Skyjacker Installation on a Chevy Suburban

[GaryL]

As mentioned elsewhere on the site. I am planning on installing a Skyjacker 2"-3" suspension lift (part # C2567K ) on my Suburban this weekend. I will try to take photos of the steps and report any problems I encounter. Here are a couple of "before" photos just for a teaser.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0309.jpg

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0307.jpg

Stay tuned and I'll do my best to cover it all.

[Cableguy]

Thats cool! A buddy of mine at work just did his little CJ. The Skyjacker kits is really nice stuff, urethane bushings and all. That 3" should look like a million bucks on your Burb. Good Luck. Mind the knuckles Gary...

[GaryL]

OK, it's not done yet (I had to work on that F*** and then spent most of the rest of the day sneezing) but here is another teaser for you. I should have it finished up by tomorrow.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0326Medium.jpg

Oops, sorry wrong picture. This was a shot of the grill after a long day working on trucks. Gotta keep the energy up. :) I'll post more soon.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0324Medium.jpg

[Cableguy]

Nice job! Now we need a profile shot to see the overall look. Gotta love the barbeque this time of year. I'd cook eggs on there if I could figure out how to keep um from slipping thru grill:sarcastic:

[GaryL]

Well it's still not done yet, I guess I'll be riding the CB900 tomorrow. I had some issues with the fitment of the differential lowering bracket and finally quit before I beat the s*** out of my truck. I will finish it this week and give an honest opinion (or biased, depending on how you look at it) of the Skyjacker kit. Right now my mood is not the greatest, so I will leave it off here.

[Steve]

Nothing gets wrenches flying faster for me that something like that. Just keep at it and keep us posted.

[bensblueburban]

Keep working at it. I have a 1997 suburban and I am looking at the exact same lift kit that you are installing right now. Where did you buy your kit and for how much?

I'll be curious to hear whether you would recommend paying someone to install it or to do it yourself? Right now you sound like you would pay someone to install it.

Good luck and keep us posted!

[GaryL]

What ever 4 Wheel Parts charges to install it, it's not enough. I bought mine through Jegs. The main kit was $490 and the shocks were about $40 each. I also put new upper ball joints on that I bought at Autozone for $35 each. Mine was missing parts when it showed up, but Skyjacker overnighted the parts to me so that was nice. The instructions that come with it are a joke. They are very vague and the diagrams and pictures have been copied so many times that they are useless. I am having issues installing the front differential drop brackes and getting everything lined up correctly to install the differential mountin bolts. I spent 3.5 hours yesterday raising, lowering, wiggling and cussing at the differential and finally just pulled out one of the brackets and enlarge the hole so I could get the bolt through. Then I found out that I could not get the last bracket in place with all the other brackets in place and had to remove everything I had been working on to install the rear most bracket (which on the instructions is the last one to be installed). I quit at that point and worked on it a little while today and got the last bracket installed, but now the bolt I worked on so long yesterday doesn't want to go back in the hole it came out of, so I have stopped again. It will probably be raining the rest of the week, so I won't finish the install untill the weekend. Oh well, I get to drive my big block 78 Silverado for a few days and it needed a good leg stretching anyway.

[Steve]

What ever 4 Wheel Parts charges to install it, it's not enough. I bought mine through Jegs. The main kit was $490 and the shocks were about $40 each. I also put new upper ball joints on that I bought at Autozone for $35 each. Mine was missing parts when it showed up, but Skyjacker overnighted the parts to me so that was nice. The instructions that come with it are a joke. They are very vague and the diagrams and pictures have been copied so many times that they are useless. I am having issues installing the front differential drop brackes and getting everything lined up correctly to install the differential mountin bolts. I spent 3.5 hours yesterday raising, lowering, wiggling and cussing at the differential and finally just pulled out one of the brackets and enlarge the hole so I could get the bolt through. Then I found out that I could not get the last bracket in place with all the other brackets in place and had to remove everything I had been working on to install the rear most bracket (which on the instructions is the last one to be installed). I quit at that point and worked on it a little while today and got the last bracket installed, but now the bolt I worked on so long yesterday doesn't want to go back in the hole it came out of, so I have stopped again. It will probably be raining the rest of the week, so I won't finish the install untill the weekend. Oh well, I get to drive my big block 78 Silverado for a few days and it needed a good leg stretching anyway.

You touched a bit on what I do for a living. They should have the installation manuals and other documentation online so you can download and print it yourself. They also should make certain that they hire a semi-mechanical writer do their docs for them. Don't make a mechanic or an engineer write docs that that are designed for the general public.

[GaryL]

I did find the instructions online and the diagrams and pictures were at least usable. I finished the front installation yesterday (I had jury duty and didn't get picked so I took the rest of the day off and worked on the truck). After messing with it for a couple of hours without much luck, I called Skyjacker and the tech knew about the problem I was having and walked me through how to fix it. After I did some trimming on the cooling fins on the differential, it went where it was supposed to and everything finally lined up right. I still have to do the rear and adjust the torsion bars to get it all back to the correct stance, but that will happen this weekend.

[TrailLeadr]

I probably shouldn't have to ask, but I want to be sure. Did Skyjacker give you replacement bushings for the upper control arms, or did they expect you to buy new ones, or use the existing ones?

[GaryL]

The kit came with new polyurethane bushings as well as new longer stainless steel braided front brake lines.

[GaryL]

Here is the before and after shots. I still need to get the front end aligned before it eats up my front tires, but that's a whole other part of this story. I am going to try to make a write up about the experience, but I haven't done it yet.

Before:

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0309.jpg

After:

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0352.jpg

[Steve]

Wow, looks great!:party:

[bensblueburban]

WOW!!! That thing looks awesome! I want to buy my 2"-3" lift right now. It gives the vehicle a whole new stance. Please do a very detailed write up about putting this lift on because I am 99% sure that I will put one on this summer.

Is your lift 2" or 3"?

So heres the questions:
Was it worth the time and frustration to install the lift on your own or would you pay someone else a fortune to install it?

I do have another vehicle to drive while working on the install, so in your opinion should I try to put it on myself?

How much mechanical ability is needed to install this lift?

What tools are needed for the install?

How much time do you think you spent overall on the install? On the front? On the back?

How does the new suspension feel compared to the old suspension and are the skyjacker shocks of good quality?

Do you like how it looks and drives now?

Can you tell that it has more height when getting into the car now? Does it feel higher while driving it and when sitting next to other cars at traffic lights?

Is the center of gravity thrown off now?

Sorry for all of the questions. I just am very interested in this lift and want to know all of the variables from someone who has installed it before I install mine. Thanks for being the guinea pig that all of us are learning from! haha

[Cableguy]

That is a nice stance Gary. Me likey!

[collinsperformance]

OK- I hope i not out of place but i not yet done one on my chey (some time soon 6-8" will be on Brutis). i done alot of lifts on my other toys so i pass my information on that to you.


So heres the questions:
Was it worth the time and frustration to install the lift on your own or would you pay someone else a fortune to install it? This would depend on you, if you got money to toss and no tools, patence, space to do the job or time. it is nice to drive into a shop hand the keys to someone and get it back completed. I am too broke to do this and i like to work on my own stuff so i can have peice of mind it is done to my standards (i can be a pain and i likes things done my way or not done at all and i like to know the state of my truck so i can see every inch of it and know what elase needs attention).

I do have another vehicle to drive while working on the install, so in your opinion should I try to put it on myself?again time,space, tools and knowhow. most lifts come with detailed instructions and pictures so one can do it ones self--just ignore the install times or tripple them and you will be fine.

How much mechanical ability is needed to install this lift?common sense, most basic hand tools, a long breaker bar, and alot of PB Blaster to help in removing the bolts and nuts.if you can read and do most popular upgrades to your truck then a lift kit is not too hard. just farm out what you do not know ( for me this was the alignment. i can get close but it rather put in the shop and use my free lifetime alignment)

What tools are needed for the install?depending on condition of truck, common hand tools, breaker bar, ball joint seperator, press (or a shop can do this part drop the parts off), jack, a few jack stands, touque wrench, a place to lay stuff out for removed parts and install new parts,if there are rivets like the ford an air hammer and or grinfder and a BFH and a siz pack or gallon of your favorite cool drink. a friend helps too, but i seem to miss place mine at time of work, they show up at closing time or diner time.....

How much time do you think you spent overall on the install? On the front? On the back?i would say the 1st time installer would do the rear one weekend and the front the next. If all goes well then you might see the rear one day and the front the other day on the weekend. most kits say 10-16 hours to install. i got the ford lifts down pretty good.

How does the new suspension feel compared to the old suspension and are the skyjacker shocks of good quality? the ride will be different, and it will or may change over the first 1000-3000 miles (springs need to setin and well as the other parts) i perfer the SkyJacker Class II lift kits they seem to be the strongest for the Ford crappy TTB front end

Do you like how it looks and drives now? i love the look of a lift and larger tires and most of the time the ride is alot better---remember this is a truck not a custom cruzer.....

Can you tell that it has more height when getting into the car now? Does it feel higher while driving it and when sitting next to other cars at traffic lights?
this would depend on the size lify you use. i went 8" suspension and 3" body so 11" lift was a big difference getting in. you will notice as little as an 1" but you will adjust without thinking.

Is the center of gravity thrown off now? if you drive these like trucks than there is little to no difference, but if you want to cayon carve with it she will be different. i have never been sad that i added a lift to any thing i added one to so i would do it again and again........hope this helps..
Here s what Jezebel started her life with me as (sorry it is a Ford, But Brutis just joined the family and has not gone under the knife yet)
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/449425/fullsize/bronco-pass.jpg
Her she is top less and new lift and tires and just getting ready to out and play.
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/446361/fullsize/newlightsrear.jpg
Lift it and enjoy it.....mike

[GaryL]

Michael is pretty much right on with his answers to your questions. This was my first lift to install and I ran into a few snags, but overall I'm glad I did it myself. Like Michael, I took it to the shop for the alignment.

The lift is advertised to be a 2-3" lift depending on how much you crank the torsion bars. When it was all installed, I measured how much I had gained in the back and adjusted the torsion bars to get the same result in the front.

The rear portion was just an add-a-leaf. It went smoothly and only took 2.5-3 hours. The front shouldn't have taken as long as it took me (about 18-20 total hours), but I ran into some fitment issues and fought them for a while before I finally called Skyjacker for some help. The kit I bought shows it is for the 97-98 Burbs and mine is a 99. Skyjacker assured me it would be fine with some minor trimming on the front differential cooling fins. It finally sat where it was supposed to. Here is a shot of what I had to trim.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0333.jpg

After I got it all installed and went to get it aligned, I found out this truck has never had the caster/camber adjusted and it still had the factory adjustment blocks in place. The shop wanted $186 to knock them out and I said no and did it myself. If I had known what to look for, I would have knocked them out when I had the upper A-arms off the first time. I had to jack it up, unbolt the upper A-arms, knock out the blocks and put it all back together. This only took me about an hour last night to get done, so it wasn't too bad, but it would have been nice to know about the blocks when I had it all apart the first time.

The only special tools that were required was a ball joint separator and a really heavy duty C-Clamp that had to be used to relieve the tension on the torsion bars. I used a control arm bushing remover (big C-Clamp) for this job and it worked fine.

As far as ride, it is a little stiffer that it was before, but not bad at all. It does feel more like a truck instead of a cruiser like Michael stated. I haven't driven it enough to give a comment about the shocks, but so far I don't have any complaints. I can tell the difference when I get out of the truck, but while driving the difference is very subtle. I love the way it looks and so far the way it drives is just fine.

As Michael stated, you can't tell any difference on the center of gravity and it has about the same amount of body roll in the corners as it did before.

Overall, I am please with the kit and installation (especially now that is finished). The instructions left a little to be desired, but I will try to fill in some of the things I came across when I do the write-up.

[Steve]

Michael is pretty much right on with his answers to your questions. This was my first lift to install and I ran into a few snags, but overall I'm glad I did it myself. Like Michael, I took it to the shop for the alignment.

The lift is advertised to be a 2-3" lift depending on how much you crank the torsion bars. When it was all installed, I measured how much I had gained in the back and adjusted the torsion bars to get the same result in the front.

The rear portion was just an add-a-leaf. It went smoothly and only took 2.5-3 hours. The front shouldn't have taken as long as it took me (about 18-20 total hours), but I ran into some fitment issues and fought them for a while before I finally called Skyjacker for some help. The kit I bought shows it is for the 97-98 Burbs and mine is a 99. Skyjacker assured me it would be fine with some minor trimming on the front differential cooling fins. It finally sat where it was supposed to. Here is a shot of what I had to trim.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/IMG_0333.jpg

After I got it all installed and went to get it aligned, I found out this truck has never had the caster/camber adjusted and it still had the factory adjustment blocks in place. The shop wanted $186 to knock them out and I said no and did it myself. If I had known what to look for, I would have knocked them out when I had the upper A-arms off the first time. I had to jack it up, unbolt the upper A-arms, knock out the blocks and put it all back together. This only took me about an hour last night to get done, so it wasn't too bad, but it would have been nice to know about the blocks when I had it all apart the first time.

The only special tools that were required was a ball joint separator and a really heavy duty C-Clamp that had to be used to relieve the tension on the torsion bars. I used a control arm bushing remover (big C-Clamp) for this job and it worked fine.

As far as ride, it is a little stiffer that it was before, but not bad at all. It does feel more like a truck instead of a cruiser like Michael stated. I haven't driven it enough to give a comment about the shocks, but so far I don't have any complaints. I can tell the difference when I get out of the truck, but while driving the difference is very subtle. I love the way it looks and so far the way it drives is just fine.

As Michael stated, you can't tell any difference on the center of gravity and it has about the same amount of body roll in the corners as it did before.

Overall, I am please with the kit and installation (especially now that is finished). The instructions left a little to be desired, but I will try to fill in some of the things I came across when I do the write-up.

Awesome, you should get a salesman's referal bonus from SkyJacker! I'm sure that you'll help to sell some kits to the guys who read this post on here. Thanks for the good write-up so far, can't wait to see a full write-up!

:great::great:

[Steve]

OK- I hope i not out of place but i not yet done one on my chey (some time soon 6-8" will be on Brutis). i done alot of lifts on my other toys so i pass my information on that to you.


So heres the questions:
Was it worth the time and frustration to install the lift on your own or would you pay someone else a fortune to install it? This would depend on you, if you got money to toss and no tools, patence, space to do the job or time. it is nice to drive into a shop hand the keys to someone and get it back completed. I am too broke to do this and i like to work on my own stuff so i can have peice of mind it is done to my standards (i can be a pain and i likes things done my way or not done at all and i like to know the state of my truck so i can see every inch of it and know what elase needs attention).

I do have another vehicle to drive while working on the install, so in your opinion should I try to put it on myself?again time,space, tools and knowhow. most lifts come with detailed instructions and pictures so one can do it ones self--just ignore the install times or tripple them and you will be fine.

How much mechanical ability is needed to install this lift?common sense, most basic hand tools, a long breaker bar, and alot of PB Blaster to help in removing the bolts and nuts.if you can read and do most popular upgrades to your truck then a lift kit is not too hard. just farm out what you do not know ( for me this was the alignment. i can get close but it rather put in the shop and use my free lifetime alignment)

What tools are needed for the install?depending on condition of truck, common hand tools, breaker bar, ball joint seperator, press (or a shop can do this part drop the parts off), jack, a few jack stands, touque wrench, a place to lay stuff out for removed parts and install new parts,if there are rivets like the ford an air hammer and or grinfder and a BFH and a siz pack or gallon of your favorite cool drink. a friend helps too, but i seem to miss place mine at time of work, they show up at closing time or diner time.....

How much time do you think you spent overall on the install? On the front? On the back?i would say the 1st time installer would do the rear one weekend and the front the next. If all goes well then you might see the rear one day and the front the other day on the weekend. most kits say 10-16 hours to install. i got the ford lifts down pretty good.

How does the new suspension feel compared to the old suspension and are the skyjacker shocks of good quality? the ride will be different, and it will or may change over the first 1000-3000 miles (springs need to setin and well as the other parts) i perfer the SkyJacker Class II lift kits they seem to be the strongest for the Ford crappy TTB front end

Do you like how it looks and drives now? i love the look of a lift and larger tires and most of the time the ride is alot better---remember this is a truck not a custom cruzer.....

Can you tell that it has more height when getting into the car now? Does it feel higher while driving it and when sitting next to other cars at traffic lights?
this would depend on the size lify you use. i went 8" suspension and 3" body so 11" lift was a big difference getting in. you will notice as little as an 1" but you will adjust without thinking.

Is the center of gravity thrown off now? if you drive these like trucks than there is little to no difference, but if you want to cayon carve with it she will be different. i have never been sad that i added a lift to any thing i added one to so i would do it again and again........hope this helps..
Here s what Jezebel started her life with me as (sorry it is a Ford, But Brutis just joined the family and has not gone under the knife yet)
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/449425/fullsize/bronco-pass.jpg
Her she is top less and new lift and tires and just getting ready to out and play.
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/446361/fullsize/newlightsrear.jpg
Lift it and enjoy it.....mike

Well, it's a F--- but I would think it's still a lot of fun to hit the mud bogs and throw some dirt around. Look forward to your writeups on "Brutis" when you get to it.

[bensblueburban]

Well I am trying to decide between the skyjacker lift that you installed and this rough country lift:

http://www.roughcountry.com/chevy_4wd_88-98_2-3.html

Which do you think would be better?

The rough country has much better pictures and much more detailed instructions than the skyjacker so I am leaning that way. The rough country kit also gives you new HD torsion bars to install so I don't really know. But so far I will go with the rough country.

[GaryL]

I spoke to a tech at a local 4wd shop about the Rough Country and Skyjacker. He had never done a Rough Country, so he called his supplier and his supplier told him that if his customer REALLY wanted a Rough Country then he should sell it to him, but otherwise try to talk them into something else. He said the add-a-leafs start to sag within a very short time and the shocks are not too good. That was enough for me to stay away from it.

[bensblueburban]

Well, you just talked me out of it. Thanks! I don't want my add-a-leafs to sag after I put them in. I want a lift that lasts.

Can you really tell whether it rides more rough with the add-a-leafs in or not? Thats the only real drawback I see to getting a lift.

Yeah, I kind of did notice that the rough country shocks were not of very good quality. You see a whole lot more people with skyjacker shocks installed on their trucks than rough country ones.

In your opinion, would the HD torsion bars that you get with the rough country really add a whole lot more or will the OEM torsion bars do the job with only a 3 inch lift?

Also, Does the amount of lift that the add-a-leafs add to the overall height pretty much dictate whether it's a 2" or a 3" lift?

How much was your overall lift in the end?

Was Jegs easy to deal when ordering the lift or should I find it somewhere else?

[Crawdaddy]

I'm still working on trying to decide what size lift I want to put on my burb, but I seem to have run into a problem already...I'm running a 2wd burb, and so far, I haven't found any kits for 2wd subs. So, I may be stopped before I start.... Anyone got any leads? I think I want a 3 or 4 inch lift, just enough to pick it off the ground so I don't scrape on some ruts I drive through occasionally

[GaryL]

The ride now is about the same as a friends 3/4 ton truck. Not harsh by any means, but not as smooth as it was before the lift. If you don't do much towing you might go with the Hydro shocks instead of the Nitro shocks that I used. They are supposed to be a little softer.

I think the stock torsion bars are just fine for this lift.

Since the rear is not adjustable, I set the front up to match what I gained in the rear, which was just shy of 2 1/4".

Jegs was great to work with. I have used them for over 12 years and never had a problem. When my box arrived, it was missing a few items. They took the list of missing items and forwarded it to Skyjacker and Skyjacker overnighted the parts to me.

[cameradude]

I paid someone to install a Tuff Country lift on my 95 3/4ton HD 4X4 turbo sub, it was well worth it for the work, cutting and fitting and also the headaches not to mention knuckle aches!

[bensblueburban]

GaryL, I'm not trying to be pushy or rush you. But, what is your ballpark estimate of when you will finish your write-up on the lift installation.

I am so close to buying the skyjacker kit but want to wait and read your write-up before I purchase it.

Did the skyjacker person on the phone say whether or not shaving the cooling fins was necessary for all years or just your 1999?

Thanks so much for doing all of this.

[Steve]

I paid someone to install a Tuff Country lift on my 95 3/4ton HD 4X4 turbo sub, it was well worth it for the work, cutting and fitting and also the headaches not to mention knuckle aches!


Do you have before and after photos for this?

[GaryL]

Hey Ben,

Sorry for the delay. I will try to get it finished in the next few days. I have been working a lot lately and have not been in the mood to sit at the computer for a few hours to get it done.

The tech did not say it was just the '99's, but kind of alluded to it. He said '99 was a "new body style and old body style year and that some of the new parts went into the old body style".

[GaryL]

Sorry I haven't got this finished and I am by no means a technical writer, but I will touch on some of the things I came up against when I was installing the kit. I tried to explain a little better than the instructions did. You can find a copy of Skyjacer's instructions for this kit here: http://skyjacker.com/image/search/pdf/C2567K.pdf

The below large, heavy duty C-clamp can be used instead of the special tool that they mention is step one for unloading the torsion bars. I also used it to compress the leaf springs when assembling those.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0343Small.jpg

It should be place here. This is a picture of the torsion key with the adjusting bolt already removed. You use the C-clamp to push the key up into the frame a little further (until the adjusting bolt rattles around free) and then remove the bolt and what it screws into.

View from the bottom:
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0314Small.jpg

View from the front:
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0315Small.jpg


Here is what it will look like when you get the upper A-arm out.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0318Small.jpg

[GaryL]

At this point look at the holes where the bolts went throught the brackets on the frame. All four of the holes should be an oblong shape like below.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0321Small.jpg

If it looks like this, you need to knock the pieces out.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0320Small.jpg

Here are the pieces after removal.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0323Small.jpg

I did not know about these and could not get the truck aligned with them in place. The shop wanted $180 to remove them. I took the truck back home removed the upper A-arms AGAIN and knocked out the blocks. I didn't have to remove the ball joint though, just the bolts at the frame and then move the assembly out of the way.

The A-arm part of the installation was pretty straight forward and not too difficult.

[GaryL]

When the tell you to remove the mounting tab on the drivers side of the vehicle they are talking about this piece. You have to cut or gring the welds off where I have indicated with circles and arrows.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0327Small.jpg

Because of where it is located, it is a real paint to get all the bolts tight when installing the piece that replaces this tab since they tell you not to tighten any bolts until all of the bolts are in place. Here you can see where I had to trim the differential to make it clear the frame when it was lowered.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0333Small.jpg

This bracket system on the upper front of the differential was where I spent a lot of time. I ended up having to elongate the holes in the upper part of the bracket to make everything line up right. Here is a shot of it after I finally got everything lined up.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0334Small.jpg

[GaryL]

Here is a shot of the new and old brackets that hold the passenger side of the axle tube in place.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0331Small.jpg

Check the angle of your cv axle when you install this piece. My instructions told me to install it one way but that some vehicles may require it to be installed the other way (short end front or rear) Mine had to go in opposite of the directions to make the axle straight.

This is where this piece goes.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0330Small.jpg

[GaryL]

The rear wasn't too bad to do. Follow the instructions that come with the add-a-leafs because the ones in the lift kit are pretty vague. The drawings that come with the add-a-leafs don't really match this application. The brackets toward the end of the leafs aren't the same. We found it easiest to dissassemble the springs as much as we could and the drive the new leaf in from the end as shown in the pictures below.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0342Small.jpg


http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0344Small.jpg


http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0345Small.jpg

Once you get them all lined up, install the new, longer spring bolt.

Try not to do this while hammering in the new leaf.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0347Small.jpg

[GaryL]

Reinstall the springs, load the cooler and light the smoker, it's time to celebrate. :)

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o10/GaryL_photos/K1500/Skyjacker/IMG_0351Small.jpg


All in all the process was not too bad, just a little vague on some of the instructions. If you decide to do this, ask some questions if you have them and I will try to answer what I can. I am very happy with the way it turned out.

[GaryL]

One thing I forgot to mention, I replaced the upper ball joints when I did this. The instructions say you can reuse the old ones if they are in good shape, but they are a pain to get off of the old arms with out damaging them.

You will also need to replace the 4 U-bolts that hold the rear springs in place. They are just barely long enough to snug up with the add-a-leaf in there. I have not replaced mine yet, but I will very soon.

[unplugged]

Stacey David did a show on his GearZTV show about the Skyjacker 3" lift kit onto a late model diesel pickup. You can see episode 11 at GearZTV (http://www.gearztv.com/index.php?em2044=146444_-1__0_%7E0_-1_6_2007_0_0&content=shows) You do have to register to view the video, but it gives you a visual of the effort that GaryL went to for the Skyjacker installation.

[GaryL]

Thanks for that link, I was wondering where Stacey ended up. That install is a little more involved that the one on mine. I did not have to remove lower control arms or the front differential and axles and the crossmember he had to cut off was only a small mounting tab on mine.

[Steve]

How's this SkyJacker kit still treating you? I added this to DIGG to try to get some traffic! I think more people need to see this post!

[tigersdl65]

I looked at the jegs website and the 3 inch lift is over $1,000. Whats up with the price?

[GaryL]

The kit I used was Skyjacker part #C2567K. It is advertised as a 2.5" lift. On Jegs' website, it is priced at $542.99.

[tigersdl65]

I spoke to a tech at a local 4wd shop about the Rough Country and Skyjacker. He had never done a Rough Country, so he called his supplier and his supplier told him that if his customer REALLY wanted a Rough Country then he should sell it to him, but otherwise try to talk them into something else. He said the add-a-leafs start to sag within a very short time and the shocks are not too good. That was enough for me to stay away from it.


So does the skyjacker come with everything a rough country would?

[tigersdl65]

The kit came with new polyurethane bushings as well as new longer stainless steel braided front brake lines.

So no need to buy brake lines? You and everyone else has convinced me to go with the skyjacker instead of rough country!

[tigersdl65]

I paid someone to install a Tuff Country lift on my 95 3/4ton HD 4X4 turbo sub, it was well worth it for the work, cutting and fitting and also the headaches not to mention knuckle aches!

How mch was the install?

[hmaster77]

Nice job! Now we need a profile shot to see the overall look. Gotta love the barbeque this time of year. I'd cook eggs on there if I could figure out how to keep um from slipping thru grill:sarcastic:
u put foil over ur grill and u can cook eggs or whatever u want lol make sure u put plenty on though so it dont tear

[tigersdl65]

Did lift come with new torsion keys?