prtofcali Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Ive read many posts and either Im reading them wrong or not reading them enough but everyone seems to either piece together a kit or is unhappy with the kit that they purchased. Ive reailized that the McGaughy's kit pretty much sucks. I noticed that Belltech seems to be the way to go. Why cant I just go to Summit or Stylin Concepts and purchase the Belltech kits? I havent read of anyone doing that yet. Everyone seems to be buying pieces seperatley and its confusing the hell out of me. Is the kit that these places sell not good enough? If so, can someone suggest the best pieces to buy seperatley. When it comes to suspension I am totally clueless with bumpstops, leafsprings, shackles, etc. I know what they look like and I can locate them I just have no clue what they really due. I just wanna lower my damn truck the right way....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaotik1 Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 I don't believe belltech makes a "KIT" that is why they are pieces. You order spindles(knuckles) then you decide for the rear if you want leaf springs, or Hangers and shackles. Not that one place is better than the other to order from, just most look for the lowest price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prtofcali Posted August 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 (edited) Belltech Kit Summit Racing has another... Edited August 31, 2006 by prtofcali (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 You can buy a kit from belltech but it comes with torsions keys, shocks, and hangers. For the bumpstops, all you gotta do is cut one numb or 2 to get the clearance, wich means the truck won't hit the bump stops. The only thing with that kit is that the torsions keys are not the best option, spindles for the front are the way to go apparently, i'll have to order some because the front end feels sloppy. I've purchased my kit from stylin'concepts and now I want some spindles for the front instead of keys. If I knew this forum before I would have bought spindles, hangers, and shocks. No one makes a perfect plug and play kit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnblwzd Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 I don't believe Belltech offers a kit with front spindles and rear leafs. Not sure why not, but they are easy enough to order seperately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stanley Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Ive read many posts and either Im reading them wrong or not reading them enough but everyone seems to either piece together a kit or is unhappy with the kit that they purchased. Ive reailized that the McGaughy's kit pretty much sucks. I noticed that Belltech seems to be the way to go. Why cant I just go to Summit or Stylin Concepts and purchase the Belltech kits? I havent read of anyone doing that yet. Everyone seems to be buying pieces seperatley and its confusing the hell out of me. Is the kit that these places sell not good enough? If so, can someone suggest the best pieces to buy seperatley. When it comes to suspension I am totally clueless with bumpstops, leafsprings, shackles, etc. I know what they look like and I can locate them I just have no clue what they really due. I just wanna lower my damn truck the right way....... <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stanley Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 The McGroughy's kit comes with all of the parts including an air bag kit if you need to tow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJSmyth Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 I'm on the same boat, the really confused boat...could someone also explain what a torsion key is, and if you lower the rear with leafs do you also need new rear shocks? and how important is it to have matching sway bars? is it ok to just have an aftermarket rear one? thanks guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 That is a lot of questions but here's for the keys Torsion keys : if you crawl under your truck, you will see that you don't have any springs for the front suspension. Instead of springs, you have torsion bars, they are each side of the truck ; black and round like a tube. They are linked to the suspension tab and go all the way to the center of the truck, where are the torsion keys. Those keys are the ones that twist the torsion bars and keep your truck up. This is what a torsion key look like: This is where it is: The key is the gray part and the bolt at the end of it is what you have to turn to adjust the height of the front of the truck. Turn it clockwise to get the truck up and counterclockwise to lower it. Some people just buy hangers for the back and turn those to the lowest and it really is a cheap cheap way of lowering the truck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJSmyth Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Thanks alot! It's all coming together now...slowly.lol. From your sig I noticed you had 2/2 belltech and I am assuming from your earlier post that you have the hangers/shocks in the rear? Would there be any noticable difference if you went with leafs/shocks in the rear? besides the price. And what about the rear sway bar? thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Yep, I have the 4 shocks, keys and the hangers for the rear. The kit number is 103BLT. I think doing the leafs would yield to 1 inch lower than what I did. I don't know much about sway bars though but I guess that it's better to have them both... I'd like to get less body roll and the sway bars can correct that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHEVY6000VHO Posted September 4, 2006 Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 (edited) Whatever you do to lower the front, don't use the torsion keys!! I can't believe people even direct anyone here at this web-site to even look at this route to lower the front. You will lose handling & ride quality when you use torsion keys to lower your truck. Use the Belltech 2" lowering spindles, 2" rear lowering shackles, and 2* or 3* rear shims to correct your pinion angle. That is, if your looking for that kind of drop.... The 2/2 drop only lowers your truck 2" on both ends, it will not be level. It will still have the same rake, just 2" lower than stock. If you want more than 2" of drop in the rear you will need to do hangers & shackles. That will give you a 3" or 4" rear drop option. You will still need the shims either way. The other option is the Belltech leafs. They were not designed for the SS or VHO trucks though. They will drop the rear lower than the front. In that case you will then need to crank in your torsion bars a little to lower the front to satisfy your lowered truck appearance and taste of what you want it to look like. The leafs also require you to use shims in some applications. Well, the front is easy to lower. The rear on the other hand, is another story. There are 3 different ways to do it. I would try the 2/2 drop and go from there. Just lowering your entire truck 2" may be just what you want. I'm with you man! I'm in the same boat, at the same bridges! Good Luck! Jim Edited September 4, 2006 by CHEVY6000VHO (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prtofcali Posted September 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 Thanks CHEVY6000VHO. I just want to get rid of the wheel gap that it comes with stock. So I think the 2" inch drop should eliminate it pretty good. So just so I understand correct. Order spindles, hangers, and shocks? What are shackles? Should I order bump stops from Belltech as well? Those three things is all I need and then install....Thanks.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnblwzd Posted September 5, 2006 Report Share Posted September 5, 2006 The Belltech rear leafs are easily adjustable, in 1/2" incramnets, to go from about a 3" drop to a 4.5" drop. All you do is add or remove the 3 spacers that come in the leaf packs. Going the whole 4.5" will make the rear lower than the front if also using Belltech spindles in front, but having the rear at the 3.5" adjustment will make the truck level (at least it did mine). No vibration so no degree shims are required, no shackles/hangers headaches, and no messing with the front keys - unless of course, you want it lower. Since those rear leafs can eliminate the rear tire gap completely at max drop, you could give the front keys a couple turns just to even it out if you go that low - but AWD trucks might have the rear drive shaft hitting the cross member. To go super low and tuck tire, you could use the Belltech leafs in conjunction with shackles and hangers, for about a 6-7" drop I would imagine. I don't think an AWD would like that though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaotik1 Posted September 5, 2006 Report Share Posted September 5, 2006 The other option is the Belltech leafs. They were not designed for the SS or VHO trucks though. They will drop the rear lower than the front. In that case you will then need to crank in your torsion bars a little to lower the front to satisfy your lowered truck appearance and taste of what you want it to look like. The leafs also require you to use shims in some applications.Good Luck! Jim <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I found this to be odd. When I called Belltech directly(KW) They actually suggested going with the leaf pack, for two reasons. 1. The fastest easiest way to lower the rear. 2. No shims were required because the pack takes into account the pinion angle. Yes I did have to use the keys to drop the front to compliment the rear, the truck rides just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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