Re: Lift kits?

[tsm1@domain.elided (Tom Mandera)]

>I realize that I may get a barrage of opinions but...I need a 4" lift on
>our Scout to accommodate 33" tires. I have called around and found 
*Someone* (ME??!!! *gulp* Yep) is working on a FAQ of sorts on this very
subject....

But, I'll first state - Nope, can't do it.  You can't fit 33s on a Scout II
with *just* a 4" lift.

Well, OK, if you lower the bump stops a bunch and sacrifice wheel travel,
yeah, you can do it.

Otherwise, even with hacking as much rear wheel well as reasonable, you
won't get 33s to fit w/o rubbing (wheelin' on Sunday, I was overheard on the
CB saying, "Tire, meet fender.  Fender, meet tire.  I knew the two of you
would meet again." on a number of occasions...

Simplest approach is to use 4" springs and a 2" body lift.  That would
require cutting the firewall for the steering column, and modifying the fan
shroud a tad.

naturally new brake lines are in order.

Or, you can do like the Comers did on Banshee... a stock suspension Scout II
with 38x11" Boggers... can you say, Sawzall?   too bad it requires hacking
the rear wheel wells out to make clearance... the stock wheel well just
doesn't have the room front to back to stuff 33s.

with my 4" Skyjacker lift (w/ +2" rear shackles), it looks like my 33s rub
at the front of the rear wheel well... but they don't.  When the tire
droops, it actually rolls under this lip, but under compression, it rolls
rearward as the spring elongates, and rubs on the rear edge of the wheel
well... not the fender lip, but the wheel well.  There's a C-channel bed
support just behind the wheel well, plus if you cut too much (cut the weld
where the wheel well and C-channel meet) you'll get mud straight into the
cab from the wheel well (how do I know this?) and you still won't stop the
rub until you cut more (C-channel in particular).

>manufacturers for the Scout II lift. They are ALL expensive ($650+) but
>and some reputable sources? I'll be doing the work myself. One guy I

If you're changing the bushings in the frame out, get an Oxy-torch handy...
it takes forever w/ a hacksaw, propane torch, and lots of elbow grease.

>talked to said he recommended using a dropped pitman and have the caster
>adjust to 4-5°, and another said don't bother with the dropped pitman
>because it cuts the turning radius down(?). Any help would be deeply
>appreciated.

Most folks say NO to the pitman arm.  bump steer isn't that bad on mine w/
the 4" lift.

Twisting the front knuckles would be a nice thing to do, but not required
(anyone try those offset balljoints yet?).  I haven't twisted mine yet, and
it seems alright.

As far as which lift... the more I hear of 'em, the more I'm liking the
sounds of the 4" Triangle lift... and the price is reasonable.

I installed a 4" Skyjacker Softride lift last February... I added 2" longer
rear shackles this summer before I slapped the 33s on, and it's just a bit
too low.  I have real figures on how much *true* lift I netted... with my
Skyjacker 4" springs and the +2" rear shackles, I'm sitting at about the
same height as others have achieved with the 4" Triangles alone.

The ride isn't bad w/ the Triangles either... I rode in one at Nationals and
I was happy with it (actually, I guess I've been hanging around *my* Scout
too much... I thought the truck was stock until Glancy told me it had the 4"
Triangle on it... didn't all Scouts come from the factory sitting that tall
with at least 31" tires?)

My $0.02 thus far... one of these days I'll stop playing on the Scout, the
racer, or everything else I've been doing, and sit down and do some HTMLing
that's long overdue...

-Tom Mandera, Helena MT
http://www.tmcom.com/~tsm1/scout
'77 Scout II - 4" Softride, 2" longer rear shackles, 33x12.50s,
304/4spd/4.09s, Tracklok & Lockright, on-board air, pair of KCs, 90amp alt,
stereo, rollbar (when will I finish the cage?), blah blah blah