quick question please help

[neglected61]

i am asking this for a friend(i have a 61) he just recently purchased a 59 longbed. my question is... his truck is a two wheel drive but has leaf suspension out back AND up front. Is this a factory thing on 2wds? or was it originally a 4wd converted to 2wd. The truck is now a th350/small block combo(PO) and still has the clutch pedal attached to the floor. i cant seem to find any evidence of a transfer case anywhere. any help would be great. we are looking into lowering his eventually and doing disc brakes. thanks

[59chev]

59 was the last year for leaf springs front and back from the factory. Unless he is interested in restoration, that is why most guys upgrade to an front IFS kit or front suspension clip. I just did a 81 camaro clip in my 59.

[OrrieG]

Check out the build threads in this section, lots of different ways to upgrade the suspension. I converted to 4wd using the stock suspension. IF I was going to do a 2wd I would keep the stock frame and look at some of the kits available for it. That removes the variable of getting the radiator support and front clip hung correctly. You can also get upgrades for the stock beam axle, and drop axles, if he wants to retain that look.

[mr48chev]

59Chev pretty well nailed it. up through 1959 All Chevy pickups had leaf springs on all four corners. Starting with 1960 they went to torsion bars and then coils on the front and coils and the "truck bars" on the rear while the majority of GMC pickups came with leaf springs on the rear.

This guy on the local craigslist has a 3/4 ton 59 Chassis that shows the leaves on all four corners. http://yakima.craigslist.org/pts/4431110641.html for purposes of illustration.

If he wants to keep the leaf spring setup front and rear there are ways to lower it including a dropped front axle and custom lowering leaf springs or having his leaf springs reworked at the local spring shop. On the rear depending on how much he wants to drop it he can put the spring above the axle and probably put a C notch in the frame for clearance or go to custom suspension on the front and the the flipped axle or a custom setup on the rear. It's about how he wants to do it and how big an investment he wants to make in both cash and time.

[neglected61]

cool thanks guys i didnt know that they came that way until 60. ill let him know!!