highonpottery

iTrader: (1)

with a limited budget and limited fab skills i would say keep it IFS and rock the hell out of it until you're ready to either drop some serious cash on your rig or buy one that's built/semi-built and finish it off yourself. i am a believer in starting small and learning your rig first - then as your skills progress you start wanting more from the rig and actually have a need for something like a SAS or dual cases or beadlock wheels etc etc. then by the time you have all that stuff added to your rig, you have the skill to back it up and won't flop your newly SAS rig on the first trip out. IMO I'd give way more credit to the guy rocking an IFS rig with a raisin body because he actually wheels his rig and most likely knows how to drive it versus the guy who just dropped $10k in shiny new parts on his rig that only sees the trails once a year.

i would recommend you make sure your rig is running in top shape, go buy 2 lunchbox lockers, some aggressive tires (re-gear if you go 33+), extra CVs, and upgrade your idler arm as well as make sure the rest of the steering components are not worn out - with that combo right there you can get yourself through some very tough terrain as it's not always about articulation, but more about TRACTION. of course there are other areas to look into if building an ultimate IFS rig like gearing for axles, dual t-cases, etc etc....but you would be surprised at how much a simple IFS rig with some key areas beefed up can do. i would recommend looking into AxleIke's 1st gen 4runner build where he rocked 35s on IFS and wheeled some serious terrain with that setup for quite a while - you may just change your mind on SAS at this point. as the years progress, say even 1-3 years, you could collect all the parts you need on whatever your budget is, in order to make it badass in your own way

good luck!

Stetson_md

Lockrite's are a good cheap home install locker (no shop fees).might help you cheapen your budget
The ford rear spring swap has a better departure angle then Chevy's and cost bout the same but I think there's less work involved
keep the ifs till it breaks then put a 84-85 axle in there with your old rear springs up front (ruf swap)and get high steer brackets from wabfab or anywhere else that sells them and build your own draglink and tie rod ect.
A cheap body lift
Longer shocks higher shock mounts
You could probably use PTO shafts off a tractor as longer driveshafts as a cheap out

whitecollarredneck

Make sure you read this. I'm a welder and can weld within code specifications for structural steel and I don't feel safe welding on my frame yet. Then again most of the welds I've seen on my truck are terrible... Just make sure you KNOW your welds will hold up before you even think about trying it on anything structural.

bone collector

^^^^ THIS!!!! and good luck