Technical Dropping the rear of a 1955 Ford Customline

I have acquired a set of Aerostar springs for the front of my 55 Customline. Now, I need to replace the rear springs. They are worn out and basically flat. I read that Jamco sells some rear springs, but they are priced pretty high.

I had pondered having a set made, but I need to know spring rates etc. I figure I could have a set made and save enough to buy good rear shocks etc. I would love to be able to lower it without having to use blocks. I have a set or 2 of different heights. Just don't want this bottoming out if I take friends along.

Anything factory that will interchange, like the Aerostar front springs?

 

Might try Eaton Detroit Spring(s)...... They're pretty good, and know what's what with stuff.......
Jamco- well, i'de read up on some threads here before I would drop my CC #.....
As far as a replacement/bolt in, Sorry- I have no info. Good luck.

 

Thanks. I'll look at both.

 

Looks like Eaton is out of my price range. They have one spring for $279 plus add $40 to lower it. Man, am I reading their price sheet right?
That would be $600 without u bolts or shocks plus freight, which won't be cheap. Dang.......

Update****
Looks like General Spring may be the winner. Figured I would post his for those that have never used them.
https://www.generalspringkc.com/product_p/42-201.htm
They are stock height, but I am going to call and see what it ould take to have them remove some arch.

 

Don't mean to sound like an ass, but the days of $100 springs are long gone. Both Eaton and Posie have been around for decades and both have always catered to the hot rod after market. Going to your local spring shop if you can find one and asking for info on a custom application is like asking the guys at the local parts store for a small block Chevy part for a 34 Ford, it is not their area of expertise and should not be expected to know what you need. Hope you get what you need but Rock auto, Amazon and ebay will not be your friend on this one. Again not being an ass, I am a retired Rod & Custom builder and have been at this rodeo before. Best of luck with your build Larry

 

Call St. Louis Spring in St.Louis, Mo. They have a website. They do all of our springs at work.


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$100 springs may be long gone, but $129 are still here apparently.

 

I've always been concerned about fatigue using blocks. I make my money as a QC Manager in the aviation field, so I have a tendency to overanalyze...

Is there a maximum height on blocks? I had a machinist make me a set of 3" solid blocks. Overkill? Of course...

 

Chris....unless you're going to run a big block with slicks on the strip you have no worries about running lowering blocks and long U-bolts. When I use really long ubolts, I drill the spring plates and use bigger [1/2" or 9/16ths"] U-bolts. Never had a problem even with 4" blocks.

 

Makes sense.

 

Only problem with blocks is your springs are already 63 years old!
Are there any genuine spring shops around you? They can de-arch and/or flip the eyes and I bet if you walked in the door with you original springs they could make up new main leafs using you originals as patterns for rate.

I put Posies on my '53 years ago and they did NOT improve the ride but DID $#@% up the handling compared to the original leaf springs that I had flipped and re-arched by a local spring shop for $100. That was an expensive lesson to learn regarding marketing hype.
(The handling issue is probably unique to 1949-54 Chevy: they reverse the rear eye but not the front, which puts the leaf on an angle, which introduces rear-steer induced understeer.)

Got off on a tangent, didn't I? Point being, I recommend replacing the springs with new ones but don't fall for the expensive b.s. Blocks or re-arched leafs both work fine.

 

That's why I am wanting to replace them prior to adding blocks. I don't have any spring shops anymore. They have all closed down or relocated to another town. Closest one is Tulsa, which is about an hour and a half away.

 

Way back in the archives of the 1952-59 Ford Group the guys found new springs through J.C. Whitney for $189 a pair. But I ran across these: https://www.generalspringkc.com/product_p/42-201.htm

 

I also used St Louis spring on my 55. 4 inch taken out of ride height. Rides great. I use St Louis spring for most of the old cars that come through the shop. I also use General Spring but mostly for pick ups.

 

What are you trying to accomplish ? Is it too low now with the original springs? Are there broken leafs? Seams silly to buy new spring to set it back up and then lower it again, If it sits good now i'd put new shocks on it and see how it drives.

 

I called STL Spring today and they said they could build me a 4" dropped spring and have them done by tomorrow. They were around $135 each. The part number was 42-201, which oddly enough is the same p/n that KC Spring uses. You have to specify the drop amount.

 

The springs are 50 years old. I am sure I am getting close to the end of useful life cycle. I am sure that if I disassemble I will find at least one broken leaf. The ride height is ok, but it's because they are worn out. I am getting ready to swap motor/trans, rear end etc. I want a good spring if I am going to spend all this time setting it up. It has new shocks and doesn't drive bad, it's just a safety precaution.

 

There's a guy that lots of us on the 52-59 Ford forum use, I know he sells on eBay, just can't recall his name. He will do custom stuff too... found it. McVeighs, aka springking0001 on eBay.

https://www.ebay.com/str/McVeighs-Truck-Springs?_trksid=p2047675.l2563

 

I did the Aerostar coils and blocks method on my '49.
Eventually the rear springs were so sagged out it was more like having a 4"+ drop out back haha. I had planned on new springs but sold the tudor before I got that far. If I recall it was cheaper for me to buy them from St. Louis and ship them to the border than it was to have our local shop make them, even after exchange.

 

I have to agree. For starters you can reverse or increase the size of the shackle and get a pretty good drop without ever actually changing the spring. The rest you can make up with blocks. The biggest issue is going to be driveshaft clearance under the tunnel. I had to pull out the rear seat and recess the floor, which wasn't a huge deal, but I almost wiped out the driveshaft before I took those steps. As stated, regardless of how you go about it, nothing is going to reduce the amount of "bottoming out" if you're going that low. If you're really concerned, a good set of shocks, strong snubbers, and maybe even a big rear sway bar, would likely help reduce the frequency or severity of bottoming out.

As for the strength of blocks, I've absolutely hammered on my car for years with 3" hollow blocks from AutoZone in there and never had any sort of issue. I shattered the spider gears in my 9" carrier with a 6000 rpm 1-2 shift, but didn't damage the blocks. I've got easily 100 passes on it too without any issues. The one thing I will say is that a loose leaf pack in conjunction with a tall block will tend to act like a lever arm and try to wrap the spring up. But that's only under full throttle with a big block and a built trans, and even still it was fine. Not sure what drivetrain you're running but I'm sure you'd be fine.

 

I got mine from ESPO Springs and Things. in Danville, Pa. Remake of stock springs cost $379.25 with shipping. Only problem was they raised the rear 4 inches. Seems the old ones were not only broken but worn out. Now I've got to put 4 inch blocks under it to get it back down. Don't like the "California Rake" look. haha

 

Just a heads up I've used Posies drop springs on the rear of my 52 Chevrolet and they raised the the car. I've heard the same complaint from others.

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Roothawg, if your talking about “ Tulsa Brake and Spring” I can testify that they do good work. Used them many times back in the day. Didn’t know they were still in business.

Bones

 

St. Louis is the place I use. They might even tell you who they sell their springs too. 4" drop is likely a reverse eye.

 

An another vote for St.Louis Spring company.I bought a pair of lowering leafsprings for my shoebox and the price was a really decent.

 

Did you install them upside down??

I kid, I kid.