86 c10 with djm suspension. Help me get rid of most of my shims on my upper arms!

[Drewkimble48]

Alright so I'm new here jus to let you guys know, I have a 86 Chevy short wide with the upper lower sand drop coil springs from djm. Well my problem is that I have a ridiculous amount of shims on the upper control arms that I want gone. I have measured from frame rail to frame rail on the truck to see if I had any issues with the frame in which I compared to another frame and both measured out the same. The truck has had he alignment issue ever since we installed the control arms on it and it bugs the hell out of me. I am hoping someone has had this same issue as me and that we can finally resolve it. I really don't want to get a different set for the truck as i am in the process of becoming an aircraft dispatcher somewhere thank you for your time guys and have a good new year!

[875.3CHEVY]

they make offset control arm shaft kits.i think there a .5 inch offset.

[lolife99]

Welcome to the board.
Put stock a-arms back on it with drop spindles and drop springs.
DJM "drop pocket" style a-arms are old technology.
They are the only manufacturer that makes this style.

[Drewkimble48]

Wouldn't I have to replace the lowers as well if I went with stock upper arms? I really like the height it sits at now. If I could get the 5 inch drop up front again that would be awesome

[lolife99]

Originally Posted by Drewkimble48

Wouldn't I have to replace the lowers as well if I went with stock upper arms? I really like the height it sits at now. If I could get the 5 inch drop up front again that would be awesome

Yes.
Stock uppers and lowers,... or just stock lowers.
3" Belltech drop spindles.
2" drop spring

[Big Port Jimmy 6]

Measure and make a spacer. then use 1or 2 shims to adjust. Jay

[Drewkimble48]

With the 3 inch drop spindles, I take it that the 15 inch rallies I have now, the tie rod ends would probably hit the rim. Also I did get a shim machined for at least 1/2 inch thick. When I can I'll get a picture of it. I'm actually no where near it

[lolife99]

Originally Posted by Drewkimble48

With the 3 inch drop spindles, I take it that the 15 inch rallies I have now, the tie rod ends would probably hit the rim. Also I did get a shim machined for at least 1/2 inch thick. When I can I'll get a picture of it. I'm actually no where near it

That would depend on the wheel backspacing.
Belltech and others moved the tie rod arm "in" when they cast the spindle.
You can't compare them to the design of the stock spindle.
This is why the wheels are "toed-out" after installation,... and why you need a new front end alignment.

All of this has been discussed many times in many threads on here.
People have been running drop spindles and rally wheels since the 80's.

[Drewkimble48]

Here's a picture of the alignment shims. I thought there was more shims but you can see the spacer that I put in there as well

[Drewkimble48]

Here's a picture of my orange truck that I thought I throw in did all the body work and had a friend paint it. Also rebuilt the motor not to long ago. 406 SBC

[eddiedeville]

Having the exact same problem with my 86 with DJM drop arms in front, 3 alignment places have told me the same thing "no room for anymore shims" one even charged me for basically doing nothing. im seeing from this thread im most likely going to have to invest in doing the spindle and strut setup up front if i ever want to have a nice aligned lowered truck.