50 truck frame issues - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

Turnerk2 · 05-19-2017, 10:55 AM

I have a 50 chevy frame that has a front clip installed on it.
The issue that I have is the driver side is lower at the back.
I can lift the whole frame off the ground and let it back down and the frame is level but I put weight on the frame and the frame goes back to being low on the driver side. Can some body help me figur this out.
Posted via Mobile Device

dwcsr · 05-19-2017, 11:31 AM

Are you saying its sagging while its on the ground but ok jacked up? pictures would be very helpful in this case.

**chev3600** · 05-19-2017, 12:31 PM

If we're talking about a complete frame with suspension, it sounds like spring sag or worn suspension bushings.

**mr48chev** · 05-19-2017, 02:37 PM

We are going to have to have more info and possibly some photos of it.

If you set the frame up level on stands or blocks with the wheels off the shop floor and the 4 spots you set stands under it being level with each other and a level floor you should be able to measure and or see if there is a twist in the frame. If you have it level across the frame where the stands are the frame horns should be level with each other and the back of the frame should be level side

If it is square that way and doesn't sit level on the shop floor after you roll it back and forth a few feet after letting it down an bounce it a couple of times to get it to settle out you most likely have a spring that is collapsed a bit or a bad spring on the back.

Remember too that you have to have the same size and type of tires side to side with the same amount of tread. Some times the old rollers we have laying around don't match or one or the other doesn't hold air meaning check the air pressure in the tires to make sure it matches.

A lot of donor rigs might sag a bit on the drivers side simply because the donor spent 90% of it's life with only the driver in the car and over the years that side sagged a bit. You can level it some with what is called an "air conditioner spacer" by GM that is a rubber spacer that goes in on top of the spring and works as a shim to level the rig up. I used to use a lot of them when I worked in a Pontiac dealership as the front end man in Waco in the 70's and customers would fuss that their late model Pontiac didn't sit perfectly level side to side. They used to come in about three different thicknesses but that was back then.

If you scroll down to the bottom of the page you will see some Energy suspension spring isolators in various thicknesses There are more on the next page. http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/se...make=Chevrolet

If the frame is all square and lined up right I wouldn't worry too much about it until I got the truck all together and drove it down the street and back and measured it to see how it sits. You are looking at a disaster in the making if you pull the spring out now with no weight on the chassis to help compress the spring when you try to put it back together.

Jemezcrusher · 05-20-2017, 07:45 AM

Also good to determine if it is a front suspension problem or a rear. My 55 Sedan was low on the drivers side and despite adjustments, etc, I could not fire out what was causing it.

Finally, I jacked the pumpkin and raised the rear end off the ground and front end leveled right out. As it worked out, had a weak rear spring on the drivers side

Turnerk2 · 05-25-2017, 08:30 AM

It is a rear problem but I think I may have found the problem I replaced the shocks and it seems to have leveled the rear frame I still don't know if that fixed the problem do to the fact that there is no body on the truck and sorry for not getting back in touch with all of you but I had to pick up son from deployment

Jemezcrusher · 05-25-2017, 09:12 AM

You really can't tell how it will sit until at full curb weight

**chev3600** · 05-25-2017, 11:32 AM

Glad you get to spend some time with your son. Shocks have little affect on ride height, they simply dampen the spring operation. Very likely still a sagging spring.

Turnerk2 · 05-26-2017, 07:14 AM

How can you tell if it's a weak spring or worn out bushings? You are correct changing the shocks didn't help. It looked good until you jumped up and down on the frame. When the truck was on the road we had to shim up the bed to get the truck to look right. I'll try to take pictures of truck.

05-19-2017, 10:55 AM	#1
Turnerk2 Registered User Join Date: May 2017 Location: Granbury Texas Posts: 4	50 truck frame issues I have a 50 chevy frame that has a front clip installed on it. The issue that I have is the driver side is lower at the back. I can lift the whole frame off the ground and let it back down and the frame is level but I put weight on the frame and the frame goes back to being low on the driver side. Can some body help me figur this out. Posted via Mobile Device

05-19-2017, 11:31 AM	#2
dwcsr Hollister Road Co. Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Houston Posts: 6,131	Re: 50 truck frame issues Are you saying its sagging while its on the ground but ok jacked up? pictures would be very helpful in this case.

05-19-2017, 12:31 PM	#3
chev3600 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Raleigh, NC Posts: 444	Re: 50 truck frame issues If we're talking about a complete frame with suspension, it sounds like spring sag or worn suspension bushings. __________________ 1949/1954 with LS swap-yeah! http://s260.photobucket.com/albums/i...0/AD%20trucks/jumbled mess of unorganized photos

05-19-2017, 02:37 PM	#4
mr48chev Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toppenish, WA Posts: 15,705	Re: 50 truck frame issues We are going to have to have more info and possibly some photos of it. If you set the frame up level on stands or blocks with the wheels off the shop floor and the 4 spots you set stands under it being level with each other and a level floor you should be able to measure and or see if there is a twist in the frame. If you have it level across the frame where the stands are the frame horns should be level with each other and the back of the frame should be level side If it is square that way and doesn't sit level on the shop floor after you roll it back and forth a few feet after letting it down an bounce it a couple of times to get it to settle out you most likely have a spring that is collapsed a bit or a bad spring on the back. Remember too that you have to have the same size and type of tires side to side with the same amount of tread. Some times the old rollers we have laying around don't match or one or the other doesn't hold air meaning check the air pressure in the tires to make sure it matches. A lot of donor rigs might sag a bit on the drivers side simply because the donor spent 90% of it's life with only the driver in the car and over the years that side sagged a bit. You can level it some with what is called an "air conditioner spacer" by GM that is a rubber spacer that goes in on top of the spring and works as a shim to level the rig up. I used to use a lot of them when I worked in a Pontiac dealership as the front end man in Waco in the 70's and customers would fuss that their late model Pontiac didn't sit perfectly level side to side. They used to come in about three different thicknesses but that was back then. If you scroll down to the bottom of the page you will see some Energy suspension spring isolators in various thicknesses There are more on the next page. http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/se...make=Chevrolet If the frame is all square and lined up right I wouldn't worry too much about it until I got the truck all together and drove it down the street and back and measured it to see how it sits. You are looking at a disaster in the making if you pull the spring out now with no weight on the chassis to help compress the spring when you try to put it back together. __________________ Founding member of the too many projects, too little time and money club. My ongoing truck projects: 48 Chev 3100 that will run a 292 Six. 71 GMC 2500 that is getting a Cad 500 transplant. 77 C 30 dualie, 454, 4 speed with a 10 foot flatbed and hoist. It does the heavy work and hauls the projects around. Last edited by mr48chev; 05-19-2017 at 02:44 PM.

05-20-2017, 07:45 AM	#5
Jemezcrusher Registered User Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Jemez Springs, NM Posts: 435	Re: 50 truck frame issues Also good to determine if it is a front suspension problem or a rear. My 55 Sedan was low on the drivers side and despite adjustments, etc, I could not fire out what was causing it. Finally, I jacked the pumpkin and raised the rear end off the ground and front end leveled right out. As it worked out, had a weak rear spring on the drivers side

05-25-2017, 08:30 AM	#6
Turnerk2 Registered User Join Date: May 2017 Location: Granbury Texas Posts: 4	Re: 50 truck frame issues It is a rear problem but I think I may have found the problem I replaced the shocks and it seems to have leveled the rear frame I still don't know if that fixed the problem do to the fact that there is no body on the truck and sorry for not getting back in touch with all of you but I had to pick up son from deployment

05-25-2017, 09:12 AM	#7
Jemezcrusher Registered User Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Jemez Springs, NM Posts: 435	Re: 50 truck frame issues You really can't tell how it will sit until at full curb weight

05-25-2017, 11:32 AM	#8
chev3600 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Raleigh, NC Posts: 444	Re: 50 truck frame issues Glad you get to spend some time with your son. Shocks have little affect on ride height, they simply dampen the spring operation. Very likely still a sagging spring. __________________ 1949/1954 with LS swap-yeah! http://s260.photobucket.com/albums/i...0/AD%20trucks/jumbled mess of unorganized photos

05-26-2017, 07:14 AM	#9
Turnerk2 Registered User Join Date: May 2017 Location: Granbury Texas Posts: 4	Re: 50 truck frame issues How can you tell if it's a weak spring or worn out bushings? You are correct changing the shocks didn't help. It looked good until you jumped up and down on the frame. When the truck was on the road we had to shim up the bed to get the truck to look right. I'll try to take pictures of truck.



Register or Log In To remove these advertisements.

Register or Log In To remove these advertisements.