I bought this 51 chevy 1/2 ton pickup some before had hydo's on the rear going to take the old cylinders out and put in new shock got any good ideas on what size or brand?
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I bought this 51 chevy 1/2 ton pickup some before had hydo's on the rear going to take the old cylinders out and put in new shock got any good ideas on what size or brand?
Before you figure out the shocks you're going to need springs. That single leaf ain't gonna cut it when you take out that Rube Goldberg setup. Here's a good place to start to learn what some options are; http://www.classicperform.com/4754chevtrk.html
In my honest opinion ,I say all thats gatta go!!:whacked: U need new leaf springs and new stock type shocks.Having said that ,I do not know if that mod to the suspention was for lowering or......?:confused: :HMMM: I would look at the link that was posted and figure out what fits your needs.Who ever built that there set up would be about the only one who would know what it needs or will fit on there.
To start, torch all that junk off. Then decide whether you want your truck at stock ride height, or lowered. It looks like the original spring mounts and shackles are there, so you should be able to bolt in a new set of leaf springs with the appropriate ride height to meet your plan. If you want to keep it at stock height for now, it should be as simple as a new set of leaf springs and shocks.
i agree thats a ugly mess, heavy rear axle in there,looks like 3/4 or 1 ton.
you could do like henry said or another way woulds be to fab a mount and use a rear coil shock setup . the spring will not hold much but will locate the axle.
just a thought. one couls also use a std rear auto coil in a mount and have a seperate shock, you still would need the leaf.
Boy, that's some nice work! The guy must work in a farm shop somewhere, that top cylinder mount would look at home on a rock picker!
The stock spring mounts look okay, find some leaf springs and shocks off a newer pickup or big car. Take some measurements and spend a day or so in your friendly neighbourhood boneyard.
What the heck is that adapter bolted to the brake drum/rear axle flange?
he must have had it hooked to a wood saw, or something and thats the reason he has all that spring on it to keep it from jumping up and down when the belt turned. :confused: just a thought. **)Quote:
Originally Posted by Henry Rifle
Wow. All I can say is Wow.
Not dumping on your truck, because you didn't build this mess. But the guys are right, torch the whole mess off, get a decent rear axle assembly, add normal springs, and shocks, and you will be good to go.
Don't even think about trying to straighten out anything that is here. It is horrible and very unsafe. You were very smart in asking for help.
Don
thats for the wire rims i had on it,i still have a couple leaf springs left but i want it lowered for now going to change it later just want to get it rollin by aug. 1st for hot august nights been sanding it all down and replacing the wood bed http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/1374/10000443wr.jpghttp://img510.imageshack.us/img510/93/10001236il.jpg
hey henry i 1st thought that was the flange for a hd full float axle but i dont know quite what it is now ?
Please forgive me if I am reading your response to the suggestions provided by the members incorrectly, but it seems to me that you are sort of going to let things as they are so you can "just get it rollin' by August." And it appears you are more concerned about the cosmetics of the bed wood than the engineering (or lack of it) in the suspension of this truck.
If that is the case, you are making a huge mistake. Let me put this in a way I would advise my best friend: This truck should never move one foot down the road until you remove all of the garbage the previous owner badly fabricated onto it. Period.
You see it all the time........"..I just want to get it on the road," but building a hot rod or custom is more than paint and stance. The important things are the parts you never see, like good suspension, steering, and brakes. If the rear suspension is this cobbled, what is the front like? He must have done some modifications there too.
I don't know you or your qualifications to rebuild a car like this, so once again, forgive me if I say something wrong. I suggest you get in impartial opinion on what the truck needs from some knowledgeable builder about what changes need done, and that you follow their advice. The truck looks pretty decent and solid, so it may just be a simple matter of getting that extemely weak single leaf out of there, having a spring shop fab up a new 5 -7 leaf spring set (very cheap to have done at a truck spring shop) putting some lowering blocks to get it down a couple of inches, and then adding some simple shock brackets to the axle and frame.
As for the front end, I would bet good money it is similarly modified. If they have done ANYTHING to it, that is even worse than the rear being screwed up, as the entire control of the truck depends on this being soundly built.
You came to this forum for advise, and sometimes people tell you what you don't want to hear. But there is a pool of very knowledgeable people who have tried to give you the best advise they can, all of them who have responded have pretty much laid it on the line. Your truck is in need of some major changes if it is to be a safe and dependable driver.
Not only will your life be in danger, but those of your loved ones riding with you and other drivers on the road. Hot August Nights will be there again next year, the question is..................will you?
I apologize for the frankness of my reply, but this truck needs to be corrected properly before you use it. If I offended you, sorry, but we are only trying to keep a tragedy from happening.
Don
Those single leaf "springs" arent really springs as we normally think of them. Assuming this truck was set up with hydraulics, then the only possible purpose for those "springs" is as a track locator. It's a cheapo way to keep the rear axle from shifting side to side. Pulling them off - along with all the associated hydro junk - makes it possible to put just about any kind of rear axle under the car. The simplest would be a set of new springs made for a '51 Chevy pickup. They can be stock or lowered, depending on your plan for the vehicle. However, it's excellent advice to look at the front end also. With the "workmanship" shown in those photos, it's hard to tell what's up front. Take a close look, because I'm guessing that the rear suspension isn't the only chassis problem.
I wouldn't drive that setup to the end of the driveway . . . no offense . . .
Can i stil use that rear axle with new leaf spings and shocks
Yes, but you will have to cut all that other spring mounting brackets off of the frame and axle.Quote:
Originally Posted by PLAYA4REAL
i'm going to get a torch and cut off those old spring mount brakets and buy some new shocks and leafs
Now you got the idea. You should be able to purchase stock springs, mounts, and shocks.
Where at, any pics
Heres Some Pics Of The Frt Suspesion
For parts, check the second post on this thread. Bob gave you a link. Just search the site for parts.
The front springs look like they're shot also. The axle is riding on the bump stop. The ride must be about like a lumber wagon. It appears that the springs were heated in order to drop the front end.
Classic Performance Parts has monoleaf front springs that drop the truck 3 or 4". Search the site for "spring."
Unless you can find something from a junkyard that will work, rebuilding the front and rear isn't going to be cheap - close to $400.00 for each end of the truck just for springs. Then, there's shocks, shock mounts, etc. and
If that were mine I'd put a Camaro sub-frame under the front. I have done several they are easy and you gain P/S P/DB and mtr mounts. If you could get a 78 Camaro For a donor You could use the rear springs and axel with front subthat way your wheels would be 5 lug. The ride would be a 100% better too.
going to check out the junk yard tomorrow what shoul i look for for the rear suspension?
Glad you posted the pix of the front end. Jack is right, there is no suspension here. It is solidly riding on the stops.
You might score at a junk yard, but the chances are the parts will be worn out too, if they come from the same era. It sounds to me that you are realizing you need to fix some things on this truck before you use it. That is really good. It sounds also like you might be dealing with some cost issues in doing the truck. Welcome to the club, most of us have budgets to work around in building our cars, me included.
The facts are, you will be spendiing some money on the truck to get it in sound operating condition. There is no way around it. But, if you keep it simple and do the work yourself, you can get by a little cheaper. By simple, I mean rebuild what is there. Scrap the rear springs and all that hydraulic stuff that is welded on. Go to a spring shop that does truck springs in your area, and have them make up 2 new rear springs for this year truck. It looks in the pictures like the builder left the stock spring mounts there, so you can just go back and put new shackles or whatever is needed and put the stock springs back on. You can even use lowering blocks or have the shop dearch the springs a little, to drop it down.
The only way to get the truck really low is to do major revamping of the rear suspension, and that can happen later on. The front needs the same treatment. Looks like someone took a torch and heated the leaf springs to lower it. There are helper springs in there, but they are doing nothing. Just go through the front end and get it back to sitting on springs, then start checking kingpins, brakes, etc.
Have you driven this truck? How did it handle? It has the early lowrider look with the small VW sized tires and wire wheels. That is the look they were going for. It actually looks solid, bodywise, so you have a good start.
By the way, thanks for being such a good sport to put up with some pretty harsh comments and criticism. I would rather tell you the truth than see you dead, and I know the others feel the same way.
By the way, truck spring shops are usually pretty reasonable and can build you any spring you need. Take your measurements and old spring in to one and get a quote to build you some new springs. I think you will be surprised at the cost.
Good luck,
Don
going to put air bags on it some day but need somthing for now
http://www.truckandcarshop.com/catalogs.htm Here is a link with a catalog that will show u most of all the parts available for your truck!!! Air bags and some shocks and a track bar may be about the same price for the rear as springs and all the hardware.:D I have no clue on the front end other than stock......but those brake lines look really bad ,it would be a shame to mess all that nice sheet metal up over a 20 or 30 dollar item.:CRY:
You really should resize your phots before you post them.
Lookin better :) and I see u have the little locators for the leaf springs,now just get rid of the funky shock thingy and install new shocks ,is there anything else that was on the rear of those trucks?
Got Any Idea On What Shocks To Use For This
Yeah Man, you are coming along much better on this. Good job.
As for shocks, you will want to chose shocks that have several properties:
1) They should be long enough to travel up and down sufficiently for the distance your vehicle bounces.
2) They should be somewhat matched to the weight of the vehicle you are putting them on. ( in other words, don't put Yugo shocks on a 4 x 4 truck)
3) The eyes or studs at the top and bottom should match the kind of mount you want to use.
There are some websites from various shock manufacturers that give you all of these specs, and I will get some and post them for you, or maybe someone else on here will have these also.
Your truck is starting to shape up really well now.
Don
Looks much better than what it did!! Thumbs up!!
Yep, looks much better already.
Don
Where Should I Mount My Shocks I Was Thinking About Running A Brace On The Inside Of The Frame Rails Where The Old Brakets Were From Side To Side Over The Axle And Mount The Shocks On The Inside Of The Frame On The Brace?
Now is when u can start thinkin future plans,U said lower it someday,soooo. look at a after market setup for lowered rides.Usually most are weld on but some are bolt on.Parts magazines and car mags are ur friend when it comes to ideas about shock mounting locations,once u locate the mounts and install them in the proper place all u need to do is measure suspention travel by measuring the distance between the mounts and subtracting the distance to the bump stops and then put the car jack on the frame and raise it till the suspention hangs and that is your max lenght,soooo if all the way compressed is say 15 inches and extended is 24 inches u need a shock with a compressed height of no more than 15 and will extend to no less than 24,which is 9 inches of travel.return the truck to the ground sitting on the tires and measure between mounts,this is your ride height.Then u will need to go to a good parts staore that has a shock book and will actually look in it and have ur measurements handy and u should be able to find the right shock!!! Shocks need to be a somewhat of an angle,I really do not know much about that part .I am sure someone on this forum will be able to tell u better on how to actually install the mounts and the locations for a good ride or the after markett mounts will have some instalation instructions as to where u can mount and how that affects the ride of ur truck:D
I have a truck like yours & I'll tell you what I did for the suspension. For the front I used a GM-G body IFS(Monte Carlo,Buick Regal,El Camino etc.). It is the same track as the original , which is 3" narrower than a Camaro. On previous AD trucks I've built I've used Camaro IFS, which works, but you have to be carefull of wheel spacingback.
For the rear I used Crysler 5th ave springs, which I got from J.C.Whitney....free shipping. For the shock mount I made a 2"x2" crossmember that mounts behind the Ford 9" rear end.
To get the rear lower I made the rear spring hangers mount even with the top of the frame by welding a 2"x2" extension to the top of the frame. I also used 2" lowering blocks.....good luck!
Don
Any Pictures Of That
Instead of stating an opinion and getting thumped on, I'll just post a querry:
Would that set-up be 'safe' if it were done with a pan head bar and trailing arms? ( picture my stock 66 C 10 ).
Looks to me that it is only as strong as that single leaf, and that must be why you are all trashing it. YET... arent' there single leaf systems out there ( yes, single leaf DESIGNED for a full load.. but that single leaf isn't carrying the full load )
Anyway.. I'm not big on hydraulics, and it is an intresting set up, so I'm just asking.
Your pictures show you still have the top shock mounts on the frame. I'd guess all you need are the bottoms. Seems to me that would be the easiest way out to get on the road.
One more comment.......your rear x-member has been removed. You have to add a X-member, so why not use it as a shock mount & a place to mount your front gas tank straps.
As far as pictures of my set-up I lost them when lightning hit the hse.