smoother ride from my 71 k10

[Classycustom71,95]

Hi guys, I have been doing alot of research about what to change to avoid knocking my teeth out on every bump in the road.

Any clarification on these would be greatly appreciated:

I understand that a 4 link with bags would be the best but im not about to drop that much money into ordering a kit, I would be confident fabing one but resources and info about the how-to is hard to find.

or I understand that longer leaf springs will lift and smooth out the ride? I am very unsure how i could go about that route with success.

any other success stories?

[special-K]

i find that the softer you make a heavy truck's suspension the more body pitch and roll. I accept the firm ride of leaf springs at all four corners as the way a real 4wd rides and love it

[Stocker]

What Tim said..... with one other thought, how are your shocks? Maybe a new set of oh, say, Monroe Sensatracs might help a bit. And make sure a PO hasn't beefed up the springs with additional leaves or overloads.

[ryanroo]

the deciding factor will always be spring rate. if you get a longer spring, with more rate, it will still be a little rough. the newer trucks all use comparably longer springs with less rate, but with a substantial overload. the overload is used with very little load added. as Tim said, with no additional consideration it will have more roll or sway if you get a softer spring. usually lift springs are stiffer and will make the ride a little more bouncy, unless the springs are chosen with a lower rate.

shocks can also be a factor. to much compression valving and they will be bouncy. to little and they will be wallowy. to much rebound valving and they will feel rough, to little and it will be boingy

to keep a leaf spring and get a nice ride, i would say longer spring are necessary and use a helper bag to keep the capacity up.

there are an huge number of resources for four link design. it is very involved to do, but there is a lot of info available.

mine is as you said, bags and links. should give a super ride, way increased capacity and if i did it right(i think i did) there will be less body roll than a stock truck, vintage or modern. and have better handling manners all around.

[Classycustom71,95]

Stocker I checked and there are no additional leafs, but why the monroe shocks?
I have looked into pricing for longer springs and that will require new hangers, so with the price of leafs not being very cheap and having to mod brackets anyway i would be happier with air bags and a 4 link.
For now I may try new shocks because I know they look very old.

[Stocker]

Originally Posted by Classycustom71,95

Stocker I checked and there are no additional leafs, but why the monroe shocks?

Sensatracs apparently have a design that allows softer damping under typical driving conditions. They get firmer if you hit bigger bumps or dips, for improved control. Not sure just how it works (or if it works) but that's their selling point.

[Classycustom71,95]

Originally Posted by Stocker

Sensatracs apparently have a design that allows softer damping under typical driving conditions. They get firmer if you hit bigger bumps or dips, for improved control. Not sure just how it works (or if it works) but that's their selling point.

Would it be worth the effort to use longer shocks? or will the stock length be worth the swap?

[Stocker]

Shock length is determined by the extended / collapsed limits of the suspension. In a very basic nutshell, stock height trucks need stock length shocks, lowered trucks need shorter shocks, and lifted trucks need longer shocks.

[Classycustom71,95]

Originally Posted by Stocker

Shock length is determined by the extended / collapsed limits of the suspension. In a very basic nutshell, stock height trucks need stock length shocks, lowered trucks need shorter shocks, and lifted trucks need longer shocks.

That puts it simply.I will be ordering some new shocks then