raising the "hoop" in trailing arm crossmember?

[statenine]

Hey guys, does anyone know the best way to raise the hoop in the trailing arm crossmember (with cab still on)? I have a 1 piece driveshaft and and I am bagging the rear with an 8" notch, and was told I will definitely need to cut and raise the hoop about 3" in the TA crossmember for clearance. Should I just cut out the top portion of the hoop and add some kind of spacer in to make it higher? Or use a custom U shaped piece of metal to replace what I cut out? Thx in advance!

[damnyankee36]

I removed the crossmember and flipped it. That raised the trailing arm attach points so the geometry would be close to factory when the truck is dropped. It also raised the hoop enough so the driveshaft has clearance. Can't remember if it needed the clearance but it wound up being a bonus effect of flipping the crossmember.

It also raised the top of the crossmember but not enough to hit the cab floor.

First two pics: Factory
Second two pics: Flipped
Last: Driveshaft clearance w/truck dropped. (About 3" frame notch)