Suspension and box....

[1980GMC]

Ive seen pictures where truck had the leafsprings on the bottom of the axles, and was just wondering; 1. Has anyone here done this? and 2. How many inches of drop is that considered?

Also, will any year(73-87) of shortbox(fleet) fit my 80? Or will I have to look for a specific year?

Thanks

[bigtruck81]

the amount of drop will be equivalent to the thickness of your leaf pack, and the distance from the very bottom of your axle tube the the flat part of the perch. typically about 5".

any bed will work from 73-87 will work, unless you want to go stepside, at which point, they're the same all the way back into the 50s IIRC.

[moneyeater]

You need a flipbracket to put the axle on top of the leafspring.It locates the axle in the proper spot and angle! I installed a flip kit from Bell Tech and that wasn´t to complicated.Additional you should extend the shockmounts or get shorter shocks and in most cases the frame is notched to give enough room for the axle to travel without hitting the frame.I didn´t notch the frame on my longbed but the bumpstop is pretty close to the axle.
The last picture is how it looked before!

[BaddBusa2005]

with a flip kit, how does the pinion any stay where it needs to? is there a new bracket welded to the bottom side of the axle tube

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by BaddBusa2005

with a flip kit, how does the pinion any stay where it needs to? is there a new bracket welded to the bottom side of the axle tube

The axle saddle that comes with the flip kit acts as a locator. Look at the pic below and you can see how it goes in the bottom of the original spring perch. The bottom has a hole that the pin in the spring pack sits in. This ensures that the axle isn't going anywhere.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by 1980GMC

....
Also, will any year(73-87) of shortbox(fleet) fit my 80? Or will I have to look for a specific year?

Technically any year will fit. Keep in mind that your 80 fleet bed has a gas filler door. Early beds (73-78?) had an external gas cap. See my 77 Cheyenne as an example below

[1980GMC]

I'm actually converting the box from a stepside. The gas tank is on the passenger side, so I guess Ill have to look for a fleet with the gas door on the right.
And those flip kits look like theyll work perfectly for the drop I wanna achieve. Where did you get yours moneyeater?

Thanks everyone

[moneyeater]

My Bell Tech parts came from Speed & Truck World in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida but you can order it from Summit,Jegs or mostly any store that carries suspension parts i think.
There are other brands too like DJM or Western Chassis.Maybe the some other helpfull boardmember can help with finding the best shop to buy the best part because i got mine 10 years ago and friends brought it to me from their vacation in Florida and in that time Bell Tech was the only name i knew!

[xtreme80]

Here's the belltech kit: http://www.streetbeatcustoms.com/bel6850.html

note that the picture shows new leaf springs, which is not what you'll get in the kit. It's wrong.

Here's the McGauphy's kit
http://www.streetbeatcustoms.com/mcg33156-d1.html

[moneyeater]

note that the picture shows new leaf springs, which is not what you'll get in the kit. It's wrong.

The leafsprings aren´t new i just removed the rust gave them a coat of paint and greased them.I also removed two layers and that brought the rear down a little more.I hope it smoothes out the ride!?

[BaddBusa2005]

Originally Posted by moneyeater

note that the picture shows new leaf springs, which is not what you'll get in the kit. It's wrong.

The leafsprings aren´t new i just removed the rust gave them a coat of paint and greased them.I also removed two layers and that brought the rear down a little more.I hope it smoothes out the ride!?

moneyeater,

so the flip kit in your pictures is from belltech? It looks like a nice kit, does anyone have any pictures of the Western Chassis kit?

[bigblock73]

Originally Posted by BaddBusa2005

moneyeater,

so the flip kit in your pictures is from belltech? It looks like a nice kit, does anyone have any pictures of the Western Chassis kit?

WC's kit looks identical, only grey. I have their flip kit, very pleased with it.

[N2TRUX]

You can price DJM as well. I don't have pics but I have used their kits and was pleased with the quality. Try www.summitracing.com. It's almost impossible to beat their prices.

[xtreme80]

Originally Posted by moneyeater

note that the picture shows new leaf springs, which is not what you'll get in the kit. It's wrong.

The leafsprings aren´t new i just removed the rust gave them a coat of paint and greased them.I also removed two layers and that brought the rear down a little more.I hope it smoothes out the ride!?

I meant the picture on the page for the link I posted lol...

On that website it showed a new set of drop leafs with the flip kit, and that's not what you get in a flip kit unless you buy a package deal.