CK5
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Transition of my blazer, and a tribute...

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Shackles on both ends of the leaf????????

WTF??????????????????????? /forums/images/graemlins/eek.gif /forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif

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what don't you get?

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I was wondering what keeps the axle from moving front to back but now I see the 2 links you ran towards the rear. THe axle mounts for those links look pretty weak though.

What keeps the axle from pivoting on the end of the links? Is there a 3rd link I'm not seeing?
 
ouch, that's gonna leave a mark. /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif




Thanks for the quick cabling info. Good information to have! /forums/images/graemlins/waytogo.gif /forums/images/graemlins/waytogo.gif
 
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I stand behind my statement that the lower bolts in your new front, "shackles" are too short. I can clearly see a shadow on the passenger side where there is space between the top of the nut and the bolt. Those bolts are too short, period. It's not a flame and you don't need to look at it that way. Just do yourself a favor and get some longer bolts so you can have sufficient thread engagement.

Besides, the shackle should not be riding on the threads anyway. It should be riding on the part of the bolt that has no threads, so even if that bolt was sticking through the nut slighly, it's still too short in the technical sense.

My intentions are only to help. I really like your truck but a simple hardware change to make the front of it safer is cheap and easy.

If you "grabbed them at work" they're probably not 9/16" bolts anyway. 9/16 is an uncommon sized bolt, typically you'll carry 7/16, 1/2, and then jump to 5/8, which means those are probably 1/2" bolts. If that is the case, although they're smaller, the bolts in the rear of the shackle are 7/16 so they'll probably be ok.

You asked how many nylocks I've used on my truck and the answer is none. My front springs have prevailing torque style locknuts on them.

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Well Jesus H. Christ, if you haven't learnt yet then maybe it's time to take a different approach.

Whatever the [darn] you're talking about with the bolts being too short-- you're wrong. If I wasn't heading out of town for work in 4 hours I'd take some pictures of the bolt on the passenger side all by itself, take it out, send it to you and expect you to shove it where the sun doesn't shine. There are a full 2 threads showing past the nut. Now, for whatever reason you can't see that on your side of the internet and that's fine, but I fully know how to screw a nut to a bolt...

Oh, and where I got those bolts? Yeah, there's 6500 other people working there as well, and they have a free issue bolt bin that stocks everything from 3/32x1/4" machine to 3"x25". Grades 3, 5 and 8, coarse thread, fine thread, coils, locks, flat and even star washers. Nylock nuts, stover nuts long nuts, jam nuts and regular nuts. Right hand thread and left hand thread. They have the same in metric as well. It's a room about 120'x120' full of shelving about 6' high that is strictly every kind of nut and bolt you can think of. Aluminum nuts and bolts that are bare, coated and anodized red and yellow. Nuts with with wire inside them to wire them down, nuts with springs inside them to hold them tight, square nuts and hexagonal nuts, 12 sided bolts and nuts dude the list goes on... Anyways... There is 4 rows of shelving about 4' deep strictly dedicated to 9/16" as it's a common size (as opposed to a 3" bolt, which is not) So don't tell me about where I work and what bolts they may have...

And as far as the shackle riding on the threads? Oh well. I'd be willing to bet I could take a length of 9/16" ready rod, not use nuts at all and leave the rod in there for a year of use. At that, out of the dozens of GM vehicles I've worked on, most had the rear shackles riding on the bolt threads...

I have a question for you- In your most recent post to me, how come you had shackle in quotation marks? Are they not shackles?
 
Yeah, only two links. How many more does it need? I guess the axle link mounts are pretty weak. I mean, if you think that a cast spring plate that's meant to hold the axle in place via u-bolts and a sway bar is weak then yes, it is weak. Honestly? I can't see them breaking, unless my beadlocks (which I drive on the street) blow the bolts and I lose a tire and careen into a busload of nuns, then they will probably break... But, I have a feeling that the 3/4" bolts are of equal strength as that of the spring plates but to prevent shifting of the plates and busting the spring pins I quickly made up a 3/8x2" flat bar to capture the head of the bolt and hold the links in "double shear".

I'm not sure what you're getting at with another link- The same thing that holds the axle in place as before, the leafs. You asked what keeps the axle from pivoting on the end of the links? The leafs!!! They're doing the same job as before! You might be thinking that these are coils or something, but they are still just leafs. Now they travel at both ends. And the axle will move in the arc the links want it to, not the arc the shackle wants.

For the dude that asked if I had any flex pics- I do not. Nor will I soon. I'll be out of town for a few weeks and at that, do not have a front driveshaft- So, getting to the good places to flex it out will be tough right now! But I'll work on getting pictures up here asap.

I'm using 8" leafs from superlift or something. They're two years old. In my mind, I would caution against using flatter leafs unless you move the links down, as where I have mine may cause spring wrap. I'll let you know how I make out...

Thanks for the props all,
Chad.
 
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I have a question for you- In your most recent post to me, how come you had shackle in quotation marks? Are they not shackles?

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I didn't understand if that's what you wanted to refer to them as or not.
 
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I have a question for you- In your most recent post to me, how come you had shackle in quotation marks? Are they not shackles?

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I didn't understand if that's what you wanted to refer to them as or not.

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FYI, that's what they are.
 
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I have a question for you- In your most recent post to me, how come you had shackle in quotation marks? Are they not shackles?

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I didn't understand if that's what you wanted to refer to them as or not.

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FYI, that's what they are.

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Well considering you've got a set at each end of the springs, I wasn't sure exactly what you call them.

Just out of curiousity, what benefit do you expect those to have? I can see pinion angle as one of them...I'm sure that has helped bring your pinion up quite a bit.
 
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I have a question for you- In your most recent post to me, how come you had shackle in quotation marks? Are they not shackles?

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I didn't understand if that's what you wanted to refer to them as or not.

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FYI, that's what they are.

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Well considering you've got a set at each end of the springs, I wasn't sure exactly what you call them.

Just out of curiousity, what benefit do you expect those to have? I can see pinion angle as one of them...I'm sure that has helped bring your pinion up quite a bit.

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Although this will help pinion angle a bit, it will also set my caster to zero, which is where I want it right now. I do not have hydro assist but with caster at zero it's much easier to steer the tires on even ground. Although the return to center on the road is fairly poor steering input is easier. Also, bump steer off road is much more prevalent with no caster as well. In the future, I will cut and turn the knuckles and add hydro assist.

The first thing I noticed after pulling out of the driveway was the ride- If I would put it to a number, I would say at least 3 times better. Also, last year and in my other truck I maxed out the shackle at both ends of the spring cycle (up and down) and that's nearly impossible to do now. I have gone the route of longer shackles as well, but have not enjoyed any so-called benefits of this. In my situation, even a 1" longer shackle placed to much leverage on my frame and bent it, I went through lots of bolts in the top of the shackle and the ride was bouncier. With a leaf that has as much arch as an 8" leaf, it will travel farther along the frame than a stock flat leaf and you WILL need more shackle to let it do it's thing. My solution was two shackles.

Summarily- Better ride, more travel, (seemingly) better articulation and less spring bind.

And it's a hell of a lot cheaper than a 4 link and coils.
 
From the looks of it, I would think that it would be bind-city the way it is set up now, but without seeing it actually work, I'm not going to say that as fact or not. (really trying to picture the operation of this system in my head here but failing)
 
I'm not seeing how it keeps from going like this

Front Shackle---Axle Link mount---Rear Shackle

|---|---| Axle camber is |

To this under acceleration

/---/---/ Axle camber is /

To this under braking

\---\---\ Axle camber is \

Seems to me that with 2 shackles the axle can move forward and back and pivot on the end of the link thus your camber would change drastically as the axle pivots and cause crazy handling /forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gifMaybe I'm missing something /forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif
 
Very sweet looking truck! /forums/images/graemlins/waytogo.gif /forums/images/graemlins/peace.gif

OH and the superhero thing up there ^ /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/histerical.gif /forums/images/graemlins/waytogo.gif /forums/images/graemlins/doah.gif
 
NICE! /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

I like the double shackle. I like spreading the force across the vehicle, and the benefit of leverage from the cable.

Are you going to do this in the back? Any one could probley pull this off right...since it's like traction bars?

Axle wrap does look like it could be avoided by designing them like traction bars, I would think.

Rock on man. /forums/images/graemlins/peace.gif
 

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