Ben B.
1/2 ton status
My stock '78 K10 just rides kinda crap, even worse than two lifted K5s we own here at the household. What gives? It just kinda hops around and stuff. I was told SWB's just do this.
CK5
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Do SWBs just generally ride like crap?
- Thread starter Ben B.
- Start date
Is it stock? Lifted? What brand of springs? Add a leafs up front? Friend of mine had a '78 SWB with a add a leaf lift in the front... truck drove like crap and bounced everywhere you went. Took those springs out, installed a good set of lift springs and it drove as good as any other stock truck.
Ben B.
1/2 ton status
Ben B. said:
...
1985_K5_Silverado
1/2 ton status
They do ride a bit bouncy, bouncier than a coil-spring IFS of the same length, but in a fun sort of way. The bigger the tires, the more bouncy they seem to get. My K5 rides smoother with 2 or 3 fat guys in the back seat (or some other sizeable load), but it's a truck after all, and can ride a little buckboardish when empty. I keep the tank at least half full most of the time (since a full 31 gallon tank is around 250 lbs heavier than an almost-empty one).
It's sure not a long-bed crew cab 2WD or a stretched Caddy Fleetwood, that's for sure.
It's sure not a long-bed crew cab 2WD or a stretched Caddy Fleetwood, that's for sure.
Ben B.
1/2 ton status
Why do the K5's ride so much better, more weight in the rear?
1985_K5_Silverado
1/2 ton status
I'm not sure exactly what the K5 shell weighs, but it's pretty heavy, and I'm sure that's part of it (as compared to a shortbed without a shell).
3 on the tree
1/2 ton status
My 1st Gen shell weighs between 2-300 pounds. Also, the K5s did not have the rated load capacity of a 1/2 ton, so I assume that a 1/2 ton has stiffer springs.
You answered your own question right there.......weight.Ben B. said:
The SWB is the lightest weight truck that GM makes. Blazers weigh in the same range as the K30.
When someone buys lift springs for their truck, they need to remember the spring rates that the aftermarket manufacturer makes is not determined by which truck they are going in as the springs are made the same rates.
If you took a pair of 4" springs and installed them on a K30, it will ride softer due to the extra weight and where you remove those springs and install them on a SWB, the truck will highly likely ride harsher due to lighter weight on the springs.
A K10 can generally weigh around 1000 lbs. less than a K30 or Blazer. This is the LWB truck. A SWB can weigh roughly another 300-500 lbs. less than the LWB K10.
