new 2015 silverado Z71 build and introduction

bowtie_Z · June 18, 2015

Thanks guys. Got the tracking number today for the wheels and tires finally. So its locked in. Those are the ones. No more changing. Im getting my lift kit installed tomorrow i wanted to do the wheels and tires at the same time as the lift but it just didnt work out that way. Im kinda debating wether i should run the Zone 1.5" body lift on top of the 9" suspension lift like originally planned since im not running 37's anymore. What do you guys think? I dont want to over do the lift and make it look stupid because it dwarfs the 35's. Then again its just 1.5" which would put me at 10.5. Not running the add a leaf because i kinda like the (very) slight drop in the rear on SOME setups. Not the crazy ones. Ill include a link to a truck i found that is very similar to what im doing minus some small differences. But its running the exact same lift kit (McGaughys black SS set at 9") with similar wheels and tires. With no add a leaf. I think it could handle another 1.5" what do you all think? I also bought some 1" bora wheel spacer (x4) so it will give me the stance im after since i went to 22x12 in stead of 14" wheels. Let me know what yall think, and id very grateful for some pics you think might give me a better idea of what it would look like @ 10.5" with 35's

bowtie_Z · June 25, 2015

In case anyone was curious what the lift and wheels n tires look like on the truck, heres a few.

Still got alot to do, like remive the bottom valance, and get diff lug nuts because the ones they sent me dont allow for the center caps to fit correctly. As well as installing all the other goodies for it. But here she is. I love it. It looks way bigger in person, the photos do it no justice.

sahls01gmc · June 25, 2015

Looks awesome! If it were me, I'd leave those mirrors on there.....minus the chrome. I'm not a fan of the giant oversized mirrors. Ditch the chrome and badges, and I would leave it just like that!

bowtie_Z · June 25, 2015

I like the style of the HD mirrors. But im not getting the ones that stick out 20 feet either. Just the square vertical upright ones. I still need to install the black mesh grill, black the tail lights. Install LED's (wheel well, wheel rotors, inside the grill, and the head light halos. Im installing my new leather interior this weekend as well. Thats priority number one on the list. Also i dipped my bowties black. Few other nick nacks and detail stuff as well. Thanks for the compliment man. Im in love with it. Turned out just the way i wanted it to

slj2008 · June 25, 2015

good looking truck. where are you getting your leather seat cover from ??

bowtie_Z · June 25, 2015

Katzkin. Ive personally seen them and sat in a 14 silverado, and i didnt even realize they werent factory from the assembly line. Theyre pretty legit. And the pricewasnt bad either. Win win if you ask me.

Josh121 · June 26, 2015

Looks great,can you post some more pics?

cjz28 · June 26, 2015

Wow! That's perfect! What are all the specs again? Lift/wheels/tires etc.

bowtie_Z · June 27, 2015

Thanks man, and no problem. Stats are 22x12 wheels with a -44 offset. Tires are 35x12.5R22 Toyo open country MT's. And i stopped by an old church parking lot and snapped a good bit of pics. Its crazy how many people come up to me and tell me they love it. At the stop lights, at stores driving down the road. Everywhere. Lol. Reassures me i have good taste!!! Lol jk. Heres the pics.

Also sending my 1" spacers back for 2 x 1.5" for the rear. Fronts stick out 1.5. As the others do too.

Also got new lugs and got the center caps on. Looks much cleaner.

Put a 20 oz. Bottle under it for a size reference.

bowtie_Z · June 27, 2015

Also Mcgaughys SS 7-9" lift set at 9"

bowtie_Z · July 2, 2015

Welp just a little update; ive had a week off which isnt very common but i took full advantage of it and busted my a++ and got alot done to it. Here is a quick list of what i accomplished...

Blacked out the tail lights, while leaving the reverse lights clear.

Removed the bottom front valance and the tiny mud lapbtype of things in front of the rear wheels.

Also dipped the rear bowtie black to match the front one i did recently.

I installed LED's in the grill with the blue tooth controller and i must say at night it looks mean. I currently have it set to pulse at about the same rate as normal breathing and set the color to red, so it looks like its alive lol. Looks really mean.

Also i installed my complete new jet black leather interior. And let me tell you, i see why they charge a lot for labor. Man that was an intense job. It required a complete disassembly of my interior. I mean everything down the the frame. Including center console and everything. Took me 2 full days but it looks fantastic and is much more comfortable. If anyone wants to see just let me know and ill throw some pics up. All in all ive got just about everything done now, except the rest of the leds. I just have to get a better soldering gun. Because those led strips leave you with a very tiny area to solder to. So i was using a normalbsoldering gun and it was everything i could do just to get what i got done.

TGawley · July 3, 2015

Truck looks fantastic man! Love the wheels and lift. I was going to go with McGaughy's but there hard to import to Canada. So I believe I'll be going with BDS. Glad to see you're thrilled with the results!

bowtie_Z · July 5, 2015

Truck looks fantastic man! Love the wheels and lift. I was going to go with McGaughy's but there hard to import to Canada. So I believe I'll be going with BDS. Glad to see you're thrilled with the results!

Thanks brother. I appreciate the kind words. Yeah the rough country lift kits are very popular in these new body styles, and they're cheap too. But man, a side by side comparison of the two, it's very obvious that the mcGaughys kit is much much better. For many reasons like the full 7" differential drop vs the RCX lift only does 4" I think. So your angles on the RCX lift aren't all that great and that can cause premature wear. Not to mention all the extra bracing and supports and skid plates the Mcgaughys has. It's just an all around awesome kit. That includes the full replacements of struts and and shocks. I was looking at my buddies 15 Chevy and he has huge spacers between the stock strut and the body. The shop I had install my lift did the usually test drive after they had completed it, and they came back and said that my truck was the smoothest lifted truck they have ever done. Which I'd have to agree. It does ride exceptionally well. Maybe even a tad smoother than stock. Only time you can notice a good difference is when you hit situations that make the truck rock front to back, you can sort of notice it's a little more than before. But overall it's the best kit out in my opinion. Well best as in typical kit 2k or less. Those big fancy ones I'm sure are superior but for the cheaper route it's for sure the way. Even the economy kit is still leaps and bounds better than the competition. I'm not trying to pitch their kit or anything, just my experience and reviews for those that are interested. It may be worth the wait for you.

TGawley · July 6, 2015

Thanks brother. I appreciate the kind words. Yeah the rough country lift kits are very popular in these new body styles, and they're cheap too. But man, a side by side comparison of the two, it's very obvious that the mcGaughys kit is much much better. For many reasons like the full 7" differential drop vs the RCX lift only does 4" I think. So your angles on the RCX lift aren't all that great and that can cause premature wear. Not to mention all the extra bracing and supports and skid plates the Mcgaughys has. It's just an all around awesome kit. That includes the full replacements of struts and and shocks. I was looking at my buddies 15 Chevy and he has huge spacers between the stock strut and the body. The shop I had install my lift did the usually test drive after they had completed it, and they came back and said that my truck was the smoothest lifted truck they have ever done. Which I'd have to agree. It does ride exceptionally well. Maybe even a tad smoother than stock. Only time you can notice a good difference is when you hit situations that make the truck rock front to back, you can sort of notice it's a little more than before. But overall it's the best kit out in my opinion. Well best as in typical kit 2k or less. Those big fancy ones I'm sure are superior but for the cheaper route it's for sure the way. Even the economy kit is still leaps and bounds better than the competition. I'm not trying to pitch their kit or anything, just my experience and reviews for those that are interested. It may be worth the wait for you.

Yeah you won't ever see me running a Rough Country lift on my truck. Extremely cheap, and you pay for what you get! I really like the SS McGaughy's lift so If I can find someone in Alberta who carries them Ill be all over it! Did you use the McGaughy shocks or did you upgrade at all? I won't be lifting my truck till I get my gears done. I Think 35's will be too much on the tranny with 3.42's. Did you redo your gearing?

bowtie_Z · July 7, 2015

No i havent re-geared yet, although i plan too. But if i could do it all over again, id have gotten a silverado with thr max trailering package, and then youll be good to go without doing any of that. Because youll have the 6.2 with 3.73 gears atranny cooler and the nice tow mirrors that look so sweet on lifted "chebys" lol. And no im running the McGaughys shocks just as the kit came. Im very happy with them.