leaf springs for my build

[Dheater]

Good evening all,

This is my first post, I'm building a 1977 Blazer it has 350, T350 transmission, NP205. Long story short, this will be a rock crawler (not a trailer-ed rig though) so highway is a must as well. I'm starting with Axles and going from there. Here is what I will be getting Thursday.
1978 Dana 60 front with 4:56 gears and a posi (for now)
1978 14 Bolt full floater 4:56 with a Detroit.

Any how, my question for the leaf springs which are more preferred for flex and on road handling

BDS 6 or 8"

Tuff Country 6"

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

For flex and on road handling, lower is better. What size tire are you looking at?

 

[Dheater]

36-38"
I plan on 52's in the front as well

 

[ryoken]

how opposed to trimming are you?

 

[Dheater]

how opposed to trimming are you?

The sawzall/ 4" cut off wheel and I are good friends, not opposed at all. Do tell what you are thinking.

 

[imiceman44]

The sawzall/ 4" cut off wheel and I are good friends, not opposed at all. Do tell what you are thinking.

I personally ran 36" tires with no lift and lots of cutting.
almost impossible to roll over and easy to get into.

But that's just me.
Most people want a high truck.

 

[ryoken]

I'd go 4" with maybe a zero rate and/or a 1" BL to get another inch or 2 if needed and cut as needed.... flip out back with some 56's.. and stock 52's up front....

that's effectively what I'm doing, except I'm running 4" ez rides up front with 38's..

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

The sawzall/ 4" cut off wheel and I are good friends, not opposed at all. Do tell what you are thinking.

If you're willing to cut, I really would recommend 4" for a rig in the rocks with that tire size. Lower is better; more stable and it will climb and flex better.

I ran a 4" lift with 37's for quite a while in my rig as a DD with one tons and 4.56's.

Basically I just cut the rust out, after that it didn't take much to fit 37's with a 4" lift.





Of course ultimately it's up to you and what you really want.

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

I'd go 4" with maybe a zero rate and/or a 1" BL to get another inch or 2 if needed and cut as needed.... flip out back with some 56's.. and stock 52's up front....

that's effectively what I'm doing, except I'm running 4" ez rides up front with 38's..

One note on this advice would be that 52's are REALLY soft up front and aren't all that friendly for street driving. It also requires crossover steering.

4" springs up front and a shackle flip out back is a good way to go and, as mentioned, you can always add a 1" zero rate if you want a little more clearance.

 

[MTBLAZER89]

One note on this advice would be that 52's are REALLY soft up front and aren't all that friendly for street driving. It also requires crossover steering.

4" springs up front and a shackle flip out back is a good way to go and, as mentioned, you can always add a 1" zero rate if you want a little more clearance.

X2 I would not want to drive my Blazer daily with the 52's up front. They work great off road and flex forever, but road manners are not optimal!

 

[ryoken]

he said rock crawling and 52's, i just repeated it.. i think you guys know I'm one of the huge proponents of rigs seeing alot of street time NOT getting 52's.... my build is a perfect example... I say it so often in here i feel guilty sometimes...

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

he said rock crawling and 52's, i just repeated it.. i think you guys know I'm one of the huge proponents of rigs seeing alot of street time NOT getting 52's.... my build is a perfect example... I say it so often in here i feel guilty sometimes...

I know, but many people hear about stock rear springs in the front and think "hey! free super flexy lift springs!"

Of course that is not the case, they require plenty of other mods (shock mounts, crossover steering, long brake lines, etc) and as mentioned they aren't very street friendly.

Plus super flexy isn't the ideal.

He said he wants 52's in the front but that doesn't mean he knows what goes along with using them, many people don't. For most people lift springs are a much better choice than longer springs up front.

 

[ryoken]

agreed, thats why I usually am the one mentioning it around here after chorus's of "put 52"s up front".... your early truck is a perfect example of a capable, not over the top, low COG truck...

 

[Dheater]

I like the idea of 4" and maybe 1" body, cutting the rust out will for sure save money and time less body work.
On the 52's what makes them less road friendly, is it body roll or just an un easy dipping feeling in corners.
This is what I had (I know it is a ford) it had 3.5 lift with soft coils in the front. Body roll and the dipping feeling in corners and braking I'm use to that.

 

[MTBLAZER89]

On the 52's what makes them less road friendly, is it body roll or just an un easy dipping feeling in corners.
.

Both! Braking in a corner would be downright scary. People cringe when they see me do doughnuts in my truck

 

[Dheater]

he said rock crawling and 52's, i just repeated it.. i think you guys know I'm one of the huge proponents of rigs seeing alot of street time NOT getting 52's.... my build is a perfect example... I say it so often in here i feel guilty sometimes...

If this makes it basically a driving nightmare, then you can count me out of the 52's in front. Safety first...I for sure value those thoughts from those that have been there and done that. But safety comes first.

So staying with that I still pose this question,

What is the spring of choice keeping in mind stock configuration.

BDS or TC

 

[Dheater]

If you're willing to cut, I really would recommend 4" for a rig in the rocks with that tire size. Lower is better; more stable and it will climb and flex better.

I ran a 4" lift with 37's for quite a while in my rig as a DD with one tons and 4.56's.

Basically I just cut the rust out, after that it didn't take much to fit 37's with a 4" lift.





Of course ultimately it's up to you and what you really want.

Chris,

I really like how your ride looks and if I followed your pictures my rust is gone with out new body panels.

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

agreed, thats why I usually am the one mentioning it around here after chorus's of "put 52"s up front".... your early truck is a perfect example of a capable, not over the top, low COG truck...

And it was fine for that, totally stable on the dozen-plus trips I made to Moab with that setup and plenty flexy for anything I wanted to do.

I didn't do 52's until I had links and coils in the rear, I wouldn't want my 52" front setup on the street (just because they are SOO soft). As with anything, they can be setup well for the street but running such a soft , low-ish leaf spring in the front is sketchy at best on the road.

Not to mention the loss of approach angle.

I like the idea of 4" and maybe 1" body, cutting the rust out will for sure save money and time less body work.
On the 52's what makes them less road friendly, is it body roll or just an un easy dipping feeling in corners.
This is what I had (I know it is a ford) it had 3.5 lift with soft coils in the front. Body roll and the dipping feeling in corners and braking I'm use to that.

That lift height is a good plan IMO.

As mentioned before, 52's in the front are really soft for a street driven truck. I really would go with a quality stock length spring.

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

Chris,

I really like how your ride looks and if I followed your pictures my rust is gone with out new body panels.

My rig has actually been tubed out for a long time now but I ran it like that for many years.

Basically it was rusty like most of these trucks are and I figured that I could gain clearance and help stop the rust by just cutting it all out (basically 2-3" along the entire fender opening all the way around). I felt it looked better than it did and I fit 37's with 4" of lift without problem.


As for Tuff Country vs. BDS, they both make really good springs. I ran a set of 4" BDS springs on my rig way back when and liked them but I see WAY more Tuff Country springs on the trail. They also make a top notch product that I feel is at least as good.

 

[owenst7]

I dunno...

I drive my trail rig on the highway all the time to get to trails, doesn't ever handle uncomfortably. It's got 52s/64s...

Now I'm not trying to say here that they are better or equal on the street to say, some 4" lift 46"s...They allow more brake dive and digging in corners than the super stiff lift springs did for sure. And a stock length lift spring would absolutely be the right choice for a lot of people. Plus, if you moved the frame eye forward to get a proper shackle angle, I'm sure they would have plenty of travel.

What I really want to say is that the 52"s up front (for me) are never as big of an issue as say, the welded rear or the 40s (didn't mind them when I was on 35"s for that matter). I do absolutely have to drive more consciously and carefully than I do in my stock '96 pickup...or my girlfriends Grand Am, but again, that's more due to the fact that my sidewalls are 8" wider than my fenders, they're bias ply, my floorboards are higher than the roof of most cars, etc.

It really depends on the driver. I personally would be fine running 52"s on a DD if I ran some good, stiff shocks. I tend to drive like an old man regardless of what I'm driving, and I'm used to driving in Alaska so I tend to brake early and lightly, coast through corners, etc.

There are not many people I would be comfortable with driving my k5 on busy roads, but I personally do not feel uncomfortable with it. This is the only leaf suspension I would run on one of these rigs if I were going to wheel it at all.

And if you're rock crawling, I'm sure you will be running crossover (someone brought up 52"s needing it). If you aren't planning on it, I highly suggest you reconsider, as braking knuckles or frames on the trail is super not fun. Drag links do not make good limit straps .

More on topic:
I'm about 3-4" over stock with my fenders cut out. I've got 40s and don't have any clearance issues that won't be solved by the bumpstops I'm making. Right now, the springs are soft enough that the go to negative arch slightly at full stuff, which isn't good for the spring anyways, so I'm really not losing anything with bumpstops. I don't think 6" is necessary for anything under a 42". If its a serious rock rig, narrowing the front will solve a lot of clearance issues, and I'm sure you know how poor the peripheral vision is when you're on a technical trail.