School me on cross member swap

[OldGyrene]

Please educate me on my 1961 torsion bar suspension.

I am pulling the engine and tranny tomorrow and know about the cross member swap. But what I guess what I would like to know is the pros and cons of the swap vs original.

I know with the swap I can get disc brakes, which is awesome, but if we take the discs out of the equation, what are the other if any, benefits ??

It looks like the r/r parts for the original front end are available, so I guess I am asking why go through with the swap ? What else am I missing ? Handling ?

Hope everyone had a great Christmas, and thanks in advance for your advice. !!

[lolife99]

I've never done the swap on a 60-62 torsion bar truck,... but you can now buy 60-62 specific disc brake conversion spindles.
SO disc brakes are available without swapping crossmembers.

[markeb01]

Semper Fi buddy. If you want to keep a somewhat stock truck, and use it locally most of the time, there isn’t any real benefit to the newer front end swap. The torsion bar suspension rides smoother than the later coil springs, and I believe the original upper and lower control arms may have more travel range. Adding a sway bar (I used an aftermarket Mustang II bar on mine) made a big difference and really flattened out the cornering.

Adding power steering is a necessity especially with the current age of these trucks, but there’s absolutely nothing wrong with the original torsion bars. They are inconvenient if you’re planning to run long tube headers, but you may not have any interest there. I swapped mine to the later front end because I wanted 5 lug mag wheels, but it was mainly to get rid of the ball front wheel bearings. I didn’t find out until after the front suspension swap, that a simple exchange for the 1962 hubs would have upgraded the stock front end to tapered roller bearings.

Unless you want fancy wheels or to substantially lower the front suspension I’d leave it stock. Once rebuilt, the new original parts will last indefinitely.

Should you decide to do the swap, the following thread I did on mine might provide a few helpful ideas:

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=366828

[LostMy65]

I'm keeping the Torsion Suspension.
You can get disc spindles for the 60-62.

[HumphreyMurdoch]

I just did the crossmember swap last winter on my '62. I have to say, it doesn't ride near as smooth but does handle way better with a big ol' sway bar on it.
If you're going to lower it more than a couple inches, do a crossmember swap. The more you loosen the torsion bar keys, the more they point right to the ground. But, all that being said, I believe there's a sway bar you can put on the torsion bar and I wouldn't be surprised if before long there are lowering keys for them soon.

I will give this recommendation. Either way you choose, get the captain fab master cylinder adapter. Fits so well and has everything you need minus the brake and clutch master and booster.

[frankslagoon]

I've had a 60 and a 63. they both work good. The way I undersand it is the coil was cheaper to build. the 60 road good and you can adjust the torsion bars. only thing I had trouble with was headers as mentioned earlier

[Wilson!]

my '04 Avalanche has torsion bars and they ride and handle fine for 6000 lb truck. they used them until 2006 on the 4wd gmt800 trucks and these things are everywhere. I'm with markeb01, do the disc brake swap, add power steering and a sway bar and rock it.

[OldGyrene]

A ton of good info !

I don't plan on dropping it, so I think I'll stay with the torsion bars, especially since I can change the hubs out.

So, this had a stock six cylinder, and is getting a small block (350). Do I need to "adjust" the torsion bars ? IF so, I'm guessing there are some threads in here on that.

[61_FL_Apache]

Originally Posted by OldGyrene

A ton of good info !

I don't plan on dropping it, so I think I'll stay with the torsion bars, especially since I can change the hubs out.

So, this had a stock six cylinder, and is getting a small block (350). Do I need to "adjust" the torsion bars ? IF so, I'm guessing there are some threads in here on that.

I love my torsion bar setup. You need a 15/16 socket and start turning. I have adjusted mine up and down over the years to help with clearance issues.

[OldGyrene]

Originally Posted by 61_FL_Apache

I love my torsion bar setup. You need a 15/16 socket and start turning. I have adjusted mine up and down over the years to help with clearance issues.

Thanks all !!

[LostMy65]

You shouldn't have to adjust the the torsion bars when you go to a V8.
But if you decide to adjust them for any reason, jack up the front end to take the load off.