Thread: 2/4 Drop?
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Old 12-07-2013, 04:20 AM
markk53 markk53 is offline
Ford Tough
 
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 271
Default Re: 2/4 Drop?

Illusive had the best over all pricing for what I did.

I will say since I did the 3/4 drop on my splash (supposed to be 1" lower all around, but I'm not sure about the back) I have a few comments.

First you will find unless you heat and bend the flanges on the frame just above the axle you will bottom out more often. Don't bother with 3/4" bottoming cushions, take a sharpened putty knife and cut your OEM cushions in half on the truck - freebie. On the Splash with the flip kit the pinion is angled nose up about 7 degrees, I have a 6 degree shim plate I want to put in to get it down to a better angle.

If I had it to do over I'd go with a 2" rear drop using a set of drop shackles and do the shackle plate change for a 2-3" drop in the rear. With the 4" drop I went with a pair of Monroe 1990 Nissan D21 Hardbody air shocks to help since I already had the flip kit on and wasn't going to change it. With the air shocks at 40 psi the bottoming has been reduced tremendously and they will help when I load a bike or mulch in the bed. I also have a set of lift hangers that would raise the rear by 1" which would be good for more travel.

On the front, definitely go with a set of adjustable castor/camber bushings from NAPA. It allows the front end to be dialed in when aligned. I went with the 3" arms and new NAPA shocks (Monroes in a NAPA box) which was fine, but if you have the money do the best you can get. Good shocks are a good buy, learned that on motorcycles. Those nice shiny chrome shocks are about as good as screen door cushions, a $150 aftermarket shock is almost infinitely better and the $400-1000 shocks are better and multi-adjustable. Shocks are where costs are cut by manufacturers.

Here is my experience with beams, and it will hold partly true with springs because you need to remove the large nuts inside the spring that fasten the springs to the beam.

  • First the large bolt that holds the radius rod or link or whatever you want to call it - the large bolt going up through to the spring - IS EXPOSED TO THE ELEMENTS BEHIND THE STOCK I-BEAM AND WILL BE QUiTE RUSTED! BE AWARE OF THIS AND SOAK THE LIVING SNOT OUT OF THEM WITH WD40 AND PB BLASTER FOR A WEEK OR TWO BEFORE TRYING TO REMOVE THEM. Look behind the beam and you will see what I mean. Also have a healthy air compressor and good half inch impact gun with an impact socket to fit that bolt.
  • You also need to spray the shock bolts with some WD40 or PB Blaster or both frequently for about a week or so before you do the work.
  • You will need a 1-1/8" wrench and I think also a socket to take off the nut holding the spring base to the beam and the nut beneath that holding the radius arm or link or whatever you want to call it, to the beam. Go buy them now.
  • Odds are the bolt will be stuck and you will have a hell of a time breaking it loose if you ignored the second bullet so here's a reminder.
  • I'd recommend wire brushing the shock studs before attempting to loosen the nuts too, maybe some heat and PB Blaster or the like. This might not be a problem if you did the second step. We ran the nut loose/tight/loose/tight to try to get them to work off. One did, but one snapped leaving just enough thread to put on the shock - can you say fortunate!
  • Definitely use an adjustable bushing in the top joint.
  • Get it aligned by a good shop. My first shop did a lousy job and the driver side slipped. The second shop did a good job - they dressed an edge or two with a file.


Other than the nightmare of rusted parts, doing the beams was a good deal because it keeps the suspension travel and ride doesn't change. Shorter springs will sometimes make the ride harder if the springs are the same or higher spring rate. Be aware of this.

The rear is not all that big a deal except the bump stops as pointed out. As said, I'd do the shackles and shackle carrier to get a bit less drop - more travel - for the ride.

End result:



If this suits your needs you know what I did and where I got my stuff - Illusive Designs and Fabrication. Again, my Ranger is the Splash and has shorter front springs and supposedly 1" lower rear to start with, so the 235/60-15 wheels look about right in the wheel wells for me. A standard Ranger will supposedly be 1" higher and the standard tires will be probably 10-15% higher aspect ratio, again filling the wheel wells probably fairly well. With the beams and less rear drop there will be a light rake to the front. I actually wanted that. I'm not much for the rear being lower or level - but that's my opinion of what I like.
__________________
1996 Ranger Splash 4.0/5sp manual 3/4'ed - haul yard waste, mulch, orders of hard wood for my classes, and tow a 5x10' enclosed trailer around a bit.
1995 Kawasaki KLX650C big bore 678cc - lotta fun!
1990 Kawasaki ZR550 Zephyr - that old AMA Superbike look I love.
1978 Yamaha SR500 street-tracker with the emphasis on tracker (short tracker with lights).

Last edited by markk53; 12-07-2013 at 04:33 AM.
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