Suspension Tech General discussion of suspension for the Ford Ranger.

lowering my truck...

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Old 11-19-2008
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lowering my truck...

I'm hopefully going to lower my truck when the time/money comes around. What am I looking at as far as what I need to do the job. I have the tools, but I'm talking about the parts. This is going to be my first lowered truck so I'm not sure on what I'm going to need. Any help is appreciated
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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Drop beams and a flip kit assuming you have a 95 from your name
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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yeah, its a 95.
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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Then yupp, I'm gonna say a set of drop beams and an axle flip kit. or you could bolt in an explorer axle for about the same rear drop. I'm pretty sure I'm right, someone else will probably chime in soon too though
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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DJM 3/4 kit you can get it here probably the cheapest you'll find
http://www.illusivefabrications.com/html/index.php
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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I've already got the parts. I need to know what else I need. I should have been more specific in my post.
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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do you have shocks and Camber plates?
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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No, I'm guess thats what I'm going to need? I'm new to lowering trucks, so I dont know.
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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yup your going to need new shocks, look into belltech nitro drop shocks and check summit for the camber plates
 
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Old 11-19-2008
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cotter pins? grease? pizza? lol
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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well the pizza is a given...and maybe some beer. lol
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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i used alot of beer lowering my truck, but ive got a question as well i went with lowering shocks but if i added the beams would i be too low?
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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I'm not sure on that one. I would like to use lowering shocks, but I don't know how much it will actually lower it. If it does end up being to low, I may just use OEM shocks.
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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The shocks won't actually lower it, they just allow full travel of the suspension when lowered. With stock shocks on a lowered vehicle, the shock is always at one end of it's travel, and can sometimes even bottom out, which kills your ride and wears them out faster. Thats the whole reason for lowered shocks. Better ride and longer life.
Now, if you are talking about lowering springs, thats a different story. The beams will give you 3" of drop, and then you can ad springs for whatever extra drop you want. Personally, I think the 3/4" kit looks good on the older beam trucks, and it gets you down to about the same height as the 4/5 does on the newer A-arm trucks.
Me personally, I like LOW, as in tucking tire at all 4 corners, but that starts getting to be a lot of work.

Edit: the dream beams actually use a stock length shock, so you won't need shorter shocks till you put drop springs on it. You will still need shorter shocks in the back though. Nissan hard body shocks are a popular cheap solution for a dropped Ranger out back.
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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well ive got springs on my 86 and a flip and i wanna do 2 inch lift blocks and i beams, is that gonna be to low?
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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I have the beams up front and the flip kit out back.
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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It's only too low if you think it is.
That'll be 2" lower out back and 3" lower in the front.
Do you have clearance for that? are you willing to make clearance? I'm gonna have to relocate a bunch of stuff under the hood to go as low as I want to. Good thing though, is that all that work will be done for when I decide to bag it.
 
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Old 11-20-2008
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Originally Posted by darkstar_420
well ive got springs on my 86 and a flip and i wanna do 2 inch lift blocks and i beams, is that gonna be to low?
dont use blocks, spend the 10 bucks in hardware and flip your rear hangers for 2 inches of drop.

personally i was tucking tire at 5/7 on 17's with low pros, and loved it.
 
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Old 11-21-2008
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im not gonna bag my truck bags give you a crappy ride and a hacked box, so im gonna stick with the good old sick lookin static drop. and yes i am willing to move things
 
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Old 11-21-2008
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Originally Posted by Mark98xlt
dont use blocks, spend the 10 bucks in hardware and flip your rear hangers for 2 inches of drop.

personally i was tucking tire at 5/7 on 17's with low pros, and loved it.
why would flipping the hangers be better then 2inch lift blocks?
 
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Old 11-21-2008
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Originally Posted by darkstar_420
why would flipping the hangers be better then 2inch lift blocks?
if your buying cheap blocks or aluminum ones, they tend to crack and then your screwed when that happens, its just easier to flip the hangers.


and btw bags dont give you a crappy ride if anything when they are set up correctly are a better ride than your suspension will ever give. Also a bagged truck when built right frame is stronger than your stock frame.
 
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Old 11-22-2008
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well i dunno i rode in an f150 with bags and when you hit a bump it went all over the place....maybe it needed stabilizer bars?
 
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Old 11-22-2008
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So I think I just ran into a problem here. I just went to go look at the flip kit, and all it included were to U shaped blocks, and thats it. No nuts or bolts, nothing. Here is what I orderd, but not what I got. I'm kinda confused now. http://www.stylintrucks.com/part.asp...y_word=fk30014
 
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Old 11-22-2008
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Originally Posted by darkstar_420
im not gonna bag my truck bags give you a crappy ride and a hacked box, so im gonna stick with the good old sick lookin static drop. and yes i am willing to move things
Are you kidding?! Bags ride better than a leaf....A crappy bag setup will still make for a better ride than a leaf! You know that's why Caddy, Lincoln, Ford, and Mercedes to name a few have used air bags as their suspension from the factory. The ride is more based on the shocks, where people who really wanna lay and drag take them off because the shocks limit the travel.

Get a clue before you post BS.
 
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Old 11-22-2008
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Originally Posted by lownslow95
So I think I just ran into a problem here. I just went to go look at the flip kit, and all it included were to U shaped blocks, and thats it. No nuts or bolts, nothing. Here is what I orderd, but not what I got. I'm kinda confused now. http://www.stylintrucks.com/part.asp...y_word=fk30014
Theres no problem, it puts the axle on top of the leafs instead of under them, hence why its called flip kit.

Thats all a flipkit is a u shaped bracket
 


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