Technical I know it's wrong, but how wrong is it?

Take the spring out and put a solid bar in its place would be safer. Well you have no spring at present as it has nowhere to go when you hit a bump, it must handle scary.
Sorry the only solution to retain your current ride height is to fit a dropped axle. I would suggest a So-Cal axle and matching spring , with these you can retain your existing original stub axles and steering arms.

 

I'd say you have some sound advice here, replace the spring with whatever you decide, possibly reversed eye spring and whatever else. I gotta say "Nice Score"!

 

The upside is...... Period correct hot rod! Period correct modifications.

 

Right now. Before you spend a dime visualize your sedan in it's final state. Or put another way, what do you want to end up with when you are done. Also consider what you want to do with your rod once it is ready for the road.

The original suspension and drive train are just fine for running around the local area. On the other hand, if your plans include driving to Boneville, Vegas, Yellowstone, etc via the Interstates an OHV V8 drivetrain, power disc brakes and rack and pinion steering, along with air conditioning may suit you better.

Whatever way you go your front end repairs should support your vision.

Over the years I have had good experiences with Sacramento Vintage Ford. They are, of course, interested in selling you parts but the can also give you good counsel. I suggest you go by when you have some time and discuss options and their cost.

Good luck.

 

^good grief is this street rod .com?

Might as well tell the guy to go buy a mid 90's caprice classic as a nice traditional car.

 

To the OP nice car! A drop axle and a stock spring sounds like a sensible solution without ruining the old car feel.

 

Agreed! Rack and pinion have no place on a traditional hotrod

 

Most of you guys are a bunch of Sissy's. Look closer: what your screaming is a Cracked spring is the end of the 3rd leaf. NO BIG DEAL! I did this treatment many times and am still driving a car with the same heated springs I did back in 1965. The very worst thing that "might" happen is a total failure (I have Never seen this happen) and the spring breaking off at the spring eye. Then, the only thing would be that the Axle would make contact with the Rubber snubber that looks to be about 1-1/2" above it and fastened to the bottom of the Frame. Again, NO BIG DEAL! You ain't Gonna Krash and Burn. It can't get away unless the wishbone breaks off with it. If you must, then go buy a dropped I Beam and a new spring and be like all the other big buck guys but the car won't be any safer or drive any different, it will just be different. How do you think they dropped all those I Beam Axles back in the 50's? I'll tell you how, With a Torch or in a Forge till they were Red hot. Then they "BENT" them. Think about that for a second.
The Wizzard

 

I'm looking forward to the photos of the spring spreader set up used to remove this spring. Bob

 

As kids we didn't have Fancy tools for the springs. We just used wood blocks, a bumper jack and the weight of the Car to do the job. I still have all my Fingers and both my Eye's.
The Wizzard

 

We just made longer shackles on our old Fords.

 

Heating the spring will not hurt anything, however the danger is who heated it and did they quench it in water. If they did, could be very dangerous. And yes this was common in the 40,s and 50,s.

 

I love Russian Roulette logic.

None of the guys that this killed are here to tell you that this is a really stupid thing to do.

 

I always keep the word "anecdotal" in the back of my mind while reading stuff here (and elswhere).

From wikipedia: "Anecdotal evidence is evidence from anecdotes, i.e., evidence collected in a casual or informal manner and relying heavily or entirely on personal testimony. When compared to other types of evidence, anecdotal evidence is generally regarded as limited in value due to a number of potential weaknesses, but may be considered within the scope of scientific method as some anecdotal evidence can be both empirical and verifiable, e.g. in the use of case studies in medicine. Other anecdotal evidence, however, does not qualify as scientific evidence, because its nature prevents it from being investigated by the scientific method."

 

As my college statistics professor always said: "The plural of the word anecdote is not he word data."

 

I hesitate to jump in here, because so many know so much more than me (no sarcasm intended) but here goes. I think we are discussing two different things. One, is bending springs inherently dangerous, and two, are these particular springs dangerous?

On number one, my opinion is that bending them is not always a terrible idea. Steel that has been heated and allowed to cool gradually will be somewhat annealed. Doesn't that mean it is, by definition, less brittle? I researched this a good bit before I did it, and one of the reasons I found that some old timers did it, besides economy, was that it effectively shortened the spring, which pulled the shackles back away from vertical, a good thing if you had removed leaves and flattened the spring. Either way, it was a pretty common thing back in the day.

On number two, I don't really like the fact that the end of the second leaf butts up against the shackle perch. As someone else noted, when the spring compresses, that leaf should be able to slide on the one under it, but it can't do much, because it's jammed up against that perch. The spring above it is jammed up against it's bend, so it can't slide, either. Maybe that second leaf should be removed? As far as the crack goes, something is weird there. Looks to me like there is a thicker portion on the rear of that bent part that runs all the way up to the tip. Could it be just cracked paint lifting? Either way, I think a lot of the concerns voiced so far are a result of this particular application, and not necessarily evidence that the whole idea is bogus. I didn't find a bunch of anecdotal reports of bent spring failure in my research.

 

The spring only has one eye the other leaf is just real long.

That said they have bent the spring to lower the car, not your best option but it was common way back when. Some got heated and bent and other got pressed to bend them. Heating was most common and was the worse option.

On your spring setup the 3rd leaf needed to be shortened it is t stressing the second leaf and if it has not cracked at the bend yet the 3rd leaf will either rub a hole in it or cause it to crack at the bend. If it were mine I would replace the spring, either with a reverse eye spring or at the very least a dearched spring to keep the ride height.

Just for information while I am typing here another thing that used to get done to lower them on a spring on front or spring behind on the rear suspension was to use longer shackles.

 

Do you guys know how they put the eye on a spring? They heat it red hot and bend it around a pin. Then they quench it!

It isn't black magic. They rarely break at the eye. The crack looks more like paint and rust flakes than anything. Springs typically break at the center pin hole. Or at a point half way between the shackle and the center.

I'd fix it because it would ride better, not because it is scary.

 

Who the hell would want of those ugly Standards? Oh wait,nevermind...

 

To resolve the issues with this modification, take a half inch off each end of the third spring so it isn't impinging on the second one under compression. I'd also take a bit off of each end of the second leaf so it isn't hitting the shackle.

The unknown is how the heating and cooling was done on the spring to drop it, which is the only thing I would be afraid of. Then again, a lot of us are driving vehicles that may have had modifications made that weren't done by the book, yet we don't piss our pants in fear nor quiver like a dog shitting peach pits every time we drive them.

It's a roll of the dice, so in the interest of safety you are being advised by many to replace the spring, replace the spring with a reversed eye version, replace the spring and install a dropped axle, etc. Then the questions are (1. How good is the steel in that new spring, or (2. Did the guy who dropped the axle know what he was doing?

While you have it disassembled, make sure you check your entire frame for cracks and make sure your oil drain plug is in tight.

 

This situation is a lot like leftovers in the fridge. Some you know are good, and there is an old saying that covers the rest that is also applicable here. "When in doubt: throw it out!" Just like botulism there an appreciable risk to use it, as is. AND, as to going pussyfoot suspension, on this board we are traditional by choice because street rods lose the feeling of 'how it was'. The flavor is lost. Personally, I would find a replacement stock axle and have it dropped by Sid. I would also find a stock spring and reverse the eyes. While you have allowed out you should consider another method for attaching the shocks. AND, also replace the tie rods with thick wall tubing and jamb nuts. I would even go further and consider alternatives to the steering box. Why? Because, when you get your ride righteous, you will want to drive the wheels off it. And , some technology is merely a safe and sane solution to modern traffic and road conditions. I could go on but my time is up.

 

The ony real issue is that you don't know who or how it was done.
It looks like it's been there for a while, so it may be OK for now.
My 39 has a dro axle in it, and I agree that a regular spring and drop axle would ride better. Drive it for now until you get yer new setup.


Sent from my LGLS992 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Here's the way a 40 Ford with a Magnum 4 inch dropped axle, dropped steering arms and Posie #2040 reversed eye spring looks. The dropped axle lowers the car 2 in. A reversed eye stock spring lowers the car 1 more inch. The Posie spring lowers car about 1 1/2 in. Shackles should be a 45 degrees. Sid will fix you up. Buy new shackles and insulators also. 39-41 axles are the same. Looks like the rubber axle bump stops have been cut down.
What is that round silver looking object to the left?

 

19Fordy; I like the system you have with the New dropped Axle and New spring set up. I agree it's a very "Safe" way to get a good ride profile. I question the appearance in the posted Photo of your dropped steering arms putting the New tie rod as well as the cross steer link below the "New" Dropped Axle as well as the Tire Scrub line. If that is the case how can your set up be any safer than a heated spring?
The Wizzard

 

LOL safe is a relative term. One of our old heaps even poorly built is certainly safer than going to high school these days.

 

Now there is a True statement as sad as it is. Times have changed for sure.

 

Yep we used to just punch someone in the mouth. Not today.

 

The Wizzard, Thanks for the kind words. You make a very good point. The bottom of my tie rod and the dropped steering arm are both below the scrub line. Not good, but I wanted a severe rake and chose a combination of tires and hardware to achieve that goal. I dropped the front bumper height about 13 inches from stock. I am hoping that if I have a flat tire the flattened tire will provide a cushion. Or, I might just reinstall the OEM spring to gain an inch.
Not being a metallurgist, I am not qualified to answer the "heated spring" question. By the way, I always appreciate your posts.

 

Thanks 19Fordy; sure wasn't picking on your Car by any means. Just pointing out there are as many different ways to get a job done as there are guys doing it. Just because all the parts are New don't make them a good system once put together. That's Okay. What I may do for myself is often no where close to what I would do for a Customer. There is no one perfect answer for everyone.
The Wizzard

 

Just one of the reasons there was a revolution.