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cucv lift kits

WARWAG

Active member
On my Blazer I have a 6" lift from ORD with all the options. DO NOT FORGET THE 2"DROP PITMAN ARM. This seems to be over looked a lot. your steering will horrible if you don't add that 2" drop pitman arm. Cross over steering would be best. I suggest getting all the optional pieces like the F.U.S.H. kit and grease able shackles ect ect. The Bilstien shocks and Bilstien steering stabilizer are a must. You will need to lengthen the front drive shaft and add a Cardan Joint on the rear drive shaft. You will need to go to someone who knows what they are doing for this. My setup was done by Tom Wood's drive shafts. This is a good time to beef up your U joins. I have a Dana 60 front with ARB and Corp 14 bolt with locker in the rear so they went with 1410 U-Joints from axle to axle. All of my U-joints are 1410. One size makes it easy to just carry one size spare. Plus they are super strong. If you are staying with your stock axles you can run something smaller. I Highly suggest you run a set of 1 ton axles though. 35's will eat your stock axles and spit them out on a daily basis in my opinion. You could beef up the stock axles with chromoly axles/stub axles which would help for sure. Good time to replace all the bearings, seals ect.. I run 33s and am quite happy. I may try a set of 35" but for now I like the 33" tires. If you decide to run 33s that would be easier on your stock axles but they are still not strong enough in my opinion unless you go the chromoly route. 33" tires and a 4" lift will make everything much easier and you may or may not need that Cardan joint. I still believe you will need to shorten and lengthen you drive shafts either way. A 4" lift will definitely reduce the overall cost greatly. A Blazer with a 4" lift and 33s looks great! A 6" lift will definitely cost you thousands more to do right and be safe as safe as a 6" short wheel base 35" tired lifted Blazer can be.

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WARWAG

Active member
Yes you will need not only longer drive shafts. Personally I think 6 in is to high for a M09, with 35s. I'm thinking in 4" for my M08 and 37s. But still researching. Does anyone of you guys can come by about this combination? Which kit should I use, I will install my self to save some money so I can get something good, I'm a Baja tripper and like to go where no man has gone before, kind of. Thank you for reading this long long reply. Any help is great appreciated.
I had a M0128 with 4" ORD lift with HMMWV wheels and 37" BFG BAJA Mts. They rubbed. Go with the 4" ORD lift and add the 1" zero rates. also you should get there rear axle relocation kit. It may come with the rear zero rate. This is one good looking combination that works extremely well off road and still has very good road manners. Go with the Bilstien shocks as well! Do not forget that front Bilstien steering stabilizer.
 

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Iceman3005

Active member
933
97
28
Location
Holt, MI
First if your on a budget than rough country is the way to go. $700 will get you front and rear springs and all the accessory's you need to complete the project without having to purchase anything else. Pretty sweet deal! only draw back is a rough ride. A 4 inch lift should get you 35's under your truck. The 4 inch rough country kit is more like a 5-6 inch lift anyway. I speak from experience.

Ok, now the debate about transfer case drop. You HAVE to drop (tilt) the transfer case in order to keep axle pinion to drive shaft angle correct or you will get binding or a vibration when front hubs are locked in. Its simple geometry, if you don't understand it then don't comment.

I have been doing lifts for over 20 years. Lifts all the way up to 12 inches. The transfer case must either be tilted down, dropped, or the front pinion angle changed. One or all three are necessary depending on the size of lift. Anything below an 8 inch lift, (tilting) or dropping as some would say, the transfer case is sufficient.

With a 4 inch lift you should not need to lengthen or shorten your driveshafts.

There are three ways to order a lift for you M1009, one is get the blazer system, it has a softer spring rate. Or if you would prefer a stiffer ride but better hauling capacity get the 1/2 or 3/4 pickup system. All three systems will work with the M1009. Just make sure you specify whether or not you have 56 inch rear springs. The 3/4 ton system will make the truck sit even higher than the blazer system. So be mindful you may have to do drive-line and brake line mods if you order the 3/4 ton kit.
 
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Matt S

Active member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
142
35
28
Location
Los Angeles, CA
I had a M0128 with 4" ORD lift with HMMWV wheels and 37" BFG BAJA Mts. They rubbed. Go with the 4" ORD lift and add the 1" zero rates. also you should get there rear axle relocation kit. It may come with the rear zero rate. This is one good looking combination that works extremely well off road and still has very good road manners. Go with the Bilstien shocks as well! Do not forget that front Bilstien steering stabilizer.
If you wanted to run 37's would you still do the 4" and zero rates? What's rubbing? The frame or front fenders? Would a 5" spring in the front work the same or do you need to relocate the axle?
 

Jake59

Active member
168
99
28
Location
Kaggevinne, Flanders, belgium
Ordered a lift kit from rough country for a 3/4 c30, to install in a cucv m1028, it didn't fit. It fits the blazer not the Dana 60 either the leafs springs on the back end. Pitman arm is also different.
It works good in the m1009, 4 inch from rough country. Also able to install 37s with it. Now I have to start over with the truck, it's ok, had to do it anyway. Go 4" drop the transfer like you said and you'll be fine.

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Hello Bajaman,
I am just looking at ordering a 4" lift kit from Rough Country for my 1985 M1009 K5 Blazer.
Can you give me their Rough Country SKU Number for the 3/4 C30 kit you ordered please?
Does this fit mhe M1009 in all aspects and without any issues?

Thank you very much,
Jake

Additional information: As far as I understand for the M1009 the following Rough Country 4in Lift Kits fit: 24520 and 25030, but please correct me if I am wrong?
25030 is for 3/4 ton pick-up and Suburban but this should also fit the K5 Blazer, right?
Rough Country is giving me contradictionary information.

Anyone have experience with any of these 2 Lift Kits and do they fit on the M1009?

Thank you,
Jake
 
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JoeJoe_91

Member
39
29
18
Location
Melrose, FL
I’ve read the posts, I was just curious where I can find a longer driveshaft? New to the M1009 cucv world, I’ve owned it for 3 days. The previous owner put a 6” Rough Country lift on it with 35s.

Side Note: If anyone has any idea why it pours out white smoke from exhaust nonstop, any help will be truly appreciated. Thanks!!
 

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richingalveston

Well-known member
1,715
120
63
Location
galveston/Texas
find a drive shaft shop in your area and have it re-tubed with a longer tube and they will also balance it. This is the cheapest option.

You may want to look into a slip yoke eliminator kit and have the drive shaft rebuilt with a double cardon joint at the transfer case (just like the front driveshaft) due to the amount of lift It is going to be difficult to get the drive shaft to work without vibrations at speed. IF the angle at the t-case is different than the angle at the axle, you will get vibrations with standard u-joints. I would recommend putting the truck on blocks or use a lift so the axles hang. with everything in neutral, rotate the tires and see if the u-joints are hitting the stops. A u-joint can only work up to a certain angle and then they break or they break your t-case. You can drop the t-case so the output is lower but this changes the front output making it worse. You can shim the rear axle so the pinion faces up toward the t-case also to help.
get the driveshaft fixed first. There are drive shaft companies in every state. The online option and specialist for 4x4's is tom woods. https://4xshaft.com/
That is a lot of lift for a blazer. I would also check the steering closely.

I have 5 inches of lift on my blazer and I could not get standard u-joints to work properly. The lift kit looks brand new and all of the other problems with that much lift have probably not been worked out yet.
I know it is a new lift kit, but 4 inches would have been enough for 35 inch tires.
 
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