Cutting down 2" body lift to 1" body lift

[Hartman]

I won't get into details, but I need a 1" body lift, and no more than that. I have researched the "hockey puck method", but I found out that the pucks often rot out after a year or so and squeek. Therefore, this is not an option for me. So I was wondering if it would be possible to get a 2" body lift and cut the mounts in half to make a 1" body lift. If so, where is the best place to purchase this Ranger kit that includes the bumper brackets? If not, do I have any other options?

Thanks.

 

[jimbo74]

just go 2"

 

[Hartman]

Not doing it, sorry. 1" is all.

 

[jimbo74]

then why do it at all... stay with the streeters.....

personally i wouldnt do it.... but thats me.... i figure why go throuh all that trouble.. i have seen real body lift pucks... and they are not bad looking... however, might be just me, but i dont think you should cut it down for your needs.... i think 1" bodylifts are out there too.....

EDIT: i nkow you need 10 pucks... and many offroad places will sell pucks individually.. and i have seen 1" blody lifts... might wnat to go that route

 

[glfredrick]

There is no real rocket science to the body lift. Just get the pucks trimmed to your size - make the bolts the right length and you have a 1" body lift. You can even make the pucks if you don't want to go the cut down route. I would take two heavy (and I mean the same size as the purchased body lift pucks) washers and a piece of metal tube and make your own if you have some fabrication skills or a friend with such. Other issues such as relocation of steering, brake lines, wires, etc. won't really be an issue with only an inch of lift.

In other words -- just do it... In fact, your factory bolts might even have enough thread for the extra inch in some cases.

You are correct about not using hockey pucks. I used to break them with a hockey stick. They do not belong under a truck that weighs near 5000#. You might check with a Jeep off-road parts place. They sell a ton of 1" lifts for Wranglers. Just get the correct number of pucks.

 

[Hartman]

Sounds good. Are all the stock body mounts on an Explorer the same size?

 

[Texplorer]

Since your 2wd now why go with a body lift. You can get just about any amount of lift you want fairly easy and cheap.

 

[Trckmagik]

Hartman,
With a one inch body lift you will not need to worry with steering or the radiator drop brackets. You can order 10 1" lift blocks from 4 Wheel Parts. These are listed for a jeep but a block is a block. All you will need at that point is 10 bolts that are 1" longer than stock that can be acquired from Home Depot or Lowes.
These blocks are cheap and so are the bolts. There is no reason to spend the money on a 2" kit just to cut it down.
If you contact their customer service they should be able to help you out. Let them know you have a Jeep and just need the 1" blocks. Like I said you will need 10 of these blocks and they should be about 1.85 each.

 

[Hartman]

Thanks Brian that is a huge help. I feel confident I can do it fairly easily. Making bumper brackets shouldn't be that hard, and I've already found a template to use for the rear bumper.

Tex, the problem I have is matching the rear height to the front with only suspension mods. In the front, I will have 3" spindles, and in the rear I will have AAL/shackles. I can adjust the front, but in the rear to achieve more lift I need to do a double AAL(bad ride) or a SOA(too much lift). Therefore, I just need to stick to the 3" spindles and AAL/shackles and the 1" body lift should give me enough clearance for 33s with some minor trimming.

 

[j602]

Hartman you gettin new gears after the 33's?

Josh

 

[Texplorer]

So you want to fit 33's and you dont want a harsh ride with the double AAL's correct? You can go a few other options though, like getting a 4" leaf pack, OME 2" leaves with shackles, F-150 leaf pack swap. Im just trying to throw out some easier options than a body lift.

 

[Hartman]

Tex, can you elaborate more about my leaf spring options? I don't know where to look for 4" or 2" leaf packs.

 

[Texplorer]

The 4" leafs are Superlift, the ones that come with the lift kit. The 2" leafs are Old Man Emu, I dont know if they make them anymore but you can try searching around for them. And there is a write-up here about swapping F-150 leafs.

 

[Ryan1]

Tex, can you elaborate more about my leaf spring options? I don't know where to look for 4" or 2" leaf packs.

if you really need about 1" more body clearance, look at ordering a poly body mount kit. it replaces all you stock body mounts with polyurathane ones. It supposedly gives you upto 1" lift and a better ride.

heres a guy over at the ranger station that put the poly bushing in and says it rides better than stock. but he also put in a 2 inch body lift.... I guess you just have to ignore that part.

http://www.therangerstation.com/bodymount_lift.htm

Ryan

 

[Hokie]

Let them know you have a Jeep and just need the 1" blocks. Like I said you will need 10 of these blocks and they should be about 1.85 each.

Now there's a good idea

GJarret posted in his main buildup thread about where he was able to fit a 285/75R16 (33.2x11.50) with only TT, shackles/AAL + 1" Body lift and some slight trimming on the front tupperwear (the hockey puck lift)

The main thing with 33x12.50 on an offset 15x8 rim is that the tires are so wide and stick out so far that they rub easily when turning. If you still have your stock 15" rims, you could get some BFG 33x10.50's on your stock rims and I'd bet they would fit just fine with 4" of lift and no rubbing.

Also, my buddie's '01 sport has an AAL and it rides much better than mine did with the AAL. His appears to be more tapered whereas mine was just a thick piece of spring steel. I think he got it from Summit for like $35.

Oh, and DocVijay was able to fit 33x12.50x17's with only a spindle lift up front on his Sport, so a 1" body lift might just be the ticket for you

 

[Brian1]

I also only wanted a 1" body lift and did not want to use hockey pucks. What I did was purchase a round block of 6061 Aluminum and cut the pieces on a lathe. I got new bolts from a bolt supply company in town. I only had to replace a few of them, some of the stock bolts were long enough. I did have to make a drop bracket for my fan shroud but that was not hard - I used a small piece of sheetmetal and a piece of all-thread welded to it. I did not use bumper brackets, It does not look too bad without them. Overall I am very happy with how it turned out.

 

[Dre]

well, I'll throw in my 2 cents as well.

A while ago after running on a 3" body lift I have decided to trim it down a bit. No problem here... I simply removed all the body lift blocks and cut them in half... this gave me 1.5" of lift. After that I had to replace body mount bolts but that was no biggy as well... I still had most of the original factory bolts and lift bolts with me so I just used the ones that fit. Almost all the bolts are different size. Even with 1" BL you will have to worry about radiator fan cowl - fan might be hitting it if you don't drop it. You won't have to worry about relocating the E-brake cable... enought room to play here... bumper brackets? with only 1" you won't have to worry about them... that much you can probably adjust on the factory brackets.

LET ME KNOW - if you want body lift blocks to use for your lift.... I still have five if I remember correctly... I can send them to you so you can cut them down to any length necessary.

Let me know

 

[Hartman]

Thanks guys but I've decided to scrap any type of body lift.