I will havve to give that a read when I get home sounds interesting.
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.
1982 C/K 6.0L Caitlyn Mall Crawler (Interior time)
- Thread starter Babaganoosh
- Start date
That is a good read. Wonder why more people don't do it?
If you bend a spring like that without being super hot while bending and then heat treating it after it's bent, you've yielded it the first time and it's on the way to dying. MUCH faster.
Cheap, and I'm sure tons of people do it, but it won't last. And doesn't change the travel it can take, just the arch. Those springs will die super fast.
There you are Chris, I have been watching you hide in the background.
That makes sense, in that link they talk about that.
Dueling and I talked a little about this and came up with different variables that say not to.
That makes sense, in that link they talk about that.
Dueling and I talked a little about this and came up with different variables that say not to.
Please explain how changing the arch of the spring doesn't change the travel? I must be stupid but I fail to understand your logic, the sole factor is measuring travel is how far the suspension travels from point a-b right??? How does making the spring taller not have any affect on this and how are there many guys already doing this getting more travel from these same springs? People make a big deal about rearching springs but it has been done since the advent of leafs. Sure it shortens the span of the life but if your looking to do this cheap and need it to be effective why not? It's a stop fab until he links the rear.. I'll probably do the same.
mckustomfab
1/2 ton status
I think the only travel you would increase would be your up-travel assuming you put more arch in the spring. If you took two main leafs and re-arched one and left the other stock they would still have the same amount of travel. The only difference being that one might have 6" up and 8" down and the other would have 8" up and 6" down. But that is my amateur thought process...
Last edited:
andyblack
Registered Loser
I would think that by putting more arch in a spring, you would be just shortening the distance between the two spring eyes - the spring would be the same length, of course, but it would act like a shorter spring than it did before, unless you moved the spring hanger back towards the shackle. Plus, I don't see how even using a longer shackle would increase the travel at all vs. the original arch. The only time I've seen re-arched springs be effective is when you have some flat leaves that have gone into negative arch and no longer want to do their job. In that case, putting enough arch to get them back closer to flat seems to help bring the ride back to normal. But yeah, tempered spring steel seems to want to return to the position it was in when it was heat treated. It will be interesting to see how these re-arched springs do in the long run.
1982 c/k 6.0L Overbuilt Mall Crawler Build. (Man Points Sunday)
:Facepalm:.. I don't even know what to say... Guys you gotta be kidding me?
If you add arch to a spring it's free height/unloaded becomes taller. But the loaded height does not.
Much like a coil the length determines its maximum distance, you can stretch them but not very far. Same thing goes for a leaf spring, Andy is correct about it getting shorter, this requires a longer shackle in order to compensate for the addition growth in the springs length.
:Facepalm:.. I don't even know what to say... Guys you gotta be kidding me?
If you add arch to a spring it's free height/unloaded becomes taller. But the loaded height does not.
Much like a coil the length determines its maximum distance, you can stretch them but not very far. Same thing goes for a leaf spring, Andy is correct about it getting shorter, this requires a longer shackle in order to compensate for the addition growth in the springs length.
andyblack
Registered Loser
Only thing is, the spring won't be any longer. It will be the same length that it was before. That's why I'm not sure that a longer shackle would provide any more travel.
Those old desert trucks with leaf springs had springs with a whole lot of arch, but they were also longer to be able to provide more travel. What I'm trying to say is that if the spring hanger and shackle hanger stay in the same location, the spring will have to be longer if it's going to have more arch if you're looking for more travel. This is what I think anyway. I've never ran a re-arched pair of lift springs though. On big rigs with front leaves, a spring shop will often re-arch the springs, but they were flat or close to flat to start with. They're not looking to make the tractor sit higher or increase travel from stock; they're just wanting to keep the suspension from bottoming out due to worn springs. It's a temporary fix at best.
Those old desert trucks with leaf springs had springs with a whole lot of arch, but they were also longer to be able to provide more travel. What I'm trying to say is that if the spring hanger and shackle hanger stay in the same location, the spring will have to be longer if it's going to have more arch if you're looking for more travel. This is what I think anyway. I've never ran a re-arched pair of lift springs though. On big rigs with front leaves, a spring shop will often re-arch the springs, but they were flat or close to flat to start with. They're not looking to make the tractor sit higher or increase travel from stock; they're just wanting to keep the suspension from bottoming out due to worn springs. It's a temporary fix at best.
A leaf spring is a progressive spring not linear.
Your misunderstanding how the springs work. The length does have some impact on travel but only because it can have less arch for the same travel and the length does not change as much, as a spring cycles up and down it grows and shortens. But the vertical movement is determined by the arch. Those desert trucks are using a lot of arch because that's how they get the wheel travel. Imagine a 52 inch springs that cycle 16-18 inches with a 4-6 inch Long shackle.. They have a ton of arch to them that's how they get them to move so far and the natural arch is what determines this.
I'll add that the shackle mostly covers the horizontal motion of the spring and if extended depending on the mounting it can allow for the spring to drop farther.
Back on track I'll have my rear axle delivered tomorrow for 310.75.
Hello Mr AAM 10.5
Hello Mr AAM 10.5
Nice! :beef
The delivery lady said she would be over at 9-9:30am... This should be interesting by myself with a cherry picker 
Hope it's a big one.. Wear steel toes and bring plywoods just in case you know...
It's average size I just hope it works or I will have to mcgiver it.
We shall call this roller weekend.
Got some work ahead of me leaving the house in 20 mins with a burrito in hand!
Got some work ahead of me leaving the house in 20 mins with a burrito in hand!
Was non eventful, sketchy but it worked.
Was non eventful, sketchy but it worked.
Nice. I've loaded/unloaded several of those without having a cherry picker.
That way looks much easier. I will say that the mismatched axle lengths always look odd on those axles.
