Featured Projects Lowering a front axle

I think pete and jakes, and speedway have all this info on their sites..

 

In addition, that long drag link combined with the difference in angle with the radius arm will probably make for some interesting bump steer.

 

LOL.. so here's what I would do for you if you if you brought this to my shop,,,I would make a block just like you ask'd and put it on top of the mount you have, drill four holes in it , and make it long enough to to go on the cross member... I would take 1/2'' stock, use my plasma table to cut a block to fit with holes for the u bolts I would weld the block in and mount the spring on top of the mount like you ask'd and be done... it will work with the spring you have...and the shackle's... they will work as is.. but not 100% correct... but will work... to fine tune it you could get the correct spring and shackles...
this is my RPU front... it's perfect. spring on top. rides and drives perfect,...LOL been down the freeway 1000's of miles through the years..

 

oh.... it also has friction shocks that work perfect...

 

note the smile on the springs and angle of the shackles.... perfect.....lol

 

correct...

 

Yep.

wrong spring

Start by getting a correct one
Then go from there

 

I’d recommend getting one of these

amd a Pete and Jake’s catalog

 

Too much science and not enough action, just do it ! It'll be fine.

 

Run shocks, bump steer and wheel hop can be hard to get out of at a higher speed.

 

And take care of this too

looks like a regular nut

 

That spring will permanently bend (distort) or break with that reverse curvature at the perch.

 

it has two leafs on it now and no reverse curvature, that was just a pic with one leaf as a reference.

 

I give up. Good luck.

 

It's going to have barely any spring rate with only two leaves. Standing on it in your garage is nothing like driving down the road. You'll be putting that axle into the crossmember.

If OEMs could get away with using just two leaves, they would. Monoleaf springs are designed and constructed differently than the main leaf of a multi-leaf spring.

 

I agree with alchemy!

 

Did you get er done??

 

New to this thread, but the combination of parts you have is fighting itself. The Spring is incorrect for the axle set up.
You will have a very short lived, spongy, and sketchy ride with trying to use just two springs. Especially an aftermarket of unsure make. One Spring is a major invitation to disaster unless it's designed for it.

Your T should be able to sit damn near on the perch with the right combination. Without it being on top. If you want it on top, that's different. But it'll work correct and be really low right where it's at. It's spring bound and before long the bushings will be worn out. That set up currently is trying to stretch the spring, not let it go through its arch. Like a tensioner at full tension. The spring is designed to get longer by a bit as it goes through the arch. Yours is already as long as it's ever going to get.

That is why it looks like wings with only one or two in there. Dangerous as the weakest point in the very middle that already has a hole in it is the bending/flexing point. You need more springs in a taper to spread the weight and even the load. That's why springs are tapered in leaf length. It allows each to do its job while being supported. they work in unison not individually. Even a Mono Leaf is a gentle taper middle to each end. But that's a whole different topic.

In short you need a longer spring, or the right axle/perch distance for those.

I put a couple of pictures on this. They show that in a stock cross member you can get the car as low as you want. The '34 Pickup has 7 leaves in it on a reversed eye and the T has 6 leaves on a reversed eye. So with the Suicide Perch you should be able to get it even lower if desired. FWIW I had to put leaves back into the '34 as it was rubbing the braces.

Your T is cool! Just a little bit of work and it'll be fun to drive.

All the best,

Tim

 

Lengthened home made shackles to try and make the wrong spring fit there is no 45 degree in the shackles for movement.

 

I agree, and so, I did.

Here is the latest video:
Lowering the Front - '23 T Bucket - "Toxici-T!"

 

I don't think that softening your front spring so much is the right way to get the shackles sitting at 45*. Two leaves is probably not enough. The spring looks too soft. You might get front end bounce and too much roll when cornering. Be real careful on the test drive. It could handle like ****.

 

Before doing it check your scrub line at any ride height changes.

 

!!

 

Maybe air up the tires a tad before you finally decide on rake.

 

finally someone noticed.

 

So, what we are really doing with the front end.

From measurements it looks to be a Model A spring on a 37-41 axle. So I’ve ordered the correct shackles and that spring should fit perfectly on my dropped Model A axle.

Current measurements:
- Leaf spring eye to eye 32.75” (should be a 31.25” that’s currently stretched)
- Shackle length 3.125” on the car, way too long
- Perch bosses on the car are 39” minus 5” would be need a 34” spring.

So, with the Model A axle:
- 31.25” spring
- New 1.5” shackles
- Perch bosses are 36.25” minus 5” is 31.25” spring.

$40 shackles is much better than buying a whole new spring, and I can add leaves back and still be lower from the drop axle.