mgriffis

Want to put a little more of a muscle car look to my 61. I am curious about a couple of things that I've read in previous posts. The first is has anyone put air shocks on a C1 and if so what model/size do you use? The second is with regard to rim and tire size. I saw a post where someone had a set of 15 x 7 set of Cragars with 215 70/15s. Can anyone verify that this size will work with a 61?

And for my 'I have no idea what this means' question, I also saw a reference to custom offsets (4 3/8 in. backspacing) being used to accomplish this. What does this mean???? :confused:

Thanks,
Mark

JoesC5

Don't have an answer on the air shocks, but I do have 225/70's on 6" rally wheels (3.5" backspacing) on the rear of my 56. 7" wheels will work if they have a backspacing of 4". On the front of mine I have 205/75 on the original 5" wheels but you should have no problem with 215/70's on 6" wheels, and most likely 7" wheels. Depending on the brand and model of the tire you can have different tread widths. I'm running Goodyear Interigty tires which have less tread width then other brand or model tires giving me additional tire to fender clearance in the rear.

JohnZ

Air shocks aren't a great idea on C1's - the upper shock mount area isn't very stout, and the compression loads imposed by air shocks will most likely break the mounts. On the factory RPO 684 race suspension package, the plant welded extra reinforcing plates to the upper shock mounts, and those shocks imposed less load than air shocks do. Stick with a tire and rim combination that will fit in the existing wheel wells without having to "jack the car up" for clearance.

chris ritchie

Somebody at one time made air shocks for C1s. My '62 had them in the early '70s. Made the car look real stupid.

396 RAT

More than likely Gabrial "High Jackers"
Yes, I installed 'em in 1976.
With extensions no less.
Looked real cool with Crager's.
Tall Fatties in the back and pizza cutters in the front.
Man, I hope that look never comes back! :rolleyes:

mgriffis

I'm not looking to do anything real stupid looking with my car; just kind of subtle. I just wanted to be able to have a change of pace from my classic cokers. This is what I was sort of going for



Also, what does backspacing exactly mean?

Thanks

GTs 58

My TT D's are 15 x 7 and I'm running 215/65's on the rear. No clearance problems now that the old 58 leaf springs were replaced. I think my backspacing on the wheels 3.75". The distance from the mounting face to the inside lip of the wheel.

Mac

The thing to remember about air shocks is they are designed to restore suspension height to it's normal range, not to raise the level of the car. Most of the time, the manufacturers label them as 'overload' shocks (ie: to assist springs in bearing loads larger than they were designed to carry).

Using air shocks to lift your rear bumpers higher than your belt buckle is imprudent for several reasons, ride quality and safety being foremost. I was not aware (as JohnZ posted) the top mount were liable to break under pressure, but it makes sense since the shock mounts were never designed to sustain pressure from air shocks.

I, too, must confess to having installed air shocks in my youth, trying to achieve the 'drag racer' look (big back tires, small fronts) so learn from my foolishness- it's a bad idea. It wasn't so bad when I was going straight but every corner was a new experience in terror! :eek:

dropTopTx

Im running 15x6 TT D's with 215x65s and am very pleased with both the look and the handling improvement. I had tall bias plys before and the radial difference is amazing.

The pic in the sig was before the centercaps came in. BTW - if anyone is looking for a set of cross-flag centercaps for TTDs I will make you a deal. I got the chrome wheels and the stainless centercaps just dont look right so Im running the plain old AR centers

Torchred62

I am using 16X7 TT IIs on my 62 with 215 60R 16 Goodyear Eagle's all around and have no trouble with rubbing unless I have a heavy load in the trunk. I use air shocks then just to raise it back up. I have real good handling with this combination and many comments about the looks. I used the standard offset from the factory on the TT II's which I believe is around 4 1/2.

396 RAT

Answering a question with a question.....
Out of curiosity I am asking this....................
I have noticed about 1/2 the C1's I see (mainly at car shows)
Have large "gaps" or uneven gaps between fender lips and tires,
front to rear. Why is that? Is it hard to make these cars level?
Or give them a slight rake? (Have never owned a C1) But really like
56's & 57's (being 6' 3" is a problem in them though)
And as to your original question, if the car is low in the rear
(and components back there are in good cond)
is it feasible to lower the front to match? Instead of raising the back?
Or are you doing this just for larger tires?
One more confession here, the "Drag" car with Airshocks in 76 had its front coils heated & lowered at a muffler shop. It was common back then, a torch
and a tape measure! Worked fine? (after an alignment) :lol:
But today we all know better. Never heat a spring. I have set up a few cars for handling using Iebach progressive rate springs. Might want to check if they make springs for C1's.
Again, more questions than answers :)

396 RAT

You will have to check with the C1 Gurus
to find out the best route. Drop spindles?
Shorter springs? Cutting a coil? All work fine,
Just dont know which is best for C1's.
Now I know why I see so many with a 2-3"
Gap on the rear. Owners going fol level or a rake I guess.

Plasticman

I guess I should ask a question as well.

My 62 has the 5 leaf rear springs. I see that some suppliers list the 5 leaf as "HD" and the 4 leaf as "standard". Since I can attest that the 5 leaf is "firm", and having never ridden in a 4 leaf version, I was wondering what the real difference is between the 2 different springs. Anybody have any experience or data on these 2 springs?

Just to also add to the above info on wheels/tires, I am running 15X6 TTD's with 235-60X15's in the rear. I have smaller 215X60-15's in the front. No rub - ever on either end. I like the stance and rake with this combination, and the smaller tires in the front are easier steering as well. Handing is great. Only down side is not being able to rotate them. When I was measuring for wheel spacing, I found that the standard 7" width TTD rims would not fit in the rear (probably of rubbing very high). Note that leaf springs do deflect sideways as well (during higher cornering loads).

INMYBLOOD

Yes thru the course of rebuilding both my car and my fathers we have chosen a few different parts. His car has the 5 leaf and mine has the 4 leaf. I have not driven them both back to back in a little while but I do remember the 5 leaf being a little stiffer and almost remember a little more lift from it. The 5 leaf has a little more resistance to wheel hop. The 4 leaf is easier to wheel hop. I could call dad and ask if he wants to get them out for a ride and make a few new comparisons. Although he has the 5 leaf springs I would bet my car has more bounce to the ride. Dad has chosen tall skinny tires with his hub caps and I have 7" rallys in front with 215/65/15's about 26.1" tall and 8" rallys in back with 235/60/15's about 26.1 " tall. I think the body line along the hood looks level on my car but some time also wish the wheel well was smaller.

Edit: On the shock issue I have a type of "gas charged" shock on the rear and a delco silver replacement on the front.




[Modified by INMYBLOOD, 8:13 AM 11/8/2002]

Plasticman

INMYBLOOD,

Thanks for the info. Nothing like talking to someone who has experience with both type of springs! I have very bad wheel hop (with the 5 leaf) so I think I will need to stay with them. I changed the rear shock setting (older Gabrial Striders with 3 settings - Reg., Firm, & Extra Firm). They are now set at Reg. and the ride is very decent! When at the strip, I changed them to Extra Firm and still had terrible wheel hop. I have on my plate to buy/make a set of traction masters, but have not gotten to it yet!

Thanks again,
Plasticman

INMYBLOOD

Plasticman, I really liked the pictures of the traction masters JohnZ. put up :yesnod: At the current time I just have a set of "slappers" that I modified to work. They don't make th car "bite" but they stop wheel hop. It tries to push the wheels down, but if you give it too much gas you spin. You either get some bite or you can just sit and fry the tires, but it did stop the hop. If smoking the tires is what you want to do every now and then they work great :D Although they make my car bouncy :crazy: So there is the drawback to the "slapper type. One great reason to put the effort into the traction master fabrication. My car predates the radius rods so it's just springs and rear.

Plasticman

INMYBLOOD,

Agree on the Traction Masters! Now I have to get moving on them. Perfect winter project.

Thanks for the info on the slapper bars. Your experience agrees with my initial thoughts (bouncy on the street). Grumpy had a good idea for the strip, but not that terrific for the street. We like to go for long rides, and Illinois roads are "SAD".

Plasticman

JohnZ

Don't use slapper bars that clamp to the front of the spring; that turns the whole rear axle into a giant anti-sway bar, enormously increasing rear roll stiffness, which will induce MAJOR oversteer characteristics. Slapper bars with rubber bumpers that don't touch the spring except when launching should be OK, as are Traction-Masters.

Plasticman

JohnZ,

Understood! I have the pictures and dimensions you previously supplied for the Traction Masters that were on your 57. Plan on doing that this winter if nothing else pops up.

Thanks,
Plasticman

carcruse

Years ago I had air shocks on my '62. They were Delco's but I doubt if they're still available. Never had any problems with them.

I just checked my records. They were Delco P3026, paid $34.95 for the pair on 6-27-72.


[Modified by carcruse, 7:27 PM 11/14/2002]