Budget Front Coil Spring Conversion
| Work has now begun on the front spring conversion. The 5 inch blocks on the front made the Graboid a terror on the roads. Here are some photos I am using as a guide. | |
| First step, and usually my favorite, Rip things out! | |
| Now to find out what the previous owners did. Its UGLY! They had tack welded 6 inch blocks onto the spring perches. The 2nd photo is of the drivers side spring perch, or where it used to be. Two whacks with a hammer an it was gone. As you can see in the 3rd photo, (the passenger side spring perch) their welding skills were not the best. | |
| After some time with a grinder and wire brush it looked a bit better. I have mocked up the spring perches to make sure the locations will work. | |
| Now for some welding. I recruited a freind that actually knows what he is doing, told him not to ask any questions and just weld. Here are the results of the passenger side mount. | |
| With both of the lower mounts welded it is now time to mock things up so I can measure for the radius arms and panhard rod | |
| Passenger side views | |
| Driverside views | |
| A couple days of welding and brushing has resulted in alot of progress. The passengers side trailing arm and brackets are finshed and the arm is test mounted. Looks like some trimming is needed. | |
| With the trailing arms mounted it is time to check ride height with the tires in place, and measure for the track locator bar. | |
Most of the parts I have used have been salvaged from various other projects. The springs and shock mounts are from a 4th gen Camaro. The coil spring mounts were fabricated from u-bolt plates that were on the truck. The parts that I have had to buy are itemized below:
|
Graboid Front Coil Spring Conversion | ||||
|
Part Description |
Source of Part |
Quantity |
Price |
Total Cost |
|
Rod Ends |
Big R |
8 |
$8.49 |
$67.92 |
|
Shocks |
Advance Auto |
2 |
$22.00 |
$44.00 |
|
Pitman Arm |
Ebay |
1 |
$39.00 |
$39.00 |
|
5200 lb spring hanger |
Big R |
6 |
$6.00 |
$36.00 |
|
Trailing Arm Steel |
Local Steel Supplier $/ft |
12 |
$1.10 |
$13.20 |
|
Bolts |
Big R |
10 |
$1.00 |
$10.00 |
|
Spring Perches |
Big R |
4 |
$2.49 |
$9.96 |
|
Total parts |
$220 | |||
Here are some links that I have found to be pretty helpful: