akaFrankCastle
Official CCB Member
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 6:25 pm Posts: 4901 Images: 0 Location: Colorado Springs
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Airbur, I blame you
I swapped out those leafs in the '69. Now the Red Menace is listing like the U.S.S. Red Menace after taking a torpedo to the port side.
Seriously! The damn thing looks like I could push it over with one hand!
Comparing the old leaf pack to the one I just swapped in, I am now one less leaf short on both sides. That can't be right, right? The pack I just put in is supposed to put this thing at 3.5" lift in the rear, IIRC. It's been a few years since I rebuilt the pack.
Under the '66, the leafs are fine. Whole back end sits level and at height with the body lines running parallel all the way to the front.
Now I'm thinking Airbur's twisted frame conspiracy theory frame twist has migrated south!
Any one have any thoughts? I REALLY don't want to start tearing the radius arms off of the Dana to make sure they are torqued evenly, so any thoughts you guys have that keep me from doing that would be great.
I should mention, the lean is present while jacking the thing up from the rear diff. Very noticeable. The frame also hits the jack stands on the driver's side about an inch before the passenger side.
Tonight I loosened all three points on the leafs, jumped up and down on the rear bumper a lot, put it back on the stands, lowered the rear axle, tighten the snot out of the three points, then took it off the stands again. Same problem. When jacking it up, both wheels move evenly, from the ground, up, until the rear wheels are about 4" off the ground, then the pass side continues at the same rate while the driver's side move about every other pump of the jack. (Run on sentence. I know. My English sucks when I'm ready to throw a wrench through a window.)
I REALLY hope this thing isn't twisted!
Update: I measured the frame rails side to side all the way from the front to the rear and found no deviations. Granted, I was using a tape measure, but I would have noticed anything greater than half an inch or so.
I also measured the frame from the bottom of the rails to the floor, from front to rear, at about 6-12" intervals. The lean starts at the front DS frame rail at about 1/4-1/2" and gradually increases to the rear DS rail where the difference in height is about 1".
The truck does have aftermarket springs (9.5" from PS frame rail to top of Dana, 9.25-9.5" from DS frame rail to top of Dana.) Also has a drop tracbar mount. Can't ID the manufacturer by looking at it.
Possibly that whole uneven torque of the radius arms?
Another update: I made a quick plumb bob out of some string and a busted Craftsman socket (who says broken tools are useless?). Hanging the bob from the top bolt of the spring shackle, I have 1" of difference between the bob line and centerline of the lower shackle bolt on the PS. On the DS I have .5" of difference in the line versus centerline. This might make me think the DS leaf was worn out prior to my rebuilding it, but it doesn't explain the .5" difference in height between the two front frame rails.
Am I ranting enough for you guys?
_________________ Stroppe'd 1972 Sport, 302, 3 speed with old school Duff floor shifter, T shift Dana 20 with JB Fab twin stick, 4.11 gears with Trac-loc, Lincoln hydroboost, Chevy disc conversion, WH gas lift gate shock kit, 33" Duratrac tires on slots and about 2.5" of lift, Stroppe installed: bumper braces, dual shocks on all four corners, GM power steering, trans cooler mount, auto shift column, rollbar.
The Terrible One 1972 Sport uncut, 302, C4 with 1974 column , T shift Dana 20, 3.50 gears w/ limited slip, 1966 U13 Roadster kick panel, and factory power steering.
1973 Stroppe Baja project
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