I hope someone can shine some light on this, cuz I really hope I don't have a visit to the frame jig in my future. Sorry in advance for the book, but I'm kind of freaking out a bit at the moment.
When I first got my K5, I knew it had taken a shot to the driver's side at some point, since the shackles were bent about 1/2" toward the passenger side on both sides of the front end. I checked for any obvious signs of frame damage, and didn't see anything that stood out. I figured the shackles had worked as designed and bent rather than the frame bending.
The Blazer had all original wheels, fenders, and doors, but had obviously had a craptastic repaint of some of those areas on the driver's side, but since I was losing the doors for tubes and trimming the fenders anyway, I didn't worry too much about it. I planned on a 4" lift with new shackles, so I figured I was good.
Fast forward to today. I installed my DIY4X frame eye shackle hangers. Everything went in the frame without a problem. I figured after I removed the bent shackles, I could slide the axle (D60) back to center where it was supposed to be and tighten everything down. No dice. Something is still out of whack.
I didn't even try to tighten the shackles down because they are still kicking over to the passenger's side, and I didn't want to screw up my new greasable bolts. When I look at the springs, it almost looks as if they are twisted half way between the axle and the shackle. Is this possible/likely? Or is it more likely that there is actual frame damage?
I did try hanging the new shackle from the hanger just to see if it would fall vertical, and it looks like it does (as best I can tell on my 20 year old unlevel garage floor). I also loosened the front spring bolts as well as all the bolts/ubolts on the spring plates and was able to kick the axle around enough to get it and the springs roughly centered under the frame. Any ideas?
On a side note, what size bolts did everyone use to mount the frame eye hangers? The hangers themselves seem like they could handle a 7/16" bolt, but the frame only took a 3/8". Should I have drilled it out and gone with the larger bolt, or will the 3/8" be OK? Also, it looks like with my stock springs, I need those thick washers to take up some space, but will I need those with my new lift springs (TC)?
Thanks for any insight you all may be able to give. A frame straightening was definitely not in the budgetary plans to get this thing back on the road before summer's end.
When I first got my K5, I knew it had taken a shot to the driver's side at some point, since the shackles were bent about 1/2" toward the passenger side on both sides of the front end. I checked for any obvious signs of frame damage, and didn't see anything that stood out. I figured the shackles had worked as designed and bent rather than the frame bending.
The Blazer had all original wheels, fenders, and doors, but had obviously had a craptastic repaint of some of those areas on the driver's side, but since I was losing the doors for tubes and trimming the fenders anyway, I didn't worry too much about it. I planned on a 4" lift with new shackles, so I figured I was good.
Fast forward to today. I installed my DIY4X frame eye shackle hangers. Everything went in the frame without a problem. I figured after I removed the bent shackles, I could slide the axle (D60) back to center where it was supposed to be and tighten everything down. No dice. Something is still out of whack.
I didn't even try to tighten the shackles down because they are still kicking over to the passenger's side, and I didn't want to screw up my new greasable bolts. When I look at the springs, it almost looks as if they are twisted half way between the axle and the shackle. Is this possible/likely? Or is it more likely that there is actual frame damage?
I did try hanging the new shackle from the hanger just to see if it would fall vertical, and it looks like it does (as best I can tell on my 20 year old unlevel garage floor). I also loosened the front spring bolts as well as all the bolts/ubolts on the spring plates and was able to kick the axle around enough to get it and the springs roughly centered under the frame. Any ideas?
On a side note, what size bolts did everyone use to mount the frame eye hangers? The hangers themselves seem like they could handle a 7/16" bolt, but the frame only took a 3/8". Should I have drilled it out and gone with the larger bolt, or will the 3/8" be OK? Also, it looks like with my stock springs, I need those thick washers to take up some space, but will I need those with my new lift springs (TC)?
Thanks for any insight you all may be able to give. A frame straightening was definitely not in the budgetary plans to get this thing back on the road before summer's end.
Bushings on springs look wack! Replace them and it would be smart to get frame checked. Just in case...
