'88 leaf over axle conversion

[Larz28]

I have an 88' 4x2 4 cylinder auto standard cab/bed truck. I had a 4 inch suspension lift but the 6 in. shackles didnt lift the rear quite high enough so i custom built some 12" shackles to level it out. Of course my drive shaft angle changed so I would lose transmission fluid from the rear of the transmission. After having it sealed 3 times, it stopped leaking. Later I had a 3" body lift installed. The truck has always had the leaf springs going UNDER the rear axle. I was looking last night, it appears to be just a plate on bottom with 2 U bolts on top and 4 nuts (and 1 small clip to secure a small brake line before it runs across the rear axle) Is it possible to just flip this apparatus up side down and allow the leaf springs to sit on TOP of the axle ? Im no expert (which is why I'm here) but it looks plausible. The only complication I foresee is I may have to swap the left assembly with the right to keep the brake line clips in the rear. Is this an easy thing to do or are there are more complicating things Im going to encounter (ie changing the drive shaft angle, length, compromising the stability of the truck, etc.. ) I hope if I can raise the leafs up with this move, i can go back to the 6" rear shackle that came with the kit and take off my custome made 12" one. Thanks for any replies.

[fourwd1]

To get an idea of what you would have to do, just look at a 4WD version of your truck.
The 4WDs are spring over axle.
For one thing you would have to buy or fab some spring perches and weld them on.

[Larz28]

Yeah, its going to take at LEAST welding the spring perches on the top of the axle. I'll take it down to the place that put in my body lift and see what they think. They would know a lot more about it than I would. Thanks for the info !