Printable View
i am looking at both these 3,5 drop kits for my truck. both are around the same price area, which company would you guys recommend over the other. the two kits are listed below
Stylin' Trucks Truck Accessories -- pickup truck, SUV, and custom truck accessories
Stylin' Trucks Truck Accessories -- pickup truck, SUV, and custom truck accessories
do djm....control arms > spindles!!!!
yeah thats what i was thinking too.
I would spring and spindle the djm control arm have crappy ball joint that wear out fast and the red bushing like to sqeak and they have bad bump steer, I have had the control arms on two of my trucks never again
well that is some good info to know. thanks man
McAUGHYS FTW -I GOT THE 4'7 no complains
I put the McG's on the Av and the kids GMC.
I like the way they installed, the GMC was a lot more involved though, for some reason.
McG's spindles here too. and belltech drop springs up front on mine
I had the MCG coils and spindles. Ate through ball joints like crazy. Wasn't very happy with it. Don't know about DJM.
go with mc g or belltech. i just installed a djm flip kit and the quality of the parts and the design wasnt all that stellar
DJM suck in my opinion. There kits have to much stuff to them that is unnessary. I would go with the MCG.
This is a great topic. Im sure this has been covered a million times, but maybe we could get as much feedback as possible from members with lowered suspension. Opinions regarding material quality, the thoroughness(?) of the kits themselves, and ease of installation, would be a very useful resource for those of us who are looking to purchase some kind of suspension kit/hardware. Im hitchin on to your buildup, GRsilverado, so excuse me if I seem like Im jackin your thread. We both appear to be looking for the same things, so maybe we can help out all the nnbs owners
I have used mcg, djm and belltech. I will say mcg makes a quality kit, but so does belltech and djm. The only problem with spindles is they change the geometry of the front end so alignment can sometimes be a pain. Mcg tries to cure that by making their spindles the same height as stock. The controls arms on the other hand keep the geometry the same, but as tim(06 crewhauler) stated the balljoints wear out and those red bushings sqeak like hell. The kit I just took off my truck was mcg spindles, djm torsion keys, djm shackle and hanger and replaced overload spring with one from a ford.
There are pros and cons to every manufacturer, so I pieced mine together to get "what I think are the best parts" it all depends on what you are willing to deal with and what you use your truck for.
Great input, and it helps for the gmt800's, which most members have on this site. Anyone know anything about nnbs drop kits, tho? They seem to be a bit different from the previous generationQuote:
Originally Posted by GMCvho
the feedback said so far is a big help. my issues with the lowering kit is. i want to still use my truck as a truck if i have to. i dont carry things alot but if i need to in a pinch i can. same with a trailer use. and i would not like to scrape on every speed bump and driveway.
I absolutely hate lowering anything with control arms. I install most of this stuff for a living, and my vote is with McG or Belltech.. Spindles are by far the best way to go. They actually improve the ease of alignment and help correct suspension geometry with a lowered ride height. I can tell yall right now that the front rack and pinion on the GM trucks sucks...Inner tie rod failure is almost going to happen. Gotta run...post more info up later...
Spindles should not change alignment at all. Control arms should. Springs should too. If the installed height from ball joint hole to ball joint hole is the same on the spindles (which by the way ARE NOT spindles, they're knuckles) is the same only the hole where the hub bolts is higher (to lower the ride) there should be ZERO difference in ball joint wear.
Those are all the shoulds.
Now for the real stuff. You guys have used the parts so your opinion should matter. Just wanna clear up some nomenclature in the event there is some coincidental issues.
Inner tie rod problems on those racks are nil with stock trucks for whatever that's worth and I totally agree that knuckles are the way to go from a geometry and "should be" design aspect.
Ryan, I think your knuckle hate is a little misguided and your issues in the past might have had another cause. You did have like a 14/17 drop. :spit:
You always have some good insight, Nathan. When this stuff is explained properly, it all makes perfect sense. Belltech knuckles for me then.
The reason I say it is changing the front end geometry with spindles is that with the older mcg spindles and belltech spindles they are taller than the stock spindle. Therefore stretching the distance apart of the control arms. I used the mcg spindles and really liked them but only they are good because they have the same height as stock.
As I said before they are all quality brands and its all personal preference. Also stated before I used mcg spindles with great success(in my best borat voice). So good luck man and I hope this helps.
Here is my experience:
I had Mc Gaughys 2" spindles and it rode pretty good. I had them for about 8 months and like it on my 20s.
I went to a DJM 4/8 drop, and I went with lower control arms for those. After about a month or two my ball joint boots were shot and it started to ride realllll bad.
I decided to go turbo and needed to raise it up. I installed 3" lower control arms with the 6" out back, and the front rode even worse. It still rides bad right now. I know its probably my tie rods giving me the bump steer. But still
I'm gonna bag it soon, but I shoulda stuck with spindles from MC G
Spindles here. Only thing I dont like about them is my turning radius sucks. They came with stops to keep me from turning al the way. They did this because they break lines kink. Anyone else have this problem. Belltech Spndles BTW
Many times the knuckles are designed a little taller for camber roll in turns.
is that to counter the effect of lean in corners?
i just had MCG 4/7 drop on my NNBS spindles in front and the folks at firestone said they couldnt aligne it all the way. The guy said the factory settings are maxed out and he couldnt roll the tire back to stock with the drop. WTF? ive seen plenty of trucks with strait wheels with my drop. ill post pics up in a bit
well upon closer inspection its actually pretty close to strait so im not going to worrie about it. But the rear has something rattleing around back there so im going to have to figure out exactly whats loose or if something broke
http://i43.tinypic.com/ouv80j.jpg
thats today with the new 275/45/20's on it, the 55 sidewalls were way too much for the truck. This set up looks good for the 20s i think anyways
would u mind posting some more pics of your truck, as i am still indecisive on how low i will want to go. i havent gotten to lower my truck yet due to money issues and warranty problems, i cant really afford to break warranty right now just in case something does break and i dont have the money for the kit right now haha. but it is a deff must in my future mod list.Quote:
Originally Posted by Goat08