Okay, We've established that '94+ Cheby coils will work in the RCs. How about '99 and up? I've got a line on a cheap pair of 3" lowering springs for a '99+ Cheby. The dimensions are 5 3/4" in diameter and 13 3/4" unloaded. This seems mighty tall though.
JT

just wanna go................BUMP  or is it HOP

ok i dunno if i mentioned this earlier or not.

in order to drop the rear 4" with a shackle set, the shackle needs to be 4" longer and you need new front spring hangers that mount the fornt of the spring up 4". you can drill new holes in the old hanger. drill each hole 4" lower than the one directly above it.

if you do not raise the front mount, you will only end up with 1/2 drop. so 4"=2". plus the rear eye will be higher than the front, effectively giving you a negative pinion angle. i imagine it owuld be a pretty nasty angle. expecially since i believe most dodges need a slightly positive angle.

once oyu figure in the cost of a longer shackle and raised hanger, you might as well just flip the axle.

that is prolly the cheapest drop you can get. spring perches can be baught for under $10 a pair and then you need to buy new shock mount plates or fab up something.

on my grey r/c i pulled 2 leafs from the rear and heated the fronts(big mistake). ive since lifted it back up. i plan to drop my g/f's by pulling the 2nd and 4th leaf and running coil over shocks in the rear and using 2" drop springs in the front from a v-6 s-10 blazer.

as soon as money gets flowing again ill be getting either a set of 15x7 rev's or 16x8 wires.  if i go with the 16's i want to run a set of 225/60/16 vogue's

hey tjones do you have any pics of you RC? how hard and expensive was adding coil-overs to the rear? thanks

hey people, you said that they stopped making drop spindles for 80s daks but bell tech still does. you can order them through here http://www.stylinconcepts.com/parts.cfm/partfamilyid/825/CategoryID/30/SubCategoryID/206 they are 400 bucks but dont they make laying from easier on 'bags? would they bolt up in place of my 89 rc 150 le spindles? thanks joe

well i dont want to lay frame, but with D.S. isnt the suspension geomentry when fully emptied 'bags better than without D.S.? is it worth the $400? thanks

does it have better geometry? definitely.

do you drive around on fully emptied bags? prolly not.

geometry is only really for alignment and steering purposes. if you re showin it (prolly one of few times bags will be empty) then its really a moot point, although it will help you get even closer to the ground.

would i pay $400? no way.

Check the printed summit racing catalog



i just thought of something. what happens if you notch your frame and flip you leaf springs over so they arch the other way. should =quick cheap mega drop with stock ride. only problem i could see is front hanger clearance.

4x4 lift springs=more drop. blocks to correct for too much drop.
has this been done before? is it some long lost trick?

If you're pulling springs start with the shorter ones.  Leave the thick overload spring.  You might want to stop by the spring shop and get new center pins before you do this just in case you mutilate the stock ones taking them out.

Take your time cutting the springs.  Measure the ride height, cut 1 coil off from the bottom of the spring (I think the tops of the springs are coutoured to fit nicely into the upper seat) then reassemble and drive the truck for a day or so to let the springs settle then remeasure and determine how much more you need to cut.  Springs DO settle a bit.  That's why my truck rides about an inch lower in the front than I'd like it to.

On a side note.  Would anyone be interested in a bag kit for the front that'll lay the truck on the bump stops?  I think I've got the upper cups straight.  I'm going to try to make a bolt-on lower mount for easy installation.  This all hinges on my getting off my lazy ass and doing it though.  I'll give it a whirl once garage space clears up and I get a couple other projects done.

hey m2bueller when i did my grey r/c the first time i pulled the second and fourth leafs starting from the top. if you go back a page or 2 youll find a pic of it(not the best). it sitting on 15x8 w/215/70/15's the tires were about 1/2" from being in the wells.

ill try to get my g/f's drop when i go on vacation if not sooner.

i think im in pending on price. id like to trrim the bump stops or remove em though.

Sweet Thanx.......

im sure you allready knew of these

http://www.suicidedoors.com/products/fullsizechevycups.htm
http://www.suicidedoors.com/products/lower_airbag_circle.htm
http://www.suicidedoors.com/products/single_airbag_circle.htm

My RC already sits pretty low stock, but I want to give it a noticeable drop.
So, I can drop the front with 94+ drop springs, and the rear with late model Ford shackles? This would give a somewhat front raked "stock stance but lower" look?? I'm not planning on bagging it, but I do want a nice mild lowering for not too much cash. Would stock shocks work with this setup. They should? Right? Sorry I'm asking so many dumb sounding questions, but I do not have the vehicle yet. I will be picking it up next weekend. I just have no visual reference to go by. Thanks,,,,Cruisin

I don't think shackles would effect anything, on their own anyway. I have them on my Ford F-150 with the original shocks as well. I didn't have to change pinion angles on it either. I'd leave the sway bar on the lowered one, unless you really want to improve the handling on the other. Witha drop you might need shorter end links, but Pep Boys carries all different lengths on the shelf, if there's one near you.,,,, Cruisin

Is there something about the Dodge trucks that is different? An advertised 2" shackle for my Ford dropped it 2" in the back, well at least 1 1/2"?? That is confusing to say the least. Would a flip kit do a more effective job if a 2" shackle only drops 1"?,,,, Cruisin

Are there any special tricks to pulling leaves? I was wandering around under the RC yesterday and was looking at the spring bolts. Both the upper and lower bolts on the rear shackles are towards the frame/tank. This in complicated as well by my receiver that's in the way too. Do I need to plan on dropping the tank to be able to get the bolts out or can I remover the leaves without disconnecting them from the shackles.
JT

Well I did it! I had to rebuild the front end of the Ram this weekend. Since I had to take the lower control arm off anyway to replace the bushings, I took the front springs out and cut one coil off of each one. It gave me what I expected 1.5" of drop. It's will probably settle a little more. I may need to get shorter bump stops. It's only got about 2" between them and the control arm. Either that or I'll break out the Sawzall and trim them a little.
The R/C Has a cool stance right now. Sort of that 70's jacked up look. Hey, maybe side pipes and some Cragars?  8)Actually I'm going to get 2" drop shackles to bring the rear down about an inch. I should still have the sport rake.

BTW: I'm doing a how to on the whole front end thing as well.
JT

Got a pic of the lowering, m2bueller? I'd like to see what that looks like before pulling my springs out and cutting them. I finally have the RC in the driveway, let the modding begin ,,,,Cruisin


I'm not opposed to the one ton A-arms either though.

Cruisin_RC,
I took pictures, I just have to get the film on CD. I wanted to get some good images.  Should have them by this weekend.

StandardByker88,
I was at 32" at the peak of my front fender lip before the drop. It has settled a bit in the last couple of days. Now I'm at 29.5" The rear is at 32" currently. When I recover from doing the front end I'll be pulling 2 , leafs.

I still have plenty of tire (235/75/15) clearance and intentionally abused the front end to see if I could get any bottoming or rubbing. I did put in Prothane bushings and new ball joints while I had it apart. I can say without a doubt that the ride is light years ahead of where it was. I'm just not sure what did what as far as improvement. I still need to get an alignment and retorque everything.  The cool thing is it's so much easier to work on the top end now too.
JT

Yep Prothane does make the swaybar bushings as well. I don't have a swaybar on my R/C so I haven't had a chance to look at one.
www.prothane.com
My springs were 17 years old and I know the truck was not treated well. I'm sure there was some sag but it was only an inch lower than the rear when I started.

Baby moons, to cool!  I had a set on my '68 Nova. Very retro even for 1978 when I had it. I had mine on Chrome reverse rims. You might try these guys for the hubcaps. I haven't dealt with them but I hear good things.

http://www.petepaulsen.com/Accessories/Accessories.HTM

JT

Now you need to get it lower to really set off the wheels. Don't forget the trim rings. They'll really make the wheels look complete.  
JT

Hey Cruisin any time You want to see what the lower controls will do to your truck, how it will sit,  let me know I can bring my truck over for you to look at. I have a truck with the cut coils to. so just let me know.]

Rodney.

has anybody used the drop coils for an later model ram from AIM on there trucks/RCs? i can get a set of 3" drop coils for $69. the would only give me about 2" drop though cuz late rams have a 1" taller stock coil. thats what i heard anyway. or i can get the 80s v-6 s-10 coils for like $33. 1" drop would sag to like 3, right? whats better the ram or s-10 coils in terms of ride and product life. thanks for the answers everyone. joe

i have been tryin to figure if i want to bag my pickup or just use 94+ dodge coils and ford shackles, If i bag it is it possable to use a ladder bar set up instead of four link? because if i can use ladder bars i will only have to get the mounts welded on the housing and use the orignal mounts from the front eyes of the leaf springs,