Technical Broken leaf spring

First some basics. 1947 Chevy coupe(avatar) with Chassis Engineering Rear leaf spring and mounts kit. Also added 3" lowering blocks witch put the U bolt nuts 1" below scrub. I am going to go to 2" blocks to remedy that part.

Ok..I went over a set of railroad tracks that sat on a steep up and down hill( like a teeter totter fulcrum and my car was the board) So a leaf caught a track and broke the end off.
It broke the first inch off and it is bent in a way so it wouldn't dig into the main spring.

So one question I have is would it be safe/ok to drive it this way?
and second, I was looking to soften the ride a bit, Would removing a spring be the way to go or just bite the bullet and get two new springs with a softer ride.

 

removing the leaf will soften the ride, and drop it again some. Could always give it a try, all youre out is time. Then if you dont like it, get new springs

 

I can't think of any reason why I wouldn't drive it like that

 

I think I would be checking for other damage. that had to take a hellava hit.

 

^^^^ What he said. It takes a lot of force to do that damage. Look at all of the brackets and bolts to be sure that there isn’t something else that’s damaged and could fail later.
In my ‘29 pu I hit a nasty rut in a local road hard enough that I pulled over to look for damage. I didn’t see any suspension problems so I went about my business. A couple days later I noticed that the engine was idling a little faster. It turned out that the impact had cracked the motor mount that welds to the frame and it was slowly lowering the left front of the engine as it failed. I caught it before it actually broke. It can’t hurt to look.


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It appears to me the broken leaf is just below the main leaf. While you could easily soften the spring rate by carefully selecting which leaf or leaves to remove, it wouldn’t be that leaf if I were choosing. The main leaf carries a lot of forces and, IMO, needs the support of that second leaf. Perhaps remove the third and maybe also the fifth, but I’d replace that broken leaf or the entire spring, given the impact it was subjected to.

Ray

 

Leaf springs are tough and don't easily break like that one did. I would be really concerned about more damage. The weak point on old leaf springs is under the axle where everything is clamped together, its not uncommon to break leafs under the axle. With that leaf bending backwards and breaking off, my concern would be how many of the leafs on that one spring pack broke at the center, and how the impact effected the rear end of the spring and its shackle and mounting bracket. It would be difficult for me to believe that one broken spring leaf is the only damage.

Given the amount of stress on that one spring pack, I would probably move towards replacing both springs with a pair of new lighter duty springs if I wanted a smoother ride. Gene

 

Read his post 5 times and take it to heart and forget what the BS artistrs say. The second leaf is never a leaf you remove when you remove leaves.
Those aren't stock leaves or springs to begin with so if it were me I'd be headed to the local spring shop and have a new leaf made on that one. The lack of support is going to cause the main leaf to break eventually.

 

Whats your ride worth to you...that is the question

 

Just an update...
I took the spring off today and disassembled and inspected all the leafs, the perches and looked over the entire undercarriage. Everything else appeared alright.
One thing I didn't mention is, I was only going about 2mph when the spring hit. And I believe it was not a straight on hit but, rather a pulling down of the caught leaf as the rear of the car teetered up. I added some pictures and you can see it snapped right where the spring clamp is riveted. You can still see half the rivet hole. I drew a line so you can see how much spring is missing. Still deciding how to proceed. I also added a picture of the whole spring, 5 leafs, if anyone can comment on which of the last 4 leafs to remove to soften the ride. OR give me a lead on a good place to order new springs. I don't know if the C.E. springs are for something heavier but I think it's a little on the rough side.
This is what it should look like.

 

@Country Joe .....Thanks for the pics. Were it my car, And not wanting to spend any more than necessary, I would replace the broken leaf.....and then remove the second from the bottom and try that to see if the ride improves noticeably/satisfactorily.

TCI has come out with some parabolic springs specifically to address ride quality on some of their leaf kits. I bought the discontinued design (4 leaf pack) for my currently in build ‘37 Chevy coupe. What I have may be satisfactory when finished and driven, but I did call them about buying just the parabolic springs since I have their kit installed and do not need another set of mounts and shackles.

However, the person I talked to said they would not sell springs only, just the kit. For now that is okay, but if it turns out I am not satisfied with the ride, I may ‘appeal’ that policy. Of course, it may be that the kit may be worth the few(?) extra bucks, depending on what a pair of springs may sell for as separate parts.

Ray

 

I have the same set up in my Chevy. I think the springs are Dodge Dakota rear springs. If so that could be the reason for the rough ride that I also have.

 

putting the spring insulators between the leaves should improve the ride.

 

I have Posies rear springs on the rear of my 41 Chevy Coupe and they ride beautifully. They're something like 2" lower than stock but still require 2" blocks to get a not crazy low ride height. They mount to the stock mounts, so all you buy is the springs.

Chris