does anyone make a 5 inch lowering block out there? if not, is there a downside to me welding together a 3 inch and a 2 inch stacked on each other? (i'd feel safer if i knew they were at least tacked together) should i just make my own? i never really put any thought into that one... i already know i'm not gonna bag the car, it's not traditional enough for me. any advice is greatly appreciated.
Try this: http://store.gaugemagazine.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=251 I think once you get over 4 in. you are on shakey ground re: use of lowering blocks.
I'd recommend gettin the rear springs de-arched. Maybe a little de-arc and a smaller block. The farther you move the rear end away from the spring the more leverage you get. It's like slipping a pipe over a wrench to extend it. It's much easier to break something. The spring will be wrapping up on acceleration and braking. Personally 3" is the limit for me on blocks. Anything more than that needs some re-engineering. IMHO Assuming you realy want to drive it.
it's got a 454 big block, i am gonna drive the shit out of it! 3inches just isn't enough, let me hear more about re-engineering the home made setup please...
What kind of car? Maybe modify/relocate the spring hangers. Don't forget, you may need to c-notch the framerail for axle tube clearance.
6" x2" rectangle tubing Cut two 5" long pieces and plate each end. Then drill the plates for the 3/8" spring centering bolt retainer hole in the top and bottom. You'll run into pretty sever wheel hop with a block that tall, and especially with big block power.
What leaf-springs are you running? If you get 6" down, no matter the method, you'll need to notch the frame....but you may already know that. Bryan
You can buy springs designed to lower the car. Bolt in. You can get a spring shop to de-arch the springs for you. You can do a search and find out how to de-arch the springs yourself. There were several post over the years on how to make a reversed eye spring for the old Ford guys. The same principles apply. You can do it in a good sized bench vise. With 5" blocks, the first time you nail it, you'll lose a U joint, driveshaft yoke or something in the driveline. It's bad enough with that amount of torque, but add 5" of leverage and you'll have problems. Hell, a 6 banger would have problems with 5" blocks. Blocks are cheap, easy and traditional. You'll have all the traditional problems that they caused in the 50s.
6" huh? Well you are going to need a c-notch & probably some air shocks if you want anyone to ride back there. here are two choices that I have done with proven results De-arch the springs 4" and then use a 1-2-3" block to fine tune your drop. or just pull out a few leaves from the sping pack & use a 1-2-3" block to also get desired results make sure you get the proper pinon angle as well & use air shocks over some nitro shocks so you can fine tune the ride depending on where you are driving & how many people you have in the car
5 inch blocks would be a pain.i went with 4 inch on mine and have about an inch of clearance before the rearend hits and that's on my 54.you'll probably have to notch it and if you do,have fun with that. creepy
Or even need to change a tire! My car's about 6" lowered in the back...had to run the exhaust under the axle 'cause there's no room betwen the rear and the trunk floor. Even if the rear-end didn't sit on the exhaust when I jacked the car up, I'd have to carry my aluminum jack with 3' lift just to get the tire off. If I wasn't fixing all of this with a 4-link, notch, etc., I'd run lakes or some other exhaust setup. Just something to consider. Bryan
yeah, that's the best way to get the rear wheels off the car since there is very to little tire left on the car to rub! I have to drop the rear shackle to get mine off
that's what i was thinking, a 454 isn't any more traditional than bags....you can do a simple bag over axle setup and keep a couple leaf springs.
I'll never buy blocks. I stacked 1 x 2 tube to the desired drop and welded them all together. did 4" on my 49. bottomed out over big bumps. I did it in a way that the u-bolts were short and the nuts were above the bottom of the spring, the lowest part of the car was the bottom of the spring. it was even with the bottom of the rim with 15" wheels. another inch woould have looked cool.. but wasn't worth the downside. my new 49 has a 2" C-notch, will have reworked springs with smaller blocks. and again... nothing below the rim , this time with 14" wheels.
that plus the fact that with 5 inch blocks.more than likely the bottom of the rim will sit higher than the leave spring,aka SCRUB LINE,so if you had a blow out you would be sliding around on your leave spring . ,,
if that car has stock springs, you ave VERY likely to brake a leaf with that big of a lowering block and that much torque. those chevy springs are very narrow, and not made to control axle wrap in the first place, that was the torque tubes job. if you blow a tire, your u-bolts will dig into the asphalt, jerking you into another lane of traffic. you will have zero suspension travel, like others have said, they bottom out with 3 or 4" blocks. do it right, bag it, or if you want static drop, get some new springs made and go with a small lowering block, maybe even with some air shocks for a little help. but if you must use 5" blocks, be prepared for "i told you so."
5" blocks are gonna ride like TERD! That's way too much. I would do a 2" or 3" max and remove a leaf or two if you are trying to keep it cheap. Otherwise BAG IT! My truck rides awesome on bags, but with blocks you will get a good deal of axle hop, which won't be good when you get down on that 454! Something to think about...
you need a dodge neon ....really,that kind of block with that kind of power could get ugly... that's not the same 51 you had out here is it? george
Safety is the reason that 3" blocks is the maximum drop size. Bolt or weld rear axle housing to frame for maximum drop...or follow good advice from previous posts. Wedge shaped shims are available to adjust pinion angle. Installing lowering blocks also moves rear end farther forward which matters if causes front U-joint to "bottom out" against rear of tranny.
A lot of people already said it, but with that much engine, you'll wrap that axle right up, bounce the rear end violently, and quickly break something. I don't think anoyone mentioned it, but with tall blocks, you'll also increase body roll quite a bit as the body tries to fall off the blocks. Unstable and dangerous.
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