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Finally finished my suspension!!!!


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Old 08-10-2008, 09:37 PM   #1
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Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Well, I finally finished (except alignment scheduled for 8/14) the suspension on my truck!!!! What a relief it is. The story behind my build is that I knew very little about truck suspension's so I purchased a 6" "bolt on" SA Kit from SuspensionMax in Anaheim, CA since they were local to me so they could install it. Before I purchased it, I emailed and asked what was the biggest size tire's I could fit with their kit and their installer Jason replied 33's would fit. Man was that some BS!!! They did the install on May 23rd, 2008 and of course, the 33's I bought did not fit (rubbed like hell!) They had me come back the following week so they could put bigger springs in for the extra clearance. That gave the extra clearance so the tires could turn but I only had a 1/4 of an inch of travel before my UCA hit the frame so the truck rode like shit. Also, the UCA rubbed on the inside of the tire (see pic's). Then after looking around online for S-10 forums I found a site with a guy who had the same kit. The fix for him to run 33's was BJ Spacer's and 1 1/2" wheel spacers so I bought that stuff. Truck still rode like shit cause of the springs that were too big for this kit. After reading a lot of post's it seemed everyone said that any lift on a 2wd S-10 over 3" a long travel kit was the best way to go. I found one on Ebay for a cheap price ($126 for LT UCA's, LCA's, Springs, Extended tie rods, Limit Straps) but the guy modded the UCA's with heims. I wanted to keep my stock mounting setup so I asked around on a few forums if anyone wanted to trade those uppers for regular LT uppers. I ended up having Matt (your the man ) at Baja Customs build me some custom LT UCA's to go with the AIM LT LCA's I got from Ebay. I removed the SA kit and installed the LT kit last weekend and the truck ride's very smooth. So....it took me 3 months to figure out the best fix to my truck suspension but now that it's all done I can say it was all worth it.

Enough of my blabbering.....here's the pics!!!



Install pissed me off sometimes:

Here's the photobucket link for the install pics and a few more of the truck.
http://s56.photobucket.com/albums/g1...en/My%20Truck/

Last edited by orangesonoma : 08-10-2008 at 09:49 PM.
Old 08-10-2008, 09:44 PM   #2
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

why cant i get the pics to show up?
Old 08-10-2008, 09:47 PM   #3
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Dunno?!?!?! When I clicked on the insert an image tab, it popped up the http address bar for the image but they show up as links in the post for me too?


*****thanks orangesonoma**************

Last edited by Blackie : 08-10-2008 at 09:54 PM.
Old 08-10-2008, 09:49 PM   #4
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

fixed...
Old 08-10-2008, 09:53 PM   #5
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

i like your truck same color as mine except ur up and im down lol. good job
Old 08-10-2008, 10:54 PM   #6
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

looks great man, murder it out!
Old 08-10-2008, 11:28 PM   #7
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

thats what my truck looked like untill i took her offroading about 10 times. My beautiful black paint it F'ed up now so its pointless. god i miss it lol
Old 08-10-2008, 11:37 PM   #8
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

looks pretty tuff, makes me want to lift one
Old 08-11-2008, 12:29 AM   #9
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

I want it. I wish mine was black.
Old 08-11-2008, 02:34 AM   #10
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Blackie
Well, I finally finished (except alignment scheduled for 8/14) the suspension on my truck!!!! What a relief it is. The story behind my build is that I knew very little about truck suspension's so I purchased a 6" "bolt on" SA Kit from SuspensionMax in Anaheim, CA since they were local to me so they could install it. Before I purchased it, I emailed and asked what was the biggest size tire's I could fit with their kit and their installer Jason replied 33's would fit. Man was that some BS!!! They did the install on May 23rd, 2008 and of course, the 33's I bought did not fit (rubbed like hell!) They had me come back the following week so they could put bigger springs in for the extra clearance. That gave the extra clearance so the tires could turn but I only had a 1/4 of an inch of travel before my UCA hit the frame so the truck rode like shit. Also, the UCA rubbed on the inside of the tire (see pic's). Then after looking around online for S-10 forums I found a site with a guy who had the same kit. The fix for him to run 33's was BJ Spacer's and 1 1/2" wheel spacers so I bought that stuff. Truck still rode like shit cause of the springs that were too big for this kit. After reading a lot of post's it seemed everyone said that any lift on a 2wd S-10 over 3" a long travel kit was the best way to go. I found one on Ebay for a cheap price ($126 for LT UCA's, LCA's, Springs, Extended tie rods, Limit Straps) but the guy modded the UCA's with heims. I wanted to keep my stock mounting setup so I asked around on a few forums if anyone wanted to trade those uppers for regular LT uppers. I ended up having Matt (your the man ) at Baja Customs build me some custom LT UCA's to go with the AIM LT LCA's I got from Ebay. I removed the SA kit and installed the LT kit last weekend and the truck ride's very smooth. So....it took me 3 months to figure out the best fix to my truck suspension but now that it's all done I can say it was all worth it.

Enough of my blabbering.....here's the pics!!!


kinda of looks like my truck
Old 08-11-2008, 08:32 AM   #11
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

are those 17" wheels?
Old 08-11-2008, 09:07 AM   #12
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Looks good!
Old 08-11-2008, 12:09 PM   #13
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Wicked Mayhem
are those 17" wheels?
looks like 15s or 16sto me
Old 08-11-2008, 01:52 PM   #14
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Yep, 17x8 Soft 8 Wheels in 33" BFG All Terrains.
Old 08-11-2008, 01:59 PM   #15
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

looks sick
Old 08-11-2008, 08:23 PM   #16
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by greencactus3
looks like 15s or 16sto me

Time to see the optometrist.
Old 08-11-2008, 08:40 PM   #17
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Looks great man
Old 08-11-2008, 09:07 PM   #18
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by BlownDime
Time to see the optometrist.
i actually do need to... running outta contacts lol

but damn. i guess 33s are a lotta rubber lol
Old 08-11-2008, 09:49 PM   #19
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

really sharp truck man.... damn clean! looks great!
Old 08-12-2008, 07:59 AM   #20
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

I concur with everyone elses comments. Looks really good all black and has a perfect stance, I think. Not to high and just the right amount of room to run 33's are they true 33's? 33x12.5 ? Also what springs did you use?

Last edited by muddubber : 08-12-2008 at 08:01 AM.
Old 08-12-2008, 03:15 PM   #21
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by muddubber
I concur with everyone elses comments. Looks really good all black and has a perfect stance, I think. Not to high and just the right amount of room to run 33's are they true 33's? 33x12.5 ? Also what springs did you use?
They are the metric equivalent....285x70x17's. I used the springs that came with the LT kit I bought from Ebay which I "think" are the AIM springs.
Old 08-12-2008, 05:59 PM   #22
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Blackie
They are the metric equivalent....285x70x17's. I used the springs that came with the LT kit I bought from Ebay which I "think" are the AIM springs.
Did you run the 1.25" spacers?
Old 08-12-2008, 06:12 PM   #23
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by muddubber
Did you run the 1.25" spacers?
With the first SA kit....I ran the 1.5" wheel spacers all the way around but with this LT kit....I only have the 1.5" spacers on the rear.
Old 08-12-2008, 08:44 PM   #24
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

If I may ask?.....what is your backspacing on your rims and how much clearance do you have from the inner tire to the control arm point where the uniball is? ....I have roughly 1" on my setup but would love to get those front tires in more....Thanks....and sorry for highjacking your thread. But I really like that stance you got there.
Old 08-12-2008, 09:36 PM   #25
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by muddubber
If I may ask?.....what is your backspacing on your rims and how much clearance do you have from the inner tire to the control arm point where the uniball is? ....I have roughly 1" on my setup but would love to get those front tires in more....Thanks....and sorry for highjacking your thread. But I really like that stance you got there.
The rims are Unique 17x8 with 4.5" BS. There is roughly 1.75-2" of clearance between the tire and the uniball section of the UCA. My UCA's are not the AIM LT's though....I had them built by a local fab shop (Bajacustoms.com) to go with the AIM LT LCA's.
Old 08-12-2008, 09:56 PM   #26
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

wait, they arent soft 8s? and where did you get those hub covers?
Old 08-12-2008, 10:08 PM   #27
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by greencactus3
wait, they arent soft 8s? and where did you get those hub covers?
Yeah bro.....Soft 8's. The hub covers are just the plain chrome ones with no symbol....I sanded the chrome down and primered and painted them gloss black to match.
Old 08-12-2008, 10:11 PM   #28
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

ah, how much effort was it to sand them down? i want the centers, but i dont want chrome lol
Old 08-12-2008, 10:14 PM   #29
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by greencactus3
ah, how much effort was it to sand them down? i want the centers, but i dont want chrome lol
Very little effort....you just use a brillo type scuff pad to rough up the chrome so the primer sticks when you spray them. Then whatever color paint you choose will stick to the primer. I spent maybe 3-5 minutes scuffing each one.
Old 08-15-2008, 02:15 AM   #30
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

I love it man, it has the perfect stance.
Old 08-15-2008, 02:39 AM   #31
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Long beach huh? like to Wheel?
Old 08-15-2008, 08:36 AM   #32
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Not bad for a 2wd





Great stance! Looks sick!
Old 08-15-2008, 11:17 AM   #33
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by greencactus3
wait, they arent soft 8s? and where did you get those hub covers?
Summit has a bunch of different styles. I'm going to get some for my truck, but I forgot to put them in my order when I ordered my spare wheel; and I don't want to pay a $10 handling charge on $13 worth of wheel caps. When I need to order something from summit again I'm going to throw in the caps.
Old 08-26-2008, 06:04 PM   #34
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

is that 2wd or a 4x4? lokks sick i gotta bone stock black 2wd sonoma and im not sure which way to go with it but i dont wanna spend too much
Old 08-26-2008, 06:33 PM   #35
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by nycs10
is that 2wd or a 4x4? lokks sick i gotta bone stock black 2wd sonoma and im not sure which way to go with it but i dont wanna spend too much
It's a 2wd 4.3L V6.
Old 08-27-2008, 02:24 AM   #36
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Blackie
It's a 2wd 4.3L V6.
Is the rear locked? That 4.3 with a rear locker will get you through some tough stuff. You still won't keep up with a 4x4, but you'd be surprised at how much it helps.
Old 08-27-2008, 02:37 AM   #37
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

i still dont understand the lfiting of a 2 wheel drive other than cheaper....BUT.. i must say your truck looks great
Old 10-05-2008, 08:58 PM   #38
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

that is exactly what i was picturing when i first thought of lifting my s10
i was wondering if you could tell me what size lift you put in and everything else
Old 10-05-2008, 09:01 PM   #39
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by zach5150
i still dont understand the lfiting of a 2 wheel drive other than cheaper....BUT.. i must say your truck looks great

this kid sucks balls
Old 10-05-2008, 09:42 PM   #40
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Tim99Zr2
this kid sucks balls
x2

its funny, Im lifting ANOTHER 2wd but its a ranger, might do a sas in a couple years.



Tight truck, like the all black thing.
Old 10-05-2008, 10:13 PM   #41
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by BC Ryan
that is exactly what i was picturing when i first thought of lifting my s10
i was wondering if you could tell me what size lift you put in and everything else
It's sort of a mix and match kit but here it is:

Baja Customs LT Upper Control Arm with Uniball (3" Over per side)
AIM LT Lower Control Arm (Ball joint but soon to be a uniball!!!!)
AIM 3" Lift Springs
AIM 3.5" lift Spindles
Extended Stainless Brake Lines
Pro Comp shocks all the way around
Extended Tie Rods
Flip kit in rear with 1.5" wheel spacers
17x8" Black Unique Soft 8's
33" BFG A/T's

So it's about 6.5" of lift. I did have to trim the front and rear fenders a bit to clear the 33's. The rear still rubs during heavy flexxing but oh well.
Old 10-06-2008, 03:11 PM   #42
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Tim99Zr2
this kid sucks balls
YUP!!!!
Old 10-06-2008, 08:59 PM   #43
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

looks great!
Old 10-06-2008, 10:17 PM   #44
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Onimun
Long beach huh? like to Wheel?
Bump
Old 10-06-2008, 10:24 PM   #45
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Onimun
Bump
Still trying to finish a few things on the front suspension first (Uniball's installed in the LCA, new tie rods(heimed), new Pitman and Idler arms, and some new wheel bearings) but after that......definately
Old 10-06-2008, 10:32 PM   #46
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by zach5150
i still dont understand the lfiting of a 2 wheel drive other than cheaper....BUT.. i must say your truck looks great
hes the founding member of the "We <3 balls" foundation
Old 10-06-2008, 10:33 PM   #47
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by 98-LS-lifted
x2

its funny, Im lifting ANOTHER 2wd but its a ranger, might do a sas in a couple years.



Tight truck, like the all black thing.

oh yea?????? did you turn to the dark side to. I just got a ranger about a month ago.
Old 10-06-2008, 10:51 PM   #48
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by marcua56
oh yea?????? did you turn to the dark side to. I just got a ranger about a month ago.
I got the ranger bout 2 weeks ago. but about the lifting it 2wd style, I am gonna throw a D30 under it or an early B-co front axle instead.

sorry for the hijack
Old 10-06-2008, 10:59 PM   #49
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

Clean lookin truck man! Like it all blacked out.
Old 10-07-2008, 02:19 PM   #50
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Re: Finally finished my suspension!!!!

damn, i like it. very nice.



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