Spring Swap Thread - 1963 K15

['63GENIII]

And here is how I left it today. BTW, it stops better than any car that we have now!

[whateverpratt]

That stance looks great. Did the 52" springs lift the front at all, or is it close to stock?

['63GENIII]

The front ended up almost 1/4" higher which is really nothing. The rears on the other hand lifted the truck 2 or so inches compared to the stock springs. I'm really hoping that the weight of the be will bring it back down

[argonaut]

Do you still have enough clearance between your front driveshaft and the bellhousing where the clutch slave sits? I'm assuming the 52s are much more flexible than the stock front springs.

Do you have the bed back on and fuel in the tank? I'm curious what your measurements are from the ground to the wheel well lip at the centerline of the front and rear axles.

['63GENIII]

I still have the front driveshaft out since I put in the 205. The 205's output is higher than the 221 so the DS actually almost hits the trans cross member. I'm looking for a new one or may even modify the one in it to fit.
As far as the bed, I still need to run the fuel line and connect the e brake cables first before I drop the bed onto it. Hoping by the end of this week.

[argonaut]

The weight of the bed and fuel will bring the rear down some.

['63GENIII]

I was kinda thinking the same thing Jason. If it doesn't come down enough after the bed and fuel, I'll either shorten the shackles or find a big winch to hang back there lol. I still have a little ways to go before we know how it's going to turn out. We're close though.

['63GENIII]

I don't have any new pics at the moment but I did get the bed back on yesterday, receiver hitch and parking brake connected yesterday. After having one of the 35s blow a bead from being aired down too much, I finally got it out of the garage, connected the tail lights and took her for a spin. First impression - bring on the speed bumps!!! All I can say is that it rides a hundred times better than it did with the stock springs. There is a fair amount of body roll (which wasn't there with the stock stuff) which is kind of annoying but nothing that a sway bar or 2 won't take care of.
I am battling a driveshaft vibration that is about to make me insane. I think I'm going to be playing with shims for a while between the divorced t case and the rear driveshaft.
The 4 wheel discs work KILLAR! and although the original rear brakes needed work, I can't remember having a truck that has stopped this well. Cant wait to tow with it and really test em out.
All in all, I would recommend this for anyone who is not crazy about the way their older truck rides and would like a smoother ride. I haven't been able to get it out to any trails yet but even with the limited drive time that I have on it now, I can tell you it WILL increase the flex over the stock suspension. in fact, I may be looking at limiting straps in the near future. If anyone has any questions or wants pics of anything in particular, just say the word. I still have the fuel tank to connect and find a location for the filler. The wiring is mostly done save for the tie into the gauge and installing a resistor.
For now Im going to be tracing the source of this driveshaft vibration before I start driving it more regularly. Its one loose end that really has me worried. The thought of spitting a shaft at freeway or any speed for that matter scares the hell out of me.
Thanks to all who have commented and advised me along the way. It's really helped to have more than one set of eyes on this and your inputs have been greatly appreciated!
Chris

[argonaut]

Darn you, Chris! Now I have to add front 52s to my long list of truck projects!
I'm glad it worked out so well.
have you measured your transfer case output angle amd your rear pinion angle? How far off are they?

['63GENIII]

Sorry Jason. It will be a breeze for you though. You've got some pretty mad skills! I've got the trans to tcase joints parallel and a working angle of 2 degrees. The tcase to Pinion was parallel as well with around 5 deg working angle but it felt like I was getting a little axle wrap as I would take off so having nothing but a 5 degree shim, I put it in and pointed the Pinion down. The vibration did change but its a little stronger. I almost think that the tcase may be moving around a little too. More investigating. May have to mount a GoPro underneath to see what's going on

['63GENIII]

And get on those 52s! You won't regret it!

[Lokin4AReason]

nice project along w/ the progress =0)

['63GENIII]

Originally Posted by Lokin4AReason

nice project along w/ the progress =0)

Thanks. So far its been the best upgrade (next to getting the truck in the first place) that Ive done to it.

[duallyjams]

On the rear 63 did you just move the front stock frame hanger forward ?

['63GENIII]

Originally Posted by duallyjams

On the rear 63 did you just move the front stock frame hanger forward ?

The stock hangers (all 8 front and rear) were removed. Once you bust the first rivet out, they're just repetitive after that. I installed the rear / rear hanger from DIY and the front / rear is from ORU. Both are excellent quality.

[JPBrecheisen]

Originally Posted by '63GENIII

Sorry Jason. It will be a breeze for you though. You've got some pretty mad skills! I've got the trans to tcase joints parallel and a working angle of 2 degrees. The tcase to Pinion was parallel as well with around 5 deg working angle but it felt like I was getting a little axle wrap as I would take off so having nothing but a 5 degree shim, I put it in and pointed the Pinion down. The vibration did change but its a little stronger. I almost think that the tcase may be moving around a little too. More investigating. May have to mount a GoPro underneath to see what's going on

I had a head scratching vibration once after i switched from a SM318 to a SM420 and had a drive line built to fit.

I will spare the lengthy version, but what mine ended up being is one of the nylon washers that fits between the u-joint cap and the actual cardan cross portion itself. While I was installing the drive line, both u-joint caps at the differential end came off. I simply put them back on except one of those little washers stuck to the cardan cross, the other stuck inside the u-joint cap...I failed to notice this when i put the caps back on...and ended up having one cap with 2 washers and another with zero. This obviously off-centers the drive line and thus causes a vibration.

Not all u-joints have those washers in them, but if yours do, you might give it a look. It just about drove me nuts but it ended up being that simple.

Just an idea.

Great thread and great work on your truck.

[DirtyLarry]

I love this truck! Looks great Chris!

['63GENIII]

Thanks Larry, after seeing the work that you and some of the others on here do to their trucks, the compliments are quite humbling for me. I've got a few more things to finish up to close out this thread (gas tank, and front sway bar) but I'm in a sort of holding pattern at the moment. Got a refi and some family stuff going on. Hoping to get back to it soon once the dust settles. Thanks again for the kind words Larry!
Chris

[BigRed76]

Was the truck lifted already before you did this spring swap? I saw in the first post you mentioned you had 5 1/2" blocks in the rear.

['63GENIII]

It had the stock "I beam" style blocks when I got it. Not sure if it t was lifted when I got it. It still had the original grease pin shackles and as far as I know, there are no lifts available for that style. It did have a add a leaf in the front which I think added to the poor ride quality. Right now with the 63"-52" swap, it looks to be maybe 1/2" -3/4" higher than before. Believe me that was more of a stroke of luck than engineering in my part! And I will say it again - best upgrade for this truck yet! Hell, the wife will even ride in it now. She won't admit it, but it does ride better than her '04 Yukon.

[BigRed76]

Ok, that makes more sense. This swap is definitely on my list for my '70 GMC. The few of these swaps I've seen done on 67-72 trucks they've all said the 52" springs gave them 3-4" of lift in the front. I wouldn't mind that much lift but I do appreciate the truck being stock height.

[argonaut]

The 60-66 4x4s have a much higher stock height than the 67 and up pickups.

[BigRed76]

Originally Posted by argonaut

The 60-66 4x4s have a much higher stock height than the 67 and up pickups.

Good to know, thank you

['63GENIII]

Originally Posted by argonaut

The 60-66 4x4s have a much higher stock height than the 67 and up pickups.

Interesting. I didn't know that but it makes total sense. I always used to have people ask how much I had lifted it. I never really knew what to say except for that it was stock which usually left people looking at me like I was an idiot. Lol. Thanks Jason

[whateverpratt]

The '60-'66 K10/15/20's were pretty tall from the factory. I saw this one on ebay a while back, and the seller said it was on 35's, no lift.