I just got a 50 Pontiac, the rear axle (Camaro) is mounted on the stock leafs which are shot. QUESTION: Is there a better leaf set up available? like single leaf/mono per side, or?
We have a 53 chieften in shop and that question came up.I thought a mono leaf was a great idea.In a discussion one of the guys said if you break a mono for what ever reason you are out of commission,but useing a multple leaf you can still drive and also have the option of adjusting spring rate by the amount of leafs.It did sound feasible to me.
Define better, given that GM used more or less the same spring design for many years after that car was built? There's no bolt-on kits for it, you'd probably have to find a spring shop and give them the specs to have something made for you.
In my case the definition is springs that aren't broken and don't sag. I saw a kit mono springs for 48 Ford in the Speedway catalog and it looked like nice solution for that car, but no Pontiac stuff. Are there other models Cad,Olds that share these springs?
No, GM cars used their own chassis under each make until 1961 and while Pontiac and Olds do share some chassis components, you're not going to find replacements out of the Speedway catalog. The one good thing about the Pontiac is they were open drive and had wider springs to begin with, so if you can scare up the specifications for the length and rate and so on, you may be able to round up some newer spring that will swap on there. Otherwise, it's Ames Engineering, Kanter, or some other vintage supplier to try to find springs. But like I said, a comptent spring shop can just make you a set.
I have been driving a 1953 Pontiac since 1972. I also have a '36 and a '48. The early '50s models all use basically the same rear suspension. These springs originally had sheet metal gaitors around them and the Pontiac shop manual has instructions on how to make a device to lubricate them. Few of the owners ever did this. The rear springs often sag under the weight of the vehicle as they age. The springs can often be re-arched by a good shop, but this is really a temporary fix. Spring steels has "memory" (mopt temper). Re-arching does not put the memory back in the steel. As far as I know, the only place that can put the memory back in is Eaton Detroit. Mike Eaton knows everything about springs. He has done a fabulous spring article in Hot Rod & Restoration magazine. Mike is the best, but this is a costly process. If you check his website you can see it. Years ago when I drove a '53 sedan everyday and the springs sagged, I had them rebuilt with two extra leaves in the pack. Then they never sagged. But the car had a much, much firmer ride. I guess I probably would have been better adding just one leaf. The shocks on these cars attach to a crossmember. If the springs sag too much, sometimes that cross member will break. The Pontiac Oakland Club International once ran an article on how to fix a broken crossmember. It was a pretty basic frame reinforcement job. If you email me at Gunnellj@TDS.net I would be happy to copy you on a long article I wrote about springs that covers both re-arching and putting the memory back in. It discusses the pros and cons of both options. I know nothing about mono-leaf springs, but would not think they would work well on a Pontiac.
i talked to the guys from POSIES at the nsra louisville show about thier superslide springs for my girlfriends 50 pontiac he said the ones for a 50 chevy will bolt right in i think he said 350 and @40.00 to ship
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