wanna drag frame

[canadianredneck]

what is the best way to acomplish this once i install airbags, what am i lookin at for drop spindles. what all am i gunna need to do to drag

[Shane]

let the air out of the bags ...

[RunninLo]

depends on how you want to do it. at some point you'll have to address the front cross-member since it hangs below the frame. You can "z" it which is basically all labor so it can be cheaper if you are qualified to do the welding yourself. If not then you can use a bolt in replacement crossmember. the most popular being the porterbuilt dropmember. I chose the second option for my burb.

[canadianredneck]

whats the bolt in worth? how much of a c notch will i need in the back

[FnLow69]

all depends on tire size? for a 28" tire i would do a 10" notch and aleast a 3" Z up front

[blk81shrt]

Im looking to do an airride setup on my 67-72 short fleetside, whats the best way to get on the ground? Im not really in to "z" the cross member tho.. Could i swap it out for a 73-87 instead? I dont even mind being up that extra bit if the cross member is retained. What componenets need to be switched out in the front? Spindles? Control arms? Ive seen the adjustable control arms are they worth the coin? Also in the back what is my best option? I want to be able to have a drivable truck too so maybe like 8 inches of travel or so.. Whats the best way to go? Ive seen many setups with 4links and tubular control arms, what would give me the best ride and most reliablity?

[RunninLo]

my suspension in my burb should end up some where in the neighborhood of $5k. I could've done it cheaper but I wanted frame flat on the ground, qualtiy ride, and quality components. Do you want cheap and good enough or the best ride/quality with out cost restriction? I went the way I did because I've been doing air ride for close to ten years in many different types of vehicles and the cardinal rule holds true here too "you get what you pay for" whether it's cash or your own sweat.

[RunninLo]

Originally Posted by blk81shrt

Could i swap it out for a 73-87 instead?

the 73-87 crossmember will not be any lower then your stock cross member. That swap is usually only done to upgrade a pre '72 truck to disc front brakes.

to get low spindles are usually a must, you can cut your springs down but replacement drop coils are better suited to the reduced travel.

In the rear if you have a 2 link you can put a bag in where the spring was and a notch and get pretty close to laid out. adding blocks between the link bars and the axle can get you closer to the ground and still be somewhat on the cheap.


josh

[canadianredneck]

Originally Posted by FnLow69

all depends on tire size? for a 28" tire i would do a 10" notch and aleast a 3" Z up front

well im plannin on gettin twenties with 50 series tire.

[impala_631]

do the z, its not all that hard to do if you can cut and weld good, dont be scurrd

[blk81shrt]

hmm how difficult is the swap to the disks on the front? does it bolt right up?

what does the z involve? What kind of welder should I be using (mig, tig)?

[RunninLo]

Originally Posted by impala_631

do the z, its not all that hard to do if you can cut and weld good, dont be scurrd

until you go to get it aligned and find out your a sixteenth off and it won't align right. I have done tons of clips and they appear easy but you must take the time to measure which can be very time consuming. Worst out of square front clip i've ever done was less than 1/64th of an inch but I take time to build jigs so I can place the clip just right and adjust it before it even gets tacked in. I've seen to many jobs laid out with a tape and then cut away. they look fine to the tape and the eye but remember alignment is in tenths of a degree.

My other concern is a lot of people think just cause they can turn on a welder and run a bead that they are ok doing this type of work. the majority aren't. I can't count how many bubble gum welds and stress cracks I've had to fix on others work because the "weldor" could run a bead but not a weld.
Think about it, you're going to be driving a couple thousand pounds around with friends/ family on board or perhap on the street you're driving down. How sure are you that you've done a good job and your clip won't fall off?

I'd also like to say that this post isn't meant to offend or insult anyone. Nor am I saying that anyone isn't qualified. All I'm saying is KNOW you have the proper skills if you're going to cut a third of your frame off and weld it back on. Safety First! for yourself and the others you'll be sharing the road with.

josh

[canadianredneck]

Originally Posted by blk81shrt

hmm how difficult is the swap to the disks on the front? does it bolt right up?

what does the z involve? What kind of welder should I be using (mig, tig)?

switchn to front discs isnt all that difficult, depending on what years of spindles ur goin to use. i switchd to 71 spindles on my 68 and had to swap balljoints, tierods(inners and outers), along with most of my steering parts to make it work.

[rotgg]

[QUOTE=RunninLo;2414483]until you go to get it aligned and find out your a sixteenth off and it won't align right.


how many of the front clips have u measured before u took them apart most are no were near a sixteenth off many of the new truck we work on are as much as 3/4s out if the frame is within a sixteenth and u cant get it aligned something is wrong with the aligner and i agree with u if u cant read a tape u cant do a z but if u can square is square

[RunninLo]

hell I've seen guys F up a simple frame horn drop while doing a body drop so I know it happens. I use a machinists rule on anything under six inches and my personal preferance is 1/64th or less variance for all three axis.

I can get a truck that is so far out of square that you can see all 4 tires as it drives in front of you alingned to spec but it will still be wrong as you look at it. There's good enough and then there's the right way.
I'm not trying to be argumentative just trying to point out that there are safety issues that don't cross a lot of people's minds. A front clip isn't an "easy" thing to do and I feel that it may be irresponsible to encourage someone to cut up a third of the foundation of a classic truck without weighing all the risks. I'm not saying don't do it by any means just know what the skills needed are. I've seen too many rides go to the crusher because someone with minimal skill tried something they weren't ready for. Ultimately it's the owners choice I guess but it affects us all when it goes wrong.
Josh

[canadianredneck]

Originally Posted by RunninLo

hell I've seen guys F up a simple frame horn drop while doing a body drop so I know it happens. I use a machinists rule on anything under six inches and my personal preferance is 1/64th or less variance for all three axis.

I can get a truck that is so far out of square that you can see all 4 tires as it drives in front of you alingned to spec but it will still be wrong as you look at it. There's good enough and then there's the right way.
I'm not trying to be argumentative just trying to point out that there are safety issues that don't cross a lot of people's minds. A front clip isn't an "easy" thing to do and I feel that it may be irresponsible to encourage someone to cut up a third of the foundation of a classic truck without weighing all the risks. I'm not saying don't do it by any means just know what the skills needed are. I've seen too many rides go to the crusher because someone with minimal skill tried something they weren't ready for. Ultimately it's the owners choice I guess but it affects us all when it goes wrong.
Josh

hell yeah, i agree 100%. if ur not completly sure you can do the work right, get someone to do it for you. thats why im gettin it done for me.