[sixball]

Custom springs could help if you know exactly what you need. I gad a set of the mono leaf type but they broke. When they break there is no support. In a pack of several leaves the don't all break at once.
 After years of messing with these I recently learned that the leaves on the rear AD pickups are thicker and stronger than the fronts so in packs with fewer leaves might be made with these. ? I'm also mulling over the idea of notching into the axle and incorporating a channel into the mount. I think you could get up to 2" that way and not weaken the axle. The pickup axles are overkill any way.

[ChevRon]

 Thanks for the suggestions Rattiac and Sixball.
 Rattiac I like the way you think, unfortunately I can't do any of them. Pics show my set up. Explains why. I do need main  leafs made ,so I may take you up on having them do the springs.
 Sixball Working in the dirt like I did for 5 years after moving up here. Man looks like a lot of destroyed springs. Your're right, those monoleafs don't last because they are cast instead of forged. My springs are the original 27 springs , pretty thin. Spring centers are unequal.
 So front springs eyes are hidden the front frame horns. Rear spring eyes are in blocks in Delrin with a slot cut in them. There is a stainless steel  pin that goes through the eye of the spring and  sticks out on either side. It rides in the slot. I did it tha way because I used sliders like Rattiac showed in our Chevy II drag car. Very noisy . They "clack" a lot. Not good on a street car. Some pics on the spring and spring eyes.. Might help in understanding how I over engineered this.
 They are a little fuzzy sorry

[sixball]

How tight are the pins in the Darlin? How long do you think they will last? How did you figure out the length of the slots?

 My buddy Vic and I were on our way to Bonneville and both front springs broke within 50 yards of the house, better than 50 miles.    After pawing through that pile of broken springs, some of those were on the pickup, I pulled my last stock pair from a donor frame but I had to remove the good bushings from the broken ones and put them in the good springs. We were leaving home at 8:00 am originally but wound up leaving the bar at 3:00 pm.  We got to Wendover about 4:00 am. We had a great time.

[ChevRon]

 Now there's a pair. Great picture. I know breaking down is no fun , but some of my best memories are working a hot rod  on the roadside. Love that truck , best driver a guy could have.
  Springs.... Slot is made with a mill , the pin  move easily.  The Delrin does not cold work like teflon, very slick, machineable, extremely durable. The slot is longer than it has to be. About 1 1/4". I laid the main leaf  on the floor and  marked it collapsed it, measured how far it moved. In this case 1/2" it all relies on much arch there is. So here is an idea  hope I can explain it. If the slot is angled down from front to rear it would make it slightly harder to move and at the same time tend to move the car up. When the spring compreses it gets longer and pushes backwards , but it might help.  Ron

[sixball]

That sounds like a good idea. Would that effect the caster?

I removed the frame shackle mounts from  '49 Pickup thinking I might be able to use them to lower my roadster by moving the shackle up into the frame rail. On the pickup the shackle is up front, on the roadster it is at the rear of the spring. My driver side shackle mount also mounts the stock steering box that I want to use. Steering geometry my not let that happen. Anyway putting the shackle top pin up in the frame would lower the car and allow use of a shackle. The frame might need a notch but it worked on the pickup.

[sixball]

Vic and I had several near death experiences in that pickup over the years. Some were documented. Someone should do more maintenance on that thing. Sadly he died at Bonneville a year ago August. Just there watching with his brother in law, I couldn't go, he laid down for a nap didn't wake up.

[ChevRon]

  Moving that rear shackle up will help. It'll give about half of  the  distance at the axle the shackle was raised.
 How is the roadster doing. Any more progress...
  I remember you mentioning about your friend. Very sorry.. At our age we lose some. Lost one of my best friends 2 years ago.
  So to move forward I need to get this thing running enough to drive.  I really appreciate  everyone's time with suggestions. Thanks.
 By the way,  how did I get this thread in garage gripes?? 
 Ron

[sixball]

Beats me, but I can gripe about anything. 

I went through all the stuff of moving the roadster to a friends shop where he and another friend were going to help me assemble it. That didn't work and while it was gone other junk filled the space. My goal for the winter is to totally reorganize the shop and get it all back up here. Even though I don't get much done on it I can walk out to the shop and do something. A 5 mile drive to work on it in another guy's shop doesn't work. I can haul the pieces I can't do here somewhere for help. Also other guys, no matter how good of friends, have different ideas. I think they are tired if hearing, " because it's a Chevy!"   

[sixball]

I found some more pictures in my file about these front ends. One of yours, one of a stock height '25-'26, and one of a Zd frame with the axle on top. Yours looks perfect to me but too low for my road. I'd be happy if mine looks as cool as the '25-'26 but anything lower would be better. I think my plan will drop it 4"-6". I think the Zd frame would be better if the Z was a little further back so there would be room to move the shackle up into the frame. I hope to do a cleaner job of mounting the axle on top. The Z creates issues hood and radiator alignment.

[ChevRon]

 I think you can get it low enough with out screwing with the frame. Never was a fan of modifying the front frame rails, at least as far has height goes. The 25-26 look is what I would shoot for.
 Here is a picture of Dick Bertalucci's 1930 Chev roadster drag car front axle.. How he did this I would like to know. Very well done Ron

[Rattiac]

Wonder if he cut off the tabs (with bolt holes) and re-welded em to the lower part of the axle.
Dosent seem like much travel. Probably smacks frame easily.

Here's my experience with lowering car's.
To get it to look good you lose driveability, especially on the highway.
Same thing with lifting vehicles more than 3".
(Steering issues and driveshaft vibrations)

This is why I kept my 32 stock height. Got tired of all that and just wanted a reliable driver.
Plus when I was into lowriders, I got pulled over daily. Mostly by the gang task force unit. Those guys are corrupt and dont care about rights.

[ChevRon]

  I think that's what he did.. It's a drag car so it probably worked ok for him.
  Driving a lowered car any more with the roads getting worse every year is  something to consider.. Especially freeways where the big trucks run.
   Cops. Been there done that. Always wanting give you a hard time. Don't have much faith in them. Ron
 

[sixball]

The first night I took my first car out, "38 Ford coupe in 1961, I ran into one of those cops. Those guys are running at about 10-1 with the good ones. A couple of the good ones were really good ones.

That is just what I have planned for my axle. I will make a mount plate with holes for the u-bolts and mill a recess for it into the bottom of the axle. Then I'll cut the top mount off , weld, shape and fill as needed. I'll be sure to take pictures. I'll have more arch in my springs to get more clearance and make sure the spring pack is stiff enough to avoid contact with the frame. Probably some rubber snubbers somewhere. That is one reason I'm bringing it all back home so I can just do it and not have to explain it or justify it.

As for lowered cars I've never liked them so low that it created issues. Lowness was one of the issues that night in '61.    I have a lot to work with between the bottom of the stock one and the ground. 

[62131]

I have a buddy like that, he can tell you how and all about doing it, but has never built a car, he's good at buying and cleaning one that someone else has built and takes credit for it because he owns it 

[sixball]

These guys are good and do nice work but no matter what they build it leans heavily to the Ford side. They are good friends and only want to help me get the roadster together so we can all have fun with our hot rods. They will be more fun putting the Essex speedster together. None of us know what we are doing there.