How to: Chevy 63" Leaf Spring Swap

Ahhhh OK. Thanks.

 

I had to limit mine to less due to the length of the shock body. Check out the length of exposed shaft in the picture. The rubber bumper on the shock is about a 1/2" thick, so I could come up just a little more, but I figured I'd play it safe.



If you want to smooth out the ride offroad then run a set of airbumps instead of the standard rubber bumpstop.

 

I currently have wheelers super bumps but I want either king or icon rear bumps. I know they should help... But just worry it won't help as much as I hope. I figure I could do that first... Then do the Chevy leaf swap if I want something more.

So say I upgrade bump stops, get the Bamf shock relocation kit, 12in kings, the bamf mount would still work with the Chevy Springs because the axle is still in the same spot?

 

yes it would still work, that is what I am running

 

They ride smoother cuz they are a longer leaf with less arch.

Regarding bump stops, I'm very unhappy with my current setup. I have about 4" uptravel (2" til bump, 2" of squish) probably going to get a 2" stroke king air bump for a temporary fix till I can redo the rear suspension. The problem is the shock relocation. The 12" shock just simply isn't long enough for my application. I need a shock with more travel and a higher upper mount so I can actually stuff a tire.

 

Ahhhh OK. I want a smooth ride with as much up travel as I can get without resorting to sua. Seems like 4 in might not cut it.

Are you going to mount a 14in shock further up or what?

 

Yeah spring under axle is what you want. And after wheeling with other SUA trucks I have to admit the "clearance issue" isn't really much of an issue at all.

No rather than waste my money on 14" shocks I'm going to 3 link the rear with 2.5 x 14 dual rate Coilovers mounted on the trailing arms and thru the bed.

 

I've seen some pictures of sua Springs all mangled from clearance issues... I just don't know how much of a freak occurrence it was. But good to hear it might not be that big of an issue

 

Im planning on hitting up my local Pic n pull, are there any springs that were only on certain trucks that were better than others? or more rare ones that are better to keep my eyes out for?

 

Not that I know of

 

Nope. Stay away from 3/4 tons. 2wd will have a 2 leaf with overload, 4wd will have the 3 leaf with overload

 

I'm going to start with the 3 pack with overload, have alot of extra weight bolted on, and as of now still have to pull trailer sometimes. Then if don't like I'll pull a leaf out

 

Well with this wonderful weather may wait till next weekend to get springs

 

How does the 63" swap compare to a shackle flip like SOS Concepts makes?

 

Chevy 63 uses a leaf spring setup designed to use a flipped shackle.

SOS route uses a toyota specific pack, designed to be ran with an inverted shackle, so when you flip that shackle the leafs are forced to go negative arch.

 

A negative arch is no Bueno so a flipped shackle like the SOS will wear my spring pack down faster. As far as travel, are they about the same?

 

Exactly. You'll be able to pull more travel with the 63s, but shocks are the biggest limiting factor

 

Are the lifted Chevy springs smooth or stiff?

 

Extremely smooth.

 

Would they work on a first gen?