budget slammin!

[81lwb350]

hey i know that the best way to lower and all that is with spindles and drop shackles...flip kits etc.

well this truck i have is basically a fun little toy and im not spending much on it... i found out that i defineatly have blow-by..
since this truck has turned out to be basic junk, im goin full blown red neck low budget customs!

i wanna lower it...CHEAP! im not TOO picky on the ride quality either.. since this is a truck that i really only drive to work and play around with...i sold my 94 wrangler so i could have something to screw up and have fun with!

so i was thinking of getting some 3/4 ton front springs and cutting them, thinking that they will be a little stiffer and stronger than the regular 1/2 ton springs

and i was thinking of just using lowering blocks instead of spending the 150 or so for the shackle hanger kit....i know everyone will try and talk me into the right way to do things, but like i said this truck is basically a beater... im gonna do a little bit of bodywork and spray it satin black like the old hotrods..and tape off some flames and spray them with rattle cans... i know this isnt the right way to do this. im just wanting to have some fun.... so if any of you know of CHEAP @ss ways to lower our trucks let me know...

another thing.... this board has been great.
and i appreciate all the time whoever it is puts into this site!

thanks in advance!
anthony

[LOHRTBT]

http://www.fullsizechevy.com/forum/s...threadid=11148

Cutting them is not the best idea...but I know lots of people do it. Rides like chit too!

[Tom]

cutting the coils is the cheap way to do it, perfect for what you want! As for lowering blocks, you cant. You have to have leaf under the axle setup to use lowering blocks. With leafs over the axle, they will be lift blocks. Your only choice for a low buck rear drop would be to remove leafs until you get where you want. Anything else is going to require buying drop stuff.

[81lwb350]

dave, thanks for the truth.
but i dont wanna spend a lot of cash...none if possible.

if i take out the overload leaf and one other how much can i expect it to drop. I have 295/50's on the back and 265/60's on the front right now with a stock suspension!

would i HAVE to use a drop shock, or could i use a stiffer shock to help with the bounce...i have a set of rancho's that a friend gave me off his 73-87. they are standard shocks, not shocks made for a lift. just thought i could compensate ride quality with a stiffer shock... i could just go and get some autozone shocks for like 15.00 a piece also.

[brad2]

If you can weld you could do it cheap. You could step up the end of your lower control arm two inches. It would be the same as a dropped control arm. Cut the axle pads off the rear end and weld on the bottom so you can mount the rear end over the leafs. Take approx one coil off the spring. You have a 4/6 drop and no money spent. You could probably get by with the stock shocks in the front. Out back just fab up some new (longer) monting tabs on the axle. Don't even attempt this unless you are a VERY good welder. Free hows that?

[bill_ont_canada]

When you say it like that Brad2 it makes so much sense...

Thats the way I had planned on dropping my truck anyway.

81lwb350
If you can locate a copy of Street Trucks Magazine from January 2000 on page 118 you will find a complete How to with pictures by Bill Turner. The article is called The Big Lowdown. It shows how to cut step and weld the lower a arms. The March 2000 issue has the How to on Notching the cross member. This is also covered on The Suspension section of this board.

[Richard D]

Originally Posted by bill_ont_canada

When you say it like that Brad2 it makes so much sense...

Thats the way I had planned on dropping my truck anyway.

81lwb350
If you can locate a copy of Street Trucks Magazine from January 2000 on page 118 you will find a complete How to with pictures by Bill Turner. The article is called The Big Lowdown. It shows how to cut step and weld the lower a arms.

Could you scan that?

[SCOTI]

Knocking the dust off an old one ehh . . .....

[Richard D]

Originally Posted by SCOTI

Knocking the dust off an old one ehh . . .....

Ah damn, I'm new and was going through old threads for info.

[kevinr1970]

Originally Posted by Richard D

Ah damn, I'm new and was going through old threads for info.

Good on you for using the search and archives for their full potential

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by Richard D

Ah damn, I'm new and was going through old threads for info.

I've installed the Turner a-arms on a truck (before he stopped doing business). There are some pics in the suspension forum of them but I prob still have them on my home computer & could re-post them if it helps.

There's nothing wrong w/bringing up an oldy when it helps to clarify updates on the info. 'Attaboy' x2 for using the search too!

[Richard D]

I have been on the H.A.M.B. for a few years, and it is annoying when a new guy asks the same questions that get asked every month.

Actually, the search isn't working for me. I typed in "cab swap" and got nothing, even though my thread with that very title is on page one.

[Malo83]

Just torch the springs and she'll settle down and that's cheap

[blk81shrt]

What do you use to torch the springs? Whats the ride like after? better then cutting them?

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by blk81shrt

What do you use to torch the springs?

A torch. Sorry.... I couldn't resist .

Whats the ride like after? better then cutting them?

Heating coils for drop affects the tempering of the steel & is considered un-safe. Cutting stock springs typically increases the spring rate between 10-30% depending upon the spring & application. 'Modestly' cutting springs is not un-safe.

[Richard D]

I'm not suggesting this, esp. since dropped coils are so cheap, but I meet a Pachuco-lowrider type guy in Alvin 15-20 years ago, who did his el-cheapo; free, actually. He heated the front springs, but only the end coils, so the rest of the spring still had some springy-ness in it. He cut out the bump stops, and If I remember right, he said it rode fine. He even heated the rear leafs, but just in one spot, so the leaf was bent at an angle. Really, cutting the coils, and cutting off the rear spring pads and relocating them would be free, too. I think he was just too lazy to take it apart and do it almost-right.

[Slonaker]

I have seen several locally with the rear leaves heated and bent into an "L" shape at one end to lower the back.

[Richard D]

Originally Posted by Slonaker

I have seen several locally with the rear leaves heated and bent into an "L" shape at one end to lower the back.

Exactly. I never saw the guy again, so I don't know how long the mods lasted, or if the suspension failed. He was an older(than me at the time) Mexican fellow, and didn't strike me as a dumb-ass, so maybe it is still running around with no problems.
The thing that struck me about the truck was it had some mis-matched painted body panels, a few were silver w/maroon two tone, like my first vehicle, a '77 Silverado. It was banged up looking, but he had it running great with ice-cold A/C.
I also remember in the late 80s-early 90s, seeing a '68-'72 in a magazine, maybe belonged to one of the writers, with different colored panels. Called "Clown Truck" or something. Sorta like what some call "Rat Rods" nowadays.

[dragginmetal]

Back in the late 80's it was called dearched leafsprings. It was good for abought 3" or less, any more the metal would be getting thin where you bent them at.

[Square84]

Ther Is A Guy Here That Bent His Leafs And Had To Cut A Hole In The Bed To Clear Them But His Truck Has Been Like That For About 7 Years And He Says Rides Great. And It Sits Lower Than Mine With A Flip .

[Richard D]

It all goes back to the early days of hot rodding.If you want the end result bad enough, you'll deal with the consequences. Better technology was born from the spirit of this. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.

[LONGHAIR]

Heating the coils is a bad deal. Cutting, in small amounts, is fine.
You have to be careful when messing with leaf springs too. Heating and/or bending the leaf springs is worse than doing it to coils. Coil springs do not "locate" the wheel in the truck, they just hold the frame up. The control arms/spindle hold the wheel in place. With leaf springs, there is nothing else stabilizing the axle. Weakening this connection is not safe. Then comes the next factor: If you heat/bend the springs on only one end, you have to be effecting the pinion angle, this may be a problem.
Taking leaves away (other than maybe the big flat over-load) causes problems too. Mainly, you will get axle wrap (wheel hop) from the overly soft springs. They still hold the axle in place, but they cannot control the rotational force, so the pinion "climbs" the ring, until it can't go any more, then it snaps back.....parts breakage=$$$ not cheap.

The cheapest way is to cut the fronts and flip the rear. It is mostly labor, which is you.....

I have no problem with n00bs bringing up old stuff.....it's funny to see how long it takes for someone to notice, but.... asking a guy to scan an article that he referenced more than 5 years ago......is absolutely pricele$$. Especially since bill_ont_canada has not posted since May of 03

[Richard D]

Originally Posted by LONGHAIR

Heating the coils is a bad deal. Cutting, in small amounts, is fine.
You have to be careful when messing with leaf springs too. Heating and/or bending the leaf springs is worse than doing it to coils. Coil springs do not "locate" the wheel in the truck, they just hold the frame up. The control arms/spindle hold the wheel in place. With leaf springs, there is nothing else stabilizing the axle. Weakening this connection is not safe. Then comes the next factor: If you heat/bend the springs on only one end, you have to be effecting the pinion angle, this may be a problem.
Taking leaves away (other than maybe the big flat over-load) causes problems too. Mainly, you will get axle wrap (wheel hop) from the overly soft springs. They still hold the axle in place, but they cannot control the rotational force, so the pinion "climbs" the ring, until it can't go any more, then it snaps back.....parts breakage=$$$ not cheap.



The cheapest way is to cut the fronts and flip the rear. It is mostly labor, which is you.....

I have no problem with n00bs bringing up old stuff.....it's funny to see how long it takes for someone to notice, but.... asking a guy to scan an article that he referenced more than 5 years ago......is absolutely pricele$$. Especially since bill_ont_canada has not posted since May of 03

I agree on the safety factor. I had a buddy who wanted to lower the rear of his truck but not spend any money. We un-riveted the spring perches and welded them(with good penetration) higher, he has had no problems yet.

On the old scanned article, I felt pretty silly when I realized how old it was, and tried to delete my post but couldn't. Oh well, maybe someone will benefit.

[Slonaker]

Originally Posted by Richard D

maybe someone will benefit.

Or maybe someone will find and scan the article. You never know...

Slonaker

[LONGHAIR]

I agree on the safety factor. I had a buddy who wanted to lower the rear of his truck but not spend any money. We un-riveted the spring perches and welded them(with good penetration) higher, he has had no problems yet.

On the old scanned article, I felt pretty silly when I realized how old it was, and tried to delete my post but couldn't. Oh well, maybe someone will benefit.

There is nothing wrong with moving the brackets, it works fine. Cutting the old rivets out is a lot of work though and you have to be able to re-attach them so that they are safe.

No worries on the article, that is one of the pit-falls of searching through a data-base of a site that has been around this long. The actual information about the trucks is pretty timeless. It is only the more personal stuff that doesn't "travel well". It is just as fun to see several people reply, like it is a new thread. It just so happens that this time it was pointed out quickly. That doesn't necessarily mean that the fun is over though. Someone may come along and comment w/o reading the entire thread....it happens all the time.