What shock did you use? I am looking to do the same thing to mine. It has some original type shocks and they do not seem to be working that great.
front and rear are mid 60s VW beetle. the eyes are metric so you need to use metric bolts thru the eyes....they are cheap and work well and the length was nearly perfect
I would like to know where can I buy a rear T Spring with reverse eye the same you use Ron Brown Sent from my SM-A510F using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I'd say he used a stock one and reversed the main but I'd think anyone from posies to speedway could sell you one
I ask the spring maker in Phoenix to "make me a rear spring for a '29 Ford with a reversed eyes, that will make my Model set 5 inches lower than stock" $200.00 and a week later, got it.
From a ride height perspective, are '32 spindles any different than Model A spindles or is the advantage of using them that the tie rod position can be changed for clearance? Put another way, are the axles located differently in relation to the king pin boss on the axle? Also curious if the spindle change would be as necessary with a '33-36 axle that has about 2 1/2" drop in it's stock form? I'd also plan to reverse the main spring eyes, front and rear, and would also remove some spring leafs for additional lowering per the description in the 1st post. I hope to get to work on my '31 A Coupe soon, and am torn between finding a '33 to '36 axle (about 1 1/2" lower than an A axle?) or having my A axle dropped to a 4" drop. I don't want to go really low, and I like the height of your car in the 2nd and 3rd photos in your original post Ron. I already have 15" wheels and tires and would like to use them. Compared to your 16's, the 15" wheels/tires I have are shorter, and if my memory serves correctly the rears are about 28" tall and the fronts about 26". I just don't know if it's still going to still appear tall with the smaller diameter 15" tires? Thanks Lynn
Thanks, Manager, for the clarification on the spindles. Now I'll look forward to getting some feedback on using a stock '33-36 axle vs. having my Model A axle dropped to 4", and how it might end up looking with my smaller diameter 15" wheels and tires. My gut feeling is that with a 4" drop axle the front might be a bit too low in relation to the rear unless I switch to a T rear spring, rather than using the A rear spring and just removing leafs and reversing the spring eyes on the rear. Lynn
spindles are not the way to lower . dropped axle (4" is not that low" , reversed eye springs help also . mine is a daily driver & have no problems with being low . 500x16 front / 800x16 rear . coil overs in rear .
I used a stock '35 front axle with '32 spindles & perches, reversed eye main leaf with two leafs removed from pack. 600-16 front tires. Combination lowered the front end about 4 1/2 inches on my '29.
1stGrumpy.....That's the sort of front ride height I'm looking for, and seems easy enough to achieve without spend a lot of money by using stock "factory" parts. I think even with 15" wheels/tires the front end would have the look I'm after. I will say, I do want the rear end a bit lower on my '31 Coupe and wonder if you did anything on that end? As I mentioned in my earlier post, I plan on a reversed eye main spring leaf and removal of a few leafs, and hoping that will be good for about a 3" drop from where my car sits now in it's stock suspension form. Thanks Lynn
A Model T rear spring will bring the back down a bit more. It is a bit narrower so you need to make up spacers so the fit inside the rear cross member it tight. Bob
The37Kid....Thanks. I did just speed-read through 1stGrumpy's build report in his link and saw that it appears the rear end is all stock A stuff at the time of the photo, with plans to do a T spring and other work in the future. So, I'm just curious, how much more would a T spring, with a "reasonable" number of leafs lower the rear end compared to a reversed-eye A spring with about 4 or 5 leafs removed? I am aware that the T spring is narrower than the A spring and that a proper width spacer (cut down A leaf) is needed at the bottom, and perhaps the top (?) of the leaf stack to center it in the crossmember. Thanks....again! Lynn
As mentioned, I do intend to address the rear spring height in the near future. I have a '39 transmission and 3:54 gears to install so I will take care of it all at the same time. Haven't decided just how I am going to do it yet, either with a T rear spring or a modified A set up. You are correct about the rear needing to be lowered, V4F! Thanks for taking the time to read the build thread lake_harley.
I do most all of my work , but I have found that what my mind eye see's , my hands are playing a whole different game I like seeing what others do
I got a super deal on a rear T spring from Okie Joe while I was at his place a couple weeks ago getting a 4" drop axle. I finally got the spring disassembled, sandblasted and installed. It had 10 leaves. Counting the main leaf as #1, the #2 and #3 leaves were the same length, and although a bit shorter #4 and #5 were also about the same length. Leaf #6 through the top one got progressively shorter like usual. I swapped the top (shortest) leaf on the T spring for the top leaf from the A spring to get the 2 1/4" width for centering it in the crossmember. I assembled the spring pack in the car, a '31 Ford Coupe, since I don't have a spring spreader. What a pain, and I even had help from my neighbor who's a car guy too. When I got it all together I put the car's weight on it and was really disappointed when it sat as high as it did with the A spring! I had no choice but to disassemble the whole works again, took out leaves #2 and #4 (the "twins" of #3 and #5 as numbered above) and finally got the whole thing back together, but this time I was working by myself. Considering the pain I found it to be to assemble a spring pack in the car (twice!), I wish I had taken the time to build a spring spreader. The whole process would have been easier and quicker. With it all together the second time I let the car back down on the suspension and am pretty happy with it's stance. The car now has a 35/36 front axle, reversed eye main leaf front spring with two leaves out of the pack (9 remain I believe). The rear is the "standard" eye T spring in the back (7 leaves from the T spring and the top is the top leaf from the A spring). There is one question I have though. The T spring appears to have a tighter top radius curvature than the A spring. The "U" bolts and cast "blocks" that secure the rear spring in the crossmember don't fit up into the crossmember like they did with the A spring. Using the same castellated nuts that held the A spring, the end of the "U" bolt is about even with the base of the slots in the castellated nuts. I'd guess they would have to thread on another 5 or 6 turns, which would take some serious torque, to be able to install cotter keys providing the "U" bolts didn't break or something strips threads first. Am I missing something, or it that pretty typical? The nuts are threaded on to the "U" bolts at least the number of threads as a non-castellated nut would have. Should I maybe make some different clamp "blocks" that don't have as much thickness as the stock cast parts so they tighten up higher, closer to the crossmember flanges, and allow the castellated nuts to be cotter keyed? Thanks, in advance, for offering input and advice. Sorry I don't have a photo. I'm sure that would have made my question more understandable. Lynn
sorry to say , but a "T" spring is not the answer . as you found the arch is higher . a reversed eye "A" spring with leaves out will . ive been thru every scenario there is . my reversed eye "A" spring was the best , but coil overs are better . I have a posey reversed eye front spring & it is where I wanted it to be . this is what it looked like then , but stiff . this is now . this is where I quit & use for my only car (daily driver) . I have a spring spreader I have no use for but you are far away . build one or buy one as it will keep you from hurting your self ........ good luck
At the risk of getting in a pissing match with V4F, I have to disagree with his opinion concerning the Model T spring. The use of a T spring has been used for many years, it is the old school way of lowering the rear end. Here are two pictures of my sedan, the first is with a stock Model A rear spring and the second is with a Model T spring. The only modifications that were done was to use a A top leaf (for centering) and removing one leaf. I am using the stock Model A clamp and u-bolts and I am able to get the cotter pin in. Are you sure that you have the spring pack seated properly? Sometimes it helps to grease the inside of the crossmember and around the highest part of the spring pack.
1st Grumpy.....Your A has a nice stance. Both the A and the T springs have "regular" eyes? I notice you also used the A top leaf. I suppose you removed the T top leaf and used the A in it's place like I did? My total T spring pack currently has 8 leaves, including the main and the really short top. You probably notice that my T spring had 10 leaves and I removed one of each of the longest ones that had "twins" just up from the main. Do you happen to recall how many leaves you have since you said you deleted one.....9.....7? I did a bit of searching and see that Snyders offers T rear springs with 8,9 or 10 leaves. If I went from my current 8 to 7 leaf spring pack (like you perhaps have?) the clamps would work out just fine with the "extra" ~1/4" gone. But....before I pull this all apart and reassemble everything, I will build a spring spreader! Thanks Lynn
no problem here . I like my tires more into the fenders . I never get upset as I'm to old ! just passing on things I have tried ...... thanks
I am curious V4F, is your car in it's current configuration, the maroon version I guess, on coilovers or the modified A spring? I'm guessing both are the same car, but I don't know. With the reversed-eye A main spring (Is the gray or maroon on the A spring? Maybe neither?), how many leaves did you have in the total spring pack? I'm not adverse to buying a reversed-eye A main spring and re-doing the spring if that would be better than the T spring. I thought, based on the original poster's progression of changes that I was on the right track, but now I'm starting to second guess myself even though I am happy with the stance of my A. I mostly want to know that I have the spring securely anchored in place, and that's why I posted the spring clamp/U-bolt question. It certainly wouldn't take much to fabricate a 1/2" or 5/8" thick flat "strap" clamp for the U-bolts, maybe with some channel built in to hold the 2" spring securely, but wondered if I was the only one who had the "problem" with the U-bolts and nuts. Thanks, again! Lynn
Lynn... Neither spring had a reversed eye and yes, I replaced the top leaf from the T spring with the A top leaf. My original A spring pack had an additional leaf, as I recall it was one of the longer ones. My T spring pack was a 8 leaf pack, I removed one making it 7 leafs but I put that leaf back in under the main leaf after cutting it down to about 6 inches long, 3 inches on either side of the center bolt hole. In the past, I have run across rear cross members that have had a plate welded inside that I have assumed was used for repairing cracks and/or a worn center hole. Also, there were two different rear spring clip bars used depending on which spring pack was used. These are the brackets that hold the spring up inside the cross member. One was 5/8" overall height and the other was 1 1/8". Hope this helps...
1stGrumpy....thanks for another VERY helpful post! Just from memory I'd say my spring brackets are the thick ones. I do know there's no reinforcement plate up inside the crossmember since I know I looked up into it. I may look for the thinner spring clamp brackets or just make a pair out of 5/8" thick steel plate that I have here and call it a day. Lynn
Lynn... You can get the brackets from Snyder's and I'm sure the other company's have them as well. If you do decide to make your own, be certain that there is no gap between the spring and the plate.
lynn , the gray car is the reversed eye "A" spring . maybe like 5 leaves . the maroon car is coil over . both sit about the same . anytime I can help just ask . I'm no custom car builder , but old time hot rodder . try to do what my mines eye sees ...............stetve
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