He got the original springs with the truck when he bought it they where still new with only a 1000 miles on them. I left the DR spring hangers on it and put a add a leaf on the original front springs and got a total of 8 inchs. The rears i put the original springs back under it and put the 6 inch blocks. The truck set about an 1 1/2 inchs higher in the back. We put 36.5 tires on it. No clearance problems and rides better than new. It has a 7.3 with lots of goodies. Quad shocks on the front and singles on the rear SKYJACKER units.A 4/6 inchs drop pitman arm was installed both of Skyjackers brackets for the panard bar it is level now unlike the stock unit.