lifting with shackles

[patty]

where would one aquire shackles to push leaf springs down?and how much would these generaly go for?is it a hard thing to enstall your self?is it a good idea,my dad put some in on a old 350 chevy and broke the leaf spring in half but that was also with mat tracks instead of wheels (basicaly snowmobile ruts) any ideas?

[Adrock]

hey pat... bruce (mystery machine) our friend from mdocuk makes a set of shackles... thats what I have. I believe they were $190, but would be substantially more with shipping I believe. Easy enough to install, I could help you... just need a jack and some jack stands.

If someone else is into making them i'll help you install them too. I'd get all new hardware like bruce does though, locking washers and that sort, the old stuff really is pretty old.

I don't know if Bruce is on here much anymore, I thought I heard he'd be back around to say hi but haven't heard anything yet.

worth a pm or an email anyway though.

[EnviroImports.com]

I wouldent put in a shackle or blocks to lift, either put another spring in your pack, have your springs re-arched , or put in new leafs with a couple inches of lift built in, Blocks just kill your u-joints, shackles just help tired old leaf springs,
while you have your leaf springs off you can get/put new bushings into the eyelets. your van will ride alot better after that.
Noel

[patty]

but wont larger springs just make my ride reallly bouncey?and how would a new leaf spring with a lift built in it differ from shackles or blocks put in?i did think about getting new leaf spring with a larger arch though i just wasnt sure how easey it would be to find them for a delica.

[Adrock]

pretty sure those parts are interchangeable with the montero... not 100% but I know something is and its obviously not the engine.

[EnviroImports.com]

but wont larger springs just make my ride reallly bouncey?and how would a new leaf spring with a lift built in it differ from shackles or blocks put in?i did think about getting new leaf spring with a larger arch though i just wasnt sure how easey it would be to find them for a delica.

your not putting larger springs in as in a round bouncy spring, I mean leaf spring. flat bars of steel that have a bend in them. you can have the either re-built and throw one new one in for some lift or just get new ones, ANY spring shop can do the work. Blocks are the worst think in the world for creating lift , the add a big spacer between your axel and the leafspring, so you have leaf springs that sit still with your axel normally attached right to them but when you put blocks in you dont do any damage, BUT when you go to drive from a stop or if you ever really put your foot down, your Pinion ( where the drive shaft attaches to the rear diff) gets pushed down and puts alot of stress on the u-joint. and eventually the u-joint will give up and you are stuck on the side of the road. you can add a trac bar so that wont happen, but then you are end up paying alot more money to have a short cut work instead of just fixing it properly in the first place.
Noel

[patty]

So with putting new leaf springs in, what kind of measurments would I have to do, wouldnt there be alot of mathmatic in the arch and how stiff the metal should be?I had thought of this before but I wasnt sure about all that stuff. I find with most shops when you go in just to ask questions they just see you got a weird japanies car and its not worth their time.
Any suggestions on what garage to go to for a leaf spring parts?
thanks for the help

[EnviroImports.com]

well if you want any lift in the leafs then just say I want say...2" of lift built in, ANY spring shop can make them for you, I normally go to Vic spring here in Victoria, but that doesent help you in Whistler. but if they are an actual spring shop they will be able to do it with NO problems, new/rebuild leaf springs are a couple hundred dollars, DONT re-use the old bolts, some people try to save ten bucks by re using them, BAD decesion, and they should tell you to come back after about 2 days to re-torque the bolts. as the steel will streach a tiny bit from use.
Noel

[patty]

Thats very helpful.
Adrock i cant quite remember what you told me about your lift the other day,did you say that you just lifted the back 2 inches which inturn raises the front 1 inch?im not really wanting to go rediculously high just cozz i enjoy fast corners and i dont want to flip,but to make it a bit beastier looking.
I may be the only 18 year old in math 10 but ill be driving the sickest van theyll ever see!
haha

[Adrock]

2 inch shackles raise the rear 1 inch. like so


2 inches 1inch 0 inch
|
|___________|___________
^ 0
| this
this is the
was wheel
added

thats probably even more confusing. but put a 2x4 on the ground. thats what you had originally, put lift on end 2 inches while leaving the other on the ground. the middle will be 1 inch off the ground. This middle of the leafs is where the wheels are, so it lifts our rear 1 inch even thoug hthe shackles are 2 inches. get it?

[EnviroImports.com]

Oh just one more add on, keep in mind you can do all the lifting you want with leafs, blocks,shackles..... that will lift the suspension, the only true lift you get is a taller tire, the suspension lift only alows you to clear that tire. Ive seen many people put in lift kits and say , "hey im still draging in the snow and mud, " but they left on the little tires so the axel is still at the same point from the ground.
Noel

[patty]

cool,makes sence.so im kinda liking the sound of the new leaf springs for lift.would i do it the same way adams discribing with just higher in the back,or would i get all four spring re done?

[josh]

You don't have springs in the front, just torsion bars, and you have to crank those up to get lift. (If you haven't already)

Josh

[patty]

haha o man i cant believe i forgot that, damni look dumb.anyways yeah i havent done that yet but i will.

[jrman]

Don't forget to get re-alignment after lifting the front - yr tires will be worn out pretty fast if you don't. PM Mitch for alignment guy in Vancouver that did his after he cranked the T-Bars as far as they could go and put on 31" tires. Apparently some alignment shops get pretty confused by the Deli's, but he knows of a Vcr shop that has no problem doing the work.