Inez no cut tips

[t0ymach1n3]

Good morning everyone!

Long time lurker, first time poster. I SWEAR I have browsed the forums for any answers/clues/tips/tricks for the questions I have below so not to be one of "those guys"

A little preface of what i'm working with:

2014 Ram 1500 RCSB Express w/20 in stock rims, Belltech 2/4 drop w/street performer shocks, Spohn adjustable panhard bar (I think it's set correctly?)

Now for the actual reason for the post:

I bought the above mentioned drop kit along with the no cut brackets, after reading about them and the problems they fixed, to be sure I had a damn good start at completing the drop right and getting the results we are all after. When it came time for the install, I got scared and didn't install the brackets. After a good amount of miles, highway and street, I know I need to install these to fix the death wobble my truck has when it's at high speed and moves any other direction that straight. Looking back I was a bit confused on how these actually install on the rear end in terms of exactly where to drill the holes and fears of drilling in the wrong spot and ruining my chances of installing these. I am by no means a dummy in terms of turning wrenches and would prefer to do this myself instead of a shop preferably.

Anyone have any tips/tricks/info that might help me get over this to get these installed? Thanks ahead of time

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

My advice after installing and un installed the no cuts on my 14 RCSB.

The lowers are more important than the uppers, I'll get to why later. Lowers center the wheels, the uppers adjust pinion angle. Both are important but an option exists to work around the uppers

When you install lowers, mark your axle and make certain your brackets are equal side to side. Remember your control arms are a fixed length, unless you have purchased adjustable, so one bracket out of place slightly will cause your wheels to not be centered in the wheel wells. Mark the holes and drill. After you get them bolted up, even when you tighten the bolts, they could move. You could consider a small tack weld to hold them more steady. Mine, even though I torqued the bolts to 140 ft lbs moved. Before getting started, I would measure the distance between front and rear wheels and the distance between a fixed point on the frame and the rear wheels. This gives you the ability to check the change. If you are already lowered, suggest you take this into consideration. Remember you should remove the rear bump stops, including the metal cups. Belltech makes a replacement tat can be reinstalled

As for the uppers, make certain, if marked, they are on the correct side. When marking the holes, it's best to seat the brackets per the instructions and clamp them in place to make certain they do not move. Carefully mark where you need to drill and double check the instructions.

Once you drill, if your holes are not aligned the angle will be off. At that point you need to go to plan b or weld and Redrill.

It's not hard or difficult but it is time consuming. A right angle drill is your friend.

If you have aftermarket control arms, like core 4x4 or freedom, be prepared for them to hit the brackets. This requires further effort.if you are using stock control arms it's not a concern.

In the end, make certain you check your pinion angle. A cheap angle finder from harbor freight will be useful to get before and after reference points. They should be identical IF not very close. Again if you are starting from stock, if already lowered it will be slightly different. You need to between 2 to 3 degrees down to avoid vibration. Plenty of you tube videos that explain this.

If I was doing it again and saying at 2/4, I would install the lower brackets, then buy the double adjustable control arms from core, then adjust my pinion angle to factory specs. It WOULD be easier.

https://www.core4x4.com/product/rc-d-15-2009-ru2/

As it is, because mine moved on hard launch, I Uninstalled and have purchased the cut brackets which I will tack weld once installed as I'm going 4 / 6 vs 2/4.

I expect your experience will be different from mine. All total my install doing the work by myself took a full day.

 

[t0ymach1n3]

Thanks for the detailed reply! I don't have any adjustable control arms, and tossed that around and currently have no plans to upgrade the stock ones unless it's warranted or would improve the suspension significantly. Any idea why your brackets moved? Where the drilled holes not aligned? Or too big?

Also have a couple follow ups, if ya don't mind

"Once you drill, if your holes are not aligned the angle will be off" Would placing the hardware in the brackets, having it clamped down help to get that alignment of the of the holes as close to straight through so i'm even on both sides?

"A right angle drill is your friend" Any recommendations on size/brand? Saw many others reference this but no details as to the one they used to help me navigate the one to get myself. Can't see myself using this too much, so not looking to break the bank

"In the end, make certain you check your pinion angle" I have no clue what that is or how to do it. Any suggestions to where I could learn more?

"I'm going 4 / 6 vs 2/4" What made you decide to go lower? Not like that is a bad thing! lol

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

Ok. What made my brackets move. I ignored the advice to tack weld. Even the instructions say to periodically check for movement. My truck has a edlebrock supercharger so launches are harder vs NA as I build boost from the start. My holes were not too big.

I think the biggest item is read the instructions. The uppers have to be against the upper mount flush, there should not be any gap. Some factory mounts have some welding **** that could hold the mounts off center and cause a problem. That was my experience your truck could be different. Your idea could work, but will not fix the problem if they are not aligned.

I bought a cheap electric one from harbor freight. It was 30 bucks, the expense is in the bits. Buy the best you can find. To lessen cutting time.

Search YouTube pinion angle, there's lots of videos.

How to Set Pinion Angle

Dave has set up around 1,000 ( yes we know that's not 5k :) rear suspensions for drag racers. Here he is going to share a little bit of his knowledge and exp...

youtu.be

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

I'm going lower as the ride on 2/4 with springs, in my opinion, is not as good as the ride with the lowered control arms in front. I want my front end to align and I like the look of the 4/6 better.

Here's my truck on 20s, with the brackets installed.

Here it is on 22s with no brackets


As you can see, too much gap between body and tire

 

[t0ymach1n3]

If you're ever in DFW, beer is on me. Thanks for all the info! Still feel a bit sketch about doing it, but I love a good challenge and you've given me some good food for thought.

Last thing, I swear! Any insight to what size the holes that need to be drilled are? I've got their instructions here and don't see it nor had I found anything related in the forum browsing i've been at today. Not a big deal if ya don't, just figured it give me a better idea of what drill bits to purchase to get that knocked out.

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

I don't really remember, before I drilled, I took existing bits i had and made certain I had the correct size based on the bolts going through the holes in the brackets.

If I was in DFW, I would take a road trip to Inez in palm view Texas and let the pros install.

 

[t0ymach1n3]

If it wasn't for the 8 hr drive, I would totally do it! Although the more I look and think about it, I might need to make that happen. I haven't had any luck finding someone in the DFW area willing to do it, nor the alignment, as of yet. Part of what's got me looking for clues and insight on how to do it.

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

I've driven farther for less. If you feel uncomfortable take the drive. 16 hour round trip it your truck is therapy compared to messing something up you may not be comfortable with performing

 

[t0ymach1n3]

I can't really argue with that logic.... I'm gonna make some calls

 

[Chango3]

I live in Dallas, Garland to be exact and I took my truck to Purgatory Fab in Irving to have the no-cut brackets installed. I have a similar setup that you are about to install. I have the belltech springs (2/4 drop) all around and started with the the belltech shocks in front and A1 shocks in the rear and Hellwig rear sway bar and no bump stops in the rear. I then added the airlift airbags in the rear after a few weeks because I have a bottoming out issue on my truck since dropping it. I drove it like this for almost a year and still hit hard in the rear once in a while. I recently removed the front and rear shocks and replaced them with the viking warriors. I am still playing around with the settings since I still feel the rear hitting once in a while. I did drop the truck myself with my grandson's assistance but I didn't want to tackle the bracket install so I took it in. You can contact them via Facebook and it is a small hole in the wall shop but they seem to have done a good job. I added a phone number that I found but I think it might be a personal number for one of the workers but it worked. They are located here -

Purgatory Fab
2023 East Shady Grove Road, Irving, Tx 75060
469-660-4232

 

[t0ymach1n3]

It's funny you say that.... I actually just dropped my truck off there this morning to get the no cuts installed! Heard a lot of great things about their work and the price was right compared to others that offered.

 

[Coy Roberts]

I recently installed the 3/5 no cut kit. It’s a great kit compared to everything else i looked at. T0ymach1n3, How did the install go yesterday? The instructions in the kit are lacking a bit but i was able to get everything installed myself. Like you i bought the kit and then researched for a month before doing the install. It does bottom out so i bought the air ride helper bags. They work great although they are really noisy/squeaky. I will be purchasing the cut kit brackets to give a little more clearance to the frame. I have a cargo trailer and camping trailer that i use often. Cargo trailer hasn’t been an issue at all and the camping trailer driving around town seems to do well also. Need to get a taller shank to level out the trailer a bit more. Overall happy with everything.

 

[t0ymach1n3]

The install went flawless. The shop I took it to knew exactly what they were doing and had me in and out super fast. The shop told me the best thing to use for the install is a plasma cutter. Not that you can't do it with a drill, but you're gonna go through some bits for sure. A plasma cutter makes quick work of it and you'll spend more time installing the brackets. They also said the cut kit is actually easier to install being there is really nothing to get right other than the positioning of the brackets. The no cuts, they told me, like to move around and getting them lined up is a pain.

I'm about to install the helper bags tomorrow. You have any idea what's causing the noise? I don't tow but do carry around my dirt bike, gear, tools, parts and don't wanna hear any squeaking if I can help it lol

 

[MCMLXIX]

Just throwing this out there... I am collecting parts for my 3/5 drop.... I ordered a set of air bags to replace the rear springs from Timber Grove. It replace the spring and give a 4" drop (can get other options) This will allow you to adjust for stiffness / payload ....

09'-UP RAM 1500 4" Low (STAINLESS) Rear CRM (SQ8419421) — Timber Grove Enterprises, LLC

Stainless steel adjustable design that accommodates control arm modifications found in some 4” lowering kits. Kit includes stainless mounts, Torque 6,000+ lbs. combined air springs, stainless fasteners, push-to-connect brass air fittings, twin air fill lines with brass barbed air valves and axle lim

timbergroveenterprises.com

 

[natehate]

I recently installed the 3/5 no cut kit. It’s a great kit compared to everything else i looked at. T0ymach1n3, How did the install go yesterday? The instructions in the kit are lacking a bit but i was able to get everything installed myself. Like you i bought the kit and then researched for a month before doing the install. It does bottom out so i bought the air ride helper bags. They work great although they are really noisy/squeaky. I will be purchasing the cut kit brackets to give a little more clearance to the frame. I have a cargo trailer and camping trailer that i use often. Cargo trailer hasn’t been an issue at all and the camping trailer driving around town seems to do well also. Need to get a taller shank to level out the trailer a bit more. Overall happy with everything.

on the 3/5 no cut kit, did you have to remove any of the factory brackets?

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

If you are installing no cut brackets, the only thing you might want to consider cutting off are the metal cups for the rear bump stops. No other brackets need to be removed, however several holes need to be drilled

 

[t0ymach1n3]

If you are installing no cut brackets, the only thing you might want to consider cutting off are the metal cups for the rear bump stops. No other brackets need to be removed, however several holes need to be drilled

Thanks for replying. I ended up taking it to a shop to have them do it about a week ago. Great price and turn around time. I would have spent almost twice that getting all the tools and drill bits needed to do it myself. The next one I plan to do myself. I'm like most here, i'm sure, in doing as much of my own work as possible.

 

[1SloRam]

I recently installed the 3/5 no cut kit. It’s a great kit compared to everything else i looked at. T0ymach1n3, How did the install go yesterday? The instructions in the kit are lacking a bit but i was able to get everything installed myself. Like you i bought the kit and then researched for a month before doing the install. It does bottom out so i bought the air ride helper bags. They work great although they are really noisy/squeaky. I will be purchasing the cut kit brackets to give a little more clearance to the frame. I have a cargo trailer and camping trailer that i use often. Cargo trailer hasn’t been an issue at all and the camping trailer driving around town seems to do well also. Need to get a taller shank to level out the trailer a bit more. Overall happy with everything.

Old thread, maybe you’re still active.
How did you manage to get a 3/5 on no cuts? Was told from IHC it wasn’t possible.

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

@1SloRam , from my discussion with IHC, you are correct a 3/5 was not possible as the no cut would hit upper control arms.

I'm helping a buddy put a 3/5 on his ram Saturday. He is doing 3 inch crown drop springs, max Trax upper control arms, bell tech 4 in rear spring kit , cutting 1 coil on rear springs and the ihc cut brackets.

He pieced this together for about a grand. A little less expensive than ihc 3/5 kit.

His parts look solid, you don't need to use that rubber spring isolater from ihc and you use belltech springs. He is saying with stock shocks.

Overall I'm interested to see how it rides once installed.