panle suspenion upgrade

[chris mc bride]

I have 1969 Panel truck that I would like to upgrade suspenion on. Truck has 454 and 3 spd. #spd short life just trying to decide on auto or better straight drive setup.Lots of fun with straight gear or easier lazy lifew with auto.

Going to be lowering truck 2" with springs for now. I would ultimately like to use spindle with disc brakes and lower 2 to 3".

I want to increase handling and ride . Handling being the most important of the two. As with most the word budget is small and very limited due to other projects like race car.

My thinking is. Urethane bushing thru out starting with front end and do while adding new ball joints,cutting springs and adding shocks, To be followed by sway bar install. Then bushing for rear of truck and sway bar at same time.

Now I am engine and powertrain experienced. Everything from SBC to top fuel engines and power train. Not a lot of suspensions in Funny car and dragsters.LOL Also built few chassis and lots of welding and fabrication experience,
Looking for suggestions on products. Procedures and helpfup tips.

[lolife99]

Don’t be surprised if the 2” drop springs don’t lower your truck.
If it has the original springs, they are probably sagging.
I would start with drop spindles and go from there.
Do what you want the first time.

[chris mc bride]

going to be cutting original springs for now. While they are old they have not been driven as much as age would indicate. I know still had to hold the bbc up.LOL They are factory heavy duty so may help some. Going to be changing ball joints and shocks at same time.so if does not work I will just order a 2" drop or may go 3".

Soft ride is not my goal and if more harsh ride I am ok with it.Heck not bouncing for 3 minutes after crossing a bridge will be huge improvement.LOL

[cwcarpenter98]

If you’ve got power steering already, doing the caster mod will help a lot with the handling

[HO455]

X2 on the caster mod.

Get an 1-1/4 sway bar from a later model truck or Burban. It will make a noticeable difference.

Relocating the rear shock mounts to allow a more vertical shock positioning is a good idea.

All of these are low buck modifications that get you good bang for the buck.

[chris mc bride]

I am going to do caster mod soon. The relocate shock mount for rear looks pretty easy.Both more work than money and can do that. As for sway bar I have one off 1991 3/4 ton but not ideal contor should still work and is always changeable so might throw it on too.