ok (trying to add to the value of this thread and not depreciate it)
the skyjackers..... you'll love em if you enjoy a VERY soft ride
don't expect your handling to improve too much, off road, it's great they soak up the bumps and keep your head from nailing the roof
just avoid gettin up to high speeds, mine's pretty friggin top heavy and the skyjackers don't really help that, don't get me wrong i love em, very soft, smooth, but not too much more supportive than the stockers

By the time the plasma cutter somehow got loose on my truck last year, I had the following left from a Calmini lift:

Shackles
Add-a-leafs
Brake lines

I had done the following:

[*]Gotten annoyed at the crossmember and swapped it back out.
[*]Was too fed up with a stiff frontend and swapped back to stock torsion bars
[*]Figured I didn't need the arms and swapped back to stock arms with a balljoint flip for a better perceived ride and a homemade (and quite effective, actually!) alignment
[*]Broke both front shocks repeatedly and hated how stiff the rear was

The only thing I have left now? Add-a-leafs with a SOA rear, as well as the lift shackles to deal with matching the height of the front.

Beyond that, I wish I hadn't spent that much money on that lift kit. I wish I had taken it a little slower, not followed the "lift-in-a-box" that really doesn't apply to our rigs as much as it does to every cheerleader's Jeep. I wish I had spent my money adding to the lift parts in my truck rather than removing parts over the course of a year - with a just-as-lifted truck at the end of it. Now, being able to go with your own shocks? That's pretty cool of them.

The kit is, however, really high quality. They were also very pleasant to deal with, and I'm not going to bag on a vendor that supports our truck (and actually does it quite nicely, really).

Of course this is my opinion, YMMV, etc.

<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

hmmm... lets see, companies A, B, and C,

they all make Isuzu 3" lift kits - sounds like all apples to me.

all the lift kits are similar in design with some minor differances (for the most part) - sounds like apples to me, granted maybe a red and green apple, but still an apple.


Company A - markets and sells it's products internationally

Company B - markets and sells it's products internationally

Company C - markets and sells it's products internationally

sounds like apples to me


Company A - builds/fabricates most of it's products on site

Company B - builds/fabricates many of it's products on site

Company C - builds/fabricates many of it's products on site

Close enough to be an apple, maybe a slightly differant species, but still an apple


Company A - you call, ask a question, place an order, or ask for a status, they answer your questions

Company B - you call, ask a question, place an order, or ask for a status, they answer your questions

Company C - you call, ask a question, place an order, or ask for a status, they answer your questions

Sounds like apples


Does it really matter that Company A grosses a million dollars a year and Companies B and C do less than a million?

Are Company A's products any better than Company B or C?



I agree that we should speak from personal experiance, not hear-say (sp), but the moderators on this forum seem to be itcy to delete anything that concerns a negitive comment about Company A, I guess when you pay for advertising on a site that grants you protection from the moderators (just a perception). When is the last time that the moderators stood up for an negitive comment about Company B and C? or have there even been any/many? There are usually reasons behind a negitive opinion of a particular company, sometimes it might be the quality of the product, it could be the customer service recieved, could be a variety of reasons, but that is what generates the opinion. Isn't that what these forums are for, to ask for opinions and gather information about a process, part, product, ect... Granted sometimes threads wonder off their original purpose and sometimes have to be put back on track.

Sammy asked for opinions on a particular lift kit and got opinions and suggestions. that is what he asked for and that is what he got. (purpose of forum) <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />

<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />



----------------------------
Comments by one vendor on another vendor's products -- no matter how positive they may be -- are NOT allowed on this forum. We're more worried about the negative ones, but to avoid every having to differentiate, we specifically disallow the entire class of vendor-on-vendor comments. -- Randii
----------------------------

Joe, I think you sell apples... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Others sell oranges. We may have to agree to disagree on this one. Luckily, I like most kinds of fruit... even though none of the fruit in question have yet advertised with 4x4Wire.

I do believe that the products are different in small but key ways... For example, CALMINI's A-arm kit is specifically intended, per their report, to be a 3-inch lift. Others in the market make lifts for less, the same, or more, depending on what variant you buy. That matters to some folks... and some folks will want to install products themselves, where others will want shops to install them for them. There are sufficient differences to make them fruit salad (apples and oranges), IMHO.

Forgive me, Joe, I was not aware you marketed products internationally. My apologies for introducing a red herring -- my point was this: 4x4Wire accepts specific first-hand experience, and the earlier threads were leaning more towards generalizations, and not immediate experience.

I continue to believe that the products -- and the companies that make them -- are apples and oranges. I will continue to go out of my way to note that the products themselves are different, and that the companies that make them are different, and I will continue to encourage potential customers to get informed on the products and the companies before they make their purchase.

As an example -- personally, I prefer to deal with the 'small guy,' but if warranty is a consideration, I lean toward the 'big guy' with 20 years in business. Conflicted? Yep, but each is a reasonable consideration for me when buying parts... I encourage everyone to research the products, and the companies that make them when buying, and I also encourage folks to post their firsthand experiences with products, and the companies that make them AFTER the sale.

Randii

As a friendly reminder, comments on moderation are NOT welcome in the open forum. We moderate these forums as well as we can, and that's sometimes tough with these kinds of contentious issues. If anyone ever has concerns on the moderation or the management, you can mail or PM the moderators/management.

This thread CAN keep rolling on track, if it continues with first-hand discussions based on immediate experience... if it turns astray, it will get locked.

Randii

When doing my lift, the only "new" things that I used were shackles, add a leaves, and shocks. I got the add a leaves from Trooper Chris who had them on his troper for a while, I got the shocks from Matt, who has great coustomer service and got a lil snag taken care of RIGHT away, and a good friend made the shackles for me. As Huddy said about the skyjackers, they are a LIL softer than I thought and when hitting a big bumb on the highway u had better hang on to something, but I love them. They soak up the bumps and (I found) better the handling. The shackles and add a leaves are all that is really needed to do a lift, the rest is just icing on the cake. If I had had the $$$ at the time I might have gotten a full kit just to have all of the nice lil extras, but I am just a poor college student. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/shiner.gif" alt="" />

Randii-
Not sure if you were referring to my addition to the thread or not, but in case you were-I did preface my comments with "in my experience"-nuff sed <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/ignore.gif" alt="" />

Sammy, I have dealt with all three "personally" and this was my personal experience. When I retired I took a trip around the US. ONe of those stops was to "a" company less than 5 days drive away from Utah but more than 7 hours away (you do the math). I contacted this company prior to my departure to see if they would have a lift in stock so that I could just drop on by and pick it up. I also asked if they had anyone in that city who would install it for me (not to good with a wrench at that time). They said yes to both. So I drive North, then West, then South. Along the way I made two calls to reconfirm the previous conversations. Once I arrived I was met with the typical deer in the headlight look as to "who are you" and "when did you order that?" They then explained to me that they did not have a kit made but could have one made up in a few days. Not knowing that the other two companies were in existents I stayed in that city at a hotel with a jacked up price for two days. After much badgering I finally got my lift. However, now they said that they were not sure if the company they suggested to install it could in fact do so. So I found my own place. The company installing it were having problems with getting the upper A arms off and called the kit manufactures and were met with "it's not our problem". We did eventually get the lift on. A year and a half later my front shocks were completely gone, my upper a-arms were hitting and still are the upper shock mounts, the rear shocks are so stiff that last time that I took them off I actually had to use the floor jack to recompress them with the tops already installed. The rear shackle may look beefy but it looks like a slim jim compared to the other two companies. O'ya the brake lines didn't hold up as well and I had to replace the bushings on the upper a-arm after a short 1.5 to 2 years. Now a few years go by and I find out about company number two. I call them to ask if they have any lockright lockers. They said no but would be willing to do the leg work to find one. Ironically enough the next day I am in MEPCO and lord and behold the front box on the shelf is the only lockright known to exist within around the 50 to 60 calls that I made around the country. Finding it I call company 2 to let them know that I appreciated them looking for me but I found one. Their reply was do you know how to install it, which I replied no. Company two said that if I was willing to make the 5 hour drive north that they would show me how to do it at no charge. In my Passport I went and turned to the north. Due to the extremely nasty weather the one day event took two. I did all the wrenching with the expertice standing over my shoulder. I now can tear that sucker apart and put it back together like nothing. All this from a guy that I didn't even by the locker from in the first place. O'ya did I mention that he put me up for the night as well....not in some hotel room at my expense. If you ask me if this guy had the capital backing of company one he would easily be a furtune 100. Hell, I'd vote for him for President. Since this experience of mine I have bought a multitude of equipment from them, not once meeting with any trouble nor a cold shoulder when I call for help. As for company three, I have dealt with them as well and had extremely good service also and believe that they would be the type of company to go out of their way as well. I just don't get the chance very often to drive a week to deal with them on an intimate bases. Really sorry that this tunred out so long but I agree that it always seems that this forum wants to immediately jump to defend one company. Well maybe there is a reason that they always have to?

So Jeff ... Do you have an opinion??
<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/drunk.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/drunk.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/ignore.gif" alt="" />... I couldn't quite pick it out. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/notooth.gif" alt="" />

Ok, I'm a little confused here? Apples, oranges, fruit? We are still talking about a lift kit here right? I couldn't quite figure out which company was being represented for A, B and C? I too am looking at a lift kit, and or lift parts for a roughly 3" lift. I'm not as much concerned about the price as I am about the quality. Which manufacturer has the overall best lift? The Calmini kit looks nice on the picture, but that of course doesn't amount to a hill of beans if it won't hold up or has to be stripped down to only a couple of the parts out of the whole to get a desireable lift.