Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
Nice! Are you planning on running 33's now?
Hey Vortec Guys! / Sierra pickup / Suburban / Yukon etc - Finally has Index!
- Thread starter rayra
- Start date
rayra
Expedition Leader
Not in a hurry on the tires, next set for sure. But the current set is still fresh enough I could get decent resale on them. But I've still got a laundry list of other things I'm doing to the vehicle, cost of a new set of tires would pay for half that list. And I'm pretty happy with the Geolanders so far. Dirt and desert gravel, they're doing fine.
Bear in NM
Adventurer
Ray,
Your gif image is about like mine turned out. About 2.5 up front, and an inch in the back, with spring swap left to right in the rear. It will not look like a lot to folks who think big lift, but those couple of inches under the running boards are the difference between getting my shoulders under the sides and not. And while not installing taller tires will mean a net zero at the pumpkins, a couple of inches on the other underside parts can really make a difference on uneven ground. Especially on uneven ground where your rig is going to flex. The big rock that lead to my removing my running boards would not have been a hit, had I done the keys last year, before the trip.
I have had the chance to run mine down some rough paved roads now, and as expected the asphalt bumps are indeed a little stiffer than before. The screws on my keys are in the mid position, but I am at the point that I am not going to crank any more. And I do have one bad tie rod end, that I will address soon. And for those wondering about whether the alignment is necessary, the guy measured my camber after the keys at 3 degrees. Certainly a bit too much, like 2.5 degrees too much.
I am is the same tire boat as you, Ray. I spent a lot on KO2's last year, and just upgraded my trailer to the same 265 KO2's. My 410 gears could certainly handle a taller tire, but not interested in heading down that road, so to speak.
Craig
Your gif image is about like mine turned out. About 2.5 up front, and an inch in the back, with spring swap left to right in the rear. It will not look like a lot to folks who think big lift, but those couple of inches under the running boards are the difference between getting my shoulders under the sides and not. And while not installing taller tires will mean a net zero at the pumpkins, a couple of inches on the other underside parts can really make a difference on uneven ground. Especially on uneven ground where your rig is going to flex. The big rock that lead to my removing my running boards would not have been a hit, had I done the keys last year, before the trip.
I have had the chance to run mine down some rough paved roads now, and as expected the asphalt bumps are indeed a little stiffer than before. The screws on my keys are in the mid position, but I am at the point that I am not going to crank any more. And I do have one bad tie rod end, that I will address soon. And for those wondering about whether the alignment is necessary, the guy measured my camber after the keys at 3 degrees. Certainly a bit too much, like 2.5 degrees too much.
I am is the same tire boat as you, Ray. I spent a lot on KO2's last year, and just upgraded my trailer to the same 265 KO2's. My 410 gears could certainly handle a taller tire, but not interested in heading down that road, so to speak.
Craig
rayra
Expedition Leader
well I went for another 4 turns on the torsion key bolts today, measured another 3/4" at the crest of the front wheel well. My bolts were basically in the middle of their range before, and I have at least 7 full turns remaining on them now. Definitely taking on the stance-appearance of a 2500-series
I'll drive it a bit and take another profile pic soon and re-do that animated gif (and in a less seizure-inducing frame rate).
I'll drive it a bit and take another profile pic soon and re-do that animated gif (and in a less seizure-inducing frame rate).
Bear in NM
Adventurer
I thought it was just me, with the seizure ;^)
I took my Av to my usual shooting hole on Sunday. I have to cross a fairly steep arroyo (gully) to get in. The last time I took the Av, I hit the lower body cladding in the front, and broke a fog light mount. And my rear hitch was binding badly, digging in, in the back, breaking my Chevy lighted bowtie receiver insert. With the little bit of lift, front and back, no issues this time.
I just spotted the other Suburban thread with the coil over conversion, and that set-up looks nice. But more than I want, at this point. That set-up looks like a winner, if you want to maintain the Cadillac type ride. Coming from a lifted Jeep that some friends would not ride with me due to stiffness off road, I am very happy with a little more stiffness on the road, as it is night and day, from the Jeep. I also feel having a little pre-load on the front and back (as a rear spring spacer creates) will help a little on those off road situations where the wheels come off a bump, and the entire rig bounces down. I have my adjustable shocks in the mid position, so I can play with those setting, as well.
I think if you can live with the lift height with the key bolts in the mid position, this would be much better than the keys, and full crank.
Craig
I took my Av to my usual shooting hole on Sunday. I have to cross a fairly steep arroyo (gully) to get in. The last time I took the Av, I hit the lower body cladding in the front, and broke a fog light mount. And my rear hitch was binding badly, digging in, in the back, breaking my Chevy lighted bowtie receiver insert. With the little bit of lift, front and back, no issues this time.
I just spotted the other Suburban thread with the coil over conversion, and that set-up looks nice. But more than I want, at this point. That set-up looks like a winner, if you want to maintain the Cadillac type ride. Coming from a lifted Jeep that some friends would not ride with me due to stiffness off road, I am very happy with a little more stiffness on the road, as it is night and day, from the Jeep. I also feel having a little pre-load on the front and back (as a rear spring spacer creates) will help a little on those off road situations where the wheels come off a bump, and the entire rig bounces down. I have my adjustable shocks in the mid position, so I can play with those setting, as well.
I think if you can live with the lift height with the key bolts in the mid position, this would be much better than the keys, and full crank.
Craig
rayra
Expedition Leader
Well I managed to take another pic today of the +4 turns, after driving around a bit and taking a fresh measurement it's up nearly an inch in front. I think it's a little too far and might back off a turn or turn and a half. From the front I can already see some caster impact. That can get corrected in an alignment which is coming anyway. But have to settle on a height setting before that and get those tie rod sleeves in place.
Here's the new comp, the original Z71 stance with a few cranks, and today.
And here a shot from the front. I like the new look / height. But it's gonna hasten the death of the cracked leather bolster on my driver seat for sure.
Here's the new comp, the original Z71 stance with a few cranks, and today.
And here a shot from the front. I like the new look / height. But it's gonna hasten the death of the cracked leather bolster on my driver seat for sure.
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Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
Very nice. Definitely has that 2500 stance now.
If it's anything like my z71, it will ride, drive and feel better with some crank on the bars actually. Mine was terrible stock, very wallowy, soft, and bouncy. Now with some crank, It is still smooth, but more sure footed and planted. Looks great. I am going to crank up some more when I put the H2 springs in the rear, and indexing keys on to give it a similar stance to yours! Some new wheels, or wheel spacers (ran them for 100s of thousands of miles with no issues), and some bigger tires it will look even better!
rayra
Expedition Leader
Well I'm chasing my tail, literally. It seemed to have a bit of a nose-up attitude so I went ahead and dialed things down a turn and a half. Was quite happy with it that way. And then I did mount 115-lbs of storage platform / drawers and put about 60-lb of roadside emergency tools and gear back in and now it's ***-down again. Now I'm thinking to hunt up some 2" rear spacers and re-do the lift. I've got shock strut boots coming anyway. So I might as well do it all at the same time, gotta dismount the shocks again anyway. Then with the *** end reset and 'normally' loaded, I can dial the nose level again. And will likely do the tie rod sleeves then too and polish it all off with a fresh alignment right on top of things. Then call the suspension work 'done' for the foreseeable future.
/until I hang a couple hundred pounds of modified grill / brushguard on the front
/until I hang a couple hundred pounds of modified grill / brushguard on the front
I had the same problem. I got some 2" steel coil spacers from ebay for like 40 bucks. They work nicely, and in fact I have them on my 6" lift right now to reduce the rear lean.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2000-SUV-GM...ash=item28100fef1a:g:CCgAAOSw8sBW6x97&vxp=mtr
