holy cow dude .. your front springs are HOOPED !!!! neg. arch ... not good .. I know your replacing .. and I hope it's soon ..

yeah I know Im just debating on what springs to get I dont want to go any higher than 3" total lift and I already have 2"

debating between

OME light duty with current shackle
pro comp 3" springs with stock shackle
rears up front with short banana shackle?
???

any other sugestions... I dont want any more than 3" maybe 4" enough the clear 33s with no triming

ok so got her running and its so good the be driving her again...

ok so after much debating (and seeing some awesome trucks here on YT) I am thinking about running duals and lower gears on my truck but I dont know if they are really practical on a DD... any opinions? ... any body DD there trail rig? ... how does it do and would you rather have 2 seperate trucks?

there are a ton of people on here that DD their trail trucks. I will be driving mine once I get it back from having my junk installed.

Adding duals does not change the stock high range 4x4 if you need to drive it in 4x4 on the street.

If you go big tires, upgrade your brake system with the usual stuff (v-6 calipers, vented rotors etc) Putting 39.5 Iroks would definitely impact your streetablility...

I guess what I am really asking is the truck will see more pavement than trail and I would only wheel it during summer and rarely winter ... so is it worth investing that much money for a DD I already have a t-case from my 83 I am parting out

If you want a dual purpose truck, than yes, it my opinion it is worth it.

but a word of caution on adding duals...
a second transfer case is just one part of the equation...
Rough estimate of adding duals to a truck. (some can do it cheaper due to their fab skills)
dual case adapter $299-350
CrossMember: $199-270
Drive shaft $200-400 ++ (depending on who you go with)
(shortening rear and lengthening front)
2nd Transfer case $75-150
(yes you have yours)

Adding duals can run up over a $1000 very easily. For me it was an easy decision because after going on a few trail runs and almost breaking stuff because I had to give it a ton of skinny pedal to get over stuff that the guys with more gearing options were able to practically idle over.

I am looking forward to having 20 forward speeds and 4 reverse
Stock 5 speed 4WD, stock 2.28 LR, 4.7 gears in crawl box and than 2.28x4.7 in lo, lo...

It really all just comes down to what you want to do with your truck...

yeah I know its pricey and I hate having to gas it to get over things so lower gears are a must but I am also debating just lower axle gears..,
I have a set of 5.29s (rear has detroit) but I dont have money for tires yet (I want 33s) could I run 5.29s with 31s for a while or is that to low and am I gonna hate it?

After just completing the dual transfer case setup in my 84 I would have to say go with 4.70 gears in your current case before going for duals. You save a ton of cash (X-member, drive shafts, adapter, etc.) and hassle, and still have very low crawl ratio for the trails we see here in Colorado. Plus, you never need 4 low on the road, hi range is the same for snowy road driving, and when you do go duals your current top-shift case will become the rear case which should house the 4.70 gears anyway. Plus, I know you're still undecided on your front suspension, and it would suck to make a front driveshaft twice, like I did.

you make a good point...thanks...

and as far as springs Im between OME and procomp

ok so I talked to the guy at 4x4 connections today and I dont think I will be getting OME springs so it looks like Im gonna have to completely rethink my front spring options... does any body else know where I can get replacment leafs for my 81 with out to much lift and less than $250 to my door... for that price I might as well get the TG 3" springs I have been wanting... but I would like to keep it cheap... unless some one can tell me how good rears up front are and how much lift I will get out of my stock pack with out adding any leafs

Just curious, what's steering you away from OME's. I have heard nothing but good about them. Price, application? Just wondering.

the price is just a bit to much for me right now I would love the have them but cant afford them so Im looking to rebuild my leafs or possibly rears up front

ok so I got my front drive shaft back from the shop today but the truck still vibrates bad I did notice that when I spin the front output shaft on my t-case that I can hear what sounds like metal on metal so Im thinking it is my t-case...I also jacked up the front axle to check it... locked the hubs, and spun each wheel and moved them side to side and they seem tight to slop or abnormal noise so I betting t-case... I rotated the case by hand on my 83 and it seems tighter and quieter so Im thinking about swapping the 2 and inspect the one from my 81

Aren't old vehicles fun? At least you've got parts trucks...

yeah the are fun (always needing fixed) but I love this truck it is worth it all and yes I am glad I have a parts truck it helps alot

i thought that i read something bout early 80s transfer cases are noisy purposly.... not sure. mine is an 81 and it has a grinding sound. but functions fine!!

mine has bad shakes and I cant find where its coming from its only when Im in 4WD so it has to be ether t-case or front axle

got some new goodies couldnt pass it up...

got an ARB air compresser for "free" now I just need ether a ARB locker or an air tank!

got my lift springs on the front they are modified 3" rancho springs that give me about 2" of lift for a total of 4" of lift but I want to get a shorter shackle to get a better driveshaft angle right now I have 6.5" shackle and want about a 4.5" or 5" shackle and will settle me at about 2.5-3" of lift

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j2...1230081612.jpg
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j2...230081612a.jpg

Looking good