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73-87 Chevy _ GMC Trucks => 4 Wheel Drives => Topic started by: apchas on February 18, 2012, 11:51:31 am
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I have a 84 SB 4x4 and had factory 31" by 10.5 tires. I get a used sat of 33" 12.5 and they rub the back side of the finders when turning. With the 31's on it I had 16" clearance from the floor, with the 33's I have 17". I trimmed a little on the back side of the finders to help but it will still rum sometimes. Will new shocks help?
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No, only springs or smaller tires. I don't know if they make helper type springs for the front or not. I am sure others will chime in, I am not a 4x4 guy at all...
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An add a leaf is the way to go if you're not looking to lift it. Trimming the fenders is not the answer unless it's a beater or off road vehicle.
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I have a 84 SB 4x4 and had factory 31" by 10.5 tires. I get a used sat of 33" 12.5 and they rub the back side of the finders when turning. With the 31's on it I had 16" clearance from the floor, with the 33's I have 17". I trimmed a little on the back side of the finders to help but it will still rum sometimes. Will new shocks help?
Your factory 31" tires were not as wide as the 33" hence the 12.5" width. Think of it this way, when you turn your tire your truck leans, even if you don't think you feel it, is is a little (if you are moving), if your still and turn the wider tires in it's arc to turn need more room to clear the fender, it is mathematics. Your 31" might have cleared with just enough room not to hit, now the wider tires have no choice but to hit.
Vile is right, fender trimming is not the way to go unless it is a beater or your are 4 wheeling it and want a lower center of gravity.
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Its not a beater but its my hunting truck. I did trim a little off the ends. Where do they sale the spring helpers?
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Just add one rear spring to each side in the front packs.
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Google add a leaf http://compare.ebay.com/like/390386176572?var=lv<yp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&_lwgsi=y&cbt=y
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Or easy-inch is another name. Some guys put in the easy-inch and there is an option to push the front axle forward a little. You will have to take care for the steering geometry obviously.
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You said you already trimmed the fenders, are they still rubbing ?
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If i sit still and turn the wheel they done. I can drive it but i have to turn slowly. I think i will get a body lift
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I wouldn't do a body lift. It's cheap, yeah, and it will also get you some tire clearance too. But they look like crap and offer no other benefits other than added tire clearance. A suspension lift of some kind actually improves ground clearance while giving you tire clearance.
Another thing on your tires rubbing; Did you swap the wheels too? If so, was the backspace the same? Less backspace will sit wider, but rub easier too.
Either way, 33x12.5 would most likely rub on a factory height anyway. Either lift it, or cut a lot more out of the fenders. If you cut the fenders as much as you can, it might still rub when the steering is locked and the suspension is flexed. Just depends on how bad you beat on it I guess. A nice little 4" lift isn't too expensive, and will give those 33's some room to move around. I'm sold on the shackle flip kits and front spring swap. My 3/4ton burb still rides great with this combo. I put cut-out flares on mine, and run 35x12.5's without rubbing unless I really try.
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Well I looked last night and I think I found one problem. My front Leaf Spring sag, I have only 2 on each side with the double shocks are standard. My Question is if i replace the leaf springs, can I use a set off of a back of a truck??? I know i will have to measure the distance between the ends of the spring and replace the u-bolts. Will this work??
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The front-end of these trucks have what is called a reverse arch leaf spring. It is supposed to look like that and the stock spring pack is only 2 leaves. The stock front leaf springs are 48" long and the shortest rear spring you are going to find for your truck is 52" long. There are lots of threads out there talking about 52" spring swap on the front-ends, but those are really for trail only rigs and the idea is for more articulation for dirt cheap, but it involves a fair amount of custom fabrication; moving the front spring hangers forward and relocating the rear FUSH (Front Upper Shackle Hanger) bracket for optimum shackle angle.
Without any fender trimming you need to have about 4" of lift for 33" tires on these vehicles. You can get away with a little less if you never really flex the suspension. You also can get away with a little less if you raise the front slightly with an easy-inch (or zero-rate add-a-leaf) that has an offset pin. This allows you to push the front axle forward about 1" and gain extra room behind the tire for turning. You need to do something with the back however or you are going to be looking like your dragging your tail.
A basic 4" lift kit is probably going to cost you around $400 (just for the kit - not installed), that is with new front springs and rear blocks. Blocks are fine if you don't really push your truck off-road. Don't let people scare you. It will increase axle wrap however, but I'm guessing you will never notice it.
A 2" lift kit might get you by, it costs a little less than the 4" above, but not by much.
Shackle flips and all that stuff are great if you want to do that, but you could just buy new set of 31" tires for less and not lift it at all. Depends on what you want to do with the truck and what your budget is like.
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After I posted my question I started reading about the negative springs on the front of the K-10. I will head to the junk yard this weekend and see if I can find a bottom spring off the back of a truck and put them on with new u-bolts. I know new shocks would help. I do know how old my sets are. I still have the 31's tires mounted on the factory rims. I like the new rims that came with the 33's so who know maybe swap if I cant resolve the rub issue.
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I have 33 11.50 r16's on my stock 2wd and I have no rubbing issues. I can measure from the ground to the fender lip and tell you the height I have, maybe that can help.
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I had a 77 SB 454 2wd with 31's on it a few years ago and had no issue.
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The height of the tire is an issue, but some of the other important issues are how wide of tire, how wide of rim and how much backspace on that rim.
Previously I had a 2" lift and 33x12.5x16.5 tires. The rims were 10" wide with about a 4 1/2" back space. I had to trim like just a half inch off the rear corner of the fender. Very minimal. Of course the clearance got better as the tires wore down over the years. The outside of the tire would just barely catch as I turned a corner.
Currently on my new build I have a 4" lift with 35x12.50x16 tires. The rims are 10" wide with about that same 4 1'2" backspace. I had to trim just a small bit off both the front and rear of the front fenders.
I am convinced if the tires set inward even just 1 more inch, that I would not have had to trim at all.
I'm OK with the small trimming I had to do. If you do have to trim, just make sure you coat the bare metal with something so it doesn't rust.