HELP! Does this drop look right?

[Trip59]

Originally Posted by CSGAS

This may sound like a stupid idea, too, but did you rock the truck after installing the springs (especially if you have a sway bar installed)?

Because of the geometry and the rates for the springs, the fronts can be held up even by gas-filled shocks...which could add to your headaches if you want. Are you using the same type or family of shocks front and rear?

If you just want to remove some headaches and exercise some muscles, just rock up and down on the front bumper, then see where the front sits. Often we hear a big "klang" as the front gives to where it wants to settle.

Also our longbed trucks will have a different visual look than shortbed trucks with the same drop (and a couple extra pounds on the back, but those springs would have to be awfully soft for that to account for more than a half inch). My longbed has 40-years-of-farmwork rear springs that collapsed almost two coils from sitting while overloaded and my rear shocks are abused but not blown, which may be a closer ballpark to what you started with. I'll stand a T-square up to the wheelwells tomorrow, but I think it looks level (at the frame/bedrail/bodylines) this way.

Most everything else I'd have to offer, would be a repeat of what's already been said--

Thanks CSGAS. I'm going to run it around for a few days before doing anything else to it, but may wind up chopping some height off the front spring to bring it down a bit more (either the stock or the drop ones...)

Originally Posted by 70c10

Those definitely look like 6" rear springs to me!

They were about 4" shorter than the ones that came out, but a hell of a lot thinner too... I'd be interested in an axle to fender measurement from someone with a 4" and someone with a 6" drop

I actually like the rear, I think I'll be happy with it when I bring the front down. Maybe cut the stock springs and hang on to the drop springs and swap them back in along with some drop spindles to do it right.

Trip

[CSGAS]

This may not be of great value directly to you anymore, but when I measured my wheel lips they were both 32" off the ground, front AND rear, with tires about 29" tall all around.

That means with my bad rear springs, I've dropped about 2" in the rear, and that might be where you started as well. It also means that what I thought from the visual "look-and-feel" of the truck, that my frame is level, must not be true yet.

Based on your experience, I think I'm going to shoot for a 2/4 or 2.5/5 inch drop setup when I go shopping. I really like the looks of a 5/7 better but this truck's main purpose will be as a DD/shop truck with rare towing so I have to keep myself in check a lot.

Thanks for taking my advice into consideration, and hopefully members with other drops do chime in, that way this thread could be valuable to a lot of people.

[Trip59]

UPDATE:



Dropped it some more, near what I was hoping for... maybe a touch lower than I wanted.

I cut the stock springs down to try to get what I was after, turns out low enough to hit the bump stops, so the drop springs I felt were too high are going back till I can get drop spindles.

I'm going off my fender measurements, but relative to other's measurements they don't add up because my tire height is only 26" due to the small tires.

Trip

[lax54650]

Originally Posted by LONGHAIR

Did any of you notice the '58Chevy across the street?

the 58 hit my eyes first nice lookin ride.
i like the way it sits now!!

[Trip59]

Just measured things and found out it's 4" lower than the 2" drop springs... I think the 2" springs, once they settle, with 2.5 spindles will look about where I want. Now to save my nickles and dimes.

We were just talking about the Impala, once we're done with the major work on the truck and his new front bumper, we may do some work on it. He hasn't driven it twice in the last two years and it's pissing him off.

Trip

[kyle fitz]

it looks ok to me. 6 inch. new springs need to be broken in. it looks like you might need a c-notch though

[Trip59]

Originally Posted by kyle fitz

it looks ok to me. 6 inch. new springs need to be broken in. it looks like you might need a c-notch though

I'm racking up quite the list of things to finish it off... next in line

Panhard
2.5 drop spindles & ball joints (PO redid the entire front end, minus ball joints)

then

shock mounts all around and shocks

then... if needed...

C-notch

Somewhere along the way, new shoes all around, those are way too small...

Though it has to get paced out, I'm flat out of money for a while... and also have a ton of stuff I bought to work with too...

Trip