ok so for a while i have been thinking about lifting my truck and as it is a 4x4 everything is fairly expensive.
i want about 3 inches of lift i dont know if it is even safe for my truck to crank my torsion bars so i started looking at other options like this lift.
1995 2012 Ford Ranger 3" Front 2" Rear Full Leveling Lift Kit 4x4 Pro | eBay
and no im not stupid i know this is probley a half butt Chinese job but will it work and work well?

 

Cranking the t-bars is not a good idea imho. It'll ride like crap. If you want a cheap 3" of lift.. buy a body lift. There are plenty of how-to's on how to do it. I wouldn't buy that kit off ebay.. you're truck already has lift blocks under the rear leaf springs anyway.. and stacking blocks is a bad idea. Seriously.. body lift.

 

That kit is crap. From the pic it looked like keys and those are 1000x worse than cranking your torsion bars.

Cranking your torsion bars is not an unsafe way or bad way of lifting the front end on these trucks. Just make sure to get an alignment afterwords.

My recommendation to your search of a cheap lift would be to crank your torsion bars and throw shackles in the rear. That should give you about 2 inches.

 

I just posted this in another thread earlier today - but it also applies here:

Pass on lift keys.

Just crank your stock setup. It does the same think as aftermarket keys - but it's free.

The bad part about aftermarket keys (besides costing money for nothing) - is that they allow you to crank the bars even further than stock which would just magnify the potential wear problems.

Summary:
Stock keys w/ bars cranked 1.5"-2" = Potential for stiffer suspension & minor increase in front end component wear.
Aftermarket keys w/ bars at standard location = Stock keys w/ bars cranked 1.5"-2" + Lighter Wallet = Same potential for stiffer suspension & minor increase in front end component wear.
Aftermarket keys w/ bars moderately cranked = Major increase of front end component wear.
Aftermarket keys w/ bars max cranked = Imminent truck death & destruction. lol

 

thanks logan and i think i actually read that post because i remember that summary.
so in all if i crank my stock keys my truck will ride rougher but once i get the allignment will that even out some of the roughness?

 

Yes, on the ride change - but, a no on the alignment thoughts.

No matter if you crank your stock bars or use aftermarket keys (don't lol) the ride will get stiffer than stock (no way around it when talking torsion bar type lift).

Now, it's not like the end of the world or anything - I actually preferred the ride with them cranked some. Thousands of Ranger owners have been cranking the factory bars since 1998.

As far as the alignment goes - it's to save your tires since cranking your bars can potential change everything.

 

oh ok so im thinking just crank them some to level it out and maybe put shackles in the back.
where would i buy the shackles from?
and then after cranking them a little ill just put some money to the side and get a body lift.
how hard would it be for me and my buddys to put the body lift on?
one of them is great with vehicles and has put a hand full of suspension lifts on jeeps

 

Yep, this is what many do.

Most guys run the Belltech 6400 shackles. They will be labeled as Chevy drop shackles - but they raise a Ranger due to the mounting.

It's more time consuming than it is difficult.

I'm sure there are countless threads about them here. Looks around & you will find them.