Single leaf rear springs. (longish post)

[dbrick]

Wonder how much more or less per piece to ship 10 sets....

[SLOroadster]

Mine were sent DHL and that was the cheapest by far. Its almost worth getting a plane ticket and flying over, and bringing them back as carry on.

Will

[fixitman04]

a long chunk of metal as carry-on.... this id like to see!

[SLOroadster]

a long chunk of metal as carry-on.... this id like to see!

I guess it could be checked baggage as well.

Will

[Gregs672000]

Well, got the proper 1.5 inch lowering blocks yesterday. Took things apart again and found that the original lowering blocks had really done a number to the upper rubber pads that are used to sandwich the spring between the plates that the ubolts go through. On one side the block had cut through the rubber during the torquing. I also noted that the block was riding on the rolled edge of the top plates, so I got rid of the rubber and ground down the edge of the plates so the block seats flat on the plate instead of on an edge (the block is longer than the plate). Things went back together with the 1.5 blocks fine. I'm not worried about not having the upper rubber, as most cars don't have such things in all the pictures of installed lowering blocks I could find on Google. The bottom one is still there, protecting the spring. The lowering block sits on the little plate the springs come with so no problems there. Measured the car and found that the rear is maybe 1/4 inch higher than the front, so I think it all worked perfect. It looks better too, just a bit more squated over the tires.

So, I'm done (I think!). Need to drive it to see how it feels, but I don't expect much difference from before vs the 1 inch block, and I was happy with it then. Cost was $412 for the springs w/shipping, new ubolts were about $30, blocks were about $27, machining of the front eye to accept the bushing was free to me but about $40 or so I would imagine, then you need a set of bushings front and back (whatever Dean charges), a little construction glue, some grade 8 bolts and some time. I would have the springs sent unassembled so you can get the front eyes machined first.

I think I'm gonna be happy. If I have any problems I will post it! Thanks everybody for their input!
Greg

[notoptoy]

Pictures!!! We need Pictures.
Of the spring set up, and the ride height.
Thanks!

[Samuel_SRR311]

I use to have a role sending and recieving goods from around the world so I might need to talk to my old contacts

[dbrick]

a long chunk of metal as carry-on.... this id like to see!

I had 3 distributors and 45 sets of plug wires in my checked bag going to Solvang 2009. I would have loved to see it go through the x ray.

[SLOroadster]

a long chunk of metal as carry-on.... this id like to see!

I had 3 distributors and 45 sets of plug wires in my checked bag going to Solvang 2009. I would have loved to see it go through the x ray.

All you needed to finish that one off was a couple of water bottles, and/or a random black box.

I think the topic is starting to stray...

Will

[Gregs672000]

Hey Will (and others), what do you think would happen if I went to Koni shocks on the rear set full soft and left the gas-adjusts on the front? The car seems a bit more tail happy than it used to with the de-arched and stiffer comp springs. Guess I'm also not used to having much suspension travel in the back and it is kinda weird to feel movement. Feel like I want the back to be a little firmer when I first go into the corner... maybe it is from driving this car like it was for 25 years... May also be a function of the new tires as well, as the old ones were rather hard. Thanks!
Greg

[SLOroadster]

I run the Konis full soft all around. By tail happy do you mean lots of oversteer, or do you mean there is lots of suspension compliance? If you are getting too much suspension movement, you are looking for stiffer shocks, if you have too much oversteer you want less spring, or more up front along with a stiffer sway bar. My car is very well settled, but lacks grip all around (need new tires like you wouldn't believe.) With the better sticking race tires it was pretty hard to get it way out of line, it would drift very predictably.

Will

[Gregs672000]

I need to drive it some more to be clearer. I have comp springs (whatever they were making in the late 70's or early 80's cause I bought them in '85 off a rolling frame, never used) and the comp bar with improved bushings up front. The rear definitely has more movement or travel up and down than the past vs the invertedly arched comp springs. I expected it to be softer as the FF spring is lesser rate (200lbs) and supposed to provide a nicer, more compliant ride due to being a mono leaf (which it really does). It is not bouncy when you are pushing on it, it just travels up and down more now... maybe I'm just not used to that sensation yet. Tail happy: Well, in the old days I used to take a slower 90 degree turn (say turning onto another side road) crank the wheel past where it should go and hit the gas. The tail would come out, then some opposit lock, we would straighten out and shoot down the road. Now I do the same thing and with the additional suspension travel (what feels like body roll to me) the tail comes out ok but as we go to straighten out it seems to bounce and want to whip more sharply side to side requiring more steering input. It is not uncontrolable, but I have to work harder to control it. Now, of course I am doing this on purpose and it is probably not the proper way to go around a corner fast (but it's fun!) but I feel like a stiffer shock would slow down the rebound or whipping I'm feeling. It feels like a more sudden release of spring energy and I want that release to be slower. Does that make sense? As I review your answer, I think it is more an issue of compliance than oversteer. I can buy rear Konis, or I could try a stiffer KYB or a non-gas shock, though it is my understanding that the gas is there to control foaming and shock fade more than anything. As I recall, Sean Kirk (Nitros Nell) used to run Chrysler Cordoba shocks on the back... a much heavier sedan. I should probably talk to him about how they felt. I know it is hard to give advice on a car you cannot drive and I appreciate your input (and anyone elses!) Thanks Will!
Greg

[SLOroadster]

Ok, it almost sounds like the rear springs are twisting as they load up (weight shifting to the outside wheel) and when the tire looses grip and starts to slide, the springs unwind and cause it to hop. I'm not talking about the axle winding them up front to back (solved with traction bars) but left to right. You could also be getting the whole spring moving side to side on the bolts that hold the end shackles. If this is the case, you would need a Panhard rod or a Watts Link. It could still be the shocks being too soft, and the spring rebound is overwhelming them, but it sounds more like you have something twisting and then springing loose in a direction that is not damped in any way. I'm not sure how you would go about checking this unless you are running really wide tires that could rub on the fenders under a side load.

As for shocks, the apparent hot setup comes for Australia, a set of custom valved Bilsteins, I've seen a set in person and they are burly. The Koni's really need to be re-valved, the front valves going into the rears, and the rears going up front. Neither option is cheap. As for going with a different off the shelf shock, that is a crap shoot.

Will

[SLOroadster]

Oh yeah, don't forget you did just take 30+ lbs out of the back end of your car. Your weight bias is now a bit on the funky side. I know that my car handles much better with a full tank of fuel than it does with a half tank or less. For that reason alone I might end up adding the traction bars back on just to get some more weight in the back of the car.

Will

[Gregs672000]

Thanks for the info Will. I do have the battery in the back so hopefully that helps some. I also need to have the torque reaction bar welded back in, as it has long since broken off the frame. Probably doesn't do much to help locate the axle, but it won't hurt either. I really do need to drive it more to know what is going on better. It is not bad, just different from what I expect out of my car. I may get used to it and find that it is more my driving technique than anything. The car is good when I slolam back and forth... it is only when I purposely try to get it out of shape that it does things different from what it used to (guess that should not be a surprise), and maybe I had to be particularly brutal to it (over do it) in the past due to how the rear springs were. If the weather cooperates in Washington over the next couple weeks I will have a better idea then try a few things.