My 57 GMC 1/2 ton had 8 leaf front springs. I removed the 3rd (from the
large end) and 6th. It dropped my front bumper 1.5". Half an inch was
due to the thickness of the two springs removed. The inch was because
the spring package flexed more under the load so it was almost an inch
closer to the bump-stop. I have yet to notice bottoming-out, but if I
ever do I plan to cut the rubber snubber in half, giving more movement
without hitting the rubber.
-----Original Message-----
From: McGillis@aol.com [mailto:McGillis@aol.com]
Sent: Sunday, December 23, 2001 8:20 PM
To: oletrucks@autox.team.net
Subject: [oletrucks] Re: oletrucks-digest V2 #1503
Hey, Carl, thanks for the input. I visited fellow list member, Tony
Grabon,
today and took a ride in his nice '55 with built 283 and mono-leaf on
all
four corners. He is about to install a Monte Carlo front end. The
visit was
to ride in his '55 and decide whether it is what I want. I believe it
is
not. It rides nicely on a smooth road but any dip or bump causes
unpleasant
bottoming. My friend wants all of the parts Tony is about to replace so
nothing will go to the recycler. Your thoughts about removing leaves
sound
reasonable and are probably my next project. The biggest problem is
there is
not much travel to begin with! When you start with only about 4" and
lower
it by 2" you will bottom out. The Poly Ride Liner sounds like a great
idea.
Thanks for the help.
Dennis McGillis
1955 Cameo
Vintage Chevrolet Club of America
Orange County (CA) Region
949-551-4821
> Date: Sun, 23 Dec 2001 17:02:33 -0600
> From: "Carl & Becky Ham" <the_hams@hotmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [oletrucks] Lowering TF Leaf Springs
>
> Dennis:
>
> Here's my 2 cents worth. I'm planning to do the same thing this
winter to
> my '56, and have gotten several messages from other members that
going
> monoleaf may not be the best alternative (cost or ride-wise). Most
front-end
>
> monoleaf ads I've seen start at about $350.00 (and that's not
including
new
> shackles, pins and bushings you may or may not need). Also several
who
have
>
> gone to monoleaf comment that they don't care for the 'new' ride.
>
> More than a couple have advised me to remove the third and fifth leaf
(with
> the first leaf being the largest/strongest and the sixth leaf the
smallest).
>
> This should lower your stance about 2-3 inches, shouldn't require
any
> change in shocks (or shock mounts), and will still give you a
satisfactory
> ride. As long as you plan on using the stock engine or a small block
> replacement, I don't think over-stressing the springs would be a
problem.
> If you plan to drop-in a big block engine or want better handling,
consider
> either beefing-up what you have or switching to an IFS (independent
front
> suspension).
>
> Another member suggestion I've followed-up on is to replace the
> liner/insulation between the leafs while you have the springs apart.
I
just
>
> bought a roll of poly ride liner material from Chevy-Duty (item #
74-935,
> catalog page 59) to put between the leafs when I have mine apart.
The
claim
>
> is the new liner material will eliminate metal-to-metal rubbing
between
the
> leafs and give a quieter ride. The roll has enough for both front
and
back
> springs and while I wasn't especially wild about the price ($50.00 +
> shipping), I thought it a small price to pay for a quiet ride or
taking
them
>
> apart later to fix a noise problem.
>
> I'll probably do the front spring work on my truck in late-January or
> February while I'm doing a power steering conversion. Please post
your
> decision and/or progress to the oletrucks message board so others
like me
> can learn from your experience. Good Luck
>
> Carl Ham
> '56 TF Stepside
> Pontiac, IL
>
>
>
> >From: McGillis@aol.com
> >Reply-To: McGillis@aol.com
> >To: driver@49chevy.com, oletrucks@autox.team.net
> >Subject: [oletrucks] Lowering TF Leaf Springs
> >Date: Sat, 22 Dec 2001 12:41:24 EST
> >
> >I would love to drop my stock 1955 Cameo about 2" and make the ride
a
> >little
> >softer but do not want to compromise safety. There have been
entries
about
> >removing spring leaves to lower 1/2 ton TF ('55 - '59) pickups.
Does it
> >cause spring fatigue, or cause the main leaf to break? Do I remove
> >alternate
> >leaves such as 3, 5, etc. until the desired drop is achieved? My
guess is
> >that if the main leaf is #1, with the spring eyes in it, the one
next to
it
> >(#2) should not be changed. Does anyone have any comments? See my
truck
> >at
> >www.chevytrucks.org/
> >
> >Thanks,
> >
> > Dennis McGillis
> > 1955 Cameo (V8 CAMEO)
> >Vintage Chevrolet Club of America
> > Orange County (CA) Region
> > 949-551-4821
> >oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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