I Came across a pretty decent deal on a Ranch Hand and pulled the trigger. I ended up trading a well worn set of tires with about 35k miles on them And 300 bucks. I've been looking at them for quite a while but could never justify the cost, this is the best deal I have come across locally and I couldn't pass on it. A little leary about all the extra weight hanging off the front but well see how it goes. I can already tell by the weight of it either a spacer or a longer set of coils is going to be in order, not sure which route I'm going to go with yet. I was hoping to get it on this weekend but it's not going to happen, hopefully by next weekend. Here's a little peak at it for the time being though. [ATTACH=CONFIG]5975[/ATTACH

This is mine, I think it's 263#s. I put in a 2.5 inch leveling kit.[ATTACH]5976[/ATTACH]

I recently got a Boss Hogg. I don't know how much it weighs, but it's not very heavy. I bet 2 people could easily pick it up.I'll put up some pics later.And 97Turbo - that's an awesome bumper!

  diesel4life said:

I Came across a pretty decent deal on a Ranch Hand and pulled the trigger. I ended up trading a well worn set of tires with about 35k miles on them And 300 bucks. I've been looking at them for quite a while but could never justify the cost, this is the best deal I have come across locally and I couldn't pass on it. A little leary about all the extra weight hanging off the front but well see how it goes. I can already tell by the weight of it either a spacer or a longer set of coils is going to be in order, not sure which route I'm going to go with yet. I was hoping to get it on this weekend but it's not going to happen, hopefully by next weekend. Here's a little peak at it for the time being though. [ATTACH=CONFIG]5975[/ATTACH

Yep, that's the same bumper I picked up. I was pretty close I was guessing it was every bit of 275 pounds. OOps, I was supposed to quote 97 turbo, don't know how I quoted myself Anyways, that's the one!

Very nice, it looks very clean. My Holmes was too heavy for two people to pick up for any amount of time. Ended up using an engine hoist. I looked for a long time for a ranch hand or something similar, but never found anything. I like having the extra insurance against a deer or something. I am sure you will like it, I have no regrets about my set up.

I am on my 3rd ranch hand on 3 rams, Best bang for the buck as far as front end protection. I have looked at 20+ companies over 10 years and keep coming back to ranch hand as they are built tough and are about the cheapest ones around.:thumbup2:For me the cost of 1100 for a new one is a no brainer, average a deer collision every other year and it pays for itself in saved deductables alone not to mention the hassle of the repair ect. I can not count how many deer I have sent to the grave and not so much as a scuff in the past 10 years of running them, the 3K I have spent on the 3 in total have saved me way more than the purchase price already.I have added a 2 inch front spacer in 2 of my rigs the 05 and the 1500 hemi and they sit nice and level with the added weight, I have found the front on the 05 and 1500 set 1/2 inch lower than stock after a couple weeks of having the RH on. I had the heavy duty snow plow springs on my 02 so didn't need any spacer, the added weight didn't even phase the snow plow springs.

And the new rear:

Nice, I love my big bumper. I had 1" spacers but then moved to 2" Thuren coils and the ride is much better now. Truck sets about 1/2" lower in the front and that's the way I like it.

So what's the consensus coils or spacers? is there a difference in ride quality between the 2?

These Thuren coils are alot softer than the stockers. I have heard the Carli coils are a little stiffer than the Thuren's but I only wanted a 2" lift and Carli didn't offer it.

I actually preferred the stiffer snow plow springs in my 02. Compared to the stock springs the rig felt more stable and responsive. It was a firmer ride but I can't say it was rougher, maybe on pavement I noticed the stiffness a bit more than anywhere else.With the spacers it still feels like stock. I did the same thing on all 3 of my rigs, I measured the distance from the bottom of the fender lip down to the center of the wheel to get the most reliable measure of how far they settled, I measured stock and then right after the bumper install and then after a few weeks to see how things settle in.

Hope y'all don't mind a little whoring?

It's a bumper thread, so I figured I'd throw a pic or two up.

  Texas CTD said:

Hope y'all don't mind a little whoring?

Nope, long as she's willing

I didn't realize this model bumper was so common! Thanks for all the pics though it really gives me an idea of what it will look liie on my truck. He had already had it removed when I went to look at it so your pictures put it into perspective alot better

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  Wild and Free said:

I actually preferred the stiffer snow plow springs in my 02. Compared to the stock springs the rig felt more stable and responsive. It was a firmer ride but I can't say it was rougher, maybe on pavement I noticed the stiffness a bit more than anywhere else.

With the spacers it still feels like stock.

I did the same thing on all 3 of my rigs, I measured the distance from the bottom of the fender lip down to the center of the wheel to get the most reliable measure of how far they settled, I measured stock and then right after the bumper install and then after a few weeks to see how things settle in.

So are you saying you use stock height springs with spacers?

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  98whitelightnin said:

These Thuren coils are alot softer than the stockers. I have heard the Carli coils are a little stiffer than the Thuren's but I only wanted a 2" lift and Carli didn't offer it.

How do you rate the ride on them? How about when towing? My off roading is limited to crawling around the fields and a lot of back roads. I also need someting that will still handle decent with a trailer in tow.

Yes, all stock springs with leveling spacers on top except for the 02 which I swapped the OEM stockers for OEM snow plow springs alone, no leveling spacers there and it did not settle any, remained at factory ride height.

How about the stock length suspension, is it OK or would I be pushing the limits with a 2 to 2 and a half inch lift? I just put a set of Bilsteins on it over the winter, I'm hoping I don't have to cash em in already How much will it affect my alignment if any?

Problem I was having was, the steering would hit the crossmember when I hit a good bump because the bumper was so heavy.

  Texas CTD said:

Hope y'all don't mind a little whoring?

It's a bumper thread, so I figured I'd throw a pic or two up.

NICE BUMPERS But I am surprised you don't get pulled over cause you cant read your license plate it seems to be covered I am kidding

  ADawg said:

NICE BUMPERS But I am surprised you don't get pulled over cause you cant read your license plate it seems to be covered I am kidding

Thanks! I traded the stock ones, plus $175 for the front and rear!

  98whitelightnin said:

Problem I was having was, the steering would hit the crossmember when I hit a good bump because the bumper was so heavy.

I'm assuming you mean before you leveled the front? Did you retain the factory height suspension with the longer coils?

is there provisions to attach the plastic inner fender well to these bumpers? or need to finagle up something?? I had the stocker front bumper off the '00 a month ago... Looks heavy, but I was surprised how light it was! ( I was thinking that the trade off going to aftermarket wouldn't THAT much.... needing heavier springs/spacers to compensate!) WF, I thought the snowplow springs were the same as the diesel option springs... I gotta set off of a '94 2500 parts truck... THAT truck was a real lumber wagon~ Without searching... what do these bumpers cost?

  diesel4life said:

How about the stock length suspension, is it OK or would I be pushing the limits with a 2 to 2 and a half inch lift? I just put a set of Bilsteins on it over the winter, I'm hoping I don't have to cash em in already How much will it affect my alignment if any?

Stock is 100 % fine, I just wanted a factory rake or even a bit more level. Any lift added will not affect anything, the coil rate of the springs affects stiffness and ride quality. Bumper will not affect the alignment on a solid axle rig.

  98whitelightnin said:

Problem I was having was, the steering would hit the crossmember when I hit a good bump because the bumper was so heavy.

I would like to know how any portion of the steering would come close to the frame even if it was in full compression it should be clear of all things.

  rancherman said:

is there provisions to attach the plastic inner fender well to these bumpers? or need to finagle up something?? I had the stocker front bumper off the '00 a month ago... Looks heavy, but I was surprised how light it was! ( I was thinking that the trade off going to aftermarket wouldn't THAT much.... needing heavier springs/spacers to compensate!) WF, I thought the snowplow springs were the same as the diesel option springs... I gotta set off of a '94 2500 parts truck... THAT truck was a real lumber wagon~ Without searching... what do these bumpers cost?

I just drilled a hole and bolted the outer edge of the inner fender to the flange of the bumper, There are actually a specific snow plow package spring that is heavier than the stndard suspension, there are actually many different part #'s for the front springs, the snow plow spring part # ends with 988AA. I paid 800 off e-bay for the one on my 02 with free shipping and I bought the ones for my 05 and 2010 1500 for 1100 each through a local dealer.