ive got a carli 2.5 with fox 2.0 shocks and readylift track bar bracket. I am wanting a little more lift and hoping not to have to replace everything with the 4.5" kit. are there any adverse effects of adding a 1" spring spacer and calling it a day?

 

I'd probably ask Carlo. I'm sure they know much more about angles of everything and tolerances than we do. Did you install the Carli. Mine's on order and I plan on doing it myself.

 

I would assume that if you went a little bit higher, your front wheel track would then be off a little bit because the ReadyLift bracket is designed for 2.5" of lift. Your shocks could probably handle the extra stretch though. Give it a shot. Are you gas or diesel?

 

im diesel. im not worried about rub if axle is slightly off center, just thinking it would save several thousand dollars from replacing with carli 4.5 if i could add a $100 spacer and re-align.

 

Go for it. I'd use a BDS 1" spacer, and a Carli adjustable trac bar. Get rid of the bracket. Radius arms wouldn't be a bad mod at this point. Unless you already have the Carli ones.

Might want the brake line drops from the BDS 4" kit as well. I'd run the Fox 2.0 until it blows up and then find a longer shock.

 

You'll be fine, Theres a lot more than 1" of suspension travel, you'll just have a little less. No biggie.

 

I was interested in the same thing. I called Dan at Carli 2 weeks ago about adding a 1" daystar spacer and he said it wasn't a good idea. The main reason I want my truck closer to being level front to back. I had the Carli 2.5" Backcountry kit installed with the full Deaver springs. And the rear sits 2 inches higher than the front which to me doesn't look right. Dan said there shouldn't be that much discrepancy between the front and rear but didn't offer any solutions except basically sucks to be you. Which kind of pisses me off spending that kind of money and not being happy with the stance of the truck And to be honest the stock ride was better than the Carli ride which bums me out. I know they're big on 17 inch wheels because thats how they tune their stuff. I went with 20s knowing the ride probably wouldn't be optimal but I certainly thought it would be better than stock. Dan did say guys in Iceland that wanted a better ride in the rear removed the 6th and 10th leaf from the pack (counting from the top of the pack) that that helped the ride but wasn't sure how much that would lower the rear. He added that Deaver's warranty would be void if the pack was modified in any way.
He said if I wanted to lift the front that the kit shared hardly any common parts and it would be best to sell the kit and buy the 4.5" kit.
So now I'm debating, remove leafs, have a lowering shackle fabricated or add a 1" spacer up front.
Any suggestions gents?

 

[QUOTE=Buliwyf;17994936]Go for it. I'd use a BDS 1" spacer, and a Carli adjustable trac bar. Get rid of the bracket.

Hey Buliwyf, pardon my ignorance, this is my first SD truck with an solid front axle so I'm still learning the verbiage, but when you refer to getting rid of the brackets are you talking about the sway bar drop brackets? Those are the only brackets I see described by Carli in their kit.
Second question: Which would improve bump steer more? Steering stabilizer or PMF adjustable link arms?
Thanks in advance!

 

[QUOTE=AlumadutyAZ;17996430]Here's taking about the BDS or ReadyLift track bar bracket. Carli uses a track bar instead, but some have had issues with it being too long.

I'd get the PMF 3 link. The steering stabilizer masks the issue whereas the 3link would let you dial in more caster and hopefully fix the issue instead of mask the symptom.

 

I would do the ouo kit, then you could set it anywhere from 0 to 2.5" and you can level it side to side. I'm thinking about it because my truck leans to the driver side 3/4".

I would also buy the carli adjustable trac bar.

http://www.ouostore.com/Front_Suspension-Adjustable_2_5_Coil_Levelers_2005_Ford_SD_3.html

 

Same exact thing as the PMF but $700 more?

http://www.pmfsuspension.com/Adjustable-3-Link-Arms_p_22.html

 

[QUOTE=Tricon;17996439]This exactly. Fix the geometry issues, then apply the best dampers you can afford.

 

my options are a poly daystar spacer on top or a metal spacer underneath. is one better than the other?

 

The "levelers" are $219. I'd try it with no caster adjustment if you're running the bushings that came with the 2.5 carli kit. I think the 4.5 kit comes with the same bushings + 1* that the radius arms provide.

 

The reason your truck sits this way is because with the 2.5" kit, the front is lifted 2.5" higher (obviously) than stock. Adding this to a stock truck, with no other modifications (specifically to the rear) your truck should sit just about level, or have about 1/2" to 3/4" high rake in the rear. However, when you add the full Deaver spring replacements to the rear, those provide a significant amount of lift over stock. From Carli's website: "provides a 1", rear high stance on matching 4.5" Leveling Suspension Systems", which almost sounds as if the rear Deaver replacements lift the rear MORE than just 2-3".

With that being said, it's not surprising that your truck sits higher in the rear. With the components you've listed, the entire truck (and it's factory rake) have been lifted equally, retaining the "stock look" in a sense. (SIDE NOTE: From what I've gathered, to get these trucks to sit completely "level" the front needs to be raised about 3.5" with no modifications to the rear).

This is why I went with the 4.5" Commuter kit and the rear add-a-packs, since the final overall stance was critical for me. Their add-a-packs lift the rear approximately 1/2" over stock (without the lift blocks) and 2.5" with the Carli supplied 2" block. With the 4.5" Commuter and rear add-a-packs (and Carli blocks), my truck has been lifted a total of 4.5" up front and 2.5" in the rear which gives me about 1" high front rake, which sounds like what you're after.

The only other option or suggestion I would make, is if you're truly after the perfect stance, then you could remove the Deaver replacements and re-install the factory rear leaf springs. Doing so, as mentioned above, should give you a 1/2" to 3/4" high rear rake. If you wanted to bring the rear down to level it with the front, you could replace the factory 2" block with a custom fabricated 1" block from the guys over at PMF. Unfortunately, doing all of this will greatly affect the ride quality, but it would give you the look your after. Carli seems to have spent a significant amount of time in their R&D on these trucks. For the money you've spent, don't just go swapping out mix matched parts from other brands, it could lead to further issues.

These aren't the best pictures, but I've uploaded them since they give a better understanding of the final stance with the 4.5" kit, rear add-a-packs and lift blocks.