On my 65 D100, I achieved what measured to be a 6" drop in the rear just by changing the rear spring hangers. This was 5 years ago and at the time, the aftermarket hanger I used was purchased from Autozone of all places.I don't recall the brand. The strange thing was the drop I achieved was greater than the difference between the OEM and aftermarket hangers.

On the front end, I wanted to stay with the factory dropped axle but I sent it out and had it dropped an additional 3". For me that was perfect. The D100 in that era uses a 4-spring / side arrangement. I believe the D200 uses 5 or more so he might consider removing a leaf (or maybe more).. The solution to the draglink is to change to a slight shorter pitman arm from a W100 (I believe that's correct). I have a new one if your friend is interested.

- EM