Ok, what am I doing wrong--52 swap w/pics

[SCOOBYDANNN]

Since I raised the drivetrain ~2" the drivelines weren't going to be happy AT ALLwith a 6" lift, so Ive always wanted to go down to a 4" lift--enter the trendy 52 swap--

after doing (what i thought was plenty research) im a bit baffled

what i have--springs from an 85 sub. rear shackles are at 5.5" (hole to hole)

PICS
Rear shackle w/ 5.5 hole to hole kicked back ever so slightly in stock location

front hanger (thinking about this location) moved foreward 6.25". I realize typical + is 4 but it gets weird.

my wheelbase is the same at 107" if not a quarter less. (measuring this by my self so it may be a little off.)

and my draglink is a little toward the front

now correct me if im wrong, but if i move the axle back, say 1" the DL will be perp to the TR, the shackle will be kicked back a little more, but my wheelbase will be ~106 or less. After looking at some pics i notice that the spring clamps are towards the rear, as are mine, but looking at my springs this is the short side, so the long side is toward the front (I havent read anything about long or short sides of the spring) is this what im doing wrong? or are these the wrong springs? or am i just stupid

thanks

Dan

 

[Masiony]

52" are centered as far as the pins go. burbs' usually had 56" rear springs with the center pin offest 4" to (the front). and blazers have 106.5 WB stock. sounds like you have some 56" springs. just hold them up to your current rear springs, which are 52".

 

[SCOOBYDANNN]

i dont have any stockers handy-but making more sence, if thats the case do i need to flip the springs around?

 

[Masiony]

well, measure them with your tape. go eye to eye then add a little for the curve. you should probably get about 54" or 55" eye to eye with a 56" spring. you can use those springs, but the setup will be a little different. if you want more WB, then yes flip them around. you will get 6" or so depending on where you mount the front eye. you will also get more lift, and 56" in the front are a lot more flexy. infact maybe a little too much. a friend of mine had them in the front and when back to 52"s because it was too unstable on the road. others may disagree with this, and i have not run this setup yet.

 

[SCOOBYDANNN]

Ok, measured them---they are 54"---awesome thanks. I can live with the springs like this (unless someone chimes in saying it'll suck). i didnt really want a 6" so ill just tack everything togather and see what happens.

thanks for your help

Dan

 

[Masiony]

from what i've heard, they are great off-road. im not sure how much pavement your truck sees, but from what i understand they are a bit "washy" on the street. maybe running a sway bar might help. if you run them with the pin towards the rear, you should still be able to get 2" more WB cause the short side is 26" vs. 24" on the stock spring. be prepaired to run an even loger shackle, i have heard you need about 7.25" to get those to flex properly. and BTW, since the 56" flex so much, you will still have driveline problems. they will most likely not have enough slip.

 

[willymonster]

make sure to put up some more pics when you get them in there. im about to do the same thing if this damn rain decides to let up . it sucks not to have a garage !!!!!