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will 56's fit where 52's used to?

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muddyblzr

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hi just wanted to ask yall a question about your shackle flip. if i buy one for a truck that came stock with a 52 inch spring can i run a 56 inch spring on it? i have some shackles that range from 6.5 inches and 7.5 inches. will those work to or are they a bad idea? any input would help alot​
thanks​
austin​
 
Typically there is enough room on the frame to move the flip back to match up to a longer spring, so it shouldn't be a problem to go to 56's at all. If you're looking at running a longer shackle, you should consider the 2.5" flip kit, so that the tail of the spring doesn't end up way below the front of the spring. This saves ground clearance and helps the truck's handling when cornering.
 
thanks ive already got my 4 inch shackle flip and i havnet bobbed my frame yet so ill set it up wiht the shackles i have and see how it fits. i found some 56's off of a suburban my friend has they look kinda new 8 leafs i think 3/4 ton good shape from waht i can tell. how much should those run for?? and how many leaves should i take out and which ones do i start with?
 
do you think that shackle will be too long? its actually a lowering kit for a chevy when its a tension shackle i found it at my shop i dunno y its there must of been from a worker that left.

are you the guy that has the bright green k5 that went to ttc a few years ago? thanx for the input its acceptiated. sorry it took so long to post back ive been busy i just pulled the cab off my pickup and started on rust removal
 
Yes, it will work. I run an Echobit flip w/ long shackles and Ford 57's, and White Rhyno runs a 4" ORD flip w/ long shackles and Ford 57's... I don't see why a shaclke that is 1" or so shorter and a set of 56's would be any different...?
 
poohbair how long are your shackles? do you have any pics of your truck sitting. i want to try and picture how my shackle will sit at ride height. thanks for the input
 
muddyblzr said:
poohbair how long are your shackles? do you have any pics of your truck sitting. i want to try and picture how my shackle will sit at ride height. thanks for the input
Click to expand...

Not sure how long the shackles are, but I will try and remember to measure them for you in the next day or 2 and find a photo of it... it is in the shop right now surrounded by crap and hard to get a new pic of it
 
k take ur time i wont see mine till the weekend. i kinda screwed myself alittle i think but ill make it work. i used the sky-manufacturing shackle flip only cuz it wuz 100$ and it has to adjustable holes but now i totally regret it. the hardware they sent me was too big so i drilled the holes out and the holes on the bottom of the frame dont line up so i have to drill them out and get bigger bolts. the shackles im using have two holes also. one measure eye to eye 6 1/2 and the other measures 7 1/2 im gonna use whichever will flex better and give me a good pinion angle
 
thanks again for the input im kinda new to fourwheeling ive only been driving my k5 since last july and im 17 and im tryin 2 learn as much from everyone else as i can. all my wheeling buddies are alot older than me 20-30s except for my friend with a toyota. im trying to find more people in houston. i like looking at peoples rig up close so i can see how they made it. im planning on a flatbed im not sure of the design yet. ive got some of my stuff bought. i still need beadlock. do you know of any cheap steel ones 15X12 i think is the size i want. the tire is a 39.5X16X15 super swamper tsl.
 
11365Shackle_angle1.jpg
Hmmm, don't know why it is sooooo small, but there is the flip w/ the extended shackle and 57's...
 
awesome thanks that looks about the same length as my shackle. good i didnt want my shackle angle all messed up. now all i need is the springs and some front lift springs. i wuz gonna use some 4 inch tuff country's. do ur 57's flex real well? now all i need is to get some springs, engine, t-case, maybe a tranny and ill be set haha
 
do you have any pics of brad's truck im gonna do a flatbed and i want to get as many ideas as i can find. his truck looks nice i went to that link in ur sig.
 
Will mounting GM 56" in spot of 52's (using stock front mount location) move the wheel base back at all or is the distance the same from the front eye to the center pin?

Poohbair, whats the main reason you choose to use the Ford 57" spring over the GM 56"?
 
The 56" rears are the same from front eye to center pin, the extra 4" is all at the tail. Watch running the 56's, you can get a longer spring but typically they're on heavier rated trucks so they're stiffer. If you want to get serious about it, get a set of 64's off a IFS truck and move both mounts. A 2wd truck will have really soft springs, a 4wd 1/2T will be a little stiffer.
 
also what ive found is look in tbi suburban's. i found a 1/2 2wd suburban with 56'' springs that were 4 leaf and one overload. flex like made with just the frame no weight at all. im impressed. id like to get 64'' but i dont want to have to move around the hangars and 56'' will flex as much as i need most likely. stephen i had another question about the rear. i have the 4'' shackle flip with a 6.5'' shackle and stock 56'' springs. how much lift do you think that will give me? right now its just a frame so its hard to tell. im going to be ordering some tuff country springs from yall real soon and would want to try to find out how much lift the rear has. thanks
 
The extra 2.5" on the shackle will technically give you another 1.25" of lift but it's going to be angled back quite a bit so it will be less than that by some unknown (at this point) amount. I think I'd just get a 4" spring for the front to match it, especially if it's on a K5 (didn't check your profile so I'm not sure) since they typically need a bit more lift in the back anyway.
 
the truck im using this on is my 85' pickup its an offroad truck rear will have a custom flatbed with the gastank, radiator small tool box and a few other things back there. i figured the 4'' spring would work i just wanted to make sure b4 i called. i had another question about the spring clamps yall use, are they the bigger one that allow the leaves to fan out more? do yall sell these seperate? thanks again stephen
 
The TCI rear springs use the bolt style clips but you can't retrofit the clips to other springs easily because they're basically riveted in place. The spring has to have the hole and a dimple in the top of the leaf for the rivet to flatten out into.
 
o ok my springs have the clamp that is riveted in and it clamps completely down on the spring and does not allow for any fan out. ive heard of peopel cutting the top pieces off so the leaves can fan out however much they need but leave the sides so they dont turn. is that a good idea?
 
I've seen the ears stood up and drilled for the crossbolt, so that's an option. I tried it once on a set of TCI springs and they were tough enough I figured I'd have to get the torch out so I bailed out on the project.
 
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