CHEVY6000VHO

I found these 2 cheap and easy tools to use for a before and after pinion angle measurement finder. This will help eliminate all of our driveline vibrations after lowering the rear of our trucks! Here's Summit's: http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.a...+0&autoview=sku Here's Craftsman's magnetic one: http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?...UseBVCookie=Yes Jim

I found this to be odd. When I called Belltech directly(KW) They actually suggested going with the leaf pack, for two reasons. 1. The fastest easiest way to lower the rear. 2. No shims were required because the pack takes into account the pinion angle. Yes I did have to use the keys to drop the front to compliment the rear, the truck rides just fine. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I beieve you, but the guy I spoke with said don't use them and he does not recommend them in any way. Let me ask you this, if I want the rear to be 1-1/2" higher than the front when using the 2" Belltech front spindles and the Belltech rear leafs, how would this be accomplished? I would not be wanting to lower the front much lower than it already is by cranking off the torsion bars. That much lowering in the front will cause the front suspension to ride too soft and bouncy. I don't want my truck level basically with my lowering kit. I would love to use the Belltech leafs, but I don't want a big dissappointment by having to lower the front too much. I'm confused again on what to do. I might just do the 2" front lowering spindles and just the 2" lowering shackles in the rear. Add some shims to get the right pinion angle, and be done with it. What do you think? Jim

Whatever you do to lower the front, don't use the torsion keys!! I can't believe people even direct anyone here at this web-site to even look at this route to lower the front. You will lose handling & ride quality when you use torsion keys to lower your truck. Use the Belltech 2" lowering spindles, 2" rear lowering shackles, and 2* or 3* rear shims to correct your pinion angle. That is, if your looking for that kind of drop.... The 2/2 drop only lowers your truck 2" on both ends, it will not be level. It will still have the same rake, just 2" lower than stock. If you want more than 2" of drop in the rear you will need to do hangers & shackles. That will give you a 3" or 4" rear drop option. You will still need the shims either way. The other option is the Belltech leafs. They were not designed for the SS or VHO trucks though. They will drop the rear lower than the front. In that case you will then need to crank in your torsion bars a little to lower the front to satisfy your lowered truck appearance and taste of what you want it to look like. The leafs also require you to use shims in some applications. Well, the front is easy to lower. The rear on the other hand, is another story. There are 3 different ways to do it. I would try the 2/2 drop and go from there. Just lowering your entire truck 2" may be just what you want. I'm with you man! I'm in the same boat, at the same bridges! Good Luck! Jim

Me too..........I'm in the same boat as you. I do know that I will be changing out the shocks. From what majority of guys are saying, the ride sucks after you lower your truck and use the o.e. shocks. If I don't want to lower my front by cranking the T-bars lower, then what would you guys recommend? 3" hangers & shackles or leafs? Looks like I just may be keeping my MG hangers and shackles after all................just not getting the feedback I thought I would get. Thanks, Jim

I hear ya on that! When I get on the 710 between the 405 and 91, I swear that my tonneau cover is going to fly off. I think I just might invest in some aftermarket shocks soon. Anything has to be better than stock right? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> That's not necesarily true. Bilstiens are a great shock. Jim

You should not need any shims with the leaf packs... I think that the bump stops come with the leafs. I dont remember if I got a set with mine now Other than that you should not need anything else.. Your best bet will probally be summit for everything. There handling fee is real cheap... <{POST_SNAPBACK}> ItsJac, could you post a side pic of your truck so that I can see what your drop looks like? What all did you use and do to get that kind of drop? Thanks, Jim

I just got the redesigned Dynatech headers. That odd primary that came up, over, and down on the driver side is of no more. The spark plug wire issues, taken care of. They fit a little better from what I here over the older design. The Dynatechs are a nice product. "You get what you pay for". I've had mine ceramic coated by Nitro Plate. They did an excelent job! The Pacesetters have always been known for the best bang for the buck. They are great, if headers are the last thing you want to spend a lot of money on. The only thing would be longevity. They are not stainless steel so they can easily rust out. If you live up north or where there is a lot of snow, then use a stainless header. But, if you have the Pacesetters ceramic coated before using them, then they will last a lot longer. You will also have to modify your Y-pipe, catalytic converters, and mid pipes a bit. You didn't list a certain header that is pretty popular in your poll. Maybe not here, but other places. Stainless Steel Works headers. They look like a quality set to me. A lot of guys use them that post over at www.performancetrucks.net Worth looking into. IMO Jim

Man...your going to make sure everyone knows what a PITA this has been for you. Posted this here and on PT.net. Good Luck man! My turns coming up very soon..................... Jim

The Nexus gauges have their own control module station that does the logging for each gauge. You cannot use the Nexus gauges without the Nexus module. Is that what you were refering to as a logging device? I guess I'm still lost on the wideband thing. What's the difference between a regular air/fuel gauge and a wideband air/fuel gauge? I'm just not understanding what "exactly" a wideband does. Jim

Yeah, I've has a numerous of problems with these shitty rear drum brakes. They do everything what you said. The guys with factory size wheels (17") don't seem to have these issues as much. I've driven a few demo 05' & 06' trucks, and I can notice it doing the pulsation, but it's no where near like mine with the 20's does. i'm thinking it also has something to do with the 14 bolt rear axle as well. Anyways, did you remove the brake clips that are on the studs in front of the drums and rotors? There should be two per hub. They are used on the assembly line to keep the rotors and drums from falling off while it's being put together. REMOVE THESE if you haven't already. They do not work with most aftermarket wheels! If you look at the factory wheels, they have a notch built in for them so they will not interfere with the flush mounting of the wheel against the rotors or drums. Other than that, good luck with the dealership! They and a GM rep have not yet come up with a solid fix to this day. They replaced the drums, shoes, hardware, brake booster, & checked for axle runout. Nothing helps over a week after repairs. I myself checked the runout of both axles and found little to no runout. The only REAL fix are going back to rotors. Though it will take quite a few parts to do this.............or order you Baer Brakes drum to disc rear conversion kit that is for our trucks. It comes with everything from start to finish. You will get bigger 15" rotors and bigger calipers. Though you cannot use anything smaller than a 18" wheel. Not that your worried about that, but when you go to the track and want to use a set of smaller wheels and slicks, then you will see why there could be a problem. Hope for the best for you. Keep me informed on what they did to try and resolve your issue. If they do something different other what mine have already done, then my truck will be going back to the dealership! Oh by the way, my truck has been worked on by the dealership over 10 different times. How about that for you! Jim

LC-1, LM-1??? I'm clueless. Answer this if you can please. I will be buying the Auto Meter Nexus gauges. Looking at the Boost, fuel pres, and the wide band air/fuel ratio gauge. How does this wide band compared to what you guys are talking about? Jim

Correct, I have an '06 2WD VHO or 'Limited Edition' as it's called. Same Z60 suspension package as the SS. As for the driveshaft, I couldn't tell you. I didn't expect I'd have a 1-piece when I bought the truck, but I definately do. I'll snap a picture for ya tomorrow I don't care what Belltech said - I have had the leafs on my truck for about 3 months and have no problems with them and zero complaints. Even if the pinion angle is off, you can still shim it so that's not a big deal. Hangers were not an option on my truck because my OEM front hangers are welded on - not rivited. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Is your VHO a CCSB or ECSB model? Jim

The Caltracs are known not to work with Belltech hangers. Even Belltech will tell you this from experience. Let me know how it goes if you attemp to use the Belltech hangers and Caltracs together. Jim

Just spoke with Belltech. They said that their 3" lowering leafs are not for the VHO, 2wd SS, or AWD SS Silverados. They said those springs are for regular 1500 GM trucks from a RCSB to a ECSB truck and that's it. They said that due to the SS or VHO edition trucks different suspension rates and parts, that their kits will not work correctly with the 3" leafs. The pinion angle is also not designed into them for our particular trucks. Only for the regular 1500 series GM trucks. They said the only options are either their 3" or 4" hanger and shackle kit. They also said that the Caltracs traction bars will not work with any of their hangers. So.......once again, I'm back to square nothing.......... It's either going to be shackles and 2* shims or I may give the McGaughy hangers at the 3" lowering position a try. I still would like to use the Caltracs, but if there is something better out their for a traction aid over them, then please let me in on it please! This sucks! Jim

See pics here: http://www.silveradoss.com/forums/index.ph...topic=22957&hl= I did not need shims and do not have vibration, but I'm 2WD with a 1-piece aluminum driveshaft so that may make a difference. 1 - Something I didn't consider as I'm also 2WD 4 - I'd say the rear was a tit lower than the front, but a quick adjustment of the T-bars will level that right out. Also, as I said above, no pinion shims and no vibration. I love my leafs but yes, need helped bags to haul my bike. 5 - Belltech leafs come with new bumpstops that bolt into the factory location. As for the front, just trim a nub off the OEM bumpstop and your good to go. On a side note. I also have a VHO and have always gotten great responses on here <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I don't understand..... You said you are 2wd and have a 1 piece aluminum driveshaft?? The pic that you posted was an ECSB truck. Looks like your VHO. Mine has a 2 piece steel driveshaft. Is there something I don't know about the driveshaft configurations? I thought only the AWD and 4wd trucks had the 1 piece driveshaft? Am I wrong? Jim

A lot of you guys are leaving out very important things. 1. Spindles, they are somewhat easy if you have the basic mechanic tools. For a note to you AWD SS guys dropping with spindles, you will have to trim down the upper balljoint stud even with the spindle where the stud will come through. If you don't, the stud will be going through the C.V. axle boot. 2. Doing only rear 2" Shackles. This will place your pinion angle out of specs causing driveline vibrations. You will need to get 2* or 3* shims that go between your rear xle and the leafs to achieve the proper pinion angle. 3. Hangers & Shackle Combo for AWD SS. Sometimes the pinion angle will be close to where it needs to be going this route. Doing hangers is quite a bit of a job. There are some write ups here on this. The trucks with the one piece large aluminum driveshaft may need to remove the round tubular cross member under the bed. It may come in contact with the cross member and wreck havock to the driveshaft and other things. 4. 3" Belltech leafs. Some say they give a 3" drop, others state it drops the rear lower than the front when the spindles are used up front. You will still have to possibly shim the new leafs to get the proper pinion angle. There seems to be a lot of mixed responses on the Belltech 3" lowering leafs. If you plan on towing with the Belltech leafs, you will have to add helper air bags. If not, the suspension will bottom out. 5. All these different types of drops will require a modification to the bump stops. Some require more than others. There again, there are many write ups on this as well here. 6. Also, from what majority of guys have stated here, the torsion key drops are not recommended. They have been known to decrease ride comfort and handling. I wish more of the guys here would respond to my threads like they have yours. I guess if you don't own an "SS Silverado", and you post here, you are looked at in a different manner. I could be wrong, but I haven't had many post towards my threads like they have yours in such a short time period. Mines a 2wd VHO ECSB Silverado. They now call it a Vortec Max Silverado. Basically, it's a 2wd SS. There is no difference in them to me. No offense to anyone, because there are many that have been very helpfull here. Anyways, good luck with the drop! Hope it works out nicely for you. Jim

The keys are a no no from what I've read here. They decrease your ride control and handling. I will not be wanting mine any lower than 2" in the front anyways, so the hidth adjustment will have to be done in the rear. Jim

Unless they offer a 2" or 3" lowering leaf, the 4" leafs will place my rear lower than my front 2" spindles. The factory rake on ECSB VHO's and 2wd SS Silverados is only 1 to 1-1/2 inches. That is the rear being that much higher than the front. Therefore, you get the idea. I'll check out Hotchkis. thanks, Jim

So guys.......I'm awaiting on what to do with or how to drop the rear of my truck. I already have the McGaughy rear hangers and shackles in their boxes. Though from what I have heard, the hangers will interfere with my Caltracs. The only other option seems to be the Belltech leafs. I already have the Belltech spindles. I have also read that the leafs seem to be lowering our trucks more than 3". Is this true? Because I don't want the front any lower than 2". I will acually be wanting the rear a little higher than the front. At least .5-1". I like a slight rake, but I will not be turning the torsion bars down to lower the front down more. By now you guys should have enough drive time and experience with the Belltech leafs to give accurate real time results. I'm at a hold on what to do. So give me the dirty on all of this please. Thanks, Jim

Since I've posted here, I really haven't had any responses to any of my threads. So hopefully a few Caltrac owners will surface that may help me out and reassure me that they will work. Jim

I'm a little confused on what to do with my 05' VHO. Which is no different than a 2wd SS. As soon as I seen that other guy post about having 2" blocks on his 05' VHO, I quickly went out to my truck to see if that's what I had. I found that it does not have the blocks, which leaves me a bit confused. I already have the McGaughy rear hangers and shackles. I wasn't looking for the full 3.5-4" rear drop. I read the install instructions that came with the MG hangers, and it said that you could either use the lower hole (gives a 3" drop) or upper hole (gives 4" drop). I know for sure that I will be going with the lower hole for just the 3" rear drop. That is if you use the shackles correctly to give you a 2" drop from the shackle and a 1" drop from the hanger, netting a total of 3". The drop really isn't my problem, it's my Caltracs. Since I'm not getting too much feed back on them, I have no idea if I will have problems using them with the MG hangers. Only one guy has posted that he had clearancing issues using them because he is using the full 4" rear drop. Anyways, since I have not installed the rear lowering kit yet, are lowering leaf springs a better way to lower the rear of the vehicle? I've heard in the past that using the leaf springs makes the ride too mushy, and that you cannot haul much of a load with them. I NEED HELP! Thanks, Jim

Know one has done this? Any moderators here have any answers? Thanks, Jim

I took a look at the Hangers in the box. They have two holes. (I'm sure you all knew that already). Anyways, if I use the bottom hole for a 3" drop in the rear, then I realy don't see where there would be a problem, but I wouldn't know for sure until I begin installing everything. I'm thinking the only possibly way there could be interference using the Caltracs would be if I used the top hole for a full 4" drop. That would place the eye of the leaf spring closer to the top welded plate of the hanger. I was hoping I would have either option while using the Caltracs and the hangers, but now I'm not too sure. I hoping someone will cue in on this that has already done this. Thanks, Jim

I've heard of some guys complaining about aftermarket hangers and Caltracs not working together. I could be wrong, but I thought I read here somewhere that the McGaughys: spindles, Hangers & Shackle lowering kit ( 2/3.5) do not interfere with using the Caltracs. I have had this kit and the Caltracs for quite some time. They of course have been sitting in their boxes and not on my truck were they should be. I just want to make sure that the McGaughy hangers will not cause the Caltracs to bind up. I'm only 3 weeks away from doing all my mods (there are a lot of them), and I just want to make sure my parts will work together. Anyone knowledgeable on this??? Thanks, Jim

For the majority of the GM 1500 series trucks, they will need a -1.0 to -1.5 caster split. The GM trucks really like to follow to the right. If you ever get an alignment spec sheet for your truck after the alignment, be sure to check out your caster split. It's usually located in the middle of the alignment specs. A caster split that is bearly negative(i.e. -0.5), 0.0, or anything positive will make the truck pull to the right. The minumum that I would allow would be a -0.8 caster split on a truck. Note: An AWD truck will allow a little more lower negative caster split due to the front wheels pulling all of the time. Jim