2nd Gen leaf sas??

[95plorer]

Hey guys I've been looking all over this site to find a 2nd gen x that has a leaf spring sas, I found littlefoot and Chief34's x. They are both a tad too high for me, so i'd like to lift mine a little less. I'm just starting to gather information to do one and I have a couple idea as to what I want. I've heard that it really depends what front axle I run to make the steering work correctly, any suggestions? Also, what should I do for steering?
I was thinking a dana 44 in the rear, would a dana 30 hold up in the front if i'm gonna run 36 to 38 inch tires? My guess is no but i'm not gonna be that hard on it. It'll be my for-the-most-part daily driver, but i'm also not gonna be afraid to wheel it every weekend, just nothing too out of control. The wheeling around here is generally pretty mild.
I'm looking to get about 10 inches of lift total, and i'd like to have the same bolt pattern for the f&r, (preferably 5x4.5), so whereabouts do i get adapters?
Here's what I'd like to do to the front end
- Dana 30 or 44
- High-arch Jeep leafs like on Chief34's x
- dual Rancho 5000 shocks.
- Rancho steering stabilizers
- SOA

What should I use for shock mounts? f250s?

In the rear
- New springs
- New shackles
- SOA conversion
- Rancho 5000 shocks

What should I do for driveshafts? Where can I get some cheaper custom ones?

What problems am I likely to run into?

If not in a hurry, because I can begin the soa whenever I feel ready too, and this is the place to start.

Sorry to ask all these questions but I've been doing soo much searching, I'm kinda confused, soo much info has been thrown at me i can't keep it all straight. I have like 50 bookmarks that I will continue to read, and then read them all again.

All i'm really looking for is opinions, but it's gonna be a leaf soa (actually have some experience with leafs), and i'd like to keep it as low cost as possible cus I don't have a lot of money, but my father and I can fabricate just about anything.

Thanks again guys.

 

[Robb]

For 36-38"s, you don't want the D44 rear or the D30 front! Your stock Ford 8.8 is just as strong, if not stronger, then the D44 rear. For those meats, you may be able to work with your 8.8 (from your description of what you want it for, it should be fine), and for the front, you want at least a HP D44. If you treated a HP D30 very nicely, it may work, but who wants to go out wheeling worrying about the strength of their axle?

Chief's X is a '91, so a lot of his SAS info doesn't pertain to you.

2nd SASs are a complete PITA. A LOT of frabrication is involoved!!! You will have to completely remove (cut out) an existing crossmember, and fabricate a new one to fit. Steering will also have to be completely custom fabricated.

10" of lift is WAY too much IMO!!!! You will end up with somewhere around 6"+ just to get the stuff to fit.................and you want to keep anymore down to a bare minimum. Forget about lift kit/tire charts and such. You are destroying the resale value of the vehicle, so get comfortable with the idea of cutting your fenders/quarter panels to fit the tires you want. If you are worried about things like cutting some sheet metal, forget the SAS. Of course, there are a couple of examples here of SASs with 10"+ of lift..............and IMO, they are unstable and unsafe! Remember the golden rule of lifting a truck...............the minimum amount of lift needed to run the tire size you want.

Not having a lot of money is NO WAY to start a SAS project. As I stated in another post, I wouldn't even begin to think about starting a SAS (especially in a 2ndGen) without having $3K at my disposal. You may spend less, you may spend a lot more..............but without have at least that cushion, I wouldn't even start it.

Not gonna comment of shock mounts...................they shouldn't even be a concern with starting a project like this. They are something you throw on at the end.

Dual shocks are pretty much worthless when compared to a single good shock.


I know my comments may seen a bit rough and abrupt, but to be honest, you need to hear them. 2nd Gen SASs are nothing to just walk into. And from your description of what you want to do with your truck, you probably don't need one. Daily drivers and SAS Explorers don't usually go hand and hand.

 

[svande8952]

Dual shocks definatley have their purpose, Other than that I agree with rob, shock mounts are the last thing you do. I researched my project for about 4 months and started gathering parts.
I would definatley do another 1st gen swap, they are the best platform, they have a steeting box, selectable tcase, etc....

 

[95plorer]

Yeah if there's one thing I regret it's buying a 2nd gen, I knew nothing abotu the aftermarket before i bought it.

Thanks for the info guys, i'm gonna stick with my original idea of a 3" bl and TT......................................for now.

 

[appx91]

Rye Valley for drive shafts, deal with them alot at my shop(owner of my shop knows owner of rye valley. He built one for a guy at my shop 3" think Chromolly and 35 spline. One beast of shaft. He is building mine.