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suspension performance

Barry Ingram

Barry Ingram

Registered Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2006
Posts
22
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Location
Houston
Hi everyone!
finally enough projects completed that I can work on my K5 again. I have a 10'' leaf spring lift that rides worse than a utility trailer - looking to start putting 10k a year street mileage & mild overlanding on the K5.
I assume 4 link /coilover has the best manners on & offroad. Is ORD the way to go? Any experience or shared knowledge will be appreciated.
 
Come back and post some more and people will start to answer your questions. 1 post = never coming back. I also wonder how many times you have ridden in a utility traler?
 
Barry Ingram said:
Blue 85 Thanks for your assistance!
Click to expand...
Gotta admire the patience and restraint involved here by the OP.....

- Sign up for an account on CK5.
- Wait 15 years...
- Make an introduction post


Well played. :bow:




My first question to you would be what size tire are you planning to run, because a 10" leaf spring is ridiculous....

Tire size dictates EVERYTHING else on your build. Literally. Suspension, gearing, power.... all of it comes back to the tire that you choose.


-G
 
Greg72 said:
Gotta admire the patience and restraint involved here by the OP.....

- Sign up for an account on CK5.
- Wait 15 years...
- Make an introduction post


Well played. :bow:




My first question to you would be what size tire are you planning to run, because a 10" leaf spring is ridiculous....

Tire size dictates EVERYTHING else on your build. Literally. Suspension, gearing, power.... all of it comes back to the tire that you choose.


-G
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Greg,
I just reset login for account.
Account was created when I wrenched , wheeled a different truck. There were many posts, but I assume after many many years deleted- IDK

My current project is on 10 super-ride springs , 38 boggers that will go soon enough. I purchased a 14 bolt, D60 for use with likely 37 x12.50 0r 13.50 r17
 
10" springs ride like they are solid. I see no reason to run anything more than a 6" spring unless you have tires 44" or larger. Cut the fenders and use a shorter spring. I have 37" tires on a K5 and a K30. Both trucks have 4" springs with reshaped fenders.
 
HankScorpio said:
10" springs ride like they are solid. I see no reason to run anything more than a 6" spring unless you have tires 44" or larger. Cut the fenders and use a shorter spring. I have 37" tires on a K5 and a K30. Both trucks have 4" springs with reshaped fenders.
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I agree the 10 springs have to go - not sure I want to reshape my fenders openings this particular truck was in my family since new & wont be wheeled all that hard. Mainly light trails, camping with the kids. If that means 35" tires I may end up there
 
The stock fender openings were designed around a small tire. Opening up the fender allows a bigger tire to fit without as much lift. Big leaf spring lifts will never ride well, its just a limitation of the springs.
 
I run 37 13.5 tires on a 4inch lift spring, a 1/4 plate to move the pin 1 inch forward and a dana 60, I've only trimmed the back edge of the fender, and the front fang.
 
From what I read and hear, the ORD coilover kits make an amazing difference in ride and control quality of the truck. There are several guys on here who have made the progression in their builds. They had some sort of lift kit, then ORD spec leaf springs, then ORD coilover kits.

@Fastereddie
@AgDieseler

You can check out their builds.
 
6872xtc said:
From what I read and hear, the ORD coilover kits make an amazing difference in ride and control quality of the truck. There are several guys on here who have made the progression in their builds. They had some sort of lift kit, then ORD spec leaf springs, then ORD coilover kits.

@Fastereddie
@AgDieseler

You can check out their builds.
Click to expand...
I love mine, works really good.

The handling on and offroad is fantastic, how will you be using your truck?
 
Having run 5 different aftermarket suspensions, I have some distinct opinions on the subject.

Off the shelf springs always left something to be desired, and I didn't really get an all around performance value until I "sprang" for custom ORD leaf packs. Specifically on the front, and paired with a good set of Bilsteins, that setup worked really well and delivered 12" of travel with 40s on around 5ish" of lift. The gains from your 10" lift spring would be difficult to overstate, and a bolt on kind of deal. It's hard to ignore the immense value of custom leaf springs.

Links are the mountain top. If you're a competent fabricator and have the time, I high recommend them, especially for the front suspension. Steering is laser exact, there's a ton of control and adjustability, and a very good geometry is all figured out for you in the 5 pre-fabricated brackets from ORD. In terms of value, it's a pretty unbeatable setup for the price. If you're going to keep the truck forever, it's hard for me not to recommend "skipping to the end" and going to links.

For the rear, I favor a long spring and tension shackle. Move the front hanger forward about 8", move the rear hanger back 4", spec in a set of 64" springs and a set of nice shocks, and call it done. It just works. Well.

You could keep it really low, stable, and family friendly with a pretty easy cocktail of parts. If you just want to do trails and camping, 37s might be a nice tire size - good combination of clearance while maintaining good availability in the marketplace.

David
 
AgDieseler said:
Having run 5 different aftermarket suspensions, I have some distinct opinions on the subject.

Off the shelf springs always left something to be desired, and I didn't really get an all around performance value until I "sprang" for custom ORD leaf packs. Specifically on the front, and paired with a good set of Bilsteins, that setup worked really well and delivered 12" of travel with 40s on around 5ish" of lift. The gains from your 10" lift spring would be difficult to overstate, and a bolt on kind of deal. It's hard to ignore the immense value of custom leaf springs.

Links are the mountain top. If you're a competent fabricator and have the time, I high recommend them, especially for the front suspension. Steering is laser exact, there's a ton of control and adjustability, and a very good geometry is all figured out for you in the 5 pre-fabricated brackets from ORD. In terms of value, it's a pretty unbeatable setup for the price. If you're going to keep the truck forever, it's hard for me not to recommend "skipping to the end" and going to links.

For the rear, I favor a long spring and tension shackle. Move the front hanger forward about 8", move the rear hanger back 4", spec in a set of 64" springs and a set of nice shocks, and call it done. It just works. Well.

You could keep it really low, stable, and family friendly with a pretty easy cocktail of parts. If you just want to do trails and camping, 37s might be a nice tire size - good combination of clearance while maintaining good availability in the marketplace.

David
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David,
Many guys have good success with 52'' swaps or custom rate leaf springs - I am leaning in the direction of ORD 4link/ king coil overs. Like the idea of tunability, multitude of spring rates or combination of 2 springs set up progressive.
Is there a reason/benefit many builds stay with rear leaf springs? You specifically mention tension shackles - why? better spring movement?
I did some research on 64' custom built rear spring, traction bar , DIY 4x hangers & ord shackle reversal & nice shocks = 85% price of a rear 4 link. - just an observation
 
I appreciate all the feedback - excuse my questions if they seem simple - i'm learning about anti-dive , spring wrap & how different systems react. I haven't worked on a 4x4 in well over a decade & back then I recall cheap shocks & generic lift kits only thing available for the shade tree mechs
 
Barry Ingram said:
David,
Many guys have good success with 52'' swaps or custom rate leaf springs - I am leaning in the direction of ORD 4link/ king coil overs. Like the idea of tunability, multitude of spring rates or combination of 2 springs set up progressive.
Is there a reason/benefit many builds stay with rear leaf springs? You specifically mention tension shackles - why? better spring movement?
I did some research on 64' custom built rear spring, traction bar , DIY 4x hangers & ord shackle reversal & nice shocks = 85% price of a rear 4 link. - just an observation
Click to expand...
For the front, I strongly favor the stock mounting position with a custom rate leaf pack. 52s never quite made sense to me as a viable alternative to a part that is specifically tailored to my truck and its weight.

Tension shackles are the tried and true method for delivering long leaf travel, with less axle steer than a flipped shackle. Shackle flips were originally about getting inexpensive lift without more spring arch. A custom spring with a boomerang tension shackle made a lot of sense, and let me keep all the cargo room free and open and unencumbered from suspension parts poking through the bed floor.

@Fastereddie did a nice job on keeping his rear coil overs under the floor.

David
 
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I'd be curious if ORD can do a 10" lift with their coilover kit. Honestly I would consider calling ORD and getting their perspective on what you want to do. We here on CK5 are just a small slice of the trucks they've helped people build. I'll bet they've probably helped 5 people build the setup you are after. Just not many guys here running more than 6" lift springs so our experience in that realm is limited.
 
mrk5 said:
I'd be curious if ORD can do a 10" lift with their coilover kit. Honestly I would consider calling ORD and getting their perspective on what you want to do. We here on CK5 are just a small slice of the trucks they've helped people build. I'll bet they've probably helped 5 people build the setup you are after. Just not many guys here running more than 6" lift springs so our experience in that realm is limited.
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You missed where he posted about dropping it down some.
 
Any reason you need more than a 33" tire?

Drop it down near stock, and it will be much more enjoyable.

Martin
 
82355 - don't think 33s will give me the diff clearance i'm looking for especially with the 14bolt
mrk5- waiting on a callback from ORD
 
Barry Ingram said:
82355 - don't think 33s will give me the diff clearance i'm looking for especially with the 14bolt
mrk5- waiting on a callback from ORD
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I have 35's on a 14 bolt, I have hit the yoke every time I have done real wheeling. Blazer Bash 18 I think it was I got high centered on the yoke.
 
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