Leveling a M1008

[86M10086.2L]

You both make very good points. I want to keep my truck stock-ish but make it more useful and atractive to me. I really would like a conventional lift kit for their articulation, but it limits my tire size, and to be perfectly honest theres not much around me that I really need alot of flex for. Almost everything by me can just be driven over orthrough with no real articulaton needed (Damn Long Island ). What I need is larger tires to keep my axles out of the ruts and sand. Thats why I'm more interested in the stiff spring big tire setup similar to whats on the truck now. I don't know about you guys but my axles aren't moving too much on the trails. As far as stiffnes I can't imagine it being any worse than the stock ride for the M1008. As far as that goes I'll drive all the way to Cali and back on dirt roads if someone wants to pay for the diesel. I like a truck that rides like a truck. As for trimming, I don't do it because it's very hard to do it and make it look right, and I like the way my truck looks. Someday I may decide to restore the truck and I'm no body man. I can re-rivit perches and swap springs and what not but at this point in time changing quarter panels is not on my resume. Most likely I will not be running the HMMWV tires and I don't think Interco is going to stop making 16.5's any time soon so I should be ok. And in most cases I've seen, guys are asking only $50 less for used HMMWV tires than what I can get a reasonable aftermarket tire for new. Maybe I'm looking in the wrong places but that doesn't make much sense to me.

 

[CCATLETT1984]

biggest difference in ride quality will be from a good pair of shocks. no matter the brand you get, get nitrogen charged shocks. Bilstein makes a great shock, I have also had great luck with Pro Comp shocks. I've never liked the quality of rancho shocks, as a company they arent what they used to be.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Eh, to each their own I guess. Mine fits narrow 38's without hardly any cutting and 1" of front lift and if I had the cash to lengthen the front driveshaft I could have probably cut even less in the front. My wife can get in relatively easily, I can still tow most normal trailers without a super drop hitch, and it fits in my garage.
NOTE - I cut more than I needed too, the grinder talked me into it and I figured why not, I'll end up doing it anyways.

The stuff I cut off wasn't exactly useful for anything except gathering mud and salt anyways. Only place I found through rust on mine was on the driver's side behind the rear wheel well. Now that piece is in a junkyard somewhere.

Hard to say you can't feel the road with the stock 1 ton springs...guess you must really like the feel of the road with even stiffer springs...oy!

 

[CCATLETT1984]

you dont need to lengthen the front drive shaft until you pass 6" of lift.
with moving the axle forward an inch, i would still think you could get 4" out of the stock shaft.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Nope.

Pushed the front axle forwards an inch and had it down far enough to get the 1" zero rates in and the two parts separated. Big PITA to get back together, had to call a buddy over to maneuver the axle with two jackstands while we both tried to get the splines to engage the coupler in the other half.