Thread: Coil Springs?

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Wondering if anyone here has ever cut their coil springs before? If so does anyone know how low will it go if i take off on coil at a time?

I don't know the exact amount you will drop but I cut my coils in front 2" and got about that much of a drop, but the bad thing doing this is if you take to much off your going to have a real stiff ride and bottom out on your shocks as I did.

Lemme axe a question here...After cutting a coil spring, what do you do (if anything) with the cut end? Since you no longer have a full ring to support the spring pressure, do you just orient the cut end in some way and let it dig into the matching cup on the susp. arm?

The scoop on cutting coils:

1. If they're under pressure and you're not careful, they can kill you when you take them out. (Use a spring compressor)

2. If you cut them with a torch, you'll ruin the spring. (Use a cut-off wheel)

3. You never know how much drop you're going to get until after you make the cut. (Cut less than you think you'll need, then do it again. Sneak up on it.)

4. You lose the nice little flat end that the factory designed to match the spring seat. (Live with it.)

5. Your ride not only gets lower, it gets stiffer. (See # 4 above.)

I personally wouldnt cut a coil more than 1 1/2 turns. the next bet is to take springs from another vehicle that wouldnt need to be modified, either way u are changing the design of the susp. so keep that in mind when u drive it. I have changed lots of springs around and about the only way to get a feel for it is doing it yourself. As for using a cut off spring the top coil can be ground down to minimize digging into the springpocket.

I read in a Herb Adams susp. book that after you cut the spring . Usually 1/2 coil at a time . Heat the end slightly 1/2 from the now cut spring , flip it over pushing down, this will make the end fit into the rubber nicely.Flip it back over and let it cool slowly, no water. Depending on spring rate this should provide 1 1/2 of drop.

at mother trucker i got springs for $95. for the front and $95 for the back i got the front ones and about 3-4 weeks later i got the
back i know a 100 bucks is 100 bucks but it worth it to have nice new springs

Another good source for just about any spring you could think of...
http://www.eatonsprings.com/

Since a coil spring is a torsion bar wound in a circle, you can estimate the change to the spring rate since the wire material, diameter, and coil diameter stay the same, only the length changes. If you estimate the existing spring length and estimate the new spring length, the ratio of the length is also the ratio of the change in spring rate. The spring rate on a torsion spring is proportional to length. And...you can simplify it even more....if you have eight coils and you cut one off, you make the thing 14% stiffer (8 divided by 7).....ouch. Two coils make it 33% stiffer. WOW. Get that thing down by cutting 3 coils from the eight.....60% stiffer.

The earlier post about sneaking up on it is correct. IF you torch the springs, you change the spring material properties and it becomes more of a guess.