toxic donkey Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 put my belltech drop on this weekend. spindles on front and multipack leaf springs on back. thing is the back leafs were supposed to be 3" drop and ended up being about 4.25". this put my rear about 3/4" lower than the front. this is not what i was going for. now the setup doesnt look too bad but i tell u the ride is pretty bad. the back rides way too rough for my liking. i did expect to sacrifice a liittle comfort but not that much. id like to bring the back up at least an inch and soften the ride. would air shocks help me? or do i have to spring for an air bag setup? im starting to think i should have just used shackles out back. any suggestions gentlemen? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTMD8R_SS Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 You could probly use 1" lift shackles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rivierakid55 Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 lower the front more. i started out with 2/2 and it was too high in the back...then went with drop leafs in the rear and the front was too high. then i turned the keys another inch or so up front to get it where i was happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1BAD2K Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 cant you take one of the plates oput of the leaf pack or add to adjust height? or am i just making shit up? lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxic donkey Posted March 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 lower the front more. i started out with 2/2 and it was too high in the back...then went with drop leafs in the rear and the front was too high. then i turned the keys another inch or so up front to get it where i was happy. i thoght about this, but the ass end rides so hard...and doesnt turning the keys cause other problems(thought i read that some where)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yttaf Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 (edited) are you riding on the bumpstops? Cause I rode in fast4popper's truck he also has the rear leaf packs & his rides pretty smooth. I was told as I'm doing mine the remove the bumpstop brackets & mount my new bumpstops to the frame. I guess there is a hole there already. Edited March 3, 2008 by yttaf (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madmax Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 belltech advertises their leafs at 3 inches but theyre really about 4 inches. theyre also known for being very very stiff. you could try hotchkis leafs which are advertised at 4 inches but will turn out to be about 4 1/2 to 5 inches...the ride quality is said to be much better than the belltechs, stiffer than stock but not nearly as stiff as the belltechs. your idea of doing helper bags in the rear would work for height, but wouldn't eliminate all the stiffness your describing. not to mention the added pain of having to keep it off of a rear lift and the reports of brakets failing, etc. etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shakesvho Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 I have the hotchkis leafs and it drop me a tad over 4", but I had my stock bumper off so that keep it up to the 4" drop, the ride is nice a little stuffer then stock but I like it, did you put your smaller bumper stops on, you also need to install the new stops right to the frame that will give you a 3/4" space Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ItsJac Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 take the extra plates off the top of ur leaf springs and put them on the bottom. Also take the brackets off the bump stops and install them on the frame. She will ride alot better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxic donkey Posted March 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 yes most of you are right, it is riding on the bump stops, i did change to the new ones but put them in the stock spot. iwill move them now.also on stock silverados there is a polyurethane block between the leaf spring and the differential. iwas thinking of putting one of these on m,ine to get that extra inch i lost, only looks like i would need longer u bolts because there isnt enough thread showing on the ss u bolt. anyone know what im talking about?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z06 DREAMING Posted March 3, 2008 Report Share Posted March 3, 2008 What shocks are you running? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OUT2WIN Posted March 4, 2008 Report Share Posted March 4, 2008 Air shocks will do the trick. Worked for mine........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxic donkey Posted March 4, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2008 take the extra plates off the top of ur leaf springs and put them on the bottom. Also take the brackets off the bump stops and install them on the frame. She will ride alot better thank you! just got back from doing EXACTLY this and it definitely rides better.still a little stiff coming home but nothing like it was. and i am running stock shocks. i know i need to change but i was told that there was enough travel in the stockers to keep them for a while. now that i put the top plates on the bottom(after stripping out the threads on both pins and nuts) it raised me up to where it looks level. started raining so i havent measured yet. now the air shocks may not be necessary for lift unless it really softens the ride. i was thinking about some belltech shocks since i got everything else from them. by the way gentlemen, i could never have gotten this far listening to some cat behind the parts counter. thanks alot!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1BAD2K Posted March 4, 2008 Report Share Posted March 4, 2008 measure the rear and let us know how it compares to the height before you moved the plates to the bottom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxic donkey Posted March 5, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2008 OKAY, before install rear was 1.5" higher than front.after install rear was .75" lower. after moving the 2 plates from the top to the bottom of the leaf, the rear is 1" higher than the front. so as of now it turned out to be about a 2/2.5 drop. if i calculate right , if you put 1 plate on the bottom and left 1 on top the truck would be almost exactly level. since i stripped out the pins that allign the individual leaves together, i might try that set up when i get new pins,just to see. but i think i need to leave it a little higher in back because i haul a motorcycle pretty regular. again fellas thanks for all the input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.