Bought lifted 14' SE

[Onesaltykahuna]

Hey everyone,
I'm new here but I figured I'd chime in to get an opinion from the more familiar vets out there. So as the title suggests, I bought a 14' SE that already came with a RC 4" lift. Upon further research AFTER committing, I see that it is HIGHLY frowned upon here, but obviously with cutting the factory cross member, it doesn't look reversible, atleast without ruining the frame integrity. I would trade it in for a non botched truck, but my credit isnt the best, I needed a cosign and pretty much all my savings are gone. So looking at the fact that I'm gonna be stuck with this truck for a while, my question is; is it possible to scoop up a pair of 2nd gen 3.0's since the shock body is about 2" longer, combining it with an RPG perch collar or Geiser progressive springs to make up for the other 2" and tossing the strut spacer? I also wanted to chuck the 5" block in the rear, so I was thinking about picking up a pair of deavers even though I dont tow aside from bike track days, but never exceeds a ton, to address the axle wrap issue. I'm open to any advice, and please, I'm already suffering my repercussions as is so take it easy.

 

[K223]

Welcome aboard. Hmmm your in an interesting predicament. We had a member about two months ago that purchased a Gen 2 with a bolt on lift kit. So it was basically reversible. He just had to purchase a lot of factory parts to restore the truck. I’m not the authority, but throwing Gen 2 shocks on a Gen 1 to try and correct this problem, may be digging yourself deeper into this whole. You would at the very least need a set of Gen 2 shocks with live valve delete to even use them.

So this conversion actually cut the front crossmember? If so it’s a little more complicated to come back to anything like stock.

Let’s see what some of the seasoned Gen 1 guys can tell you otherwise. What do you think @CoronaRaptor?

 

[CoronaRaptor]

Welcome to the place. COngrats on your Raptor. Post a pic of the suspension mods and we will let you know how to fix it the cheapest way. I find it hard to believe that they cut the frame or welded something that can't be cut off.

 

[K223]

Welcome to the place. COngrats on your Raptor. Post a pic of the suspension mods and we will let you know how to fix it the cheapest way. I find it hard to believe that they cut the frame or welded something that can't be cut off.

Do as he says. Get some detailed pics up pronto. He knows the anatomy of these trucks and I imagine the female body too

 

[CoronaRaptor]

Do as he says. Get some detailed pics up pronto. He knows the anatomy of these trucks and I imagine the female body too

Yes, good idea, pics of the GF too if you like

 

[K223]

Yes, good idea, pics of the GF too if you like

 

[Onesaltykahuna]

Yes, good idea, pics of the GF too if you like

Haha thanks for the welcoming. Didn't mean to jump to conclusions, just my thoughts on what I would hope to work, I know the gen 2 takes offs have a different preload, and I'm aware of the valve delete process and I'd rather just get a pair of gen 1 3.0's to crank it up 3 inches, but they're 4K and wouldn't it just be stiff as hell? Plus too my trans from John Shepp just came in for the GTR so I'm broke broke . Will take more pics the minute I pick it up from the dock, quoted about 3-4 weeks from PASHA, all I have to post is a set of keys lol.. But from what I know, doesn't the dropbracket lift call for cutting the crossmember to fit the truffet?

 

[Onesaltykahuna]

Also I'm aware of the axle wrap issue for the rear, hence why Im trying to get rid of the block but I dont tow much, so breaking in the deavers would take forever and its gonna be stiff AF till then, but this truck will probably see minimal dirt because the trails here are more of a halfton friendly/rock crawling trails.

 

[PorterW1111]

Haha thanks for the welcoming. Didn't mean to jump to conclusions, just my thoughts on what I would hope to work, I know the gen 2 takes offs have a different preload, and I'm aware of the valve delete process and I'd rather just get a pair of gen 1 3.0's to crank it up 3 inches, but they're 4K and wouldn't it just be stiff as hell? Plus too my trans from John Shepp just came in for the GTR so I'm broke broke . Will take more pics the minute I pick it up from the dock, quoted about 3-4 weeks from PASHA, all I have to post is a set of keys lol.. But from what I know, doesn't the dropbracket lift call for cutting the crossmember to fit the truffet?

Def get some pics up so we can see what has been removed/irreversible. Also if you can give some more context around how you intend to use the truck.

Based on your description I would potentially look into three options, custom order some shocks from king, or grab some ‘17-‘19 gen2 shocks and a khc F-150 upper coil bucket conversion kit. You’ll basically be cutting the old coil bucket off and re welding a new one on in a lower position or Just keep the truck exactly the way it is and let those who frown on big Raptors go cry in a corner. Big raptors are awesome depending on your intended use I would focus the money more toward making it wider(fiberglass fenders) to match the increased height!

 

[PorterW1111]

Also I'm aware of the axle wrap issue for the rear, hence why Im trying to get rid of the block but I dont tow much, so breaking in the deavers would take forever and its gonna be stiff AF till then, but this truck will probably see minimal dirt because the trails here are more of a halfton friendly/rock crawling trails.

What island are you on?