Author Topic: C20 Steering & Suspension Rebuild (Read 90570 times)

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #150 on:** June 26, 2016, 11:21:40 pm »

Update, I got the rubber bushings out of springs and gave them a quick wire wheel to knock the surface stuff off so now they are ready for new paint and poly bushings.

I started with the rubber bushings, used a hole saw for wood to separate the rubber from the outer sleeve. That work perfectly. Going from either side, the hole saw got 1/3 of the bushing cut down per side, then I used a drill bit to cut the middle area the hole saw wouldn't reach.

So once the inner sleeve was removed, I was left with the outer sleeve.

To get the outer sleeve out, I used a chisel punch to cave the edges in and create a ledge for a socket to sit.

Then I just used 2 impact sockets of the same size as the spring eyes to drive them out with brute force, ignorance and a big hammer.

And that process worked quite well. Once the rubber was removed, it only took about 15 min to cave in the edges and drive each sleeve out. Cutting up the bushings took the most amount of time.

This is what is left of 4 brand new rubber bushings. I also accidentally broke two drill bits. No big deal haha.

Ready for paint. Going to use the self etching primer and roll bar & chassis paint same as I did for the front suspension.

I hope to being ordering the rest of the needed parts later this week, maybe, my debit card number got stolen so I had to have my card shut off and file a claim with the bank for the fraudulent charges so I'm dealing with that whole issue at the moment as well. I may have to wait till the new card arrives, it's terrible timing.

That's all for now folks.

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #151 on:** June 27, 2016, 01:42:43 am »

Forgot to add, part of the reason I went with HD springs was because we have a 30 ft, 2 axle travel trailer. Well, my mom just traded the trailer in today because my grandparents bought a brand new 2016 Class C motor home. So, kind of bummer but it's ok, I still want heavier duty suspension and towing ability. I hope to later on down the road, buy a small 5th wheel or goose neck trailer for my girlfriend and I to go camping on our own. All the times we go now we sleep in a tent when we go with my family or in her parents 5th wheel when we go with her family. We would both like a trailer of our own eventually.

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #152 on:** June 29, 2016, 02:22:33 am »

Well its safe to say I just can't help myself. Still waiting on the new debit card, in the mean time, I've been doing some shopping around. Since the picture posting is on hold, I shall post links instead.

First off, I believe I mentioned that I will be adding rear shock mount braces, like I did for the front. These are them.
http://offroaddesign.com/catalog/RearShockBrace.htm

Well while browsing ORD's fine site, I found another upgrade I'm seriously considering doing. This one is purely for fun, they are available, I like them and well, because I can. Haha
http://www.offroaddesign.com/catalog/hdREARshackles.htm

Pretty cool huh?? I think so.

I also found a rear differential cover I thought was pretty sweet, but that is for another time, possibly when I address the rear disc conversion?? (Hint hint, you may see more about that when it gets to the brake overhaul segment of the show.)

Anyway, I plan to call ORD tomorrow and interrogate them about those HD shackles, see if I can get a little more info on them. Good night boys & girls!

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #153 on:** June 29, 2016, 11:17:00 pm »

It appears picture posting works again.

Rear shock brace.

Close up.

Rear HD Super Shackles.

Close up.

I talked to ORD, they sell just the shackles as I don't need the bolts or bushings. I'm getting all new hardware and I already have the new bushings. Shackles, braces, studs and shipping = $165.

RossCravens · « **Reply #154 on:** June 30, 2016, 03:20:59 pm »

Man, this is a great thread! I can't wait to see you finish everything up. You do a really good job of documenting and explaining everything you are doing.

I am excited to see the disk brake conversion. I have all of the same plans for my truck one day, and I am the most unclear about the conversion so I will learn vicariously through you!!!

Keep up the good work!

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #155 on:** June 30, 2016, 10:35:31 pm »

Thanks. I try to do my best at keeping track of everything. I helped my friend do a disc brake conversion on his truck. He figured it out on his own, I figured it out from helping him a little bit and then the rest on my own. So I know what needs to be done and the parts needed but I haven't actually done the job myself, yet. I do know full well how to service disc brakes, just haven't done a drum-disc conversion. I'm excited to get to that point.

I'm currently more excited to get the new springs in and get the proper ride stance. Thanks again.

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #156 on:** July 10, 2016, 05:25:41 pm »

I ordered those parts from ORD, should be here Wednesday.

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #157 on:** July 14, 2016, 10:57:08 am »

Update: My order from ORD arrived yesterday. I'M IMPRESSED! They make some nice quality products.

So first off we have the rear shock mount frame braces. These things are well made from quality steel. The cuts are sharp and precise, the bends are even and the holes are clean.

You can see here that when stacked, they are perfect matches and you can clearly see the quality of steel and the cuts.

This is the included hardware for the braces. The bolts are are Grade 8, they even have the words "Lawson Tuff Torq" cast in the heads. The washers are all thick and have their size clearly stamped on each, they are 7/16. The nuts are quality pinch nuts as well.

Then we have the shock mounts. Thee are quality also. The washers are thick here too, 3 large hole washers and 1 small hole. Both large and small nuts are pinch style too.

Now the shackles. These things are beasts! They weren't kidding when they called them heavy duty! The welds are all even and have been cleaned up and smoothed. The cut edges are straight and clean here as well, like the braces.

These shackles are heavy, everything lines up perfectly, they too are mirrors of each other. Looking here, you can see that my new Energy bushings fit perfectly.

All the parts came neatly packaged, a receipt for my credit card, an invoice and warranty form were included. Along with these 2 nice little stickers.

I highly recommend this company, very well done job on manufacturing these pieces and the customer service was very good.

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #158 on:** July 18, 2016, 01:44:42 pm »

The rest of the parts required to rebuild the rear suspension have been ordered this morning. Just have to get some paint and paint a few things. I plan to do the rebuild this weekend.

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #159 on:** July 20, 2016, 09:32:28 pm »

The brackets, shackles and leaf springs all got painted yesterday and today. They look really good.

Primer, forgot to take a few pics of the springs.

Paint.

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #160 on:** July 26, 2016, 02:27:57 am »

Update: The rebuild has been completed!

I got the rear suspension all rebuilt Sunday. It was a toasty day here in central CA, about 104°. Under the shade with cold drinks and a few fans and we got it done. It came out really good. So let's start.

Disassembly was pretty easy, no problems at all, the U bolt nuts were a good exercise in swinging a 1/2 ratcheting breaker bar though.

Here it is all stripped and ready for assembly. Shocks off, shock mounts off, shackles out, I even cut off the remains of the factory exhaust hanger bracket right by the left rear upper shock mount. It was in the way and served no other purpose than an eye sore.

Pressure washed the under side when it was all stripped along with the shocks and then wiped the shocks down with some acetone just to clean them up some, not to bad looking now.

Here you can clearly see a sizeable difference between the two. Not only in the sagging of the old springs but also the thickness of each springs individual leafs. The old leafs were 5/16 inch thick each, these new leafs are 3/8 inch thick, the extra thickness contributes to the higher weight rating of the HD springs. They are 1/16 in thicker.

Now we have the first spring installed.

I'm a little disappointed I must say, I didn't know the new springs would be thicker. So the nuts even when fully torqued are only being used by their bottom halves. The bolts are 8.5 inches long and they need to be 9.5 inches long which would perfectly correct that issue.

Now it was time to install the shock mounts and braces. This was easy, I just installed the mounts. Then hung a shock on a mount, held it in its operating position, put the braces on the top, angled it accordingly allowing for shock operation and mademail some marks on the frame. Then the marks were drilled and then the braces were loosely installed.

Once the lower shock mounts were installed fully. I then fully installed the braces.

New bump stops.

Don't these look nice?!

Then we slapped the tires back on. Dropped it down of the jack stands, shook it up and down a bit, this allows the springs and everything to move up and down and settle in so to speak, finding their "happy spot". Then we fully tightened all 6 spring and shackle bolts. And then took some measurements.

Driver side. 36 5/8, just over 3 feet off the ground.

Passenger side. 36 1/2, both sides being within an 1/8 inch of each other is great!

Top of the rear bumper is now at 28 3/8 inches off the ground. It doesn't look like the tow hitch is super low any more. That means that with these new springs, the rear of the truck gained just over 2.5 inches of height over the old springs. What a huge difference it made it appearance and towing ability.

This is a great pic. You can actually see the pumpkin! Yay!

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #161 on:** July 26, 2016, 02:48:20 am »

Now as I mentioned, the U bolts are 1 inch too short. They are 8.5 inches long and need to be 9.5 inches long. Well I called the spring shop here in town and they can make me bolts that are the needed length for 11 bucks each and for 12 bucks each I can get bolts that are 12 inches long.

Now, you might wonder, why do I need bolts that are 2.5 inches longer than I need? Well here is the deal.

The truck at its new height, looks sooo good. Like really, really good. I love it so much, I actually want to make it a bit taller, so I'm thinking about just adding a 2 inch lift. Just to get that little extra height I desire and give the image of a bigger truck but not a jacked up truck. Remember, it's two wheel drive here, I don't want it to look silly. I hate the jacked up 2wd look.

So I'm looking at getting a set of 2inch steel lift blocks and the appropriate shocks for the rear, because I know with a 2 inch, I won't have to change the brake lines, I have plenty of flexibility with those.

My question here is tho, for those of you that might now, how do I lift the front so that it looks proportional?

I don't want to go past 2 inches, but I think with 2 inches I may have to change front brake lines, maybe some steering parts also? I thought with a 1 inch lift in the front, I won't have to change any of that, is this correct?

Plus I think with a 1 inch in the front and a 2 inch in the back, I will have just a little more noticeable forward rake. It looks great now but I want it to be a tad more noticeable that the back is higher than the front.

So how do I safely and easily raise the front? Coil spring spacers? I'm not to fond of that idea as I don't really trust spacers, they just seem unsafe??

Also, with a little extra lift, it will look better once I add the side steps. At this point, that's just looking like it would be either polished stainless steel or chrome nerf bars. Again, I love the new look so much I want just a tiny bit more.

Opinions, knowledge, recommendations and comments welcome as always!

Thanks for watching!

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #162 on:** July 30, 2016, 12:56:16 am »

So I have changed my mind yet again hahaha. (It's a reoccurring theme lately) I went out last night and using my floor jack, gave myself a visual reference as to how the truck would look with a 1 inch block and a 2 inch block in the rear. I will tell you right now, 2 inches is waaaay more than I thought!

I did take some pics. I apologize in advance, it was at night. Detail wasn't needed, just over all appearance.

This is as it sits.

Possibility with a 1 inch block.

Possibility with a 2 inch block.

The last one makes it look like the back half of the frame is bent up towards the sky lol.

So my final decision is a 1 inch block. With a 1 inch, I have more than ample room with my brake lines and won't need shocks. (Remember, after I drive it awhile I'm going to decide what I want to do about new shocks, only part of the build I haven't replaced.)

As for the front, I'm not touching a thing. I don't trust coil spring spacers even a tiny little bit no matter how good or safe they are. I haven't been able to find anything in the way of lift spindles and I don't want to change any more of my brand new steering parts for lifted versions.

Overall, just the 1in will be just fine.

I've been looking at blocks, a lot of blocks. I found a set of 1.5in from Fabtech, made from fiberglass reinforced nylon, don't trust that one bit. I found a few sets from other companies that are aluminum, also don't trust it. I did find a set of steel blocks from ProComp, 50 bucks plus shipping. Kinda expensive. So I decided I'm going to make my own.

I have 3 years experience in engineering making parts using 3D modeling, like AutoCad and stress testing designs.

My girlfriend's brother, tho not a professional, is an excellent welder. He built a cage for his company that they attach to forklifts at his work where they hoist people up 4 stories to service the lights and ceilings in the warehouse.

So between the two of us, we shouldn't have a single issue fabricating some nice blocks from steel. And we already have extra steel laying around.

I also had a set of longer U bolts made today for the lift. Pick them up tomorrow.

For now folks, that's all I got.
I think...

LTZ C20 · « **Reply #163 on:** August 02, 2016, 10:58:32 pm »

This is a visual model we made of the blocks. I'm picking up the steel tomorrow from a local steel company. Tomorrow nite they should be built and Thursday they get painted.

With the top section removed to see the internal braces.

Cost for the blocks:
pins- from old springs, no charge.
Steel- under 20 bucks.
Paint & primer- already had from rebuild.
welding- free.
No charge for shipping.

Total: about $20.