SquireSCA

The Ranchos seem to have a decent compromise on the compression damning, for soaking up bumps, but as others have noted, it is the rebound damping that is too little, so it rebounds fast and gives that "sproingy" feeling when you go over a speed bump. When I hit a speed bump at a decent speed it does an ok job of soaking up the hit, but then the shocks, especially the rear, spring back too fast and causes the rear to hop. Suspension that is properly dialed in will soak up movement in BOTH directions, not just the initial hit and downward stroke. The upward or rebound stroke is where the stock Rancho shocks seem to really fall short.

Pic 1

The local off-road store is installing a double light bar down in between the rescue hooks. Nice black chrome unit, maybe from Rough Country? depending on how that looks, I may install a brace type of bar beneath that to finish it off and add a little protection. Will post pics when it’s done!

Good info, thanks, I will ax them when I am ready to do something.

Still a work in progress. So far I just added a JL Audio 250W amp and 8" sub under the back seat, had the dealer install a 2.25" front level kit and 3" lift in the rear to keep a little factory rake, upgraded the tires, plugged in the box to disable AFM and force it to 8cyl mode all the time(Range Box), removed the muffler, exhaust flapper and resonator and had a shop weld in SS piping, and then added a chrome exhaust tip from an Escalade... so straight pipe from the cats back, sounds great. I removed the lower air dam and side steps for more clearance, and then yesterday removed the entire black plastic lower bumper and chrome mustache, and on Friday I am having a double row of "black chrome" light bar installed in the gap created between the rescue hooks... Oh, and I took out the crappy plastic skid plates and installed the heavy aluminum ones from GM, the cover the front and the oil pan... transfer case already had steel plate protecting it... I will take nice pics on Sat, after the light bar system is installed.

Stock wheels, with Ridgegrappler 285/65/r18 on them

These guys said they have good luck with them, and combining them with the 5100's they said really makes for a nice ride. I should be able to step up another size in tire as well. It's got a 285/65r18 on it now, I might be able to squeeze in 1 size taller. That's about it for this truck, they say to get 35's you need a bigger lift and to probably trim fenders and stuff. I won't go that far...

Really? It looks like it replaces the UCAs and it drops the diff, which I assume would put the drive shafts at a better angle... Maybe the other part that they replace in addition to the lift kit are the ball joints? They warranty their stuff, so if this was a problem I assume they would want to avoid that? I will ask them.

Here is the lift kit, but they said that they also replace some stock part with an aftermarket part that is not in the kit... He said the stock part will work with it, but wears out faster so they swap that out as well. I would be doing this kit, plus that part, and then the Bilsteins all for around $2600 installed. https://www.readylift.com/4-sst-lift-kit-gm-silverado-sierra-1500-4wd-z71-w-cast-al-or-stamped-steel-uca-2014-2018-1.html

So I went over to FlatOutAuto yesterday and here is my game plan. SST makes a 4" lift kit for this truck, that isn't too invasive as far as the install. It will give me a solid 4" all around, move the diff, etc... We are gonna do that in the spring, along with upgrading the shocks to the correct Bilstein 5100's at the same time. Total with installation should be around $2600, give or take. That will greatly improve the clearance and handling of the truck, ensure proper suspension geometry, etc...

See, that’s all I need. Simple, clean and fills in the gap.

I like the look of that but want to keep my tow hooks. If I could just find a minimalist bull bar that slides in between the rescue hooks I think I would be golden.

What about something simple like a mini bull bar or something? Just need something to fill in the gap a little...

Other angle

Removed both the lower dam, and the upper dam with the chrome mustache. And while it looks good from the side, the center part up front, needs something to fill it in. I cleaned it up a good bit, flipped bolts over so they point up rather than down, removed the old damn support, etc... does nobody make an aftermarket mini skid plate or something that mounts up in that small space, just to fill the gap between the rescue hooks? ideas?