My Info:K/20 6" Lift

[special-K]

Just thought I`d share what you can expect when lifting a`72 K/20(or other longbeds,I imagine)6".I used TuffCountry EZ-Ride springs on all four corners and braided s/s hoses for 6-8" lifts from Skyjacker.I recommend you ship the Skyjacker hoses,unless you want some spare fittings and a female-female s/s hose laying around.If you can buy the fronts seperate,they`re ok.But,I`d price them from Inline Tube first.That is where I went for my rear hose.I asked for a 24" hose that has a 1/4" inlet to match the original line coming in,a T-block,ans s/s lines for the axle(T-block to wheel cyls.).This cost $100 w/shipping.Some guys use the drop brackets provided with the lift.But,I prefer going with new hoses made for this suspension.
The emergency cables are too short to even bolt the axle in place w/o disconnecting.I feel the e-brake is essential,especially with a manual trans.I ordered 5" longer from Inline Tube.On my next truck I`m going with 4" longer.%' is ok and doesn`t droop below the axle,but it could be shorter and still work.I got the oem steel cables,and all the little clamp/hardware stuff for the intermediate cable for around $180 w/shipping.I wish I had gotten the intermediate cable,too.When installing the cable I saw mine`s starting to fray at the j-hooks.They need occasional grease.P.O. must not have done that.BTW,I ordered the cables around 11am on Thursday,I had them Saturday morning.
Finally,the rear driveshaft.I noticed about 3/4-1" of spline showing and another inch or so of shaft that had been riding in the yoke(cleaner & shinier).Going by that and measuring the spline in the yoke and finding the center of travel with the truck on all fours,I came up with a need for a 2" longer shaft(hold the jokes,please.Heck,go ahead.I`m very confident )
I dropped the d-shaft off at a transmission shop in the morning.A good shop does d-shaft lengthening/shortening/balancing since there are so many yoke/tailshaft/etc.variations out there to deal with.I found this shop by asking at a truck hoist/truck body shop I use for my metal bending and other fabbing I`m not equipped for.They alter wheelbases on trucks all the time and they recommended this trans shop for a good local source.I got a call about 3hrs later,it`s done and it cost $92.BTW,the 6" lift included a t-case drop(1")that I disn`t use.I saw no benefit and it seemed it would hurt my front angle more than help the rear.I don`t see how a 1" drop of the t-case for a 6" drop of the axle would have avaoided a 2" extension of the d-shaft anyway.
So,that`s all I can think of that I ran into over and above the kit itself.I feel it is done right and will do my next(coming soon)the same way.Of course,to be safe,I will measure each alteration and not assume it`s the same.Although it should be.Always double-check.The extras cost me an additional $375+/-.