i was wondering if by having my t-bars cranked, aside from a stiff ride, am i hurting my truck. and is it safe to go back at any time

 

yes and yes.
You'll need to get your truck re-aligned anytime you crank the T-bars, otherwise you'l get some excessive wear.

 

Causes excess wear on the ball joints, tie rod ends, CVs and maybe other stuff on the front end but you can decrank them anytime but the damage wont be reversible.

 

If you're going for 1.5" lift, you'll need to get replacement extended shocks as your stock ones aren't used to being that higher than stock ride height, plus extension from normal driving.

 

Factory shocks will be fine, your still operating within the limits of the suspension. Your just changing where you sit staticly within that envelope.

 

Both are right. Stock is ok to use but cranking limits either your down travel or uptravel (I forget which but wanna say down).

Some guys get longer shocks to make it feel better. Alot of guys have cranked thier bars, myself included. Just be prepared for things wearing quicker then normal.

Disclaimer:
BE SURE TO GET AN ALIGNMENT WHEN YOU DO DECIDE TO CRANK THEM.

 

stock shocks are what limit the down travel. going to a longer shock will allow for more down travel which can do a lot of damage in a hurry. nice way to pull out a cv shaft

 

x2 leave the stock spec shocks on!

 

I have been running a 1.5" t-bar lift since very soon after I bought it new. I have near 135,000 miles on it now and have incurred no damage to any of the front suspension or drive axles. I did install new Bilstein shocks at around 100K miles and they were stock replacements. The only other work done on the front has been front end alignments a few times.

I did raise it a little more after about 5 yrs to compensate for a little relaxation in the suspension. It still works well but I am expecting I will need to change the ball joints within the next 50K miles or so. They were still good at my last alignment (around January) but I did have to have a camber kit installed.