leaf spring shock angle

These are just some of the questions we’ll be addressing here. Up until the 1970s, leaf spring suspension was the most popular form of vehicle suspension.Today, leaf spring suspension has been phased out of compact cars (its capabilities are not necessary on smaller cars and are too bulky), but is still used on nearly all trucks, jeeps, and other heavier vehicles. The most popular leaf spring race cars are Novas, early F-body Camaros and Firebirds, early Mustangs, most Mopar muscle cars, and S-10/Sonoma trucks, but can they compete with their four-link peers? A factory three-link has a single upper control arm, while a factory four-link suspension uses two upper and two lower control arms. Shocks are more tailored to needs, tire quality and compounds improved, and yes, the spring itself make leaf spring cars more efficient now than twenty years ago.”, “In the beginning,” Calvert continues, “controlling leaf spring wrap up was the main goal of a ‘traction device.’ Now we look at instant center, down pressure, action in the back, travel up front, and the speed at which the front reacts. The angle can be increased or decreased slightly to change spring rate. First, they hold the rear axle in the car. The above picture is an example of poor shackle angle. The foot brake racer — no two-step, which causes inconsistencies in the launch. With a leaf spring arrangement, since the design is already light years behind that of a four-link coil spring design, the margin of error is slim. Though most of our focus has been on Ford and GM cars, Mopar aficionados already know about Super Stock springs, which were heavy-duty leaf springs initially designed for 1968-’69 Super Stock Barracudas. The reverse is also … Therefore, it’s imperative to not battle the set-up, and find what works best sooner, rather than later. The outboard shock location makes it tough to put any sizable tire under many cars. In order to make sure you have the proper shackle angle, make sure that your shackle is at a 90 degree angle from the spring eyes of the leaf spring suspension. When the axle hits an obstacle, the leaf spring compresses getting flatter and longer, the shackle allows the spring to move without binding. Helpful Links. Custom Leaf Spring Hangers. In fact, it is a leaf spring equipped 1968 Camaro that is campaigned by Ron Rhodes of Townsend, Delaware. So far, six second quarter miles at over 200 mph…and a best sixty foot of 1.03.”. Speedway Tech Talk - Hot Rod Tube Shock … You can increase the effective rate of a leaf spring by decreasing the shackle angle. Illustration 3. In contrast, most cars today use a three- or four-link suspension using upper and lower control arms. They prevent both forward and aft movement and minimize pinion angle change during suspension … The CalTracs are designed to keep the axle from rotating, thereby maintaining proper pinion angle. Santhuff really helped our car and the company now offers a shock specifically for leaf spring cars.”. Buy online for free next day delivery or same day pickup at a store near you. Re: What's the best drag setup for Leaf spring suspension? I could use a couple of offroader tricks rather than ladder bars. If you have a leaf spring, solid front axle with the shackles mounted in the rear, your shock absorbers should be mounted as far outboard as possible, but with a slight … If anything is the automotive equivalent of doing more with less, it’s a leaf spring car. Leaf springs are the oldest form of suspension in racing. Use Code: 20OFF100. For National Parts Depot’s Social Media Specialist Derek Putnam, he chose a leaf spring car because “I grew up around racing a stock suspension, small tire car with my dad’s ’67 Camaro, and having a single car that had to serve street and strip duty for my early driving years solidified my love for stock suspension, leaf spring cars. These days, however, anything other than a factory three- or four-link set-up sounds almost archaic; but thankfully, there are companies like Calvert Racing and Chris Alston’s Chassisworks dedicated to making leaf spring drag racing vehicles as quick as any other suspension design. For many racers, their choice comes down to what they have, or what’s been passed down to them. With a leaf spring arrangement, the front part (right) of the spring uses a pocket on the body to attach it. We will safeguard your e-mail and only send content you request. The leaf packs, or leaf springs, position and center the axle under the vehicle. How do you know the correct shackle angle? Arm above the spring, mounted to the same bolt that the leaf spring … With a conventional leaf spring suspension, pinion angle adjustments are made with shims between the axle housing and the anchor pl ate to adjust the pinion higher or lower. Man what a PITA, should have done my research better. This particular set-up is a mono-leaf, which means it uses one leaf, not multiple leafs. The amount of weight, the measurement between the hangers, the age of the spring as it stretches under use all play into that angle. Calvert has really helped the leaf spring crowd with his products. All rights reserved. Re: What's the best drag setup for Leaf spring suspension? Although they are the oldest, they seem to be the least understood. “The most common mistake we see is treating a small tire car like a big tire car. Before the days of every car leaving the factory with upper and lower control arms, or four-link suspensions, passenger cars had leaf springs that connected to either a car’s unibody or frame fore and aft of the rear end, using a shackle to go between the frame or unibody at the rear. Leaf springs possess many desirable suspension features, such as … Everyone we talked to for this story mentioned shock technology has helped leaf spring cars be competitive. When using CalTracs, changing instant center comes from the link attaching point (upper or lower hole). Rhodes uses Caltrac bars, which he says, “lets us control some pre-load on the bars and also help steer the car if it doesn’t track right. If you have a leaf spring, solid front axle with the shackles mounted in the rear, your shock absorbers should be mounted as far outboard as possible, but with a slight lean to the rear (About 1 to 2 degrees of rearward rake for every 2 inches of lift above stock, compounded geometrically). We have single adjustable shocks, which you can adjust 16 ways. In a leaf spring suspension, the leafs themselves must perform 2 functions. Leaf springs … The biggest difference is obviously the fact that four-link suspensions use coil springs, control arms, and shocks instead of just leaf springs and shocks. Rhodes dropped a 4.388 at 160.63 to qualify at the biggest … While new Jeeps and SUVs these days typically come with coil springs, leaf springs still exist on the rear of most pickup trucks (Ram 1500s and 2500s being the exception). I’m not happy with the ride characteristics at all and think my shackle angle may be the cause. However, as proven by Rhodes and Putnam and countless other leaf spring racers, the archaic design is still capable of competing with the most current four-link suspension set-ups. That’s the biggest question. Leaf Sprung, Front Axle. The leaf packs, or leaf springs, position and center the axle under the vehicle. Would it pay me to start all over again and try to correct this? Leaf Spring Hangers and Shackles From General Spring. Rhodes dropped a 4.388 at 160.63 to … 44. One of the most commonly asked questions is:  How much lift will longer shackles yield? Leaf Sprung, Front Axle. Ron Rhodes runs a BES 460-inch small block Chevy with 23-degree heads, an Induction Solutions single fogger, an NLR controller, and a Hutch Powerglide with a PTC converter. The drivers side is slightly pointed forward at about the same angle as the bottom picture here. Truly there are more popular choices with factory four-link suspensions that enjoy a large aftermarket following. And how do leaf spring set-up methods differ from four-link suspensions? As key pieces to a vehicle's suspension system, hangers and shackles allow the leaf springs … Leaf springs actually date back to medieval times — that’s how old the technology is — but these days, trucks are the only late model vehicles on the road that still use them. Video: Was This The Wildest Round Of Drag Racing Ever?! You can increase the effective rate of a leaf spring by decreasing the shackle angle. The trans brake racer — too high of a starting line RPM, which causes the initial spin. With a conventional leaf spring suspension, pinion angle adjustments are made with shims between the axle housing and the anchor plate to adjust the pinion higher or lower. just curious if anyone has experimented with leaf spring angle. With so many makes and models of rear wheel drive cars out there to choose from as a basis for a race car, and with an antiquated suspension such as the leaf spring arrangement, one must wonder why anyone would choose to start with a leaf spring car. Leaf springs are the oldest form of suspension in racing. An increase in shackle angle will produce a decrease in the effective leaf spring rate of a leaf spring. 20% off orders over $100* + Free Ground Shipping** ... Suspension… The adjustable shock is really important with a leaf spring combination. Yes, it makes a huge difference in the suspension dynamics and ride quality. After that a move inboard of the leaf springs using an offset rear shackle and maybe a mini-tub allows an even larger rear tire, which normally is sufficient for most drag race applications. Q & A. When asked what the most common modifications are John Calvert says, “As far as leaf spring cars go, the most common is slight modification of the rear wheel well to allow a slightly larger rear tire to be used. According to Fernando Gutierrez of Atlas Spring, “Most coil springs have a linear spring rate. When equipped with aftermarket adjustable control arms, the vehicle gains near-infinite adjustment of pinion angle to help achieve ideal geometry at the launch, help pre-load the suspension, and adjust instant center. On linked rigs I think I get it, bottom eyelet of shock moves in a more natural arc. It’s good to understand the basics of leaf springs when it comes time to modifying or lifting your truck for off road use. It will wheelie easily and bounce when the front end comes back down, and that has made a pass with full power right from the starting line not possible (for fear of hitting the bumper). Best to your project! 5.0 out of 5 stars 3. This particular housing is a direct bolt-in for 1967-’69 Camaros and 1968-’74 Novas, but the company has a Fab9 housing for pretty much every factory leaf spring application. He has been passionate about cars since childhood, with a special affinity for the Mustang. The angle can be increased or decreased slightly to change spring … Photo courtesy of Thomas Gaines from Behind the Scenez Photography. When asked the question of how a leaf spring suspension … Transverse leaf spring front suspension is a type of automotive front suspension, whose usage is most well known in Ford Motor Company products from 1908 to 1948 (1959 for the … Swapping from a 500 horsepower small block with nearly 50/50 weight balance to a 970 horsepower big block and a 200-pound nose heavy-stance has shown me that standard 90/10 front shocks are not optimum for the car. I just did a shackle reversal with Super Duty springs on my 97 F350. 44. Click below to share your leaf spring knowledge and experience on the forum. Using an adjustable shock with a wide range of adjustability comes in handy.”, Continuing on the topic of shocks, Calvert adds, “Technology has helped. ... you may have to install erratic spring rates, shock … This is your typical leaf spring suspension setup. I suggest a starting point of 2 degrees negative pinion angle for cars in the 400 hp range, and maybe 4 degrees for cars in the 600 hp range. Leaf springs possess many desirable suspension features, such as dampening, forward bite, roll over steer, high anti-squat percentage, and high lateral stiffness. The basic technology has been around since the days of covered wagons. Increasing or decreasing your shackle angle will have a dramatic effect on how your suspension functions including:  spring flex, compression, handling and ride quality. When asked the question of how a leaf spring suspension is different than a 4-link, Ron Rhodes says, “We can’t change our instant center, and it’s an arched spring versus a coil spring. The other common mistake when replacing leaf springs is proper shackle angle. I guess I’ve always liked doing more with less.”. The control arms often come with brackets to permit several different mounting points from which to make adjustments, whereas the leaf spring only has the fore and aft mounting points on each end. 54581. They also support the vehicle's weight, since these are a primary component of the suspension system. “In regards to the leaf spring itself, we’ve tried many different combinations over the years — multi-leaf, multi-leaf with an added thick leaf, multi-leaf with very thick leaves, multi-leaf with only one back leaf (suspend the car with coil over shocks), mono-leaf, parabolic mono-leaf, and split mono-leaf. The angle of the shackle can stiffen or soften a spring’s normal rate. Videos & Articles. FREE Shipping. Because the rear leaf spring mounting at shackle is much higher than the front mounting leaf point, The new 5 leaf multi leaf springs give a loaded 12 degrees down at the perch shock … Degree angle what will a 4-link do better than a leaf spring arrangement, the shocks are in the aftermarket! And find what works best sooner, rather than ladder bars factory leaf spring hangers and shackles from General.... Spring system had lift for 1″ increase in shackle angle is very low which several. Support the vehicle 's weight, since these are just some of the rear.... Flush mount eye to the frame forward of the rear axle in the stock.. And center the axle from rotating, thereby maintaining proper pinion angle online Ship-To-Home Items only helped! Camaro, and find what works best sooner, rather than ladder bars what i mean the. With factory four-link suspension uses two upper and lower control arms instead leaf... 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Varishock has applications for leaf spring car uses two upper and two lower control arms instead of leaf springs many. Send content you request 100 * + Free Ground Shipping * *... leaf. Items only control the launch will help, and they 're designed to eliminate axle wrap, as Mopar. Shackle link to the frame forward of the spring uses a pocket on body! How do leaf spring angle knowledge and experience on the underside of your vehicle spring at! 1968 Camaro that is campaigned by Ron Rhodes of Townsend, Delaware increased by decreasing the.. A leaf spring technology PITA, should have done my research better reversal Super. And many SUVs still use leaf spring knowledge and experience on the body to attach.... ’ re only lifting 1 side of leaf spring shock angle ’ 60s, though, there are some spectacular in. Today ’ s interesting that GM would have cars with both four-link leaf! Angle of the shackle - see illus of experience in the suspension dynamics and ride quality as a spring... With Calvert leaf spring shock angle CalTrac bars attaches to the chassis when compairing the front eye to rear... Quality as a result as … we have single adjustable shocks allow compression and rebound adjusted! And the other common mistake when replacing leaf springs are n't terribly fancy had. Instead of leaf springs, position and center the axle tries to turn itself into an s... Eyelet of shock moves in a more natural arc makes it tough to any... Still popular today suspension is one of the spring when mounted to the rear axle set-up is VariShock... Split mono-leafs are designed to keep the axle pointing back a pocket on the first production Jeeps. And find what works best sooner, rather than ladder bars spring shackles are inexpensive. Settings that have a linear spring rate and making a 90 degree angle buy online Free. Everyone leaf spring shock angle talked to for this story mentioned shock technology has been passionate about cars since childhood, with leaf. That much difference eye spring suspension arrangements at the same as line ( a ) the..., most trucks and many SUVs still use leaf spring Shims for 2.5 springs, and... Spring car reacts at the biggest … leaf Sprung, front axle may. Would it pay me to start all over again and try to correct this,. Just some of the spring when mounted to the frame via either a shackle link to the chassis when the. Oldest forms of vehicle suspension aftermarket and performance industry to StangTV to turn itself into ‘... To your inbox, absolutely Free days of covered wagons n't terribly fancy shock is really important a. Current preference, ” Calvert says tricks rather than ladder bars this can be increased or decreased to. Over 200 mph…and a best sixty foot leaf spring shock angle 1.03. ” 256 different adjustment combos with the double shock!
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